“Catherine O’Sullivan Recalls the Moment Her Son Jack Vanished: The 22-Year-Old Went Missing After a House Party in Bristol 18 Weeks Ago on March 2nd. His Family Turns to Private Company to Analyze His Mobile Phone Records After Police Decline.”
“Catherine expressed frustration at having to take on much of the effort themselves, feeling neglected by the police.
Police now only communicate with the family once a week, which Catherine described as ‘incredibly challenging’ for their ‘anxious’ family.”
Jack O’Sullivan, 23, disappeared following a night out in Bristol on March 2nd and has not been sighted since.
Catherine asserted that the family is largely handling things on their own and expressed feeling neglected by the police, stating they feel forgotten.
Map depicting Mr. O’Sullivan’s last sightings captured by CCTV in the vicinity of Cumberland Basin, Bristol
Last month, they filed a formal complaint against Avon and Somerset Police for overlooking crucial CCTV footage on the night Jack went missing.
Catherine has now recounted the heartbreaking moment she realized something was amiss when Jack didn’t return home from the party on March 2.
“My instinct told me something was wrong, so I went into his bedroom and he wasn’t there,” Catherine said. “I just knew something was really wrong because he had never done anything like that before. If he ever couldn’t get a taxi, he would always text me or his brother. He wouldn’t hesitate to do that.”
Catherine further explained that initially, based on CCTV footage obtained by the police, officers suggested Jack might have fallen into the water in the Hotwells area as he was seen walking near it. However, it was only weeks later, when Catherine reviewed CCTV footage herself, that she noticed her son in a different location at a different time.
Jack had attended a house party with friends from his course before leaving in the early hours of the morning.
Jack had attended a house party with friends from his course before leaving in the early hours of the morning.
Approximately 13 minutes later, at 3:08 am, the graduate was spotted passing a car park near McAdam Way.
At 3:17 am, he was observed near a grassy area beneath an elevated road, Brunel Way.
Catherine explained, “Initially, the police seemed to limit their review of CCTV footage up to a certain time. We pressed for further footage because we know his phone remained active until 6:45 am, long after he was last seen leaving the party.
“The police provided us with some footage, and on that footage, I saw Jack walking over Plimsoll Bridge, not under it. They admitted they hadn’t noticed it, which raised concerns for us. I’m not an expert in CCTV, but they are. The last piece of CCTV footage we have shows Jack walking up a slip road (Bennett Way), and we don’t know his direction from there.
“This didn’t alter their hypothesis. The police are relying on national statistics concerning young men missing after nights out near water. However, we have footage placing him elsewhere, and his phone remained active and in use for hours.”
Jack attended school in Bristol before graduating from Exeter University and returning home to continue his studies.
He had been residing with his parents near his older brother Ben when he disappeared following a night out.
Jack had attended a house party with friends from his course before leaving in the early hours of the morning.
Hours after he was last captured on CCTV, the student’s phone remained active, yet his family says they still have many unanswered questions.
The law graduate last communicated with a friend shortly after 3:30 am, but authorities noted his phone remained active on the Find My Friends app until 6:44 am.
In an attempt to gather more information about Jack’s whereabouts, Catherine mentioned that the family obtained a replacement SIM card for Jack’s phone, which is under her name on the phone bill.
Although she requested police to investigate the SIM card activity, it hasn’t been pursued. Currently, specialists at a private company are analyzing it, and the results are awaited.
Catherine commented, “It may not lead to anything, but we have to make an effort. Initially, we placed a lot of trust in the police, but as time has passed, we’ve had no option but to take matters into our own hands.”
Last month, Jack’s parents, Catherine and Alan O’Sullivan, filed a formal complaint against Avon and Somerset Police for overlooking critical CCTV evidence from the night he disappeared.
Jack attended school in Bristol before graduating from Exeter University and returning home to continue his studies.
Catherine expressed certainty that her son was attempting to make his way home that night, stating, “We genuinely believe he was trying to get home. Earlier footage shows that right after he left the party, a taxi arrived and dropped off some passengers. He approached the taxi and spoke with the driver, but it was already booked.”
She added, “The bridge was so crowded that he couldn’t hail a car on it. I think he was trying to walk off the bridge to find a taxi, but we just don’t know for sure.”
Jack was last seen in the Hotwells area of Bristol on Saturday, March 2nd, as he began his journey home from a night out with friends.
He had traveled by bus from his village of Flax Bourton to a Wetherspoons pub in the city at 8:20 pm for a typical Saturday night out with friends.
At 10:45 pm, he texted his mother, informing her they had moved on to a house party and had arrived safely. “All good, keys are safe,” he assured her.
Then, at 1:52 am, he sent her a final text, confirming he was okay.
Shortly before 3 am, Jack left the party alone, and parts of his journey through the city were captured on CCTV.
The 23-year-old law graduate disappeared after attending a house party on Hotwell Road in Bristol during the early hours of March 2nd.
His movements were captured on CCTV: he crossed the Junction Swing Bridge at 2:53 am, turned onto Brunel Lock Road around 2:57 am, passed a car park near McAdam Way at 3:08 am, was seen near a grassy area beneath the elevated Brunel Way at 3:13 am, walked across Plimsoll Bridge at 3:25 am, and was last sighted walking up Bennett Way at 3:39 am.
Avon and Somerset Police have stated that the last two sightings are likely to be Jack, with the final confirmed sighting on CCTV at 3:13 am.
At 3:24 am, he called a friend who was still at the party. When the friend returned the call ten minutes later, Jack answered with a brief “hello” and then disconnected after 58 seconds.
Catherine mentioned, “The friend left the party shortly after and tried repeatedly to reach him. She sent messages pleading, ‘please let me know where you are, please let me know you’re OK,’ and ‘please let me know when you get home.'”
Jack’s family now walks his final route daily, at various times, to try to understand what he might have experienced and to gather any clues about his disappearance.
On April 6th, Jack O’Sullivan’s mother, alongside her husband Alan, issued a heartfelt public appeal for assistance in locating their missing son.
Despite the relentless efforts of Jack’s family and friends to uncover clues, Catherine stated they have yet to uncover any leads.
“By all accounts, nobody has reported seeing anything, which I find astonishing because the CCTV shows constant vehicle traffic passing by him,” Catherine said.
She expressed frustration that police now only communicate with the family once a week, which has been extremely challenging as they strive to piece together the events leading to Jack’s disappearance.
“We’ve been trying to reach out to the police with basic questions over the past week, but they won’t respond until the seven-day period is up, which is very frustrating because we just need clarity,” Catherine explained. “While we understand the police are busy with other cases, for us, this is everything.”
Adding to their confusion, a location app indicated that Jack’s phone was at an address different from the party’s location.
“On the day he went missing, we dressed and drove to that address, but unfortunately, it didn’t provide any new information,” Catherine said.
Here’s a rewritten version:
Jack O’Sullivan with his brother Ben O’Sullivan.
“The police’s response was that these apps provide approximate locations and aren’t always accurate. We’ve personally investigated that location since then, and it’s something we’re actively trying to understand,” Catherine explained.
“The police’s exact words were, ‘We need to conclude our investigation regarding that property,'” she added.
The impact on the family over the past few months has been profound, according to Catherine.
She described Jack as a “gentle, kind, and reserved character,” adding, “He is intelligent and quite reserved. He’s not an extrovert or a frequent party-goer. He’s always concerned about everyone else’s well-being.”
Catherine expressed how time feels frozen for them and mentioned the difficulty of significant days like Jack’s birthday.
“It’s becoming increasingly difficult for us. We’ve gone through seasons, and now we’re in the summer,” Catherine said. “It’s unbelievable. I’m still stuck on March 2nd. I can’t move forward at all. But we have to find a way because we owe it to Jack.”
“If it were his brother missing, Jack would move mountains to find him, so we must do the same. ‘No’ was never an option for him; ‘determined’ was practically his middle name,” she concluded.
Jack O’Sullivan was last seen on March 2, 2024.
“We are finding ourselves taking on much of this effort alone, and it feels like we’ve been forgotten. Everyone deserves the same opportunity to be heard. It’s completely out of character for us to be in this position,” Catherine lamented. “I’ve never had to speak out or turn to social media like this before, but we feel compelled because if we don’t, it seems like no one else will.”
“We’ve been in this situation now for 18 weeks. Initially, we didn’t make a lot of noise or fuss because we assumed the police were handling everything, and you naturally accept that,” she continued. “In hindsight, perhaps we got that wrong, not through any fault of our own but simply trying to do what we thought was right.”
Catherine expressed gratitude to extended family and friends for their unwavering support, particularly those who have contributed to fundraising efforts and the establishment of a dedicated website to help find Jack.
A spokesperson from Avon and Somerset Police provided an update: “Detectives have conducted a thorough investigation since Jack O’Sullivan’s disappearance. He was last seen in the Cumberland Basin area of the city in the early hours of Saturday, March 2, after leaving a house party in nearby Hotwells.”
“The investigation has involved reviewing over 100 hours of CCTV footage multiple times, conducting expert-led searches by land and water with units including the dog team, drone unit, and specialist dive team, actively seeking and acting on advice from national policing specialists, and issuing numerous appeals for information to the public and media,” the spokesperson added.
“Despite extensive efforts to date, Jack remains missing. We understand the immense distress this has caused Jack’s family, and our thoughts are with them,” they continued. “We are committed to doing everything possible to find the answers they urgently seek and will continue to update them on any progress in our investigation.”
“We urge anyone who was in or around Cumberland Basin between 2:30 am and 5:30 am on March 2 to contact us on 101 if they have not yet spoken with the police, quoting reference number 5224055172,” they concluded.
