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Alex Holland, of Deal and Dan Venes, from Canterbury, still missing

The mother of a man who has been missing for an entire month says the family have had their worst ever Christmas.

There is still no trace of Alex Holland, a separated father-of-two from Deal, after he vanished on November 28.

Alex Holland (53511466)
Alex Holland (53511466)

Rachel Holland told KentOnline: "We are now just about to enter a new year and, this sounds strange, but it's like we are being made to leave him behind in the old year.

"Because of this we have had our worst Christmas ever. It has been awful. I am not sleeping and I cannot think of anyone else. We are on to the police all the time to see if there are any new leads."

The family have now set up a Facebook page called Help find Alex Holland.

Mr Holland was last seen at his home in Delane Road, Deal, on Sunday, November 28.

Mr Holland, 27, was living back home with his parents after being separated from his wife.

Mrs Holland said: "He would usually have gone to seen his children on Christmas Day and come back home to us that evening."

It was on the night of November 28 he popped his head around his parents' bedroom door to ask his dad, Mark Holland, to wake him up in the morning because he had work and the dentist.

He then went outside for a cigarette.

An hour later Mrs Holland, saw that he wasn't in bed but assumed he'd decided to go out.

Rachel Holland, mum of missing Alex Holland, pictured at the family home in Delane Road, Deal (53705294)
Rachel Holland, mum of missing Alex Holland, pictured at the family home in Delane Road, Deal (53705294)

It wasn't until teatime the next day she reported him missing to the police.

She had constantly rung his phone that day but got no answer.

Following his disappearance, police carried out searches for two days using drones and two helicopters. Kent Search and Rescue was also called in.

The family say officers told them they had also checked ports, hospitals, train stations and taxi services for information.

A Kent Police spokesman now told KentOnline: "There is no update at present. We are continuing to search for Mr Holland."

Mr Holland had hired a car while his own vehicle was in for repairs because he needed it for work delivering upholstery for Plumbs in Holmestone Road, St Radigund's, Dover.

Alex Holland was last seen on Sunday, November 28 at his home in Delane Road, Deal
Alex Holland was last seen on Sunday, November 28 at his home in Delane Road, Deal

Police later found the car in Jubilee Road in Worth.

Mr Holland uses Facebook, Snapchat and Tiktok but has not been active on these social media sites since he was last seen.

Mrs Holland had told KentOnline in an interview in mid-December: "It's a living nightmare. I've never felt pain like this in my life."

Mr Holland has two daughters, aged eight and four, and a stepson, aged nine.

He is 6ft, with blue eyes and has a small tattoo of the name Roxy on his left hand and a chipped front tooth.

The Hollands are not the only Kent family suffering an agonising wait for news of their son at the turn of the year.

Artist and musician Dan Venes has not been seen since August

Daniel Venes has been missing since August 14. Picture: Kent Police
Daniel Venes has been missing since August 14. Picture: Kent Police

Dan Venes, 31, from Canterbury, was last seen at about 6pm on August 14 in the College Road area of Margate.

Before his disappearance, he had been picked up at Sturry railway station by police due to welfare concerns.

He was taken to the QEQM hospital in Margate, but is believed to have left soon after.

Mr Venes, who lives just off Sturry Road, was captured on CCTV in Margate a short while later but has not been seen since.

A Help find Dan Venes page set up on Facebook has amassed more than 2,500 followers.

Daniel is a talented artist and musician. Picture: Kent Police
Daniel is a talented artist and musician. Picture: Kent Police

Members of the group regularly head out to investigate reported potential sightings of Dan.

But there have been no confirmed sightings.

His dad, Jason Joiner, from Swalecliffe, said in September the talented guitarist had not used his bank card since he went missing.

He urged the public to keep an eye out for his son and report any sightings to police.

“We’d love them to take a photo of him,” he added. “Just take a quick snap and then we’d know if it was him. I love him and I’d love him home. I miss him.”

He described his son - who has thousands of followers on Facebook pages exhibiting his art and music - as a “brilliant” guitar player and “a lovely, caring person”.

Dan is 5ft 9ins, slim and has short, dark hair and a short beard.

Police say they are still searching for him and have renewed their appeal for information.

Anyone with information about Mr Venes is urged to call 101, quoting reference 14-1230.

Anyone who has seen Mr Holland or knows of his whereabouts should call Kent Police on 101, quoting 29-1105.

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