A POLICE investigation in North Yorkshire into the discovery of human remains and military memorabilia led to the identification of two air crew who died during the Second World War.

The joint investigation by North Yorkshire Police and the Ministry of Defence Police into the discovery near Chop Gate in March 2020 has concluded without any charges being brought against a 74-year-old man from the York area, who was arrested at the time and then released.

The remains were found at the remote farming location in the Hambleton District almost two years ago. This resulted in a large-scale operation involving subject matter experts from the RAF and the Army, as well as forensic archaeologists who were able to identify the remains as male and more than half-a-century old.

The Crown Prosecution Service has now determined that there is not enough evidence to pursue the matter. However, they praised the efforts of North Yorkshire Police and the Ministry of Defence Police, recognising the “exceptionally challenging,” nature of the investigation.

The investigation led to identification of two air crew members from war time - who were reunited with their families and given military burials in August last year.

It has now been confirmed that those who were identified were pilot officer Alfred Robert William Milne, aged 22 from Mitcham, Surrey and warrant officer Eric Alan Stubbs, also aged 22, from Guildford, Surrey.

They were tragically killed when their Mosquito aircraft crashed on the North York Moors near Bransdale, Helmsley, on October 11 1944. They were on a training exercise from RAF Beccles in Suffolk to RAF Turnberry in Ayrshire.

Detective Inspector (DI) Carol Kirk, the North Yorkshire Police senior investigating officer, said: “At the beginning of this investigation, I don’t think any of us thought we’d be able to identify who the remains belonged to, let alone return them to their families and be given military burials with the dignity and respect that they deserved.

“Even without being able to progress the investigation to court, we still believe this is a significant achievement.

“I have recently had contact with both families and they wish to pass on their thanks to all those involved in bringing Alfred and Eric home.”

On behalf of the investigation team, DI Kirk thanked North Yorkshire Police, Ministry of Defence Police, Army and RAF colleagues who have played a part in this "highly complex and challenging," operation.

"The commitment, diligence and professionalism from everyone involved has been outstanding. I also thank our local authority and community partners for their unstinting support throughout, and to the local residents whose daily lives were disrupted for many weeks while this activity was ongoing at the location," the DI added.