News / Jack O’Sullivan

Renewed appeals to find Jack six months after he was last seen

By Martin Booth  Monday Sep 2, 2024

Six months since Jack O’Sullivan was last seen after leaving a house party in Hotwells, he remains missing.

Posters with the face of the 23-year-old from Flax Bourton have become a familiar sight around the Cumberland Basin area, some advertising a reward of £20,000.

The family of the former Clifton College pupil say that Avon & Somerset Police are not doing enough to find Jack, but police have renewed their appeals to find him and reiterated on the six-month anniversary of his disappearance that their investigation is still ongoing, with further searches planned.

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Jack’s mum, Catherine, said that she continues to go out every day to look for her son.

“My day is planned around which direction I’m going to look next, until I run out of areas I can feasibly check,” she told BBC News.

“We basically climb fences, jump into ditches… it gives me the peace of mind that I know that area’s covered.

“I’m Jack’s mum, and my aim on this earth at the moment is to find Jack.”

Jack O’Sullivan has not been seen since a night out in Hotwells on March 2 – photo: family

Since Jack’s disappearance, more than 20 different Avon & Somerset Police teams and departments have been involved in the investigation to find him.

They have been supported by other organisations including the National Police Air Service, the RNLI and the Coastguard and independent search and digital experts.

Police also say that they have collated more than 100 hours of CCTV, conducted more than 200 hours of searches of the Floating Harbour and River Avon, and deployed their drone unit 16 times.

An official complaint from Jack’s family into the police’s handling of the case is currently being carried out by investigators in Avon & Somerset’s own professional standards department.

A hot air balloon with the message to ‘Find Jack’ was flown at the Balloon Fiesta – photo: Martin Booth

Avon & Somerset Police assistant chief constable, Joanne Hall, said: “Our staff and officers remain committed to doing everything we can to find Jack and we do not underestimate what a distressing time this has been, and continues to be, for his family.

“Throughout our investigation, we’ve been open-minded about what happened to Jack, considering different possible outcomes and scenarios following his last sighting.

“We have sought reviews from independent agencies such as the National Crime Agency and experts such as oceanographers and independent police search advisors.

“Sadly, despite the efforts carried out to date, we have been unable to find Jack and we fully appreciate the anguish this is having on his family and our thoughts remain with them during this hugely difficult time.”

Main photo: Martin Booth

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