Philip Cairns, a 13-year-old schoolboy, disappeared on the afternoon of the 23rd October 1986 while walking back to local secondary-level school, Coláiste Éanna in Rathfarnham, Dublin, after his lunch break. He never returned to school and has never been found after more than 36 years. A large-scale investigation was carried out but no physical trace of Philip has ever been found. His disappearance has long been treated as a high-profile child murder case, the only similar incident in Ireland being the murder of young Robert Holohan (11 years) in January 2005 and Philip’s case remains one of the most high-profile disappearances in recent Irish history. Across almost 37 years, Philip's family have issued numerous appeals for information. A reconstruction took place in 2007 and was later televised on Irish TV network, RTÉ One, while a reward of €10,000 has also been offered. The book, When Heaven Waits by Emma McMenamy, published in 2007, featured an interview with Philip's mothe

Kris Kremers and Lisanne Froon were Dutch students who disappeared on 1st April 2014, while hiking the El Pianista trail in Panama. After an extensive search, portions of their bodies were found a few months later. Their cause of death could not be determined definitively, but Dutch authorities working with forensic and search-rescue investigators initially thought it likely the students had accidentally fallen from a cliff or river bridge after becoming lost. However, foul play could not be entirely ruled out, and is considered by some much more likely due to other remains being found. The circumstances and aftermath of their disappearance have resulted in much speculation about their final days.  

Jean Tighe, a native of Cavan, Ireland goes missing from a hostel she is staying at in Parede, Portugal (located just outside the city of Lisbon) on July 13th, 2020. She is spotted by a hostel worker carrying her handbag, leaving to meet up with a Brazilian male friend. Jean has spent much of life travelling abroad as a free-spirit and has visited places all over Europe, India, Australia and South Africa. She can often be away from Ireland and her family for many months at a time but always makes sure she is back in Ireland from her travels during the Christmas period. Jean is described by her family and friends as very independent, outgoing, always wanting to meet people and make new friends, but generally travelled more often alone on her trips. She was known to be very streetwise and loved her bohemian lifestyle as a non-drinker and vegan. At 38 years of age (July 2020) she had experienced her share of personal ups and downs and found the period of lockdowns in Ireland at the begi

Nicola Bulley, 45, a mortgage advisor, was last seen on Friday morning at around 9.20am while walking her dog alongside the River Wyre in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire, UK. She had just dropped off two her daughters, aged six and nine, at the local school in the village. Ms Bulley’s phone was found, apparently still engaged on a work call, on a park bench nearby, along with the harness and lead for her dog, Willow, a springer spaniel. Journalist Mick Rooney examines the full case timeline for Radio Espial.

Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 (MH17/MAS17) was a scheduled passenger flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur that was shot down by Russian forces on 17 July 2014, while flying over eastern Ukraine. All 283 passengers and 15 crew were killed. Contact with the aircraft, a Boeing 777-200ER, was lost when it was about 50 km (31 miles) from the Ukraine–Russia border, and wreckage from the aircraft fell near Hrabove in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, 40 km (25 miles) from the border. The shoot-down occurred during the war in Donbas over territory controlled by Russian separatist forces. The responsibility for investigation was delegated to the Dutch Safety Board (DSB) and the Dutch-led joint investigation team (JIT), who in 2016 reported that the airliner had been downed by a Buk surface-to-air missile launched from pro-Russian separatist-controlled territory in Ukraine. The JIT found that the Buk that was used originated from the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade of the Russian Federation and had be

Annie Bridget McCarrick (born March 27th, 1966), an American woman from Long Island, New York, went missing under suspicious circumstances in 1993 while she was residing in Ireland. Radio Espial's Mick Rooney explores the timeline and events surrounding her disappearance. McCarrick was born on Long Island, New York and she grew up and lived in Bayport until her move to Ireland in January 1987, aged 19, to study at St Patrick’s College for Teacher Training in Drumcondra. She later switched colleges and instead decided to study Irish Literature at Maynooth University for three years. For two years she was in a relationship with Dermot Ryan, a period when Annie was renting and sharing a small cottage with a female friend in Ballyboden, Dublin. In 1990, she returned to New York and after a four-month period, the relationship with Ryan petered out. He returned to Ireland and later decided to move to Italy. Annie instead remained in New York and spent two years in the US studying for a m

A social media case study of WBAC (We Buy Any Car) and how we deal with social media stories. Mick Rooney examines this case and later provides a wider social media toolkit we all need to use on the internet.