The mother of missing Jack O’Sullivan has revealed that she is frequently contacted by mediums claiming to know his whereabouts, and feels the police are indifferent about finding him. Catherine O’Sullivan says she receives information “every day” from various sources, including psychics, about her son, a student from Bristol.
Jack, 23, was last seen at 3.15am on Saturday, March 2, in the Brunel Lock Road/Brunel Way area after a night out in the city. His family recently expressed their frustration that the police won’t assist in analysing the phone records they finally managed to obtain from EE due to data protection laws.
In a post on the Find Jack Facebook page, Catherine stated: “Every day we get information or suggestions as to where to look for Jack.”
She added that the tips come from anonymous sources, mediums, and well-meaning individuals, but lamented that “the authorities would not consider following up on this type of information.”
She also voiced her disappointment with the lack of police action, saying, “very few sightings of Jack have been followed up by the police so they either think we are not going to find him or they simply don’t care! ” Catherine emphasised the family’s determination to find Jack, stating, “We really can’t rely on them for support so it’s down to us to search anywhere and everywhere possible to find Jack.”
Despite the challenges, the family continues their daily search efforts, but Catherine admits it’s difficult to conduct these searches alone. She expressed gratitude for the help received from specialist dog search teams and volunteers who have stepped in to cover areas the police refused to investigate.
However, she noted that they have been advised against large public searches due to safety concerns.
“Even though Bristol seems very aware of our situation please can I ask you to share this with everyone you know and as far and wide in the UK as possible. Please we ask that you thoroughly check areas that might be remote or in buildings that are empty or disused, outbuildings, sheds, storage areas, garages, basements etc. Have you noticed anything unusual in your area? Or the comings and goings of people that are not familiar to you? If you have any information that you feel you need to share, you can can via the email: findjack23@gmail.com (This can be anonymous if necessary). I appreciate we are continuing asking for help from the public but it’s all we can do. Your help and support is very much appreciated by us. Thank you, Catherine (and all at Team Jack) x.”
Speaking about the phone issue, Avon and Somerset Police said last week: “Officers have conducted an in-depth analysis of Jack’s phone use and data movements after his last confirmed sighting, this has included receiving information from Jack’s phone provider. Unfortunately, this information has not taken us any further in our bid to locate Jack. In August, we received a request from the Jack’s family requesting a copy of the data.”
The authorities stated: “In August, we received a request from the Jack’s family requesting a copy of the data.”Unfortunately, due to the strict handling and retention requirements laid out in Home Office Communications Data Code of Practice, which applies to data obtained under section 60A of the Investigatory Powers Act 2016, as well as GDPR and Data Protection, we have been unable to fulfil this request as the law does not allow us to share it.”
“By disclosing this data to a third party, officers would be unable to comply with the requirements set out in law, including having no control over how it is stored, if it is shared beyond the agreed parameters and if it is retained beyond the legally permitted time period.”
“The information also holds private data belonging to other members of the public.”
Over 20 teams have been involved in the investigation since Jack’s disappearance. The police have reviewed over 100 hours of CCTV footage and conducted extensive searches, including 200 hours of riverbank searches and 40 land searches, as well as deploying drones 16 times.
Assistant Chief Constable Joanne Hall, of Avon and Somerset Police, previously stated: “Our staff and officers remain committed to doing everything we can to find Jack and we do not underestimate what a distressing time this has been, and continues to be, for his family.”
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“Throughout our investigation, we’ve been open-minded about what happened to Jack, considering different possible outcomes and scenarios following his last sighting.”
“We have sought reviews from independent agencies such as the National Crime Agency (NCA) and experts such as oceanographers and independent Police Search Advisors.”
“Sadly, despite the efforts carried out to date, we have been unable to find Jack and we fully appreciate the anguish this is having on his family and our thoughts remain with them during this hugely difficult time.”