Viewers took to Twitter following the airing of Channel 5's The Disappearance of Shannon Matthews on Wednesday night to praise the local community's amazing efforts to find the missing child back in 2008.
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The documentary looks at how the Moorside community banded together to help locate Shannon, who was missing for 24 days before being discovered safe and well at a family friend's house. Posting on the social media platform, one person wrote: "Still can't believe this was 13 years ago. But no matter the crimes of Karen, the real people of The Moorside deserve so much praise for their community spirit. they were amazing in the weeks and the search #ShannonMatthews."
The community rallied together to find Shannon
Another viewer added: "Grown up on Moorside, live here now. Knew the family. Remember the searches, the chaos. Our community did what we do best. The press tried to perceive us in a bad light originally. I'm very proud of our community then and now."
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A third person tweeted: "There's a chance Shannon herself will be reading social media after this airs. There's nothing positive to take from watching her own family but the love that came out of that community was amazing. Clearly lots of poverty in the area and still they gave everything."
Shannon was eventually found alive and well
It was eventually uncovered that Shannon's mother, Karen, and her boyfriend's uncle, Michael Donovan, colluded to hide the nine-year-old in an attempt to eventually claim the reward money for her recovery. They were found guilty of kidnapping, false imprisonment and perverting the course of justice, and sentenced to eight years in prison. Karen was released in 2012 after serving half of her sentence.
Since being safely found, Shannon and her siblings were given lifelong anonymity while being placed in foster care.
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