Teen Vanishes After Lockdown Argument—Owen Harding’s Mysterious Disappearance Still Unsolved
On March 26, 2020, the peaceful town of Saltdean, East Sussex, changed forever. That was the day 16-year-old Owen Harding disappeared. He was a son, a brother, and a friend to many. His vanishing came just as the country was going into its first COVID-19 lockdown. People were scared and unsure of what would happen next. And in the middle of that fear, a family lost their child.
Owen’s case has stayed open for years and still, there are no answers.
Just a Normal Teen
Owen was like many other teenagers. He loved football, hung out with his family, and had a girlfriend he cared about deeply. He was about 6 feet tall, with short dark brown hair. He usually wore hoodies, tracksuit bottoms, and white trainers. His mom, Stella Harding, described him as kind and well-liked. She often spoke about how much he meant to his family and his community.
On the day he vanished, Owen had a disagreement with his mother. It wasn’t unusual for teens to argue with their parents, especially during stressful times. But this argument would be the last time she saw her son.
That evening around 6:00 PM, Owen and his mother argued at home. According to the BBC, it was about the lockdown rules that would stop him from seeing his girlfriend, who lived far away in Pocklington, Yorkshire. The couple had already been apart, and the lockdown made things worse.
After the argument, Owen said he was going to watch the sunset at the Telscombe Cliffs. His mom, Stella, later shared how worried and emotional everyone was during that time. “I know that I myself was very anxious,” she said. “And I know that a lot of my friends were very anxious as well, and feeling a lot of grief about not being able to spend time with each other.”
Traces and Sightings
Once Owen left home, there were several reported sightings. Witnesses saw someone who looked like him walking along the A259 road between 6:15 and 6:30 PM. He seemed to be heading toward the cliffs.
CCTV footage captured him in Bannings Vale at about 6:50 PM walking toward a path that leads directly to the cliff edge. He was also talking on the phone with his girlfriend during this walk.
Then, his phone disconnected at around 6:23 PM. It was no longer picking up a signal. No one knows exactly why—maybe it was turned off, lost signal, or broken. That moment was the last time there was any digital trace of Owen.
Soon after he was reported missing, a large search operation was launched. Local police, search-and-rescue teams, drones, and even volunteers searched the cliffs and surrounding areas. But nothing was found. Not a phone. Not a piece of clothing. No trace of Owen.
According to Kent Live, Sussex Police released CCTV clips showing two people near the area who might have seen something. They made it clear that these people were not suspects. They just hoped the witnesses could help.
What Could Have Happened?
Several theories have come up over the years. Some thought Owen may have tried to walk all the way to his girlfriend’s home, 280 miles away. But the police didn’t find any evidence to back that up.
Others feared something more tragic. His mother spoke in an interview and said, “I still believe he went to the cliff and had a tragic accident.” An ocean expert was brought in to study the water and weather from that day. The expert said that if someone had fallen into the sea, the strong tides could have carried the body far away, making it nearly impossible to find.
The emotional stress caused by the lockdown has also been mentioned many times. Owen’s mom believes the pandemic played a big part in what happened. In a documentary, she said, “I really believe that if it hadn’t have been for the first lockdown, my son might still be alive.”
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