HUNDREDS of people turned out in Yarm for a public show of affection in memory of Luke Jobson.

The 22-year-old a trainee engineer from Thornaby went missing on Saturday morning after a night out in Yarm. His body was discovered in the river by police on Monday.

Hours later, a social media post written by his family invited people from across the region to come to Yarm’s riverside and pay tribute.

Six people have been arrested in connection with his death - a 16-year old-boy came forward this afternoon to speak to officers working on the Luke Jobson inquiry. 

The teenager has been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter and will be questioned in due course. 

The Northern Echo:

Five other teenagers, aged 16 and 18, have all now been released under investigation while inquiries continue.

At about 7pm on Tuesday evening, members of the public gathered alongside Mr Jobson’s family, who hosted the tribute as a celebration of his life.

At the riverside, pieces of red ribbon and red balloons, with personal messages were left as a reminder of the region’s huge support.

More than 200 individual pieces of ribbon had been tied to the railings of Yarm Wharf, whilst hundreds more were tied to railings and lamppost’s near Sainsbury’s car park, as space by the riverside dwindled.

A floral tribute, decorated with candles and pictures of Mr Jobson, had been carefully put together for the evening.

The Northern Echo: Luke Jobson

At the tribute, Kelly Jane Jobson, Mr Jobson’s aunt, who also helped organise an unofficial search for Mr Jobson on Monday, addressed the crowd.

She said: “I don’t want to say too much because, as you all probably know, I’ve never shut up in days on social media and I don’t apologise.

“Thanks every single one of you, who is stood here, watching, listening, who has taken time off work, that’s been out in the cold  at 2am and 3am in the morning, traipsing through freezing cold fields in the ice, mud, up to our knees."

Before Mr Jobson’s body was discovered, Ms Jobson had urged people from across Teesside to look for him.

Her Facebook post was shared more than 64,000 times and more than 100 people joined in the search which began at Yarm School.

She said: “I want to thank every single person for doing that, whenever I’ve put a post up and said where to go, you’ve gone there – and this is why I’ve kept so strong.

“As long as you lot are on this planet, so is Luke.”

Since Mr Jobson’s death, his aunt has taken the role in representing the family.

She added: “How can I say more than ‘thank you’ – I can’t, it's overwhelming that you can feel this much love.”

The Northern Echo:

Other family members were gathered around the floral tribute whilst they individually comforted each other.

Mr Jobson’s grandfather said: “We’re so proud of him, it’s awesome when you look around here tonight, you feel the love.

“I just want to thank you so much for what you’ve done.

“I just thank you for coming bless you all in Jesus name.”

As the crowd got larger, an organiser announced they were to have a sing-a-long of Angels by Robbie Williams.

She said: “We want everybody on Teesside to know we’re here.”

Remembering Mr Jobson in their own way, children as young as six mourned along with everybody else who had joined the tribute.

The Northern Echo:

Attendee Jeanette Cobb of Eaglescliffe, who is unrelated to Mr Jobson, said: “I’ve come down here because I wanted to show my respect, I can't believe the outpouring of grief from such a small town – it’s absolutely devastating, to touch people who didn’t actually know him, it means a lot to come here, and show their respects, and to support the family at such a dreadful time."

On Tuesday, Cleveland Police revealed they had made a sixth arrest in relation to their investigations.

In the afternoon, a boy, 16, came forward to speak to police officers working on the inquiry and was later arrested on suspicion of manslaughter.

Five other teenagers, aged 16 and 18, were released pending investigation whilst inquiries continued.