STILL WAITING: Leo Lipp-Neighbours has ben missing for three years today.

Nelson police are still hopeful that someone will come forward to help unlock the mystery of what happened to missing Nelson teenager Leo Lipp Neighbours.

Tuesday marks the two-year anniversary of the talented student going missing. His 21st birthday would have been Thursday of this week.

Police have followed up numerous lines of inquiry and possible sightings of Leo's distinctive orange Toyota Corolla in the past 24 months, but are yet to receive one positive piece of information.

A $50,000 reward is on offer via the anonymous tip-off phone line Crimestoppers. This reward was increased from $10,000.

Leo disappeared from his Nelson flat at 4am on Saturday, January 24, 2010. The Canterbury University student with widely admired engineering skills had been drinking with friends at a Nelson club earlier in the evening. Before driving off into the darkness from the flat Leo told a friend he was going to be at one with nature.

Despite a painstaking and extensive search of the roads and roadside of the top of the south the 19-year-old and his car have not been seen again.

A police file on the case remains open but is still frozen due to a lack of concrete information or leads.

Detective Senior Sergeant Wayne McCoy said his team had not given up in its search for clues.

"Two years down the track we still haven't had any information that has enabled us to progress this case.

"In these situations it's very frustrating for the investigation team and extremely distressing for Leo's family. We would dearly love to get closure for his parents and we're not giving up."

Mr McCoy said he believed someone knew what had happened to Leo and his car.

"My message to anyone who knows something is, do the right thing and speak up now."

PARENTS DESCRIBE ANGUISH



His parents Charlotte Lipp and Colin Neighbours say they love and miss him very much:

"Two years ago our Leo disappeared into the night and didn't come back.

"Sometimes it's hard to believe it really happened, and the fact that after all this time we still don't know much more than the day he left, is difficult to accept.

"No trace of him or his car have been found yet. Possible sightings have led to nothing more than intensified searches in some areas, and finding out where he's not.

"People commonly ask what our intuition tells us.

"It seems Leo died not long after he went missing. In what circumstances we don't know, and without confirmation we remain hopeful that he's possibly alive.

"I (his mum) am always looking for him in passing cars or amongst groups of young people.

"The only thing we really know is that our lovely, bright son was not in a happy state when he decided to leave that night, two years ago. We desperately would have wanted to have been there to comfort him and stop him from leaving, and are so sorry we didn't or couldn't.

"He was a young guy doing his own thing that night, and he didn't come home.

"We love and miss him very much.

"Our hearts go out to other young people that are feeling down or lonely, and we beg them to keep trying to reach out and be patient."

Mr McCoy said anyone with information could contact Nelson police, ph 035463840.

Information can also be given anonymously to Crimestoppers, ph 0800555111.