Alan tells of his Moors search for ‘lost boy’ brother Keith Bennett

The Preservation Society has been allowed to use much of Alan Bennett’s writing over the years about his never-ending search for brother Keith, a victim of Myra Hindley and Ian Brady.

I first met Alan way back in the early Eighties, although I doubt he will remember me particularly. At the time he was often surrounded by the Press and the police.

I personally admire Alan for his determination and his good nature and we will stand with him to solve this heart-breaking mystery.

Alan writes:

“I did eventually work out the main route Brady took with the police.

“One big shock I received was after the police first called off the search for Keith I told them we were going to continue.

“Topping had said despite all they had done he believed Keith was still there to he found. He tried to warn me off even though I explained I had sought professional help and I was going to be advised/taught how to search and what to look out for, just has the police had done.

“I was told when I first went to the Moor with Topping and members of the search what they had been told and where they had searched. I was also told every clump of peat had been replaced after they had searched an area, it had been logged and nothing had been left behind.

“I asked for a copy of the aerial photos and maps that they had logged everything on, only to find they didn’t exist. They had aerial photos but not for logging purposes and it was plain I wasn’t going to have them.

“I managed to get aerial photos of my own for my own use and to map the whole area and I started the search with family members. It was not long before we uncovered plastic sheets, plastic cups and ‘Hot cans’ the police had used to eat from.

“So much for logging and leaving nothing behind.

“It sounds as though I’m just having a go at the police and I suppose I am to some extent but I can only appreciate what they had done, obviously. “Just that bit more openness and understanding would have been nice. I never really got on with Peter Topping I’m afraid to say. I also have to admit a mistake I made when operation Maida got underway, that was the second official search of the area. I was asked to make sure all our equipment was taken off the moor so as not to disrupt their search.

“We used to bury our equipment in certain areas rather than carry it off and on the moor every time, except the special electronic equipment of course. I got a call from the police one day to ask if a probe they had found belonged to me, once they described where they had found it I had to admit it was mine.

“A bit red faced and proof, I was far from perfect.

“I am going to admit to something else as well here and this will have two friends of mine slapping there foreheads again and calling me the same complimentary names they did at the time.

“I bought some washing line to grid out an area for using a metal detector. Straight away the detector was continually beeping and the graph was going of the scale. It was only then I realised there was a thin metal wire running through the plastic cover of the washing line . As Del Boy would say “What a plonker!”