The annual cost of the search for Smalltown and Dullbridge Missing Person, Tim Teepee, between 2020 and 2021 has been revealed to be just over £200,000.
The bulk of the money was paid to staff working in the ‘Find Tim Teepee’ campaign office, but a further £25,000 was spent on accommodation and travel costs.
SomersetClive spoke to a member of staff from ‘Find Tim Teepee’ to ask why travel costs had been incurred.
“We heard a rumour that he’d been spotted in Portugal in August so we requested additional funding from HM Government to be allowed to continue our search there. We seem to get reports of this nature every year and we take them very seriously with two members of staff having to pack their suitcases and jet off to sunnier climes to investigate. In no way is this a ‘jolly’.”
“We also spent around £1,500 on printing ‘Have you seen this man?” posters, which were distributed around the area. We will leave no stone unturned in our quest to find him.”
SomersetClive queried the inclusion of a sum of money paid out to’ Booze Bargains’ in December 2020.
The spokesperson told us “No. We categorically did NOT have an office party at a time when parties were banned. We purchased several bottles of Blue Nun wine in order to lay a trail in the hope of tempting Tim out into the open. However, we were unsuccessful.”
The last sighting of Tim Teepee is believed to have been in early January, although this is unconfirmed.