TO MARK NATIONAL Missing Persons Day today, Deliveroo has announced that 100 food delivery bags will feature photos of missing people throughout December in a bid to help “bring them home” this Christmas.

The on-demand food delivery service has partnered with the National Missing Persons Helpline to highlight the cases of four missing men by displaying images of the men on Deliveroo riders’ food bags on the streets of Cork and Dublin.

The campaign will feature the faces and details of the following people:

• Trevor Deely was 22 when last seen on Baggot Street, Dublin, in December, 2000.
• Gerard Taylor was 55 when last seen in Sandyford, Dublin, in May, 2019.
• Barry Coughlan was 23 when last seen in Crosshaven, Co Cork, in May, 2004.
• Mark Smyth was 33 when last seen in Ardee, Co Louth, in May, 2018.

Deliveroo has launched similar campaigns in the UK, Belgium, France and the Netherlands. In the UK, four people were found alive during the initiative, with the help of police and the UK missing persons body.

The Deliveroo app will also introduce a fundraising feature, which will give customers the opportunity to donate to the helpline. The company also donated €10,000.

According to the National Missing Persons Helpline, the average number of reports received each year is 8,700, with over 90 people untraced at year-end.

While the vast majority are found within 24 hours, around 45 people reported missing in Ireland in 2018 remain unaccounted for.  “Christmas is a special time when families come together to celebrate the holiday and renew their special bond,” Dermot Browne of the National Missing Persons helpline said.

“However, amidst all of the glitter, flashing lights and present giving, families of the missing will be seeing that empty chair at the Christmas table and remembering a time when their loved one was sat there.

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“We urge everyone in Cork and Dublin to keep an eye out for passing Deliveroo riders. We are always hopeful that this leads to a positive outcome for the families of missing persons.”

If  you have any information about the  National Missing Persons Helpline on 1890 442 552 or at info@missingpersons.ie or call the Garda Confidential line on 1800 666 111.

Our colleagues at Noteworthy.ie have published a proposal to investigate if there are more unsolved cases now than there were in the past, and whether Ireland is doing everything it can to investigate cases of missing people. Click here if you wish to support their work.