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

[Konstantin]

1. jack’s phone was reporting the wrong location due to bad connection

2. jacks phone was on and sending the correct location from 5.40, and was either manually switched off or lost battery an hour later

3. jack’s last location was reported at 5.40 on granby hill, but this was the last time he was on his phone until it was switched off - meaning he could’ve moved miles away from this spot, but his phone was not in use / with good connection, so these updates where not being transmitted.

Any of these could be the case. There is a tendency to assume that the place the phone "pings" is the exact address or place where it is actually physically located but that is often not the case. It is a shame that more could not be done with the phone data but it is not likely this is negligence, just the limits of what is possible.

While is it probably most likely he went into the water given what we know of where he was walking, the time of day, weather and his being tired and probably drunk and we don't know if he had taken anything at the party - people do - there are other possibilities. He might have been in a very poor state of mind, had some altercation at the party and left on his own, there was some suggestion he had fallen and hit his head as well.

 

[HollyHunter9]

Just a random personal thought: I’ve been assuming he went into the water, but have people looked into the possibility of him going into a bin? Garrett Elsey, another student, died in Bristol that way back in 2012 coincidentally very close to where Jack was last known to be.

Until Corrie McKeague it wasn’t even on my radar that people other than people experiencing homelessness slept in bins, but now when young men go missing after being out drinking it’s right up there with water for me.

(I haven’t managed to keep up with this thread fully, so apologies if this has already been addressed/discussed!)

I wondered this too. When drunk, it often makes you extremely tired and you dont feel the cold like you do when sober. I wonder if he went to sleep somewhere which is why his phone showed a specific location before eventually turning off (possibly battery ran out).

 

[KittyBee]

I wondered this too. When drunk, it often makes you extremely tired and you dont feel the cold like you do when sober. I wonder if he went to sleep somewhere which is why his phone showed a specific location before eventually turning off (possibly battery ran out).

The temperature and alcohol likely had some impact on his decisions that night. And you’re right, I think would make sense to me about his phone

 

[MelmothTheLost]

I'm far from convinced that Jack didn't just walk away from his life and family, and that his long perambulation around the docks and waterways that night were him psyching himself up to do so.

 

[Officer Dibble]

Edited by me for focus

Whilst we can't rule out involvement by a taxi driver, I think that any comments regarding this should be taken in the context of the current social / political situation in the UK. This wouldn't be the first missing person case where "Check all taxi drivers!" has been the go-to response on social media. Why? Because, for some people, all taxi-drivers are brown-skinned therefore they are all wrong'uns. Sad times in the UK at the moment.

as someone who read about possible taxi driver it didn't occur to me any colour of skin. So not everyone thinks like you assume. JMO MOO

 

[Normal Norm]

as someone who read about possible taxi driver it didn't occur to me any colour of skin. So not everyone thinks like you assume. JMO MOO

You are right, but in my own defence I did qualify my statement by saying "for some people ...". It is a shame that anyone thinks like I assume, but they do.

 

[Rolypolyoly]

as someone who read about possible taxi driver it didn't occur to me any colour of skin. So not everyone thinks like you assume. JMO MOO

Same here, I'm the opposite if anything because, as posted above, the more prominent cases of harm by taxi drivers have been by white men. I do think about dodgy taxi drivers for crimes, but thats more because its a very good cover, so one might seek out a job in that field, lorry driving wouls be another, and I say that as the wife and aunt of lorry drivers! Its a great way to cover your tracks if you're so inclined imo.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

Just a random personal thought: I’ve been assuming he went into the water, but have people looked into the possibility of him going into a bin? Garrett Elsey, another student, died in Bristol that way back in 2012 coincidentally very close to where Jack was last known to be.

Until Corrie McKeague it wasn’t even on my radar that people other than people experiencing homelessness slept in bins, but now when young men go missing after being out drinking it’s right up there with water for me.

I know nothing about Garrett's case but was very active on the Corrie threads. While it's not impossible that Jack ended up in a bin, I think it rather unlikely. As the investigation into Corrie's disappearance unfolded we learned that he was essentially hedonistic, irresponsible and followed a rather high risk lifestyle such as sleeping on benches in public places after drinking. Jack seems to be very different, more mature and responsible.

The other issue around bins is that for an adult male to get into one we're really looking at the sort of bins which are provided for commercial premises rather than for domestic use, so one would need to look at what commercial premises such as restaurants, pubs and shops there were in the area which would need such a bin. The area Jack was wandering around doesn't, from memory, have many such premises. Corrie went missing from Bury St Edmunds city centre in a small area behind a range of commercial premises with large commercial bins.

Of course, it's not impossible for an adult human to climb into a standard domestic wheely bin but they are only emptied on a weekly or fortnightly basis and I would imagine that the stink of decomposing human would be obvious even over the standard bin pong.

 

[Sillybilly]

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[infohuntah]

I followed Jack's case and have done extensive reading into it. No matter how much I read, no matter how much I study maps, read comments from social media and on here, it's one of the biggest mysteries in recent times.

If I had to give a quick summary of things I find....notable, for me, it's 1) the "fight" / "push" / "fall at the party. That is, to me, a very important thing that seems to have gone under the radar. Whatever allegedly happened, it was said that Jack bumped his head. How hard? Who knows. But I do find it curious that he banged his head prior to the route he took - which is my next point.

2) Jack's route. I cannot fathom why (if he wanted a taxi like some suspect) he didn't call a taxi from the party, or why he didn't call his mum for a lift. But that's besides the point. The route he took is strange. Bizarre. It makes no sense whatsoever. I've seen some people say he was potentially lost - maybe. Maybe he was. But, again, why not call a taxi from the party?

3) The phone call that he answered. His friend said that it was Jack who answered, and CCTV shows him around that time, so we can be pretty certain he was alive and well, walking with his phone.

4) Cellular reception is that area isn't good. I spoke to people in that area (around 1-2 years ago) and it has always been poor. Reading comments online, it's still poor to this day. The location, I believe, may be wrong. Of course, there's no way to confirm it now.

I could probably write several more paragraphs, but for me, the route, the incident at the party, those two things stand out. I hate the phrase "someone knows something", but in this case, I do think that's applicable. Just my opinion(s) of course.

 

[Bahshudc]

I followed Jack's case and have done extensive reading into it. No matter how much I read, no matter how much I study maps, read comments from social media and on here, it's one of the biggest mysteries in recent times.

If I had to give a quick summary of things I find....notable, for me, it's 1) the "fight" / "push" / "fall at the party. That is, to me, a very important thing that seems to have gone under the radar. Whatever allegedly happened, it was said that Jack bumped his head. How hard? Who knows. But I do find it curious that he banged his head prior to the route he took - which is my next point.

2) Jack's route. I cannot fathom why (if he wanted a taxi like some suspect) he didn't call a taxi from the party, or why he didn't call his mum for a lift. But that's besides the point. The route he took is strange. Bizarre. It makes no sense whatsoever. I've seen some people say he was potentially lost - maybe. Maybe he was. But, again, why not call a taxi from the party?

3) The phone call that he answered. His friend said that it was Jack who answered, and CCTV shows him around that time, so we can be pretty certain he was alive and well, walking with his phone.

4) Cellular reception is that area isn't good. I spoke to people in that area (around 1-2 years ago) and it has always been poor. Reading comments online, it's still poor to this day. The location, I believe, may be wrong. Of course, there's no way to confirm it now.

I could probably write several more paragraphs, but for me, the route, the incident at the party, those two things stand out. I hate the phrase "someone knows something", but in this case, I do think that's applicable. Just my opinion(s) of course.

I can't stop thinking about your 2nd point, either. The route doesn't make sense for a variety of reasons:
1. If the Granby Hill location is correct, he could've walked a much quicker route through the side roads from the party, without ever going near the water.
2. If he wanted signal to get a taxi, the bridge is not where you'd go.
3. He appears to get lost / go back on himself midway on the bridge walk at some point. He didn't know this area well, it seems, so why take the detour?
4. If the theory that he decided to walk to his brother's house is correct, he is again taking a huge detour in the wrong (ish) direction.

My theory is:

1. He actually DID book an Uber, and the pickup point was somewhere along the swing bridge. Although this would be a bizarre and busy spot for a car to stop, but Jack would have to pick it himself when ordering the Uber. He may have picked the nearest place to him whilst he was walking. Eventually I think the Uber would've cancelled as there is no evidence he ever got in one. Especially as he would've taken a while to get to the location point and most drivers dont / can't wait that long.

2. He chose a location on the map on his phone, which was automatically set to "driving" and not walking. On iPhone if you choose a location you need to be at, it will give you all forms of transport routes available (public transport, by foot, driving etc.) It could be that Jack wanted to walk to his brothers house / home, but his map automatically had him on the driving setting. This has happened to me before. This would explain why he was walking along the main road and down to the roundabout, as he thought the map was showing him the quickest way.

MOO.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

In view of the questions raised about whether Jack could have ended up in a bin, the Mail has this report today about a homeless man in Northampton, UK, who climbed into a commercial bin to sleep and was crushed to death in a bin lorry.

Pictured: Man, 30, crushed to death by bin lorry

Sajmir Beca, 30, suffered catastrophic injuries after the horror unfolded in Northampton town centre in the early hours of October 31.

www.dailymail.co.uk

What seems relevant to me is that Sajmir was fairly typical of other similar cases we've seen in the past, and very unlike Jack's situation.

 

[Konstantin]

Jack did attempt to get a taxi home but couldn't:

Find Jack O'Sullivan - REWARD £100,000

23 year old Jack O'Sullivan went missing on March 2nd 2024, following a night out in Hotwells, Bristol. A £100,000 reward is available for information

www.findjackosullivan.co.uk

1. 1:50am Jack sends a message about getting home and says he will get a taxi.
2. 2:53am Jack is seen leaving the party and attempting to get a taxi.
3. 3:24am Jack attempts to call someone who was back at the party

As he could not book a taxi, it's fairly logical for him to have thought that he would have more chance of spotting one to flag down on a main road.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

I keep coming back to the fact that if Jack had simply turned left when he reached Brunel Way he could have walked home in well under 2 hours and been back before his parents woke up. It's less than 5 miles from Hotwells to his home in Flax Bourton. Unless he had disabilities or health issues that haven't been disclosed this walk was well within the ability of a man of his age.

 

[infohuntah]

Jack did attempt to get a taxi home but couldn't:

Find Jack O'Sullivan - REWARD £100,000

23 year old Jack O'Sullivan went missing on March 2nd 2024, following a night out in Hotwells, Bristol. A £100,000 reward is available for information

www.findjackosullivan.co.uk

1. 1:50am Jack sends a message about getting home and says he will get a taxi.
2. 2:53am Jack is seen leaving the party and attempting to get a taxi.
3. 3:24am Jack attempts to call someone who was back at the party

As he could not book a taxi, it's fairly logical for him to have thought that he would have more chance of spotting one to flag down on a main road.

The find jack website says: "There were over 400 vehicles passing through the area during that time that Jack was walking and we urge any cars, lorries, vans, taxis or buses that might have dashcam footage to come forward."

And personally, after studying this case relentlessly since it happened, I think this is the most likely scenario (over the water theory).

My logic here: Jack was trying to get home. He's potentially disorientated from the bang on the head at the party and/or tipsy. He was walking for a good period of time without falling into water (we know this because of CCTV).

Therefore, I think most likely scenario here, as you say, is being flagged down by a car, or he may have flagged down a car. The way I see it, is that if each car had just one person in, that's 400 people who potentially saw Jack that night. If there were more people in the cars, or more cars... or one bad apple in that 400, then I think for me, the car theory has credibility.

 

[rvlvr]

I keep coming back to the fact that if Jack had simply turned left when he reached Brunel Way he could have walked home in well under 2 hours and been back before his parents woke up. It's less than 5 miles from Hotwells to his home in Flax Bourton. Unless he had disabilities or health issues that haven't been disclosed this walk was well within the ability of a man of his age.

I can hike 5 miles no bother, but in my youth I’d never walk the same distance at 3am after a skinful. I’ve also looked at the map of that bit of Bristol so many times and I could easily imagine myself getting a bit lost and disoriented here back when I was Jack’s age.

It’s tricky because without knowing what kind of drinker Jack was, what his thought processes were after a drink, and so on, it’s hard to make sense of what he did and didn’t do.

 

[pokerowan]

I can hike 5 miles no bother, but in my youth I’d never walk the same distance at 3am after a skinful. I’ve also looked at the map of that bit of Bristol so many times and I could easily imagine myself getting a bit lost and disoriented here back when I was Jack’s age.

It’s tricky because without knowing what kind of drinker Jack was, what his thought processes were after a drink, and so on, it’s hard to make sense of what he did and didn’t do.

BBM - Agreed. I'd take one look at the route and my immediate thought would be 'too blinking cold!' I imagine most young adults after a drink would at least prioritise comfort, if not their safety, but again it's hard to say if his head injury was severe enough to knock his thoughts off-kilter.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

I can hike 5 miles no bother, but in my youth I’d never walk the same distance at 3am after a skinful. I’ve also looked at the map of that bit of Bristol so many times and I could easily imagine myself getting a bit lost and disoriented here back when I was Jack’s age.

I'm reminded of a former drinking buddy of mine who told me that in the early to mid 1960s he would escort a girl home and then walk up to 15 or 20 miles to his own home over the Staffordshire Moorlands. To be fair, he did end up joining UK special forces.

It’s tricky because without knowing what kind of drinker Jack was, what his thought processes were after a drink, and so on, it’s hard to make sense of what he did and didn’t do.

Agreed that we don't really know what sort of drinker Jack was, though I very much suspect he regularly drank a lot more than his parents would like to think. I imagine he was also at least an occasional drug user, whatever his parents want to believe.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

BBM - Agreed. I'd take one look at the route and my immediate thought would be 'too blinking cold!' I imagine most young adults after a drink would at least prioritise comfort, if not their safety, but again it's hard to say if his head injury was severe enough to knock his thoughts off-kilter.

Too cold? Really? I once had to walk a female student back to our hall of residence (dorm?) one January night in the early hours. For some reason which now escapes me I was wearing a t-shirt but no coat and noticed frost had formed on my arms when we got there.

 

[Konstantin]

I can hike 5 miles no bother, but in my youth I’d never walk the same distance at 3am after a skinful. I’ve also looked at the map of that bit of Bristol so many times and I could easily imagine myself getting a bit lost and disoriented here back when I was Jack’s age.

It’s tricky because without knowing what kind of drinker Jack was, what his thought processes were after a drink, and so on, it’s hard to make sense of what he did and didn’t do.

Exactly, we have no idea what state he was in or what he was thinking. It's easy to get disoriented at night, anyway, but especially when you've had a few to drink and we don't know if he took anything else or not with that. He was at a party, and people do take things. We don't know his emotional state, if something happened at the party that upset him, or if that fed into his choice of actions. He might have had a lot more to drink than even he realised as it can creep up on you, it was very late and he would have been tired. Walking on the roads he walked on isn't easy. It was dark and cold.