Sandy Davidson disappeared on 23 April 1976 while playing in the garden of his family home in Irvine. He was with his sister Donna and the family dog when the dog ran into the street; Sandy chased it and was never seen again. Donna Davidson launched an appeal to mark the 50th anniversary of the disappearance.
A massive police search was launched at the time, and work on homes and a school for the nearby Bourtreehill estate was suspended. Sandy's parents Margaret and Phillip believed their son was taken by a lonely man who wanted a child. According to BBC News, Donna Davidson described how a workman from the building site contacted her after a newspaper appeal, saying he saw Sandy holding a man's hand and not struggling.
It was beyond heartbreaking to still not have any answers about what happened on 23 April 1976.
In 2017, Donna told BBC Scotland News she suspected Sandy was no longer alive. The primary school being built at the time was demolished in 2014, but the land was not fully excavated despite family pleas. In November 2013, someone born around the same time as Sandy came forward and underwent a DNA test, which proved he was not Sandy. In 2015, someone contacted Donna through a Facebook group alleging they were abducted by a teenage girl around the time of the disappearance; police could not link the incidents. Police Scotland released a new image of what Sandy might look like as a 53-year-old man. Detective Inspector Louise White said: "Sandy remains a missing person and our thoughts are very much with his family on this momentous anniversary of his disappearance. It is a very hard time for them. Someone must have seen Sandy that day and..."
We were in the garden playing with the dog and the dog got out of the garden. Sandy followed the dog and I went after them as well. I returned back with the dog and Sandy has never been seen since. It has always been part of my life. It has always been there.
He said he saw Sandy going away and holding a gentleman's hand but he didn't feel any cause for concern because he wasn't struggling and seemed quite happy. It has played in his mind all this time because he was probably the last person to see him alive. It has affected so many people.
Sandy remains a missing person and our thoughts are very much with his family on this momentous anniversary of his disappearance. It is a very hard time for them. Someone must have seen Sandy that day and...