British police is looking for two men, including a taxi driver, who were seen speaking to an Indian- origin youth shortly before he went missing last week, as his 'mystified' family says they have no clue about what happened to him.
Gurdeep Hayer, 20, is based in West Bromwich and travelled to Manchester on December 31 to celebrate New Year's Eve with friends in Fallowfield.
He went out again with friends on the night of January 1 to the Sankeys nightclub, and has been missing since early January 2.
His mother, Peramjit Kaur, became concerned after her son did not return home as planned on January 3 and reported Gurdeep missing two days later.
Gurdeep is a first-year student of Business Studies at Glyndwr University in north-east Wales. Kaur told the media: "It is completely out of character for him not to keep in touch with me, he's a very reliable person and he's usually ringing me all the time because he knows how much I worry".
She added: "We're completely mystified as to why he would go missing. He's just started university and loves his lessons and his life there, he's been home with us for the holidays and was his usual, happy self. As a family we just don't know what to do".
After studying CCTV footage, the police are now looking for two men who were seen talking with Gurdeep shortly before his disappearance.
One, a white male in his late 20s to early 30s, with dark curly hair, who was wearing a short-sleeved white shirt was seen having a short conversation with Gurdeep outside the club on Radium Street and appeared to be offering him directions. The police now believe that Gurdeep was picked up by a taxi from outside the nightclub.
The taxi itself returned to the area, without Gurdeep, no more than eight minutes later. The driver was reported to be white, in his mid-40s, of heavy built and with a receding hairline. Detective Sergeant Alan Hamlin, of West Didsbury CID, said: "We have studied CCTV and can see that Gurdeep leaves the club at around 2.15. He appears to be steady on his feet."
He added: "We are keen to speak to the taxi driver and the member of the public he is seen having a conversation with to piece together his movements after he left the club. At this moment in time these are the last two people we know to have spoken to him".
Gurdeep was last seen wearing a navy blue polo shirt, black or blue jeans and trainers. He is described as Asian, with a medium build, about 5ft 11 inches tall with spiky black hair with stubble, and he speaks with a Midlands accent.