Ireland's Vanishing Triangle

IrishColdCases

When writing a report on ‘Ireland’s Vanishing Triangle’ the first point of discussion should be the name. Ireland’s Vanishing Triangle is merely a term coined by the Irish media in the 1990s. The term has no relation to geographical profiling nor does it have any relevance to the actual cases.

There was a recent article printed in the Irish Times titled “The Myth of Ireland’s Vanishing Triangle”; yes in literal terms it is a myth. But- fortunately or unfortunately- the title will draw people’s attention, and thus bring attention to the unsolved cases. The serial killer case known as the Golden State Killer is an excellent example of this; the case had gone unsolved from the 1970s until as recently as 2018. During the 70s and 80s, the killer was given many different titles by the media, such as The East Area Rapist, The Original Nightstalker, The Diamond Knot Killer and perhaps most bizarrely the acronym EARONS. None of them managed to garner the attention of the wider public and media. Eventually in 2015, crime journalist Michelle McNamara gave the killer the title of the Golden State Killer, and the case became mainstream, and numerous documentaries, podcasts and TV shows were made.

Thankfully, the case was eventually solved by the brilliant Paul Holes and his team. It is clear that the title or term when referring to a series of unsolved crimes matters, although as humans the fact that our attention is more drawn to unsolved crimes with flashy titles than unsolved crimes with no title or an unappealing title, is hard for us to admit, as morally we all know that unsolved serious crimes deserve our equal attention. But, unfortunately human nature gets in the way of moral objectivity. Titles such as the Zodiac Killer and BTK have helped keep unsolved murders in the public eye for decades, and in the case of Jack the Ripper for well over a century.

Ireland’s Vanishing Triangle ‘usually’ refers to the unexplained disappearances of six young women in the East of Ireland between 1993 and 1998. However, the time span and number of cases has long been disputed. In the broadest of timelines the series could span from as far back as 1979 with the  murder of Phillis Murphy and as recent as 2011 with the unexplained disappearance of Esra Uyrun covering a total of an estimated seventeen unsolved murders and disappearances. In several of these seventeen cases, arrests have been made, and three bodies have been found. The Gardi are certain that another three of the victims were killed by men known to them, but their remains have yet to be found. Two of the cases have strong suspects also known to the victim, but nobody has yet to be convicted for any of these murders and presumed murders.

For the purpose of this article, I will cover seven cases between the years of 1987 to 2003. Unlike the nine previously mentioned cases, there is no motive and the reason for their murder and presumed murder largely remains a mystery. Links on the nine cases I have decided not to include will be provided at the end of the article. The decision to discuss/include the seven specific cases is merely based on opinion which is 100% open to debate, and despite researching these cases for numerous years, I am still not certain on the timeline or the number of cases to include- which really gives you a quick insight into the complexities of these cases or series, as it is somewhat a case of ‘the more you know the less you know’. In relation to the seven as of yet unsolved cases I have decided to include, some arrests have been made, interviews conducted, and suspects uncovered, but most importantly nobody has been convicted in relation to these heinous crimes.

For the purpose of this article the cases will be laid out in chronological form.

July 1987

Antoinette Smith

Location: Dublin City/Glencullen Dublin and Wicklow Mountains

Antoinette Smith was a mother of two originally from Crumlin. By 1987, she was living in the South West Dublin suburb of Clondalkin with her two young children. Antoinette was dedicated to her children, and it seemed her life mostly revolved around them, which is credit to her character as she was only 27 years of age.

On Saturday the 11th of July 1987, Antoinette attended a David Bowie concert in Slane Castle, Co. Meath with a friend, having previously arranged to have her children babysat by their father Karl. By 11pm that evening both women had returned to Dublin City, where they attended the now closed La Mirage nightclub on Parnell Street. At roughly 2:30am Antoinette and her friend parted company on O’Connell Street. Antoinette had arranged to return to her friend’s house later that night, unfortunately though she never made it to the house. The last confirmed sighting of 27 year old Antoinette Smith was of her walking on O’Connell Street towards O’Connell Bridge sometime between 2:30am and 3am.  

Sadly Antoinette’s body was found ten months later during April of 1988, by a young family, in an area of the Dublin and Wicklow Mountains known as Glendoo. Professor John Harbison concluded that Antoinette most likely died through asphyxiation as there was no sign of trauma. Shockingly two bags were found placed on Antoinette’s head with the inner bag knotted tightly around the neck, unfortunately due to decomposition Professor Harbison could not confirm whether the bags were placed on Antoinette before or after she died. Some of Antoinette’s personal items were recovered, but the black Texaco sports bag she had with her remains missing.

The gap in time from when Antoinette was reported missing and being found unfortunately gave her killer or killers a head start on authorities. And to this day they have yet to be brought to justice. For justifiable reasons Antoinette’s ex-husband Karl is rightfully not considered a suspect.

December 1991

Patricia Doherty

Location: Tallaght/Dublin and Wicklow Mountains

Like Antoinette Smith Patricia Doherty was a young mother of two. Patricia was originally from Co. Kerry, but by 1991 she was living in the sprawling South West Dublin Suburb of Tallaght with her husband Patrick and children. Patricia had recently started a job as prison guard in Mount Joy Prison having previously worked as a secretary at a local school.

Shortly after 9pm on the 23rd of December, Patricia returned to her home in Allenton Lawns after a long day shopping and running errands throughout Tallaght, mostly in preparation for Christmas. At roughly 9:15pm Patricia decided to go back out to shop at a nearby shopping centre known as Old Bawn. However, there was no reported sighting of Patricia at the shops after 9:15pm. There was though two witness reports one stating that 29 year old Patricia was seen walking in the direction of the Old Bawn Shopping Centre shortly after 9pm. The second witness report was of a woman matching Patricia’s description entering a red car outside of the Old Bawn Shopping Centre.

Shockingly there has been no other reported sightings of Patricia Doherty and it seemed as if she had vanished with little or no trace. On Christmas Day, Patricia was reported missing by her husband Patrick at Tallaght Garda Station.

Some six months later on the 21st of June 1992 a man was cutting turf in an area of the Dublin and Wicklow Mountains known as Glassmucky Breaks when sadly he found Patricia’s body buried in a bog which had collapsed due to prolonged dry weather. Patricia Doherty was found less than mile from Antoinette Smith. Professor John Harbison concluded that Patricia had died through asphyxiation.

It is now almost 32 years since Patricia was last seen alive, and nobody has been convicted for her heinous murder. And Patricia’s family remains without answers.

 

March 1993

Annie McCarrick

Location: Sandymount/Dublin and Wicklow Mountains.

Annie McCarrick was a 26 year American student living in South Dublin at the time of her disappearance. Annie had previously lived in Ireland between 1987 and 1990 but decided to fully relocate to Ireland in early 1993, from her home town of Bayport Long Island. After college Annie planned to be a school teacher.

At roughly 11am on Friday the 26th of March Annie McCarrick left her apartment in St Catherine’s Court in Dublin’s Sandymount to visit a supermarket and the bank. Whilst visiting the bank and shops, Annie phoned some friends from a payphone and told them about her plans to visit Enniskerry in the Dublin and Wicklow Mountains that day. At 3pm Annie returned to her apartment and left again at 3:15pm; for some unknown reason Annie did not unpack her food shopping despite it containing perishable ingredients.

Annie was later spotted boarding the number 44 bus heading for Enniskerry by a former work colleague. There was two unconfirmed sightings of Annie McCarrick in Enniskerry that evening- one in a post office and another in a café known as Poppies. A further sighting of Annie was reported later that evening in pub called Johnny Fox’s at 9:30pm again, though this sighting cannot be fully confirmed. However, these are the last reported sightings of Annie. To this day she has yet to be found.

On the 30th anniversary of Annie’s disappearance it was announced that the case had been upgraded to a murder investigation. And the investigation will now focus on the Sandymount area where Annie lived. It now also seems that an individual known to Annie has been identified as a suspect in this unsolved case. Hopefully there will be answers for Annie’s family soon.

July 1993

Eva Brennan

Location: Rathgar South Dublin

Eva Brennan was a 39 year old single woman who lived in Rathgar the area in which she had grown up in. By July 1993, Eva was living in an apartment in Maddison House across from the 108 Pub which was and still is owned by her family. Eva Brennan lived a quiet life based on routine and her large family who she very close to.

At 1pm on Sunday the 25th of July 1993, Eva arrived at her parents’ for Sunday dinner; earlier that morning, Eva had attended church St Joseph’s Terenure. Soon after Eva arrived at her parents’ home, a small insignificant argument occurred between Eva and some of her siblings. The argument was supposedly about the choice of food for dinner. After this incident, Eva Brennan decided to leave her parents’ house in Rathdown Park. Shockingly this would be the last confirmed sighting of Eva Brennan.

It is then presumed that Eva returned to her apartment in Maddison House Rathgar. The coat she was wearing when she left her parents’ house was found at the apartment, after her father Mr Davy Brennan gained entry to the property in the days after Eva was last seen. A white handbag and man’s wrist watch were missing from the property, it is presumed Eva had these items with her when she vanished.

It appears that no suspects have been identified in this case nor have any arrests been made. But most importantly no trace of Eva Brennan has ever been found.

November 1995

JoJo Dullard

Location: Co. Kildare Moone/Castledermot

JoJo Dullard was a 21 year old woman originally from Callan Co. Kilkenny, by 1995 she had spent a few years living in Dublin City and working as a waitress but had decided to move home to Callan to begin a more permanent job at a local pub.

On the morning of Thursday the 9th of November 1995, JoJo left Kilkenny to travel to Dublin to collect a payment from a Post Office in Harold’s Cross. After visiting the Post Office JoJo headed to Bruxelles Pub in Dublin City where she spent the day socialising with friends. Throughout the day it appears that JoJo lost track of time and missed her bus home to Kilkenny. However, it appeared that JoJo was determined to get home, so she took a bus to the Co. Kildare town of Naas, and from there she hitched a lift to Kilcullen, and from there hitched a lift to Moone.

At Moone, JoJo phoned her friend Mary Cullinan from the village’s payphone. Whilst talking to Mary, JoJo was able to flag down a car at roughly 11:45pm, and informed her friend that she would see her soon. Shockingly this would be the last time any of JoJo Dullard’s friends or family would speak to her. There was a witness report of JoJo getting into the back seat of red car that was perhaps a Toyota Carina or Ford Ciera. Additionally there was several reports of a woman matching JoJo’s description in the Kildare village of Castledermot at roughly midnight walking in the direction of Co. Carlow. Unfortunately like the report of the woman entering the car in Moone, the witness reports from Castledermot could not be confirmed.

JoJo Dullard’s case is one of the most infamous missing persons case in the history of Ireland. Thanks to the hard work of her family and in particular her sisters Mary Phelan and Kathleen Bergin the case has remained in the media cycle. However, due to the high profile nature of JoJo’s disappearance speculation surrounding the case and suspects was and remains rife. But the most important fact is that JoJo Dullard’s has never been found.

July 1998

Deirdre Jacob

Location: Roseberry Newbridge Co. Kildare

Deirdre Jacob was an 18 year old student originally from Co. Kildare. In the late summer of 1997 she moved to London to study teaching, having completed school herself a few months previously. By the summer of 1998, Deirdre had completed her first year of university of Strawberry Hills College, and had returned to Ireland to spend the summer at her parents’ home in Roseberry, Newbridge Co. Kildare.

At 10am on the morning of Thursday the 28th of July, Deirdre Jacob left her parents’ home having spent the morning doing chores and writing some letters. Deirdre planned to walk to the town of Newbridge- a roughly 25 minute walk from Roseberry- but she had also planned to visit her grandmother along the way. At 2:26pm, Deirdre was spotted on CCTV at Newbridge Post Office sending a bank draft to the UK.

After visiting the post office, Deirdre Jacob decided to walk home. Along the way she spoke briefly to an old school friend and visited her Grandmother for the second time that day. By 3:30pm, Deidre had almost reached her parents’ home. She was spotted walking along the road close to her home by a neighbour, and she exchanged greetings with another neighbour just 300 yards from home. The last sighting of Deirdre was on the grass verge across the road from the gate at the end of the long driveway leading to her parents’ bungalow.

Sadly, Deirdre Jacob has never been seen since, despite wide spread searches and relentless work from the Gardi. A suspect has been identified and the Gardi have attempted to have them tried, but so far this has been unsuccessful. But the Gardi remain committed to solving this case.

March 2003

Claire Boylan

Location: Terenure South Dublin

At the time of her disappearance, Claire Boylan, was 36 years of age and living in Terenure South Dublin, where she had grown up. Claire was the manager of a successful book shop in the nearby neighbourhood of Rathmines. She enjoyed a quiet life and enjoyed walking around her native Terenure.

On the morning of Sunday the 2nd of March 2003, Claire left her parents’ home at 10:00am after telling them that she was planning to visit an old school friend in Tullamore Co. Offaly. However, Claire’s friend later told Gardi that Claire had not arranged to visit her in Tullamore, and Claire did not contact her subsequently. Despite it being 2003, Claire did not own a mobile phone, and it is not known if Claire tried to contact her friend prior to leaving her parents’ home that Sunday morning.

No evidence has emerged that Claire reached Tullamore. She did not own a car, so it is presumed she would have had to take public transport to reach the large midlands town. CCTV at bus stations and train stations was checked, but there was no sign of Claire. After a public appeal, numerous reports came in claiming to have seen Claire Boylan walking around the Terenure area in the days after the 2nd of March, some these reports claimed to have seen Claire as late as the 15th of March 2003. Although, it must be remembered that Claire Boylan regularly walked the Terenure area so it is possible, but not definite, that people making these reports had mixed up the days and dates. There was also another similar report of Claire being spotted in the Rathmines area in early April 2003, but again Claire worked in this neighbourhood and would have been seen there frequently.

Despite Claire Boylan’s disappearance being as recent as 2003, there is little to no evidence in terms of CCTV and other technologies. No witness reports have ever emerged that may help explain what happened to Claire when she left her home. Most importantly, Claire Boylan has never been found, and like all the aforementioned women in this article her family remains without answers.

 

It is at this point one would try to summarise their article/post but how can one summarise when there are no answers.

Further reading at Irelandsvanishingtriangle.com

Day Lewin

A very concise summary. Mysteries to ponder.

The case of Eva Brennan has several features that are not shared with the others - like, that Eva had had a history of depression, (I believe) and since there had been some disagreement at the family home, they reckon that the Gardaí concluded there was a possibility of suicide. Maybe so, but the family always strongly denied this idea; and in any case, how could she have disappeared her own body so completely?

And the Clare Boylan case is around the same area, same age group....

I would love to know what happened to these women!

Be right back

Thanks for that. I have to say that I have never heard of Clare Boylan.

Day Lewin

I've seen a few mentions in the papers lately that it is the 30-yr anniversary of disappearance of Imelda Keenan in Waterford.

This case does not seem to get the same sort of press attention that the ones above have received; I wonder if possibly this one was presumed to be "domestic" in nature, rather than a complete mystery disappearance?

Meaning no disrespect to anyone that was close to Imelda at the time of her vanishing. There isn't a lot of facts to go on!

But she vanished - no traces left, no body found, nothing.

Gautama

I listened to this on Spotify. It’s an awful podcast series. I realise the maker apologises for it being an amateurish production, but his own opinions on matters are unnecessary.

Most of the podcasts had a short criticism of the Gardai. But it’s the episode where he gives his opinion on George W Bush and the Second Gulf War where he really excels in his unprofessionalism.

I did give it a one star review on Spotify though, for that thorny subject of the victim being shitfaced in Episode 7. The national media rarely reveal this touchy topic.