Missing Katrice Lee's Gosport sister 'optimistic' and wants 'justice' after father confirms meeting with Prime Minister to discuss 40-year disappearance

Natasha Walker, 47, from Gosport, has been asking for answers over the disappearance of her sibling, Katrice Lee.

The two-year-old went missing on November 28, 1981, after going with her mother to a Naafi supermarket in Paderborn, West Germany.

Richard Lee, 72, was serving in a military base close by at the time.

Both he and his daughter have been searching for answers ever since Katrice’s disappearance.

Close to the 40th anniversary of when Katrice vanished, in November, Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised to meet Mr Lee ‘father to father.’

This was after Conservative MP for Hartlepool, Jill Mortimer, asked Mr Johnson during PMQs.

A timeframe has been agreed for both of them to meet in March, but no exact date has been given.

Ms Walker said it is a very positive move, but would ‘believe it when I see it.’

She told The News: ‘Boris has got to stick to his word and do it.

‘There are other things going on the world, but my sister has been missing for 40 years.

‘I just feel like it’s about time Katrice’s voice is heard, and that her case is taken seriously.

‘I’d just like justice for my sister.’

Ms Walker hopes answers into investigations and justice can finally be found.

Speaking on the 40th anniversary of Katrice’s disappearance, Ms Walker said she had to ‘fight for everything’ throughout the whole process.

The case has been re-investigated by the Royal Military Police in recent years, but the operation has been scaled back, with officers only reacting to new lines of enquiry.

Mr Lee has been assured of meetings with Prime Ministers before.

Ms Walker said Theresa May was too busy to see him, and Tony Blair promised to see him but nothing happened.

She’s trying to remain optimistic but level headed after hearing the news.

She added: ‘We’ve been promised stuff in the past and it’s not happened, though I'm going to say I’m very optimistic.

‘We’ve just got to wait and see.

‘I don’t want to get my hopes up, because then you feel disappointed.

SEE ALSO: Southsea woman on trial after being accused of molesting two children who were left thinking abuse was 'normal'

‘I’d like to say yeah, I definitely think it will go ahead, but if I do that, I’ll open myself up to disappointment.’

Ms Walker has faced constant struggles with social media trolls and setbacks during the process.

The 47-year-old explained she wants the civilian police to look into the case, after previous disputes with military authorities.

She hopes if the meeting goes ahead, Mr Johnson will ‘listen to my dad and his concerns about how the military police have handled things.’

Ms Walker added that she wants to be there, but thinks the Prime Minister hearing her dad’s perspective on events can lead to positive steps.

She said: ‘I would like to be there, but my dad has to have this opportunity to speak to Boris himself parent to parent.

‘For me, yes I’d like to be there, so he could hear things from my perspective and what I’ve had to grow up with and my experiences throughout the years, but I don’t think that would be fair on my dad.

‘My dad needs the opportunity to be able to speak to him on his own.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

Subscribe here for unlimited access to all our coverage, including Pompey, for just 26p a day.