23-yr-old Denis Walsh went missing on March 9th 1996 after walking out of his home in Caherdavin, Limerick City.
Over the years, Denis’ family Denis and Mary have consistently held appeals for information about the whereabouts of their son. They even travelled abroad to check out possible sitings of their son. But all efforts failed.
In an extraordinary twist this month, after 25 years, the Gardai contacted Mr and Mrs Walsh with heartbreaking news. The Gardai had confirmed they had a positive DNA match for their son Denis.
However, the Gardai had Denis remains discovered a month after Denis went missing. According to RTE, a Garda spokesman said “In April 1996, an unidentified body was recovered off Inis Mor, Aran Islands, Co Galway. This unidentified body was taken to the Mortuary in UCHG [University College Hospital Galway].“
“Bodily samples were taken and forwarded to the Forensic Science laboratory in an effort to identify the deceased. These samples were examined in July 2008, March 2011 & June 2017, with negative results for a match.“
“On the 5th of February 2021, gardaí in Mayorstone were notified of a positive match following advances in DNA. The remains were positively identified from reference samples from both parents as that of Mr Walsh. The family have been notified.”
Mr and Mrs Walsh have many questions outstanding. They are awaiting news as to where Denis remains are located and if the body was intact.
Denis Walsh Snr said they have been left “shocked” and “bewildered” by the news, but that they were “also happy” their son had been found.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the Walsh Family today.
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