Pensioner, 70, whose body was found hidden in freezer by workmen renovating disused wine bar was shunned by his family for being gay, cousin reveals
- Roy Bigg, 70, who went missing in 2012, was found dead in an old pub’s freezer His cousin Frank Bousfield was shocked to learn of his family member’s death
- He revealed Roy had been shunned by family when he was younger for being gay
Relatives of a pensioner whose body was found hidden in a freezer in a disused pub have told of their shock and dismay.
Roy Bigg was aged around 70 when he vanished in Newham, London, in February 2012.
He has been the subject of a Missing People appeal since then, with the poster appearing to believe he could still have been alive.
But it emerged this week that builders renovating the former Simpson’s Wine Bar on Romford Road, Forest Gate, made the grim find of his body stuffed in a freezer in the basement.
Pensioner Roy Bigg (pictured), 70, who went missing from Newham, London, in February 2012, was found dead last year in a freezer at a disused pub to the dismay of those who knew him
Roy Bigg’s cousin Frank Bousfield and his wife Irene (pictured at their home in Leiston, Suffolk) said it was ‘shocking’ to learn of his death and the sad manner in which it occurred
The former Simpson’s Wine Bar on Romford Road, Forest Gate, where the grim find was made
Stunned labourers uncovered his remains at around 3pm on October 15 last year, but detectives only announced the find this week.
MailOnline has tracked down one of Mr Bigg’s last living relatives, his first cousin Frank Bousfield, 83. who last met him as a young man.
‘It’s really shocking to learn of Roy’s death, especially like this,’ said former drainage engineer Mr Bousfield, from Leiston, Suffolk.
‘My wife Irene was reading about the case in the paper this morning, and mentioned it to me, but we never connected the name with my cousin, and I didn’t recognise his photo.’
The Missing People appeal’s wording suggested it was thought he could be still alive
Frank (pictured) said Roy was shunned by most of his family and that he doesn’t think there would be anyone still alive who would know much about him
He went on: ‘Hopefully we’ll eventually discover the truth from the police inquiry.
‘What a very sad end to his life. Roy was obviously a caring person because he took care of his own mother for years, and I remember thinking it was odd that his father Bert, who worked at Ford in Dagenham for his entire career, seemed to leave that side of things to his son.
‘I would only have seen Roy when we made family visits as kids and teenagers. I don’t think there’s anyone left alive in the family who would remember much about him really
‘I’ve no idea what kind of job he went on to do.’ Mr Bousfield said he had not been contacted by police.
Mr Bousfield said that he only met Roy Bigg – known as ‘Roy Boy’ to all the family – a handful of times in his youth.
He recalled that Roy, an only child six years his junior, doted on his mother Hetty, and nursed her when she fell ill with terminal cancer until her death when Roy was aged 25.
‘The main thing I remember about Roy was hearing on the family grapevine that he was gay. It wasn’t as socially acceptable in those days and I think some of the family might have shunned him a bit as a result.’
Detective Chief Inspector Kelly Allen of the Met’s Specialist Crime Command said: ‘We believe that Roy’s body may have been in the freezer for a number of years.
‘Speaking to people who knew him will help us establish not only his lifestyle and habits, but also when he was last seen.
‘If you knew Roy please do get in touch with us – his birth date was 8 September 1944, we believe he would have been aged around 70 when he died.
‘It doesn’t matter if it’s been a long time since you knew him, or if you only knew him briefly, any information may be of real significance to our enquiries.’
A post-mortem examination found cause of death to be inconclusive.
Mr Bigg could only be identified through his dental records.
When he went missing it appeared that there had been hopes he was still alive.
The Missing People appeal had read: ‘Roy we are here for you whenever you are ready; we can listen, talk you through what help you need, pass a message for you and help you to be safe.’
DCI Allen added: ‘We have released an image of Roy and hope that anyone who knew him will take the time to come forward and speak with us.
If you don’t want to speak directly to police please contact Crimestoppers anonymously, but whatever you do, please do make the call.’
Anyone who knew Roy Bigg should call the Incident Room on 020 8345 1570, call 101 or Tweet @MetCC quoting CAD4332/15OCT21.
To remain 100% anonymous call the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or visit crimestoppers-uk.org.
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