A REPORT into the way Lancashire Police handled the disappearance of a teenager who was later found dead has been completed.

The investigation, launched after murdered Sajjad Mahmood's mother claimed her fears for her missing 18-year-old son were initially ignored by police, has been carried out by officers from Greater Manchester Police and has taken months to complete.

Sajjad died after he was beaten up by three drug dealers and thrown into the former mill lodge near to Accrington's Asda store.

His family contacted the police about his disappearance when they were told he might have been dumped in the lodge.

They claim it took the police 10 days to start searching the lodge, and only took the claims seriously when Sajjad's mother began searching herself.

Frogmen found his body. One man, James Butler, was jailed for 10 years after pleading guilty to manslaughter while his two accomplices, Karl Barton and Wayne Kelly, both received six year sentences after being found guilty of grievous bodily harm.

An internal police investigation was launched when complaints were first made by the victim's family, and a review of the way reports of missing persons are handled was also reviewed.

A spokesman for the Police Complaints Authority today said their organisation had received the lengthy report from GMP.

He said: "We have received the final report from the Greater Manchester Police and it is being considered by authority member Miss Mehmuda Mian. We do not know how long this will take. It is impossible to put a time scale on it."

The authority will have to decided whether it needs to forward the report to the Crown Prosecution Service. It will also work with Lancashire Police if it feels changes need to be made to internal disciplinary procedures.