Imelda Keenan: A Search for the Truth.

1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:00,500 [Clock ticking] 2 00:00:00,500 --> 00:00:04,500 Ireland, Crimes and Mysteries, with Nules. 3 00:00:04,500 --> 00:00:10,300 Hey guys and welcome to another episode of Ireland Crimes and Mysteries. 4 00:00:10,300 --> 00:00:12,200 I want to thank you for joining me today, 5 00:00:12,200 --> 00:00:13,700 and if you're a returning listener, 6 00:00:13,700 --> 00:00:16,700 I want to say a big thank you for your continued support. 7 00:00:16,700 --> 00:00:19,800 If this is your first time listening to my podcast, 8 00:00:19,800 --> 00:00:20,800 welcome. 9 00:00:20,800 --> 00:00:22,800 It's great to have you on board. 10 00:00:22,800 --> 00:00:24,200 So what I'd further do, 11 00:00:24,200 --> 00:00:26,200 let's get started on today's story. 12 00:00:27,200 --> 00:00:31,700 We'll never take that. We'll be standing here, talk about my sister who had missing 13 00:00:31,700 --> 00:00:33,700 for a few years ago. 14 00:00:33,700 --> 00:00:37,700 Please come forward with that little bit of information. 15 00:00:37,700 --> 00:00:41,200 We needed, we needed now. 16 00:00:41,200 --> 00:00:43,700 We're not looking for events. 17 00:00:43,700 --> 00:00:49,700 We never, the king of family never spoke about events for the 30 years that I have come 18 00:00:49,700 --> 00:00:56,700 to have come here. All is we wanted was to bring our sister home. 19 00:00:56,700 --> 00:00:59,700 Home to rest with my parents. 20 00:00:59,700 --> 00:01:05,700 Home to rest with my brother that's in Ballybeg, in the Graveyard in Ballybeg. 21 00:01:05,700 --> 00:01:09,700 Today's case takes us to Waterford City, 22 00:01:09,700 --> 00:01:12,700 located in the south east of Ireland, Waterford, 23 00:01:12,700 --> 00:01:16,700 with a population of over 60,000 people is a medieval city 24 00:01:16,700 --> 00:01:20,700 which records dating back as far as 853. 25 00:01:20,700 --> 00:01:25,700 It is experienced Viking invasions and Norman invasions 26 00:01:25,700 --> 00:01:29,700 and was declared a Royal City in 1171 by Henry II 27 00:01:29,700 --> 00:01:33,700 and the second city of Ireland after Dublin, the capital. 28 00:01:33,700 --> 00:01:39,700 To this day, Waterford still retains a lot of its historical sites, 29 00:01:39,700 --> 00:01:45,700 including Reginald Tower, which was built in the 13th century after the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland. 30 00:01:45,700 --> 00:01:51,700 The river sure flows to Waterford City and the city boosts a fine harbor. 31 00:01:51,700 --> 00:01:57,700 Famous for its Waterford crystal, Waterford is also known for its culture and events, 32 00:01:57,700 --> 00:02:02,700 like the Waterford Film Festival, the Spraoi Festival and at Christmas time, 33 00:02:02,700 --> 00:02:07,700 the Winterville Festival. All these are annual events which attract a lot of people from near and far. 34 00:02:07,700 --> 00:02:13,700 And as I said, our story today brings us to Waterford City 35 00:02:13,700 --> 00:02:16,700 and to the year 1994. 36 00:02:16,700 --> 00:02:22,700 It was here that Imelda Keenan lived in her own rented flat on William Street in the middle of the city. 37 00:02:22,700 --> 00:02:31,700 A Imelda who was born on the 24th of March 1971 was 22 years of age in January of 1994. 38 00:02:31,700 --> 00:02:35,700 She was originally from Manor Rd, Mountmellick in County Laois 39 00:02:35,700 --> 00:02:39,700 and came from a large family, having eight siblings, 40 00:02:39,700 --> 00:02:43,700 and she was the youngest daughter and a country girl at heart. 41 00:02:43,700 --> 00:02:48,700 Her brothers, Ned and Jerry, were living in Waterford and worked on the trains for CIE, 42 00:02:48,700 --> 00:02:52,700 which was part of the Public Transport System Service of Ireland. 43 00:02:52,700 --> 00:02:57,700 A Imelda was a regular visitor to Waterford and fell in love with the city. 44 00:02:57,700 --> 00:03:02,700 She'd been going to Waterford since she was a young child and loved going out to Tramore with her brothers 45 00:03:02,700 --> 00:03:04,700 to have fun at the amusement park. 46 00:03:05,700 --> 00:03:09,700 Having grown up in a landlocked county, she loved being near the ocean 47 00:03:09,700 --> 00:03:13,700 and said that when she was old enough, she wanted to move to Waterford. 48 00:03:13,700 --> 00:03:19,700 True to her words, she moved down to live with her brother, Jerry, when she was 15 years old 49 00:03:19,700 --> 00:03:22,700 and finished her education in the Mercy Convent. 50 00:03:22,700 --> 00:03:28,700 After finishing school, she moved to Cork for a while and lived with her brother, Michael, 51 00:03:28,700 --> 00:03:31,700 but her heart remained washed for it. 52 00:03:31,700 --> 00:03:36,700 By the time 1994 rolled around, a Imelda had her own flash, her pet cat, 53 00:03:36,700 --> 00:03:41,700 and was doing a college course in computing in the Central Technical Institute in Waterford, 54 00:03:41,700 --> 00:03:44,700 and engaged to Mark. 55 00:03:44,700 --> 00:03:49,700 He lived with his parents, but would sometimes stay over with a Imelda. 56 00:03:49,700 --> 00:03:51,700 They had no date set for the wedding. 57 00:03:51,700 --> 00:03:55,700 Life appeared to the outside world to be good for a imelda, 58 00:03:55,700 --> 00:03:58,700 but was everything really as it seemed? 59 00:03:59,700 --> 00:04:06,700 When Imelda was reported missing on the 3rd of January 1994 by her brother to the Gardai, 60 00:04:06,700 --> 00:04:09,700 after he was made aware that she was missing by Mark. 61 00:04:09,700 --> 00:04:12,700 A lot of stuff just didn't end up. 62 00:04:12,700 --> 00:04:16,700 A Imelda's disappearance was some 10 months after Annie McCarricks, 63 00:04:16,700 --> 00:04:19,700 and nearly two years before Jojo Dullard went missing, 64 00:04:19,700 --> 00:04:23,700 and a lot of the media reports had tried to like an Imelda's case to theirs 65 00:04:23,700 --> 00:04:27,700 and include her in the missing triangle group of young women 66 00:04:27,700 --> 00:04:30,700 who went missing around this time period. 67 00:04:30,700 --> 00:04:35,700 But as we delve deeper into a Imelda story, it just doesn't appear to be the same. 68 00:04:35,700 --> 00:04:43,700 The gut feeling with a lot of people is that the answer to a Imelda's disappearance lies a lot closer to home. 69 00:04:43,700 --> 00:04:49,700 According to her brother Ned, Mark made him aware a Imelda was missing 70 00:04:49,700 --> 00:04:52,700 on the evening of Monday the 3rd of January, 71 00:04:52,700 --> 00:04:55,700 saying that he had not seen a Imelda since she left the flash 72 00:04:55,700 --> 00:04:57,700 at around 1pm that day. 73 00:04:57,700 --> 00:05:03,700 Telling him she was going to collect her social welfare or dole payment at the GPO post office. 74 00:05:03,700 --> 00:05:06,700 This was the first red flag. 75 00:05:06,700 --> 00:05:11,700 The 3rd of January 1994 was the bank holiday Monday of the New Year's weekend, 76 00:05:11,700 --> 00:05:14,700 as the New Year's Day had fallen on the Saturday, 77 00:05:14,700 --> 00:05:17,700 so the post office was not open that day. 78 00:05:17,700 --> 00:05:21,700 A Imelda would have received a double payment of her dulled week before Christmas, 79 00:05:21,700 --> 00:05:24,700 because over this period the post office was not open. 80 00:05:24,700 --> 00:05:27,700 A Imelda would have been aware of that fact, 81 00:05:27,700 --> 00:05:30,700 so this does raise a few questions. 82 00:05:30,700 --> 00:05:35,700 And if she did happen to make the mistake and think that it was the date collector payment, 83 00:05:35,700 --> 00:05:38,700 the post office was closed from 1 to 2 for launch, 84 00:05:38,700 --> 00:05:43,700 so 1pm was an odd time for a Imelda to decide to take the 6-minute journey there. 85 00:05:43,700 --> 00:05:48,700 She would have known it was closed at launch time as she collected her dull weekly. 86 00:05:48,700 --> 00:05:52,700 As it was a bank holiday, all other shops were closed too. 87 00:05:52,700 --> 00:05:56,700 So to her family, this just doesn't make sense. 88 00:05:56,700 --> 00:06:03,700 Another factor that perplexes the family is the fact that Mark would often go all day without seeing a Melda. 89 00:06:03,700 --> 00:06:10,700 How then, after just 3 hours did he actually decide to jump to the conclusion she was missing? 90 00:06:10,700 --> 00:06:13,700 And alert Imelda's brother. 91 00:06:13,700 --> 00:06:19,700 The next red flag was the fact that a Imelda apparently left the flat without her gold rim glasses. 92 00:06:19,700 --> 00:06:24,700 Imelda wore these glasses at all times as she literally couldn't see without them. 93 00:06:24,700 --> 00:06:28,700 The only time she would take them off was when she was getting her photograph taken. 94 00:06:28,700 --> 00:06:35,700 She also left behind her cigarettes, her purse, her identification which she would have needed to collect her dull, 95 00:06:35,700 --> 00:06:40,700 and of course her cat, whom she adored. 96 00:06:40,700 --> 00:06:46,700 A Imelda was described by her niece Gina, who coincidentally was only 7 years younger than her aunt, 97 00:06:46,700 --> 00:06:49,700 as being so ladylike. 98 00:06:49,700 --> 00:06:54,700 She loved her makeup, was into music, the bangles being her favorite band. 99 00:06:54,700 --> 00:06:58,700 And a Imelda was also known to be able to hold a tune. 100 00:06:58,700 --> 00:07:04,700 After all, this was not surprising as she came from a very musical family. 101 00:07:04,700 --> 00:07:10,700 Gina also said a Melda kept a diary and would regularly write her feelings into this diary. 102 00:07:10,700 --> 00:07:14,700 She said she treated her nieces and nephews like they were her own children. 103 00:07:14,700 --> 00:07:18,700 She was very kind to them and loved them all dearly. 104 00:07:18,700 --> 00:07:27,700 The family, despite being large, was a tight-knit family and despite all living in different places around Ireland and some even living in England, 105 00:07:27,700 --> 00:07:32,700 they would make the effort to meet up after Christmas or during the summer holidays. 106 00:07:32,700 --> 00:07:37,700 She said a Imelda always kept in touch, writing letters and sending on photographs. 107 00:07:37,700 --> 00:07:40,700 Her family meant the world to her. 108 00:07:40,700 --> 00:07:46,700 So for her to just vanish, was very much out of character. 109 00:07:46,700 --> 00:07:53,700 That Christmas of 1993, none of the family had heard from a Imelda, which they could not understand. 110 00:07:53,700 --> 00:07:57,700 There'd be no reason for her not to be in touch. 111 00:07:57,700 --> 00:08:02,700 Gina said she was with a Imelda's mother, her own grandmother, that evening on the third of January, 112 00:08:02,700 --> 00:08:04,700 when two guardiane arrived at her door. 113 00:08:04,700 --> 00:08:09,700 This was around 11pm to tell her that a Imelda was missing. 114 00:08:09,700 --> 00:08:13,700 When they left, a Imelda's mother sat down, shocked by what she had just been told. 115 00:08:13,700 --> 00:08:23,700 Gina, only 15 at the time, tried to reassure her grandmother, saying she was probably at a party or something, and that she would turn up. 116 00:08:23,700 --> 00:08:29,700 A ledge sightings of Imelda on the day she went missing were reported to the guardian. 117 00:08:29,700 --> 00:08:37,700 The first was from Mark, who alleged a Imelda left the house at 1pm after washing her hair, putting on her makeup and making him a cup of tea. 118 00:08:37,700 --> 00:08:42,700 Saying she was heading out to collect her social welfare and wouldn't belong. 119 00:08:42,700 --> 00:08:47,700 The second was from a lady who worked in the local medical centre and knew a Imelda. 120 00:08:47,700 --> 00:08:51,700 She said she saw a Imelda crossing the road. 121 00:08:51,700 --> 00:08:59,700 This witness said she saw a Imelda walking across William Street as she drove from the key into William Street near the tower hotel. 122 00:08:59,700 --> 00:09:04,700 She stated that a Imelda stopped in the middle of the road to let her car pass. 123 00:09:04,700 --> 00:09:18,700 Imelda's niece Gina has said that the family dispute this last sighting, not that they're saying it never happened, but the question if the lady in question got her dates mixed up, or maybe it was a case of mistaken identity. 124 00:09:18,700 --> 00:09:26,700 As they surmise, along with a lot of people, that a Imelda was actually already missing before the third of January. 125 00:09:26,700 --> 00:09:33,700 Why they think this will become clear as the story unfolds? 126 00:09:33,700 --> 00:09:44,700 The last time any of her family saw a Imelda was approximately three weeks before Christmas, when a Imelda met her brother Ned in the three ships pub for a chat. 127 00:09:44,700 --> 00:09:52,700 He said a Imelda had told him that she had presents for his two sons, and Ned also gave a Imelda her Christmas presents that day too. 128 00:09:52,700 --> 00:09:59,700 All these presents were still under the Christmas tree in her flash when she was reported missing on January 3rd. 129 00:09:59,700 --> 00:10:08,700 Why hadn't she opened her presents on Christmas morning? As Gina said, "No one waits until January to open their Christmas presents." 130 00:10:08,700 --> 00:10:13,700 A statement I think we can all agree on. 131 00:10:13,700 --> 00:10:17,700 Ned had also called to the flat twice over the two-week Christmas period. 132 00:10:17,700 --> 00:10:24,700 He had been hoping to see her before Christmas day, but when he knocked on the door to her flash, he was met with silence. 133 00:10:24,700 --> 00:10:30,700 He said both times he called the light was on in the flash, but he got no answer. 134 00:10:30,700 --> 00:10:34,700 He hung around and waited for an hour in case a Imelda would return. 135 00:10:34,700 --> 00:10:39,700 Despite finding it odd at the time, Ned wasn't too concerned. 136 00:10:39,700 --> 00:10:47,700 So you can imagine Ned's shock when he received the phone call from Mark on January 3rd saying a Melda was missing. 137 00:10:47,700 --> 00:10:57,700 Imelda had sent all the family Christmas cards before the Christmas, and said in one of the cards that she would come home to mount Imelda can January to place a wreath on her father's grave. 138 00:10:57,700 --> 00:11:02,700 This wreath was found in the house after her disappearance. 139 00:11:02,700 --> 00:11:08,700 The family didn't find it odd that she had decided to stay in water over the Christmas and knock them home. 140 00:11:08,700 --> 00:11:20,700 After all at 22 and having a partner, they just assumed she would be with him and meeting up with friends during the festivities and catch up with the family in January. 141 00:11:20,700 --> 00:11:30,700 What confuses her family is that if she was out on those nights that Ned called, why has no one come forward to say they were socializing with her? 142 00:11:30,700 --> 00:11:35,700 And if she was at home, why did she not answer the door to Ned? 143 00:11:35,700 --> 00:11:41,700 Ireland, crimes and mysteries. 144 00:11:41,700 --> 00:11:49,700 When a Imelda was reported missing to a guard as she economy on January 3rd, the response was slow to put it mildly. 145 00:11:49,700 --> 00:11:55,700 Because of the two alleged sightings of a Imelda, the Gardai did not treat the disappearances suspicious. 146 00:11:55,700 --> 00:12:03,700 Her flash being the last place a Imelda allegedly was before she went out that day was never searched by the Gardai. 147 00:12:03,700 --> 00:12:12,700 The family claimed they didn't engage in many searches. The lines shared of the searches being carried out by the family and the civil defence. 148 00:12:12,700 --> 00:12:18,700 The fact that the Christmas presents were still under the tree unopened would suggest she was missing for longer than suggested. 149 00:12:18,700 --> 00:12:30,700 But according to the family, the guardie did not focus on that fact at all, focusing completely on the witness statements that she was indeed last seen on January 3rd. 150 00:12:30,700 --> 00:12:37,700 The family were the ones to search her flat for any clues and they were the ones that discovered her glasses were still at the flat. 151 00:12:37,700 --> 00:12:43,700 Along with her purse and other items, she would not leave behind if she intended on disappearing. 152 00:12:43,700 --> 00:12:48,700 The one item they could not find at her flat was her diary. 153 00:12:48,700 --> 00:12:55,700 The diary that she would write all her thoughts in. This two had disappeared. 154 00:12:55,700 --> 00:13:06,700 The family find this very significant as according to them, she would write everything in this diary, her feelings, what she was going through at the time, her relationships. 155 00:13:06,700 --> 00:13:10,700 This diary could have revealed it all. 156 00:13:10,700 --> 00:13:14,700 But it was nowhere to be seen. 157 00:13:14,700 --> 00:13:24,700 Her niece recalls a Imelda on a few occasions having either been walking with crutches or wearing a sling, suggesting some injury had befallen her. 158 00:13:24,700 --> 00:13:32,700 When she challenged her as to what had happened to her, a Melda responded by telling her she had brittle bones and shrugged it off. 159 00:13:32,700 --> 00:13:40,700 At the time none of the family questioned her answers, which according to Gina, they lived to regret in light of what ended up happening. 160 00:13:40,700 --> 00:13:49,700 What hindsight is 2020, and we all have stuff in our lives that on reflection we regret or would have done differently given a second chance. 161 00:13:49,700 --> 00:13:56,700 I'm sure at the time a Imelda sounded convincing enough that they didn't feel the need to question her further. 162 00:13:56,700 --> 00:14:06,700 Gina did say that now the family believed that someone who knew a Imelda was hurting her in the run-up to her disappearance. 163 00:14:06,700 --> 00:14:17,700 The Guardian, as I said, were treating a Imelda as a missing person and relying on the witness statements to the extent that the flash was never even forensically searched, or searched at all for that matter. 164 00:14:17,700 --> 00:14:26,700 As regards questioning the last person who saw a Imelda and interacted with her, that being her fiancé Mark, he was never fully investigated either. 165 00:14:26,700 --> 00:14:37,700 No one is saying he did anything to a Imelda, but usually the partner or whoever is closest to the person that has disappeared is fully investigated in order to rule them out. 166 00:14:37,700 --> 00:14:44,700 He seems to have been taken at his words when he said she left the house at 1pm to collect her dough. 167 00:14:44,700 --> 00:14:56,700 He was brought into the local guard station for questioning, but there was no immediate follow-up to that questioning, and he was never challenged on his timeline of the alleged events. 168 00:14:56,700 --> 00:15:09,700 He was asked a few years later to take a lie detector test but refused, and again this did not encourage the Guardian to probe a little deeper or make them suspicious as to why he did refuse. 169 00:15:09,700 --> 00:15:16,700 Mark was popular amongst his peers and a member of a local band, which in itself brought a lot of female attention. 170 00:15:16,700 --> 00:15:23,700 They were popular at the time around the city and a Melda was often seen at their gigs. 171 00:15:23,700 --> 00:15:30,700 Mark had hinted that a Melda also suffered from depression, a fact vehemently disputed by her family. 172 00:15:30,700 --> 00:15:38,700 They said she was happy with her life and loved living in Worsford, loved her computer course and loved her flash. 173 00:15:38,700 --> 00:15:45,700 The family have spent years looking for a Imelda, 13 out to be precise. 174 00:15:45,700 --> 00:15:57,700 They have done countless media campaigns and searches, and every year they hold a vigil at a plaque that was erected for a Imelda on a bridge linking Lombard Street with William Street in Waterford City. 175 00:15:57,700 --> 00:16:04,700 They were there again this year, January 2024, to mark 30 years since a Melda went missing. 176 00:16:04,700 --> 00:16:18,700 But Mark has never been vocal in trying to find his missing fiancé. He has never participated in any media campaigns or searches, and over the years has lost touch with her family. 177 00:16:18,700 --> 00:16:27,700 Imelda's mother Elizabeth died in 2008, her brother Ned in 2011, and her brother Donal in 2018. 178 00:16:27,700 --> 00:16:36,700 Her niece Gina has taken over the campaign on behalf of the family in the hopes of raising awareness and ultimately finding a Imelda and bringing her home. 179 00:16:36,700 --> 00:16:41,700 They don't believe she is alive, a feeling they've had since day one. 180 00:16:41,700 --> 00:16:54,700 Her bank account has never been touched since she went missing, and as Gina said, when the family got to her apartment on the fort of January, a Imelda was gone and her diary was gone. 181 00:16:54,700 --> 00:17:02,700 No one has ever come forward saying they saw a Imelda out over the Christmas period after that last meeting she had with her brother Ned. 182 00:17:02,700 --> 00:17:09,700 At 22 you would assume in the run-up to Christmas there would be plenty of social gatherings with friends, etc. 183 00:17:09,700 --> 00:17:17,700 If this was the case, surely people would have spoken with Guardian when a Imelda's disappearance was made public. 184 00:17:17,700 --> 00:17:25,700 The case has now been upgraded by the Guardian from a disappearance to missing, which to me sounds like the same thing. 185 00:17:25,700 --> 00:17:30,700 This is despite please from the family for it to be upgraded to murder. 186 00:17:30,700 --> 00:17:38,700 The family felt that they had been let down by the Gardai over the years, that they haven't taken her case seriously. 187 00:17:38,700 --> 00:17:46,700 According to Gina, all they have done is taken a few statements from the family and a few other people in her life at the time of her disappearance. 188 00:17:46,700 --> 00:17:50,700 They never searched the flash, no interrogations took place. 189 00:17:50,700 --> 00:17:58,700 The family, believing that the Gardai were doing a thorough investigation at the time, did not put any undue pressure on the Gardai. 190 00:17:58,700 --> 00:18:02,700 They trusted they were doing their job to the best of their ability. 191 00:18:02,700 --> 00:18:07,700 But the fact they were treating the case as a missing person and not a potential murder case, 192 00:18:07,700 --> 00:18:14,700 meant that previous evidence that should have been collected at the time has more than lightly been lost forever. 193 00:18:15,700 --> 00:18:23,700 A few theories as to what might have happened to a Imelda have been put forward over the years, such as that she ran away. 194 00:18:23,700 --> 00:18:29,700 But the family don't believe this. She had savings in the credit union which were never touched. 195 00:18:29,700 --> 00:18:40,700 Gina said a Imelda would not even go to England to visit her family that lived there, so she finds it highly unlikely that she would leave for destinations unknown on her own without telling anyone. 196 00:18:40,700 --> 00:18:46,700 She said despite being independent, a Imelda liked to be close to her family and friends. 197 00:18:46,700 --> 00:18:52,700 This was where she felt most of the ease, so the chances of her running away are nil. 198 00:18:52,700 --> 00:18:55,700 Imelda was a home bird. 199 00:18:55,700 --> 00:19:04,700 Also significant is the fact a Imelda did not own a passport, so she could not go abroad even if she wanted to. 200 00:19:04,700 --> 00:19:16,700 She also stated that if a Imelda was alive, she would contact him. There is no way she would let her family suffer all these years and not let them know she was alive and well. 201 00:19:16,700 --> 00:19:22,700 Another theory which was touched upon was that a Imelda had ended her own life. 202 00:19:22,700 --> 00:19:31,700 This completely shocked the family when they heard it. They said there is no way a Imelda would do this, and they are very confident that this theory is rubbish. 203 00:19:31,700 --> 00:19:43,700 Another fact to which goes against it is the fact that there was no trace of a Imelda ever found, not even a night of uploading despite extensive searches on land and water by the family in civil defence. 204 00:19:43,700 --> 00:19:49,700 This also ruled out another theory that a Imelda had had some sort of an accident. 205 00:19:49,700 --> 00:19:52,700 If she did, where is she? 206 00:19:52,700 --> 00:20:04,700 None of these theories carry any weight and the family are extremely confident that this is all their theories and not fact. 207 00:20:04,700 --> 00:20:14,700 The case went cold for a number of years then, and in 2009 the family put forward a reward for 10,000 for any information leading to the whereabouts of a Imelda. 208 00:20:14,700 --> 00:20:17,700 This yielded little results. 209 00:20:17,700 --> 00:20:29,700 Then in May of 2012 Melda was in the news again as a new search for her got underway in ferry bank, a suburb of Waterford City, in a derelict bungalow after a tip was received. 210 00:20:29,700 --> 00:20:38,700 This search carried out by trace missing persons Ireland also searched a number of other locations in the area, but again to no avail. 211 00:20:38,700 --> 00:20:42,700 The tip turned out to be a false tip. 212 00:20:42,700 --> 00:20:48,700 All went quite for a number of years despite a fresh appeal by the family on each anniversary. 213 00:20:48,700 --> 00:20:53,700 The latest one this year on the 30th anniversary of her disappearance. 214 00:20:53,700 --> 00:21:00,700 Gina has now taken on the task of fronting the campaign for her family, along with other members, including Jerry. 215 00:21:00,700 --> 00:21:09,700 She has said in the past that she made this decision as her uncle Jerry who still lives in Waterford gets very anxious and stressed about the whole situation. 216 00:21:09,700 --> 00:21:19,700 He has to pass the plaque every day dedicated to his sister and over the years it has understandably taken a toll on him. 217 00:21:19,700 --> 00:21:31,700 After discussing everything with Jerry Gina decided to take to social media with all the information they had gathered over the years and as she said, "it just blew up" which is fantastic. 218 00:21:31,700 --> 00:21:39,700 Gina said that after the 30th anniversary appeal a number of people have come forward and statements have been collected. 219 00:21:39,700 --> 00:21:48,700 This is the news the family have been waiting for. Maybe 2024 will be the year that they finally get answers. 220 00:21:48,700 --> 00:21:56,700 In 2023 a woman came forward to the Gardai with new information. She gave a formal statement. 221 00:21:56,700 --> 00:22:02,700 This woman had known a melda in the early 1990s having first met her in 1990. 222 00:22:02,700 --> 00:22:10,700 She told Guardian about a number of disturbing incidents involving a young woman that had taken place in Waterford before a Imelda went missing. 223 00:22:10,700 --> 00:22:21,700 This witness had moved away from the area prior to a melda's disappearance and only became aware that she was missing after seeing a program on TV about missing women in Ireland last year. 224 00:22:21,700 --> 00:22:31,700 Despite this new information a recent meeting with the Gardai by a Imelda's family for an update on the case did not yield the outcome they were hoping for. 225 00:22:31,700 --> 00:22:42,700 The Gardai advised the family that they were still treating the cases that of a missing person and would not be upgrading it to murder but that the case was under review. 226 00:22:42,700 --> 00:22:49,700 The family are disappointed that the case has not been upgraded. What hold out hope that it soon will be. 227 00:22:49,700 --> 00:22:55,700 The Gardai have told them that if any significant new information came forward that could change. 228 00:22:55,700 --> 00:23:00,700 Nevertheless the family have expressed confidence in the Gardai who are now fronting the case. 229 00:23:00,700 --> 00:23:09,700 Having been assured by them at recent meetings that no stone would be left unturned and if any new information arises the keynans would be the first to know. 230 00:23:09,700 --> 00:23:13,700 And they said that they are happy with that. 231 00:23:13,700 --> 00:23:24,700 As the family gathered by a melda's plaque in Washerd at the beginning of January to commemorate the 30th anniversary of her disappearance it was a sombre day indeed for them. 232 00:23:24,700 --> 00:23:37,700 Jerry spoke on WL or radio saying today is a very very emotional day for the keen and family and for Imelda's friends and the people here in Waterford who may have known a melda. 233 00:23:37,700 --> 00:23:43,700 He described her as quiet, loyal and full of life. 234 00:23:43,700 --> 00:23:48,700 He said that they all still kept a melda in their hearts and minds saying, 235 00:23:48,700 --> 00:23:55,700 Imelda was a very quiet shy girl from Mountmellick County Laois who came down here in the late 1980s. 236 00:23:55,700 --> 00:23:58,700 She was very shy and she had very few friends. 237 00:23:58,700 --> 00:24:03,700 If you got to know a Imelda she was a dainty little young and innocent girl. 238 00:24:03,700 --> 00:24:08,700 She kept to herself and kind of went about her business in her own way. 239 00:24:08,700 --> 00:24:14,700 She didn't have many friends but the friends that she had she kept them close to her. 240 00:24:14,700 --> 00:24:16,700 She regarded them as family. 241 00:24:16,700 --> 00:24:22,700 Once you got to know a Imelda what a beautiful young girl she was. 242 00:24:22,700 --> 00:24:29,700 Jerry went on to say that two of his brothers have gone to their graves with broken hearts not knowing what happened to Imelda. 243 00:24:29,700 --> 00:24:35,700 A melda's mother passed away in 2008 not knowing what happened to her beloved daughter. 244 00:24:35,700 --> 00:24:40,700 Jerry said she always believed that someday we would get an answer, 245 00:24:40,700 --> 00:24:46,700 that there would be words that she was found safe and well. It never happened. 246 00:24:46,700 --> 00:24:51,700 Jerry said addressing the crowd gathered for the vigil that the family is not looking for revenge. 247 00:24:51,700 --> 00:24:57,700 All they want is to bring their sister home and give her a Christian burial. 248 00:24:57,700 --> 00:25:04,700 Despite all the setbacks the keen and family have faced over the years they remain defiant in their determination to get to the truth. 249 00:25:04,700 --> 00:25:11,700 They will never give up hope of finding a Imelda until they get the closure they saw rightfully deserve. 250 00:25:11,700 --> 00:25:17,700 This close-knit family will keep going, fighting for one of their own who is out there somewhere. 251 00:25:17,700 --> 00:25:21,700 It may only take one missing piece to solve this case. 252 00:25:21,700 --> 00:25:26,700 One person with some small but vital piece of information to bring this family piece. 253 00:25:26,700 --> 00:25:33,700 Despite having received lots of false information over the years this does not derail them. 254 00:25:33,700 --> 00:25:37,700 Every bit of information they receive is looked into. 255 00:25:37,700 --> 00:25:44,700 Gina has said that 2023 was when the real investigation into a melda's disappearance started. 256 00:25:44,700 --> 00:25:55,700 Unfortunately she said we are now aware that the sweet, kind, loving, beautiful young lady that we called mel was living a life we were not aware of. 257 00:25:55,700 --> 00:26:00,700 I know a melda wanted to have a life in Waterford. She wanted to find love and be happy. 258 00:26:00,700 --> 00:26:07,700 She reiterated her desire for the guardian to upgrade the case to murder and question every person. 259 00:26:07,700 --> 00:26:10,700 A very fair request I think of this juncture. 260 00:26:10,700 --> 00:26:20,700 I would like for anyone to come forward. If they saw Imelda at Christmas if they saw her on St. Stephen's Day or New Year's Day just to comment on it because we don't know where she was for two weeks for Christmas. 261 00:26:20,700 --> 00:26:26,700 If she was not out and she was in her flat why did she not open the door to her brother? 262 00:26:26,700 --> 00:26:29,700 That is just to make sense to me. 263 00:26:29,700 --> 00:26:32,700 We all know when the post office is going to be open at Christmas. 264 00:26:32,700 --> 00:26:37,700 We all know when our next payment is, you know, people, anyone that is on social welfare. 265 00:26:37,700 --> 00:26:40,700 It was the bank holiday. Why would she go there? 266 00:26:40,700 --> 00:26:48,700 And how would you know by half or someone is a missing person if they leave between one and half one? 267 00:26:48,700 --> 00:26:56,700 I just don't feel like it's the truth. And I just want to trope the family want to trope. 268 00:26:56,700 --> 00:27:00,700 So, I implore you my listeners. 269 00:27:00,700 --> 00:27:08,700 If you do have any information on a melda's disappearance, if you knew Imelda back in the early 90s or in the run-up to her disappearance, 270 00:27:08,700 --> 00:27:17,700 and you remember something you thought meant nothing at the time but now, unreflection or after having listened to her story, feel it could be important. 271 00:27:17,700 --> 00:27:25,700 Give this information up. It might be that piece they are so desperately looking for. 272 00:27:25,700 --> 00:27:35,700 At the time of her disappearance, a melda was described as been approximately five foot tree to five foot four in height of thin build with long brown hair. 273 00:27:35,700 --> 00:27:46,700 Please do the right thing and contact Waterford Garda station on 051 305 300. 274 00:27:46,700 --> 00:27:56,700 Are the Garda confidential line on 1-800-666-111 275 00:27:56,700 --> 00:28:06,700 or the National Missing Persons helpline on 1-800-442-552? 276 00:28:06,700 --> 00:28:11,700 So guys, that's it for today's episode of The Ireland Crimes and Mysteries Podcast. 277 00:28:11,700 --> 00:28:18,700 Again, thanks for your listenership and don't forget to subscribe to the show and hit that auto-download so you never miss an episode. 278 00:28:18,700 --> 00:28:24,700 Until the next time, keep your eyes open and your mind curious. 279 00:28:24,700 --> 00:28:35,700 This podcast has been compiled from information gathered in the public sphere, like news articles, documentaries and open source material that can be found on the web. 280 00:28:35,700 --> 00:28:41,700 Everything in this podcast is alleged unless a conviction has taken place. 281 00:28:41,700 --> 00:28:51,700 You've been listening to Ireland Crimes and Mysteries with news. Join us for another episode coming real soon. 282 00:28:51,700 --> 00:29:01,700 [MUSIC]