Mum, 44, went ‘off-grid’ for months before vanishing, pal reveals – as remains ‘unearthed by wildfire’ six years later

A MUM-of-three went “completely off-grid” in the months before she vanished – as police unearthed her remains after a wildfire. Joanne Sheen, 44, disappeared while travelling from Fareham to her home city of Southampton, Hampshire, in December 2019. Joanne Sheen went missing nearly seven years ago Cops discovered her remains after a wildfire in west London on August 12 Credit: PA Cops launched a major investigation after she was reported missing by her family two months later, but did not find her for another six years. Now, Jo’s best pal of 16 years has paid tribute to the “amazing mum” after bones exposed by a west London wildfire last month were confirmed to be hers. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Rachel Roussel, 47, has launched a GoFundMe to ease the burden on Jo’s family as she is finally laid to rest. Additionally, anyone with information about Jo’s 2019 movements in Southampton or London has been urged to contact cops, with CrimeStoppers offering a £20,000 reward. While Rachel remembered Joanne as a “really good friend”, Rachel noted that she had gone “off-grid” by the year she went missing. Rachel met Jo as part of a group of mums in Southampton back in 2003. The friends would regularly do their shopping together, go over to each other’s houses and give each other advice. Rachel said: “She was known by many, many people in Southampton, but there were only a few of us that spent serious quality time together. Most read in The Sun Mum-of-three Jo has been described as a ‘lovely, loving person’ by her daughters Credit: Hampshire Police Cops at the scene where her bones were found Credit: PA “She was just magnetic, she had such an amazing personality, and she was an amazing mum – those girls of hers were her top priority, she adored them and they adored her. “She’d do anything for anyone, she’d give you her last pound if you needed it. “She was a really good friend, and so much fun to be around because of how she was, just a little bit of a crazy personality, she loved her music.” But by 2019, Rachel said it was regular for her to be out of contact with her friends. She said: “It wasn’t unlike her to not be in contact for a little while, she was terrible at keeping hold of mobile phones. “You’d never be able to text her and just say ‘do you fancy meeting up’. “If she had a phone and I was on Facebook Messenger and I’d see she was online and active I’d message her, sometimes she’d reply, sometimes she wouldn’t. “You kind of got used to it being like that, but then she just went off-grid completely.” Police have arrested a 56-year-old man in Southampton in connection with the case Credit: PA They had been called to reports that bones had been discovered in a woodland in Feltham Credit: PA Rachel said Jo would sometimes turn up unannounced at her home or those of family members as if “nothing had happened” – but when nobody had heard from her for months the alarm was raised. What followed was an extensive police investigation which officers say has involved more than 4,000 lines of enquiry, over 300 statements, and detailed searches of 10 addresses and water vessels. But it wasn’t until August 12 this year that her body was finally found in west London. Police have now arrested a 56-year-old man from Southampton on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder. Officers in Hampshire are now working with those in London to establish what happened. Rachel said her legs “went out” when she found out the news, but she was relieved Jo’s daughters would finally be able to lay her to rest. Speaking through tears, she said: “She can come home and those girls can lay her to rest. “It’s the not knowing for those children, not being able to go somewhere. “I take my son to his father’s resting place when he needs to go, those girls haven’t had that, they haven’t been able to do any of that. “It’s hit hard, and it only hits me as hard as it does not just because of my love for Jo, but because of everyone’s love for Jo, for her children.” Rachel added that she wanted the public to know how loved Jo was. She said: “Let’s just not forget that she was a mum, a daughter, a sister, and someone who was loved by so many people. “That’s important to concentrate on and not forget – who she was, not what she came to be, but who she was. “She was Little Jo, and we loved her dearly.” Jo’s daughters Hayley and Layla previously described their mum as a “lovely, loving person”.