Inside the family drama threatening to overshadow the hunt for Lee Andrews – as friends reveal why his sister and mother are LESS than impressed with Katie Price

For many, it was like watching a bad crime drama, but for Lee Andrews’ loved ones, his disappearance was a nightmare from which they had yet to wake up.

Lee’s wife, Katie Price, has been speaking out since his disappearance six days ago. Then on Sunday, in a strange turn of events, he claimed she had been ‘kidnapped’.

The troubled glamor model, 47, last spoke to her husband at 10pm on Wednesday last week when he tried to board a flight from Dubai to the UK. They were due to appear on Good Morning Britain for their first joint interview since their marriage in January.

Katie claimed that Lee, who described himself as a businessman and entrepreneur, told her that he had been ‘caught or arrested’. He claimed he was ‘in over his head’ and his ‘hands were tied’ before telling his new wife: ‘They’re coming back for me.’

But Lee’s concerned family and friends were left frustrated by Katie’s public allegations.

Lee’s childhood friend Rebecca Smith, who is still close to the Andrews family, said in an exclusive interview: ‘We are all sick with worry. His mother was talking to me on the phone in tears.’

Rebecca, 45, grew up with Lee and his sister Kelly in the Nottinghamshire village of Edwinstowe. They attended the same elementary and middle schools, and Rebecca often spent time at Lee’s house after classes.

Today, true to a fault, he targets Katie, who married after a whirlwind romance, to go public with Lee’s allegations of his kidnapping.

“They are a very close family,” Rebecca continued. ‘Kelly took the lead and was the person who contacted Katie and the Dubai police. Her mother is trying to ease the burden on Trisha, and I am trying to support them both during this worrying time.

Lee and his mother Trisha… accused Katie of ‘exploiting’ her son

‘Kelly wasn’t happy with the video Katie posted about her kidnapping. This blew everything up and was unnecessary.’

Lee’s mother Trisha Andrews, 61, a spiritual medium, also made her feelings clear, accusing Katie of ‘exploiting’ her son.

One fan wrote under a Facebook post promoting the live clairvoyance show: ‘I think everyone should leave it [Trisha] He’s on his own as he’s not responsible for Price’s drama queen antics.’

Trisha responded with a message that read: ‘Thank you Jane. ‘This is exploiting Katie and I’m taking all the blame.’

Katie has since taken to YouTube and disputed claims that Lee’s disappearance was a publicity stunt.

The woman, who was filming at home and still wearing her wedding ring, said: ‘I’m really upset that everyone thought I was involved in this. ‘Are you really kidding?’

Reacting to reports that Lee had faked disappeared and hid from cameras in a run-down villa in the UAE, Katie told fans: ‘This is not a publicity stunt. This is real. And anyone who thinks I’m part of this is disgusting.

‘None of his family heard anything from Lee. His father, who was in Dubai, heard nothing. We reported him as a missing person to the British Embassy.

‘Anyone who tries to speculate or make a joke is thinking about other people’s feelings. It’s not nice. This isn’t a game, it’s real life.

‘This is really happening and there are real emotions here.’

Katie last spoke to Lee on Wednesday as he tried to board a flight from Dubai to Britain.

Lee’s childhood friend Rebecca Smith says: ‘We’re all sick with anxiety. ‘His mother was talking to me on the phone in tears.’

The past few days have certainly been difficult for Lee’s immediate family. Long-time friend Rebecca Smith said she ‘felt sorry for Katie and hoped she would get answers soon.’

But he also told me that Lee’s relatives had experienced terrible trolling during the publicity generated by the glamorous model’s YouTube updates, with many wanting to know why the family hadn’t flown to Dubai to look for her.

But as Rebecca explains: ‘People don’t have the money to fly there. His family and friends are normal people who work regular jobs. Of course they care about him getting lost, but going to Dubai is expensive.

‘This situation is very sad for them. Now they try to stay away from social media.

‘The lack of empathy and compassion in some of the comments online is truly heartbreaking. Behind every post there is a family waiting for answers. Seeing cruel jokes on the internet only adds to their pain.

‘Lee has been a loyal, caring and sincere friend to me and I will continue to be there for him and support him.’

Lee’s family and friends have not yet met his new wife, but they say Lee ‘speaks very positively about her and is madly in love with her.’

Accusations against the businessman have increased since his ten-day romance with Katie ended in marriage.

First, his ex-fiancée Alana Percival claimed he defrauded numerous women out of hundreds of thousands of pounds; Lee denied this claim.

Later some of his more outlandish claims came under scrutiny: that he had a PhD from Cambridge; that he worked with both Kim Kardashian and Elon Musk; and said he was preparing to buy Chelsea FC.

Lee gained further attention last month when she joined the adult content app OnlyFans and created an account to sell photos and videos of herself.

Katie admitted that her four-month marriage to Lee developed like a ‘soap opera’, with each development being more incredible than the last.

Lee’s home in Dubai… He firmly denied reports that he was restricted due to the travel ban from the UAE

Lee’s ex-fiancée Alana Percival claimed he defrauded numerous women out of hundreds of thousands of pounds; denied this claim

Rebecca continued: ‘Lee’s mother is receiving a lot of backlash at the moment but she is a mother who is worried about her son’s whereabouts. ‘Lee is reportedly concerned about his involvement. But we need to find it and then deal with this issue. We must bring him back.

‘Lee is a special person. He keeps many things to himself. They don’t know what they’re getting into.

‘He is a real person and not produced by artificial intelligence as everyone thinks. And Trisha and Kelly [his mother and sister] They are both lovely people. Trisha has a heart of gold.’

Lee was due to return to the UK last week but was unable to get on the plane and later insisted he still planned to come, while claiming he had ‘things to do’.

Lee flatly denied reports that he was restricted due to a travel ban from the UAE.

Katie has since reported her missing, telling fans ‘No one will find her in any prison, in any police station.’ ‘Police could not find any record of him.’

After contacting the head of the Criminal Investigations Department in Dubai, Katie discovered that her husband was not being detained by the authorities. They couldn’t find him either.

Despite admitting concerns about Lee’s safety, just a few hours later Katie shared a more upbeat series of posts, including a link to her OnlyFans account and a later photo of herself and her son Harvey going to the cinema.

Instead of launching a new public appeal for information about her missing husband on Monday, Katie posted a photo of the new beds arriving at her home and described it as an ‘exciting day’.

Last week, Katie admitted that her four-month marriage to Lee had unfolded like a ‘soap opera’, with each development more incredible than the last.

After months of defending the man accused of defrauding women, we revealed Katie was becoming ‘skeptical’ about Lee’s motives.

A person close to Katie told the Daily Mail: ‘For a few months Katie was on this trip. ‘He enjoys the publicity and attention and has always been happy to create a bit of pantomime about his life, but this time he began to realize he was being sarcastic.’

In recent days, it has been reported that the Dubai-based businessman is wanted by Interpol after Hertfordshire Police, who were previously investigating allegations from an ex-girlfriend, stepped up their investigation.

A heartbroken Katie is said to have been on the phone to lawyers in the last 24 hours.

It’s been almost a week since Lee Andrews’ shocking disappearance, and amid mounting questions, family, friends and his wife have united in a desperate search for answers.