Mary Boyle (born 14 June 1970)[1][2][3] was a six-year-old Irish girl who disappeared on the County Donegal-County Fermanagh border on 18 March 1977. To date, her disappearance is the longest missing child case in the Republic of Ireland. The investigation into her disappearance has been beset by allegations of political intervention and police incompetence.
Mary Boyle | |
|---|---|
 Boyle one week before her disappearance | |
| Born | 14 June 1970 Sparkhill, Birmingham, England, UK |
| Disappeared | 18 March 1977 (aged 6) Cashelard, Ballyshannon, Ireland |
| Status | Missing for 47 years, 9 months and 1 day |
| Nationality | Irish |
Disappearance
editMary Boyle was last seen at 3:30pm on 18 March 1977 near her grandparents' rural farm in Cashelard, near Ballyshannon, County Donegal.[4] The family, including Boyle's mother Ann, father Charlie, older brother Paddy and twin sister Ann, had gone to her maternal grandparents' house on St Patrick's Day from their home in Kincasslagh in The Rosses, further up the coast.[5]
Boyle was playing outside with her siblings and two cousins when her uncle left to return a ladder to another farm, 400 yards (370 m) across the hillside. She followed her uncle until they reached a small pool of water that was too deep for her to get through. Whether by her own decision or by her uncle's instruction, Boyle turned around halfway into the journey saying she was going back to her grandparents' house.[6][7] Her return journey should not have lasted longer than five minutes, whilst her uncle stayed at the neighbours for thirty minutes for a chat.[8]
After discovering that Boyle had disappeared, her family instituted searches of the local area and questioned passers-by if they had seen the girl. One fisherman was quoted as saying that he had seen Boyle being put into a red car and then driven away,[9] although he later corrected this in a BBC podcast by saying he had not actually seen Boyle, but just a suspicious red car. [10] Many of the bogs in the area were drained and scoured in an effort to find the girl.[11] Her twin sister, Ann, had stated that Boyle was eating a packet of crisps at the time of her disappearance and if she had fallen into a bog, the packet would have floated to the surface.[2]
Investigations
editThe Gardaí started a search of the surrounding area and drained a lake behind her grandparents' house.[12] They also created a filmed reconstruction of the disappearance in which Ann was used as a stand-in for her twin sister.[13] In 2008, the Irish public broadcaster RTÉ broadcast a documentary programme about the case.[14] Over the intervening years, the performer Margo, a friend of and relation to the family, has funded searches on the surrounding hillsides in an effort to try and locate Boyle's body.[15] Police searches have also taken place since 1977, with the latest taking place in 2016 when Gardaí launched a new investigation. However, no evidence has been found.[16]
The investigation into Boyle's disappearance has attracted some publicity because of allegations of political interference which centred around the accusation that a politician phoned the Gardaí and told them to not question or detain their main suspect. Margo was said to have walked up to the politician who was accused of making the call in 1977 and asked if he had done so. According to Margo, he said "[that it] was untrue and called me a bare-faced liar."[17] The length of time that Boyle has been missing, and allegations of official involvement, led The Guardian to label the case "Ireland's Madeleine McCann."[18] Boyle's disappearance is now the longest-running missing child case in modern Irish history,[19] and despite the publicity it attracts, it has not been debated in the Dáil. The case was raised by Lynn Boylan MEP in the European Parliament, where she highlighted the lack of direction in the investigation.[20]
In 2018, relatives and supporters of Boyle's family held a silent protest outside the coroner's office in Stranorlar. The protest was intended to pressure the coroner to hold an inquest into Boyle's death which would allow key witnesses to be interviewed on public record for the first time. Boyle's twin sister Ann was among the group, which handed in a petition containing more than 10,000 signatures demanding that an inquest be held.[21] In March 2018, Gardaí issued a request for information regarding the case and stated that the investigation was still live.[22]
In 2016, controversial media personality Gemma O'Doherty produced a documentary titled Mary Boyle: The Untold Story,[23] which explores several possible causes for her disappearance. In the documentary, Ann posits that Boyle was sexually abused and then murdered.[24] The film came under some criticism by the people interviewed for the programme. Both of the retired Gardaí sergeants who talked onscreen deny that any political pressure was brought to bear on their investigation;[25] one interviewing officer said he was told to "ease off" when questioning one of the suspects in the case, but this was by a senior officer in the room at the time of the suspect's interview.[26] The film led to O'Doherty being sued for defamation by Fianna Fáil politician Sean McEniff for damages of €75,000, although McEniff was never mentioned by name in the film. In 2019, after McEniff's death, a judge granted his estate leave to continue the case.[27][28]
Suspects
editThe initial suspect, questioned soon after Boyle disappeared, was released without charge. Other suspects have been questioned in relation to the disappearance; Brian McMahon was taken in for questioning by Gardaí in October 2014 but was released without charge the following day.[29] McMahon later went on public record denying any involvement in the disappearance and stating that local people knew he could not have been involved.[30]
Robert Black, a Scottish serial killer of children, was also proposed as a suspect when it was revealed that he was a cross-border truck driver who often visited County Donegal as part of his job and could have been in the area at the time of Boyle's disappearance.[11] Black was known in the area and had been charged by Gardaí for after-hours drinking. His van was identified outside a pub in Annagry at the time of Boyle's disappearance. A witness later claimed that they had heard crying and whimpering from the rear of the van.[31] However, by the time of O'Doherty's documentary, it was widely believed that Black could not have been responsible.[32][33]
Ann and several other relatives of Boyle publicly claim they believe they know what happened to the girl and who is responsible for her disappearance. This has caused tension and a division within the family, with Ann's mother publicly admonishing her daughter in 2016; calling her public appeals "...the most ridiculous carry on I ever seen in my life."[34]
Aftermath
editBoyle's father died in a fishing accident off the coast of Donegal in 2005.[35] In 2011, Margo released the single "The Missing Mary Boyle" to raise funds for a new search.[36] Due, in part, to Ann's public accusations, the Boyle family remain divided.[37]
See also
edit- List of people who disappeared
- Disappearance of Philip Cairns – 1986 disappearance of Irish schoolboy
Further reading
edit- Cummins, Barry (2010). "7. Mary Boyle". Missing: Ireland's disappeared. Dublin: Gill & Macmillan. ISBN 9780717148387.
References
edit- ^ "Parents of missing girl still hope daughter's remains will be found". Irish Times. 17 March 2004. ProQuest 309647421.
- ^ a b Lockley, Mike (6 August 2016). "The 'first Madeleine McCann': Brum girl who vanished 39 years ago". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
- ^ "Mary Boyle- Age progressed". Garda Síochána. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
- ^ McDonald, Henry (9 June 2007). "After 30 years, I still hold on to hope that she will be found". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
- ^ "Excavation under way in Co Donegal in search for missing Mary Boyle". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 15 July 2016. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Devine, Catherine (14 March 2017). "'Nannie's afraid in her own home' - Ann Boyle receiving hate mail 40 years after daughter Mary's disappearance - Independent.ie". Independent.ie. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Maguire, Stephen (10 March 2018). "'Time is running out': call for inquest in case of Mary Boyle". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
- ^ McGlaughlin, Brighid (16 May 1999). "Mary Boyle - a stolen child - Independent.ie". Independent.ie. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Devine, Catherine (14 July 2016). "'I saw Mary being driven away in a red car'- fisherman believes he saw Mary Boyle (6) being 'lifted' - Independent.ie". Independent.ie. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ "BBC Radio - No Body Recovered". BBC. Retrieved 29 November 2019.
- ^ a b Cusack, Jim (26 October 2014). "Notorious serial killer was in Donegal when Mary Boyle vanished - Independent.ie". Independent.ie. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
- ^ McLaughlin, Brighid (16 May 1999). "Mary Boyle - a stolen child - Independent.ie". Independent.ie. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ Love, Robert (25 November 2007). "I just could not put my parents through losing another Mary". The Sunday Mirror. ProQuest 339722350.
- ^ "CRACKING CRIME | RTÉ Presspack". presspack.rte.ie. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ "New search for missing Irish girl". BBC News. 10 January 2011. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Maguire, Stephen (9 August 2016). "Twin sister of missing Mary Boyle brands Garda review of cold case as 'a sham'". Irish Mirror. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
- ^ Maguire, Stephen (14 July 2014). "Relative calls for arrest in Mary Boyle disappearance case". The Irish Times. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Greenslade, Roy (29 April 2016). "Why has Ireland's mainstream media turned its back on Mary Boyle?". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
- ^ Ryan, Órla (14 March 2017). "'It frightened the life out of me': Mary Boyle's mother has been sent hate mail". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Mooney, John (17 July 2016). "Search for the truth". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Maguire, Stephen (31 March 2018). "Missing Mary Boyle hate-mail suspect dies". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ MacAleese, Deborah (19 March 2018). "Mary Boyle case: Gardaí make renewed appeal for information". The Irish News. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Mary Boyle The Untold Story, retrieved 29 November 2019
- ^ Harrington, Katy (18 July 2016). "Twelve facts about Mary Boyle - the little Irish girl who vanished and the allegations of 40-year cover-up | The Irish Post". The Irish Post. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Sheehan, Maeve (14 August 2016). "Second garda denies Mary Boyle cover-up - Independent.ie". Independent.ie. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Devine, Catherine (13 July 2016). "Robert Black main suspect as cold case cops probe mystery of missing Donegal girl Mary Boyle". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Ray Managh (27 March 2019). "Estate of deceased councillor and hotelier allowed to continue defamation proceedings against journalist Gemma O'Doherty". Irish Independent. Retrieved 2 May 2019.
- ^ Managh, Ray (27 March 2019). "Estate of deceased councillor allowed to continue defamation case against journalist Gemma O'Doherty". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
- ^ "Man freed in missing girl inquiry". BBC News. 22 October 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ Harkin, Greg (11 February 2015). "Missing Mary is a mystery to me, says paedophile - Independent.ie". Independent.ie. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
- ^ McEwan, Alan (13 October 2014). "Robert Black linked to murder of seven-year-old girl". Daily Record. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
- ^ Young, Connla (8 July 2016). "Documentary puts Mary Boyle mystery in spotlight again". The Irish News. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
- ^ Moriarty, Gerry (12 January 2016). "Paedophile and child serial killer Robert Black dies in jail". The Irish Times. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
- ^ Doyle Higgins, Erica (22 August 2016). "Mother of Mary Boyle wants Mary's twin sister Ann to stop seeking publicity for the unsolved case". The Irish Times. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
- ^ McDonald, Henry (9 June 2007). "After 30 years, I still hold on to hope that she will be found". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
- ^ "Margo's song for missing girl". Irish Independent. 17 August 2011. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
- ^ Doyle Higgins, Erica (22 August 2016). "Mother of Mary Boyle wants Mary's twin sister Ann to stop seeking publicity for the unsolved case". The Irish Times. Retrieved 13 November 2018.