200 search for teenager amid abduction fears

Fears for the safety of a missing Co Wicklow teenager have intensified after the third day of a major search operation failed to obtain any fresh trace of his whereabouts.

More than 200 voluntary helpers from the local community turned out in Arklow yesterday to assist a team of 25 gardaí in the search for James Sheehan, 18, from Ballyduff Rd, Arklow, who was reported missing at the weekend.

Among the searchers were friends and neighbours, who began helping with the operation to find James from 7am yesterday.

The focus of the search was again the Avoca River, which flows near the town and is close to the location of the last confirmed sighting of the missing man. Members of the Garda Water Unit, including divers assisted by the River Boyne Rescue and members of the Civil Defence, carried out a further search of the fast-flowing Avoca and dangerous reed beds near its riverbanks.

However, the main search moved yesterday afternoon to a wooded area at Glenart around 5km outside Arklow.

Garda sources played down any significance in the development and indicated it was in response to the sighting of a male at that location.

Gardaí are also examining the possibility that James might have been abducted after reports that a man was seen being bundled into a car in Arklow at the weekend.

Local gardaí have said all possible lines of inquiry are being followed but there are no definite leads.

James was last seen by friends in the early hours of Sunday morning outside a nightclub in the town. CCTV image from Sally O’Brien’s nightclub captured him leaving the premises at around 2.40am and walking down a lane.

It is understood he subsequently got a lift to the Ferrybank area of Arklow which is the location of his last confirmed sighting, although it is believed he may have headed back towards the town centre.

His Blackberry was last used at around 5.10am when he sent a text message to a friend from a location within a kilometre of Arklow’s Main St.

However, the phone lost its power some time later on Sunday morning.

James’s distraught mother, Catherine Sheehan, has expressed concern for the welfare of her son — the younger of her two children — amid reports that a man was being seen bundled into a car in Arklow. She claimed her son’s disappearance is completely out of character.

Gardaí stressed the search of the Avoca was not based on a specific line of inquiry. A spokesperson said best practice required a 1.5km radius search from the last sighted location of a missing person, which included the river.

Gardaí thanked the local community for their assistance, as well as local businesses for providing food and water, as well as health and sanitation equipment to search teams.

James is described as 6ft 2in, of slim build with short-cut red hair, and when last seen he was wearing a grey zip hoodie, red T-shirt, blue jeans, and tan Kicker shoes.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact Arklow Garda Station on 0402-32304.