Five arrests made as murder investigation is launched in Lynn

Five people have been arrested on suspicion of murder following the disappearance of a man in Lynn.The arrests were made simultaneously on Tuesday morning at addresses in Lynn, Norwich and Peterborough.They followed enquiries into the disappearance of 54-year-old Maris Ile, a Latvian national who was living in Lynn and worked in Ely.

• A man in his 50s was arrested in Lynn• A woman in her 50s was arrested in Lynn• A man in his 20s was arrested in Peterborough • A man in his 30s was arrested in Norwich• A man in his 40s was arrested in Norwich All five suspects have been taken into police custody, where they are being questioned.Maris was reported missing on November 23 last year, and enquiries established he had not been seen or heard from since November 20.Officers have been following numerous leads and gathering evidence, which over time has led them to believe Maris has come to harm. Detective Superintendent Phill Gray, from the Norfolk and Suffolk Major Investigation Team, said: “Maris was a seasonal worker in the UK and had quite a structured life, keeping in regular contact with his family in Latvia.”No one has seen or heard from Maris since November 20 when he left his address in King’s Lynn to go to work but he never arrived.“As a result of our enquiries, we believe Maris has come to harm and have therefore taken the unusual step to launch a murder investigation, despite not having found Maris’ body.“Yesterday we arrested five people in connection with his murder. These suspects will now be questioned by detectives to understand the circumstances of his disappearance. “Our work has involved some sensitive enquiries, which is why we’re only now publicly confirming the launch of this investigation.”Norfolk Police regularly deals with missing person enquiries and last year handled 2,564 cases.Missing person investigations are given one of three ratings – low, medium and high – by the level of risk associated to that person.A lot of factors are taken into account, including age and health, when deciding risk. The risk level is not fixed and can be reassessed during the investigation when there is new information or when circumstances change. Maris’ case was originally dealt with as a low and medium risk missing person enquiry.A police spokesperson said: “Exactly what we will do depends on the level of risk and in this case, local enquiries were carried out, but no public appeal was made.“Public appeals for missing people are not automatic and will be considered on a case by case basis.“Appeals only tend to be published in the cases of high risk missing people, as publishing a person’s personal information should be done only when absolutely necessary.”