Missing student's family calls for new inquiry

The parents of missing student Jack O'Sullivan are fighting to have his case investigated by a different police force, arguing the current one is "failing us".

Jack O'Sullivan, aged 22 at the time of his disappearance, was last seen in the early hours of 2 March 2024 after attending a house party in the Hotwells area of Bristol.

Despite scouring more than 100 hours of CCTV and conducting expert-led searches by land and water, Avon and Somerset Police have found no trace of him.

A spokesperson for the force said it recognised the "devastating impact" of Jack's disappearance and was engaging with the College of Policing "around an independent review into specific aspects of our investigation".

Jack's parents, Catherine and Alan O'Sullivan, recently met Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp, who promised to ask the police force if it would hand the case over.

Philp also said he would raise the issue with the police inspectorate and the Home Secretary, they added.

"Our son is missing, and we're desperately trying to have some help in finding him," Jack's mum said.

"The police force that is investigating the case is, we feel, failing us, and we're not being able to move forward."

She added that every day without progress felt like a "living nightmare".

"We don't have months or years to keep living like this; we need to find our son."

Jack's dad said: "We just want someone to come in, take a look at the whole investigation from the start with their eyes open."

Catherine said Avon and Somerset Police had put "every resource" into investigating the theory that Jack had fallen into the water "without ever considering a different outcome".

A leading expert in Bristol's waterways said in July there was "no chance whatsoever" of that being what happened to Jack because he would have been found.

His mum said it was a "huge concern" that areas where he was last seen and where his phone had placed him "have not been looked at in any depth at all".

The couple said they were planning to search Hotwells themselves with the help of residents.

Private investigators hired by the family have completed a review of the circumstances surrounding Jack's disappearance.

Laurence Oliver, CEO of Periculum Security Group, said: "When you see the magnitude of the failures that have gone on over the last two years, you have to draw a line in the sand and say enough is enough."

He said a larger, better-resourced force would have a better chance of finding Jack, and that there were still "glaring opportunities", including where Jack's phone was last activated, speaking to witnesses at the party and more CCTV analysis.

Oliver called on Avon and Somerset Police to recognise their "failures" and stand back so that a new force can investigate from scratch.

A force spokesperson said: "We wholeheartedly recognise the devastating impact Jack's disappearance continues to have on his loved ones.

"We know how difficult it is for his family that, despite extensive enquiries, we've not yet been able to find him, or provide the conclusive answers they so desperately need."

The force said their investigation had always been "led by the evidence" and it had been tested and reviewed by "specialist expertise and independent agencies".

"We continue to engage with the College of Policing around an independent review into specific aspects of our investigation into Jack's disappearance," the spokesperson said.

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