Mystery as 'pillar of community' disappears

Elizabeth McVey, a 50-year-old council worker, disappeared from her home in Musselburgh's Eskview Road in the early hours of Monday. The alarm was raised by her husband Michael at around 7:30am, after he awoke to find her gone.

Mrs McVey was described as a pillar of her local community, and her family have been left "distraught" by her mystery disappearance.

Today in a statement they said: "Our family are all extremely anxious to find Libby and bring her home.

"The past couple of days since she was found to be missing have been incredibly difficult for us all and we would ask anyone who may have seen her to get in touch with the police.

"Libby is a wonderful wife and mother and our lives have been turned upside down since she left.

"We would ask that if Libby is watching or listening to this appeal then please make contact with someone to let us know that you are safe and well.

"We all love and miss you and want you to come home as soon as possible."

Mrs McVey is known to enjoy early morning walks and a police helicopter was drafted in from Glasgow to search all the walkways and footpaths in the area in the hope of finding her, while 40 officers joined the search on land.

The Queensferry lifeboat and coastguards also combed the coastline in the area, and yesterday four mounted police were brought in to assist in the search.

Mrs McVey, known to friends and family as Libby, has two adult children, Lynsey and Mark. She is well known in the community and is involved in local amateur dramatics as well as volunteering at Our Lady of Loretto Church.

The church's Father Joseph McMullan said: "At present we just don't know where she is or what's happened. It's terrible for her husband and children.

"She's always very lively and would always volunteer and would do anything for anybody, she's very kind and very generous, with lots of good friends, and the friends are certainly missing her at present, and they're worried to death."

Inspector Gordon McCreadie, who is heading the search, said her disappearance had come completely out of the blue.

He said: "There is no problem we know of – she is described by her friends and family as being somebody who is very upbeat, a pillar of the community.

"She's quite an active member in a number of groups and was planning a holiday, so she has a lot to look forward to and her family are distraught."

He said Mrs McVey was also thought to have gone for a walk in the early hours the day before she went missing, and to have chatted to two people close to Musselburgh Harbour at around 6am.

"We know she liked to walk in that area and would be keen to talk to those people to establish what the course of that meeting was," he said.

Mrs McVey is 4ft 11in, of average build, with collar-length fair hair and is described as having a "fresh complexion". When last seen she was wearing sky blue pyjama bottoms and a T-shirt, but she may now be in day-time clothes and wearing glasses.

Contact police on 0131-311 3131 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 if you have any information on her whereabouts.