A PRESTON pensioner has been called on to play Sherlock Holmes in an incident which happened more than 50 years ago.

War veteran Arthur House is playing detective to help piece together the mysterious disappearance of his former platoon sergeant, Hugh McGee.

Arthur, 72, of Broad Oak Green, Penwortham, fought in Burma with the Chindits of the King's Liverpool Regiment.

His platoon sergeant disappeared while on a supply mission with an American unit. Their plane was shot down and lost in the thick Burmese jungle where it has been hidden until early this year.

A Burmese team recently uncovered it and the crew's remains were sent to the States. There it was discovered one of the dog tags was British and the remains were identified as Sergeant McGee.

They contacted Arthur in a bid to piece together the final days of Hugh McGee's life.

Arthur explained: "In one of our operations, our glider crashed behind enemy lines, Sergeant McGee was with us and we had to make our way back to India - 200 miles - with Japanese troops all around us.

"While we were recuperating, it was common for men to help out on supply missions. I did several myself. Sergeant McGee was on such a mission with an American unit when the plane went down."

Sergeant McGee's remains were buried in America along with the rest of the plane's crew.

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