THE SEARCH for Paula Elliott, the 52-year-old woman who was reported missing on March 5, has ended after a body was found in the River Lagan.
Paula had last been seen leaving her family home near Ravarnet, County Antrim. Large-scale searches have been conducted in the weeks since Paula went missing with the search efforts led by her brother, David Birney, with support from the community.
The Community Rescue Service (CRS) had been conducting extensive searches. The search involved collaboration with Search and Rescue Dog Association (SARDA) and search and rescue charity Sky Watch NI. Paula's body was located by the CRS team shortly after 7pm on Monday.
In a Facebook post CRS Belfast District reported: "CRS volunteers were tasked to the Lisburn area to search for a person missing from the early evening of the 5 March and continued to carry out planned searches each day and into the night since that time."
It continued: "We regret to inform you that in the late afternoon of Monday, 1 April a CRS team located a body believed to be that of the missing person.
"The management and volunteers of the Community Rescue Service extend our deepest sympathy to the family and friends of the deceased."
A spokesperson for the PSNI said: "Police can confirm that the body of a woman was recovered from the River Lagan in Lisburn on Monday, 1st April.
"Formal identification has yet to take place, however, we have notified the family of Paula Elliott who was reported missing on Tuesday, 5th March 2024.
"A post mortem will take place in due course."
