UK UK - Jack O'Sullivan, 22, left friends after night out, last seen Brunel Lock Road/Brunel Way, Bristol at 3.15am, 2 Mar 2024

[Twittens]

It was a big blunder on this case because so much time was lost the beginning by missing that cctv footage of Jack crossing the bridge. Placing him in a completely different area. Police were searching on the wrong side of the river. But what are other people's opinions on this case, does anyone suspect foul play?

My theory is the same as it was in the beginning; when someone goes missing near water, they're normally in the water. I just think it's such a dangerous location to be walking alone drunk, there is so many spots you can end up in the water and because it's so tidal it removes the evidence quickly.

I don't think you can rule out foul play.

I spend a lot of time in Bristol and like it a lot but that's not a location I would feel at all happy to find myself in late at night (with a broken down car for instance). The combination of the water and the mishmash of roads makes it a kind of liminal zone where pretty much anything could happen. There's a lot of wasteground and dodgy little hidey holes. I do think the police have dropped the ball. The combination of cctv and his phone's last known location gives a clear steer on the area to focus on, and they could have been out doing door to door and collecting cctv and doorbell footage, plus an appeal to drivers for dashcam footage. It would have taken ages to go through it all but by now it might have been offering up some new leads.

The other strong possibility imo is a hit and run where the driver disposed of his body.

An accidental death involving water can't be ruled out because it's so often what's happened with young men on a night out, but without a body should only be a conclusion of last resort, whereas it seems to have been a go to demi conclusion in poor Jack's case, which is wrong. I might feel differently if there was evidence of stress, depression, a relationship break up or whatever, and a suspicion he'd gone towards the water to brood and might have been suicidal. But afaik there's been nothing of that sort said or in his history. And I don't believe in a waterside homicidal 'pusher' for a minute. I'm sure there was a strong belief in one in Manchester a few years ago, after a spate of drunk young men ended up in the canal, until one of them was caught on cctv and it was clear he was just incapacitated, no one else involved. People want death not to seem stupid and needless, and grasp at explanations that allow it to be someone else's fault imho.

But Jack's case could be something else and needs to be investigated more thoroughly imo. It might not be too late to find some more footage of him.

 

[Kye Zeeb]

When discussing the pusher theory in various threads in WS over the years its often commented that Men tend to stand and pee on the edge of water, but if had a drink they likely topple in.

This, exactly. I know someone who did exactly that and fell in. He told me that he was shocked how strong the current was under the near-still surface and the amount of random scrap metal in the water. He was very lucky that he somehow managed to scramble out onto the bank. It was very nearly a tragic ending.

 

[MollyHarps]

I don't think you can rule out foul play.

I spend a lot of time in Bristol and like it a lot but that's not a location I would feel at all happy to find myself in late at night (with a broken down car for instance). The combination of the water and the mishmash of roads makes it a kind of liminal zone where pretty much anything could happen. There's a lot of wasteground and dodgy little hidey holes. I do think the police have dropped the ball. The combination of cctv and his phone's last known location gives a clear steer on the area to focus on, and they could have been out doing door to door and collecting cctv and doorbell footage, plus an appeal to drivers for dashcam footage. It would have taken ages to go through it all but by now it might have been offering up some new leads.

The other strong possibility imo is a hit and run where the driver disposed of his body.

An accidental death involving water can't be ruled out because it's so often what's happened with young men on a night out, but without a body should only be a conclusion of last resort, whereas it seems to have been a go to demi conclusion in poor Jack's case, which is wrong. I might feel differently if there was evidence of stress, depression, a relationship break up or whatever, and a suspicion he'd gone towards the water to brood and might have been suicidal. But afaik there's been nothing of that sort said or in his history. And I don't believe in a waterside homicidal 'pusher' for a minute. I'm sure there was a strong belief in one in Manchester a few years ago, after a spate of drunk young men ended up in the canal, until one of them was caught on cctv and it was clear he was just incapacitated, no one else involved. People want death not to seem stupid and needless, and grasp at explanations that allow it to be someone else's fault imho.

But Jack's case could be something else and needs to be investigated more thoroughly imo. It might not be too late to find some more footage of him.

I agree with all your post.

Whilst I do think the most likely outcome is that he fell into the water I do think other options should have been investigated more thoroughly ie where his phone was, ring door bell & CCTV footage.

I do think if this was a women then the police would have acted a lot quicker and completed a more thorough investigation

 

[Twittens]

I agree with all your post.

Whilst I do think the most likely outcome is that he fell into the water I do think other options should have been investigated more thoroughly ie where his phone was, ring door bell & CCTV footage.

I do think if this was a women then the police would have acted a lot quicker and completed a more thorough investigation

Yes, I think so too. I also think that the Sarah Everard investigation showed us that if someone you love goes missing you have to be the squeakiest of squeaky wheels at the earliest possible stage, because a lot of people go missing and the police make resource rationing decisions based on what's most likely to have happened to someone with your relative's 'profile'. If you want to resist whatever that stereotype is, or increase the resources your person gets, you have to provide all the momentum for that yourself. I'm not exactly criticising the police, because resources are limited and the fact is most missing people turn up in short order, but the decision-making algorithm is almost always going to be imperfect. The trouble is that you don't (and probably can't) know if this is a missing person who ought to have had more resources devoted to them until it's too late and the golden window has closed. I do think there may still be info out there about Jack though and I hope they keep looking.

 

[MollyHarps]

Yes, I think so too. I also think that the Sarah Everard investigation showed us that if someone you love goes missing you have to be the squeakiest of squeaky wheels at the earliest possible stage, because a lot of people go missing and the police make resource rationing decisions based on what's most likely to have happened to someone with your relative's 'profile'. If you want to resist whatever that stereotype is, or increase the resources your person gets, you have to provide all the momentum for that yourself. I'm not exactly criticising the police, because resources are limited and the fact is most missing people turn up in short order, but the decision-making algorithm is almost always going to be imperfect. The trouble is that you don't (and probably can't) know if this is a missing person who ought to have had more resources devoted to them until it's too late and the golden window has closed. I do think there may still be info out there about Jack though and I hope they keep looking.

I think Sarah’s case was slightly different - she had shared a bottle of wine wasn’t drunk or near water - was on phone to boyfriend until minutes before so police had an easier timescale to work on - London also has much better CCTV - Sarah’s friends also had contacts in the media.

In women’s cases I’m thinking more like a Gaynor Lord (RIP) it was quite obvious to me what happened there yet they quickly traced her final steps

 

[Twittens]

I think Sarah’s case was slightly different - she had shared a bottle of wine wasn’t drunk or near water - was on phone to boyfriend until minutes before so police had an easier timescale to work on - London also has much better CCTV - Sarah’s friends also had contacts in the media.

In women’s cases I’m thinking more like a Gaynor Lord (RIP) it was quite obvious to me what happened there yet they quickly traced her final steps

Sure, that's what I meant really - that SE's friends went into overdrive with the publicity, to the point where the police couldn't really not join in.

Bristol too has a great deal of cctv. Some recent crime threads relating to incidents there have clear, colourful pics of alleged perpetrators that the police are looking for - the quality is amazing compared with the cctv of yesteryear.

I just hope they continue with Jack's investigation, as I feel sure there are some answers out there, or at least some further information. It's hard to feel optimistic for him but his family deserve closure.

JMOO

 

[StillDiggin]

Any money raised will go to the Missing People charity if the reward goes unclaimed
Following 100 days since Jack O’Sullivan’s disappearance in Hotwells, his family have started a page to raise a £20,000 reward for any information leading to his discovery.

https://www.bristolworld.com/news/people/jacks-family-to-offer-ps20000-reward-4664007

 

[LarysaRose]

It was a big blunder on this case because so much time was lost the beginning by missing that cctv footage of Jack crossing the bridge. Placing him in a completely different area. Police were searching on the wrong side of the river. But what are other people's opinions on this case, does anyone suspect foul play?

My theory is the same as it was in the beginning; when someone goes missing near water, they're normally in the water. I just think it's such a dangerous location to be walking alone drunk, there is so many spots you can end up in the water and because it's so tidal it removes the evidence quickly.

I think the same however what throws me off is that his phone’s last location was him at an address which is further away from any water and was shown to be there at around 6am.

 

[StillDiggin]

For me the phone ping at the Granby Hill Is an indicator his phone was here at 6 am. It’s a shame police didn’t do door to doors in this area as soon as thing ping was known.

 

[Twittens]

Has the phone ever been recovered? If not, does anyone know what kind of data the police could recover from its activity in absence of the physical phone itself? For instance, his movements that evening (and whether they correlate with where he was seen on CCTV), and what calls or messages he received/sent and who they were from/to?

I'm also wondering whether the police have interviewed his friends at all. The strength of feeling on facebook whenever search parties are organised suggests he has plenty of friends who would like to be able to help. So you'd think it would be possible for police to build up a picture of who was at the party he attended, what happened there up to the point where he left, whether there was an argument or a break up, what happened afterwards, whether anyone who was at the party found his phone etc.

I suppose there are privacy issues with, say, tracking whether Jack's phone moved in concert with anyone else's, but you do feel as though the police need to get around a table with his friends and just do some brainstorming on what was said, what people saw, what Jack's habits were, who lives where, what might be in this or that location or direction, etc.

JMOO

 

[Alyce]

Catherine and Alan O'Sullivan feel they have been 'badly, badly let down' by Avon and Somerset Police and have now lodged a formal complaint.

The family also say police have been fixated with the theory that Jack may have entered the water - something his parents believe doesn't add up.

Catherine - who has today released a new photo of the family in happier times at Jack's graduation - told MailOnline: 'I've never been in such a horrific situation. I mean, who on earth is faced with something like this?

'But what's happened to us is we've put our complete faith and trust in a organisation that have badly, badly let us down.

Our son went missing three weeks ago - we feel let down by police

EXCLUSIVE: Catherine and Alan O'Sullivan, whose son Jack vanished after a house party in Bristol on March 2, feel they have been 'badly, badly let down' by Avon and Somerset Police

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[hallini]

Has the phone ever been recovered? If not, does anyone know what kind of data the police could recover from its activity in absence of the physical phone itself? For instance, his movements that evening (and whether they correlate with where he was seen on CCTV), and what calls or messages he received/sent and who they were from/to?

I'm also wondering whether the police have interviewed his friends at all. The strength of feeling on facebook whenever search parties are organised suggests he has plenty of friends who would like to be able to help. So you'd think it would be possible for police to build up a picture of who was at the party he attended, what happened there up to the point where he left, whether there was an argument or a break up, what happened afterwards, whether anyone who was at the party found his phone etc.

I suppose there are privacy issues with, say, tracking whether Jack's phone moved in concert with anyone else's, but you do feel as though the police need to get around a table with his friends and just do some brainstorming on what was said, what people saw, what Jack's habits were, who lives where, what might be in this or that location or direction, etc.

JMOO

The phone hasn’t been recovered… Catherine O’Sullivan confirmed on the Facebook Group that it was an iPhone 11 dark grey with red silicone case.

 

[LarysaRose]

For me the phone ping at the Granby Hill Is an indicator his phone was here at 6 am. It’s a shame police didn’t do door to doors in this area as soon as thing ping was

For me the phone ping at the Granby Hill Is an indicator his phone was here at 6 am. It’s a shame police didn’t do door to doors in this area as soon as thing ping was known.

His Mother has commented on a post that the phone left the network at 6:44am meaning the battery died or phone switched off. It remained active on “find my friend” app at a location on Granby Hill until it left the network.

Police have said it’s unreliable.. How? I use it almost every day and unless you have no signal, it will show an area where your “friend” may be. However if it is showing him at an exact address for just over an hour, then it’s extremely likely his phone was there!

I’m not surprised the family are frustrated.

 

[Bahshudc]

His Mother has commented on a post that the phone left the network at 6:44am meaning the battery died or phone switched off. It remained active on “find my friend” app at a location on Granby Hill until it left the network.

Police have said it’s unreliable.. How? I use it almost every day and unless you have no signal, it will show an area where your “friend” may be. However if it is showing him at an exact address for just over an hour, then it’s extremely likely his phone was there!

I’m not surprised the family are frustrated.

I think it was around 6am when it turned off… And sure, find my friends can be wrong for a short while, but usually when you refresh it it becomes more accurate / fixes itself. If it stayed there until 6am and didn’t move, surely that’s where his phone is?

 

[LarysaRose]

I think it was around 6am when it turned off… And sure, find my friends can be wrong for a short while, but usually when you refresh it it becomes more accurate / fixes itself. If it stayed there until 6am and didn’t move, surely that’s where his phone is?

Exactly this. She mentioned it was the same location that remained at an address in Granby Hill on her husband & Jack’s brother’s phone.

 

[Twittens]

When the police say Find My Phone is unreliable, I wonder if they mean that it doesn't meet the technological threshold needed to justify a search warrant for the address on Granby Hill?

Because I want to say, please tell me that address has been searched - but I feel it almost certainly hasn't. I would hope doorstep enquiries have been made there at least though, and that who lives there and any relationship they may have with Jack is now known.

 

[Bahshudc]

When the police say Find My Phone is unreliable, I wonder if they mean that it doesn't meet the technological threshold needed to justify a search warrant for the address on Granby Hill?

Because I want to say, please tell me that address has been searched - but I feel it almost certainly hasn't. I would hope doorstep enquiries have been made there at least though, and that who lives there and any relationship they may have with Jack is now known.

This is exactly it. The parents said something like the police said it wasn’t enough evidence for a search warrant.

So disappointing.

 

[Luwin]

I was at an event at Ashton Gate stadium yesterday - I was impressed with how many posters I saw on my walk from Hotwells. Another big event there today.
So sad there is still no update

 

[puzzleworldplanet]

I'm not fully read up on this case - spending all my time on another case at the minute. But reading about the find my location - that is, without question, a huge, huge, huge thing that the police should capitalise on. The fact they haven't is not just lazy police work, but it's a dis-service to the uniform. What happens if that location is where Jack was being held against his will? What happens if that location is where the suspect stolen the phone and taken it home? Absolutely shocking that the police haven't investigated that in more detail. Evidence doesn't get much better than a location tracker for goodness sakes!

 

[Bahshudc]

I'm not fully read up on this case - spending all my time on another case at the minute. But reading about the find my location - that is, without question, a huge, huge, huge thing that the police should capitalise on. The fact they haven't is not just lazy police work, but it's a dis-service to the uniform. What happens if that location is where Jack was being held against his will? What happens if that location is where the suspect stolen the phone and taken it home? Absolutely shocking that the police haven't investigated that in more detail. Evidence doesn't get much better than a location tracker for goodness sakes!

I totally agree and get frustrated by this every time I think of the case.
IMO, the answer is right there. It could even be that he knew somebody in that area so walked to their house for help getting a taxi, etc. Whatever it is, it shows he crossed the bridge and walked elsewhere, which is so so important. All moo.