Committee to probe case of missing Dundalk schoolboy Kyran Durnin

The case of missing Dundalk schoolboy Kyran Durnin, who is presumed dead, is set to be raised at a private meeting of the Oireachtas Committee on Children and Equality later this month as questions remain around the circumstances of the child’s disappearance.

Kyran, who was reported missing in September 2024, had been known to Tusla prior to his disappearance, prompting serious concerns about the role of State agencies in safeguarding vulnerable children.

Louth TD Ruairí Ó Murchú, who is a member of the committee, said the cases of Kyran Durnin and the Dublin child, who is currently the subject of a Garda search in Donabate, have “raised huge questions about the role that State agencies have played in the early lives of these children”.

He said it was likely that Tusla will attend the meeting.

The Sinn Féin TD said the committee will meet in private session the week after the Dáil returns on September 17 and it will decide which agencies will be called before the committee. He said it was almost certain that Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, will be asked to attend.

Deputy Ó Murchú said the latest Garda investigation into a missing child in Dublin is “deeply worrying and disturbing,” particularly as it was revealed almost a year to the day that the Kyran Durnin probe was launched.

He said: “Similarly to Kyran’s case, the Donabate child was known to Tusla but his case was closed by the agency during Covid 19.”

Deputy Ó Murchú said he had raised the Kyran Durnin case at the Oireachtas Committee on Children and Equality before the summer recess and had questioned Tusla CEO Kate Duggan about earlier interventions that could be put in place for vulnerable families, including specialist Public Health Nurses to visit families in the very early stages of a child’s life.

He said: “Not only do we need to know what happened to the two missing children, not only do we need to ensure that there are no more children who have fallen through the cracks at Tusla, we also urgently need to ensure that better checks are put in place so that vulnerable children are protected.”

Last week Gardaí in Louth renewed their appeal for information on the disappearance and suspected murder of Kyran. Kyran was last seen in June 2022, when he was six. Since then, over 570 investigative actions have been carried out, including two arrests, multiple property searches, forensic examinations and the review of more than 29,500 hours of CCTV. Gardaí continue to liaise with Tusla and stress that any detail, no matter how small, could assist the investigation.

Kyran was reported missing in August 2024 along with his mother, who was later found safe in the UK without him. Gardaí declared him “missing presumed dead” the following month, leading to major searches in Dundalk and Drogheda.

Two arrests were made last December, but no charges followed. Tusla has said no concerns were raised about Kyran between 2022 and 2024, though a “significant concern” emerged last August. Gardaí continue to appeal for information through Drogheda Garda Station or the Garda Confidential Line.

Deputy Ó Murchú said he welcomed the news last week, following a call from his party colleague Claire Kerrane, that Tusla is to conduct welfare checks on the 38,000 children it had contact with during the Covid 19 lockdowns in 2020 and 2021.

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Deputy Ó Murchú said: “We need to know for certain that no other child has fallen through the system. I think the public needs that certainty.

“Tusla clearly needs to have a look-back mechanism to ensure that, where a case is closed, it can be checked back on at least once – a welfare check to ensure the child concerned is doing well and is being looked after. This should be in place.

“These two cases have shocked the country and we are no closer to knowing in detail what happened and what more could have been done by agencies who were involved with the families. While the priority is the locating both children, which the Gardaí are attempting to do, there cannot be a situation where reviews and learnings remain unpublished while Garda work continues.

“We also need to look at better protocols to ensure children under school going age are accounted for. There is a gap here that needs to be addressed.”