'My teen son vanished 18 years ago - cops accused me but second theory was way worse'

A father whose teenage son disappeared without a trace 18 years ago has revealed a chilling theory behind his death.

Andrew Gosden, who was just 14 at the time,seemingly vanished when he left for school on September 14, 2007. After leaving home shortly after 8am, he made a detour to a local petrol station where he withdrew £200 - nearly all his savings - from an ATM.

CCTV footage then captured him returning home, where he swapped his school uniform for jeans and a T-shirt emblazoned with the logo of his favourite band, Slipknot. He also took his wallet, keys, and PlayStation console, although curiously, he didn't take a charger for the device.

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At 9.35am, Andrew boarded a train from his hometown of Doncaster to London, purchasing a one-way ticket despite being informed that a return ticket would only cost an additional 50p. He arrived at King's Cross at 11.20am and CCTV spotted him exiting through the main entrance four minutes later - the last confirmed sighting of the teenager.

Over the years, there have been a staggering 122 reported sightings of Andrew across the country, but none have been verified. In December 2021, two men were arrested on suspicion of kidnapping and human trafficking in relation to Andrew's disappearance, but were later released, and no further action was taken.

On what was the 18th anniversary of Andrew's disappearance earlier this year, his father, Kevin Gosden, revealed a theory that he was given by police.

He claimed it emerged during the early weeks of the investigation into his son's disappearance, when the family were put through "traumatising" questioning, which saw them suspected of being involved in a suspected murder case.

"They only wanted to get hold of the station CCTV to prove he wasn't buried in the back garden", Kevin told The Sun. When asked if police had accused the father of killing Andrew, he said: "That was their assumption. They're really good at inventing stories." This line of questioning was eventually dropped.

In another chilling theory, Kevin claimed that police questioned if their son may have become a jihadi. "He'd taken out some books from the library about Islam and they'd come up with the idea that perhaps he was joining some sort of jihadi group", the father told the publication.

Kevin and his wife, Glenys, thought this theory was "the most ridiculous thing" and said he was just undergoing a school project. He added that investigating whether Andrew had become a jihadi was an example of "this horrible spiral, that was entirely unhelpful and non-productive."

Other theories have emerged over the years, including one that Andrew wanted to attend a rock concert or was meeting strangers he had met online. However, no evidence has supported either of these suggestions.

The family examined listings of events taking place in London during Andrew's visit, with a 30 Seconds To Mars gig and HMV signing for metal band HIM occurring on September 14. However, there is no proof that the teenager attended any of these events.

Another theory the family disclosed is that Andrew could have been travelling down to seek work experience. It came after his elder sister, Charlotte, had visited two years previously, when she was 14 herself, to distribute CVs to banks on The Strand.

"He did idolise her," Kevin previously told the Mirror. "It is possible he wanted to do the same." Having considered every painful possibility over the years of what happened to their son, Kevin said: "I've had nightmares for years now.

"Your brain goes through a lot of scenarios, most of them very unpleasant. It hasn't gotten easier at all - it's harder the more time that elapses the further away you get from any real clue or answer."

He added: "They did all the computer forensics stuff. Here, school, in the local public library where he went fairly regularly. They couldn't find that he'd even created an email address or anything."

If still alive today, Andrew would be 32 years old, bearing the distinctive characteristic of a slightly misshapen right ear, his father explained. He also required thick spectacles for his vision.