Life

Harvey Parker: Body found in Thames confirmed to be missing student

By Conor Clark

7th January 2022

Photo: Metropolitan Police

Harvey Parker’s body has been recovered from the River Thames after he went missing on 17 December, police have confirmed.

In a statement released on 5 January, the Metropolitan Police confirmed that a body was found in the River Thames near Embankment, Westminster during the search for the 20-year-old.

On 6 January, authorities announced that the Met’s Marine Support Unit had recovered the body from the water near Embankment, Westminster and the Inner West London Coroner’s Court later confirmed it to be Harvey Parker.

Harvey’s family are aware of the development and police are asking that their privacy be respected at this time.

The death is currently being treated as unexplained.

Detective Chief Inspector Lucy O’Connor, of the Central South Command Unit, said: “We are providing Harvey’s family with all the available information. We are also asking for media to please respect the family’s privacy at this challenging and difficult time.”

According to the Metropolitan Police, Harvey was last seen on 17 December leaving Heaven Nightclub in London at around 2:15am.

CCTV footage showed them entering Craven Street and walking south towards the Embankment.

Earlier that evening, a friend said he attended a Little Simz concert at the Brixton O2 Academy in London.

Harvey was from Lambeth in south London and was a student at the University of York.

In honour of their life, a Just Giving page has been set up by Harvey’s family to fund support groups for LGBTQ+ people.

“We would like to raise funds for people like Harvey: money raised will go to young queer support groups, neurodiverse and gender-diverse young people who would benefit from emotional or mental health support, and help support talented musicians from under-represented communities,” said a statement from friends and family on the page.

“We want to send our thanks to everyone who can help us to support these causes, as a way to not only celebrate Harvey’s life but to keep the memory of our beautiful Harvey alive.”

Despite having an initial goal of £10,000, the fund had exceeded £53,000 worth of donations by the morning of 7 January.

Donations to the page can be made by clicking here.