Data on 44 unidentified human remains published to help identify missing persons

A database of information about 44 unidentified human remains, including of a newborn baby found in a recycling centre in Co Wicklow and the two-day old infant known as ‘Baby John’ found on a beach in Co Kerry, has been published here for the first time.

The information has been obtained from coroners and published by the Department of Justice in the hope it will assist families of missing persons and Garda investigations into unsolved missing persons cases, said Minister of State at the Department, James Browne.

DNA profiles for 28 of the 44 are already on the national DNA database and steps will be taken to extract samples, where possible, from the other 16 to also include them on the national database. That will require exhumations in some cases.

There are an estimated 856 unsolved missing persons cases live on the Garda Pulse system. While many are quickly resolved, it is hoped that potentially identifying details found on the human remains, including tattoos and clothing, may assist in solving others.

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The 44 include full and partial human remains dating from the 1970s to last year.

The remains of several were found at coastal locations, including two, a male and a female, at the base of the Cliffs of Moher in Co Clare.

[ Within the quest for justice for Baby John, lies a story Ireland must never forget ]

The male, located in 2010, was wearing only black runners with Velcro straps. Parts of blue denim jeans, brand Esmara, were found on the female whose remains were located in 2016.

Several of the remains of others comprise only bones or are badly decomposed.

In one case, skeletal remains of a female discovered in early 2021 on an old disused railway line at Roxboro, Midleton, Co Cork, in 2021 appeared to have been exhumed.

The remains of one male, discovered in 1980, featured a large multicoloured tattoo consisting of a serpent with flowers and a crest with “Mam-Dad” on the left forearm. The words “for you” were also inscribed in red on the right thigh.

The partial remains of a young male discovered in 1995 in Sollahoona bog near Spiddal, Co Galway, were located with a knapsack containing, inter alia, German coins dated 1993, a Sony Walkman and shoes with the word Billy inscribed inside.

The 44 also include the remains of a two-day old male infant found in April 1984 on White Strand beach near Caherciveen, Co Kerry. The parents of the baby have never been identified but the discovery of his body led a controversial Garda investigation in what is known as the ‘Kerry Babies’ case.

The database also includes details about the remains of an infant female, believed to be either still born or who have died a short term after birth, located in 2016 at the Greenstar recycling centre in Bray, Co Wicklow.

An unidentified man who spent 35 years in a psychiatric hospital in Cork up to his death in 2021 is also among the 44.

Minister Browne said the families of missing people have long called for the release of the information now published.

“Lots of people experience tragic loss but I think the families who have lost individuals, who don’t know where they are, don’t know what has happened to them, it’s a very particular loss for people, it’s a very tragic loss, it’s a very devastating loss. It’s been described as a very ambiguous type of loss because people don’t have a sense of closure, a sense of finality.”

There may be something that “triggers a memory or rings a bell with any one of us”, he said.

“If you or someone you know has any information that might assist in solving a missing person case, I would urge you to report it to An Garda Síochána,” he urged. “It’s never too late.”

Also speaking at the launch in Dublin of the database, Mayo County Coroner, Pat O’Connor, who is public information officer for the Coroners Society of Ireland, said coroners are committed to assisting bereaved families.

He had “no hesitation” in recommending that relatives of missing persons contact the Garda missing persons unit and offer their DNA to assist in investigations, the coroner said.

The database comes after the Department of Justice established a forum in July 2021, alongside An Garda Síochána’s Missing Persons Unit and Forensic Science Ireland (FSI), to facilitate information exchange on unidentified remains.

In light of advances in DNA profiling, coroners were asked last December to return updated details of any unidentified remains for their districts among their annual statutory returns to the Minister for Justice. The database has been compiled following an analysis of the coroners records.

Because more cases may come to light, the department intends to publish updates to the database on an annual basis.

Detective Chief Superintendent Colm Noonan said the force had in 2018 commenced a substantial body of work in relation to unidentified human remains and this work is continuing.

A DNA testing facility for families of missing persons is available for any family of missing persons to engage with An Garda Síochána, he added.

Chris Enright, Director of FSI, said it had assisted in 74 missing persons cases where DNA reference samples from family members were submitted for DNA profiling and uploaded to the national DNA Database. FSI assisted in identification of 12 missing persons in 2022, she added.

Queries about information in the database should be directed to the relevant coroner. The database can be accessed at https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/ae2ea-unidentified-human-remains/