Families still searching for missing loved ones who disappeared in Cork city centre, three years apart

Two Irish families remain without answers years after their loved ones disappeared from Cork.

They include the Cremin family from Turner’s Cross and the Keaveney family from Dublin.

Connected by one common thread – a missing loved one – they have been keen to share their stories and to plead with the public for information.

Gardaí say that investigations remain ongoing in both missing persons cases, but, according to family members, tangible leads and information regarding the whereabouts of Pearse Cremin and John Keaveney have eased since their vanishings.

Pearse Cremin 

Pearse Cremin disappeared from Cork city after an evening out with his friend and business partner on October 30, 2000.

The then 28-year-old, who was a tennis coach, was last seen leaving the Viaduct Bar on Bandon Rd at around 8.30pm.

He was presumed to be travelling home to Glasheen Rd, where he lived with his older brother Cormac – but he never came home, leading the family on a 26-year search for answers.

In the hours prior to his vanishing, Pearse had spent the Monday morning with his family in Turner’s Cross.

His sister, Siobhán Cremin, describes Pearse as a "sweetheart”, and maintains that her brother would not disappear willingly, and that suicide would not have been an option for him.

The idea of suicide has been discussed in his case due to the discovery of his vehicle, a navy Fiat Bravo, which was recovered from the water near Robert’s Cove in February, 2001.

However, no evidence of a body being inside the vehicle at the time it entered the water has been found, and no keys were found in the car’s ignition.

Siobhán has said that Pearse was “terrified” of both open water and heights, and because of this, that would be “the last way he would want to go”.

Since his disappearance, there have been two reported sightings of Pearse.

The first, which was a confirmed sighting about a week after his disappearance, was at a service station on the Kinsale Rd, and the second, about two months after his disappearance, was at a B&B on MacCurtain Street.

The first sighting was not reported for some time after the investigation launched, and gardaí have been unable to confirm if the second sighting was legitimate.

Since then, there have been no further sightings of Pearse.

“I’ll always remember Cormac ringing me and telling me that we had to report Pearse as missing, it was a complete shock,” said Siobhán.

“He was the golden boy of our family, he was so loved by everyone who knew him.

“We have done everything we can to find him. For years I’ve been saying that something is not right here, somebody somewhere knows something.

“We’ve heard it all over the years, that he ran away, faked his own death, or that he’s just gone – but from our point of view, something happened to Pearse,” she added.

“We were so close, we did everything together. I would have known if something was wrong.

“There are things that have happened that make me believe he’s gone now, but he still has to come home.

“Even though it’s been 26 years, we’ll go on any little thing that we hear.

“Our mam and dad are gone now and they both died not knowing what happened to their son.

“We’re all waiting for him to come home – whether he is dead or alive – we can bring him to where mam and dad is, and they’d all be together again.

“The longer it goes on, the harder it gets – you don’t forget about them.

“We just want to know where he is. We’re hoping that some day, somebody will come out and say what happened, and that will be our only answer.

“We have been waiting too long – it's too long for any family to endure.” 

Pearse is described as being 5ft 8in, of a slim build, with short, red hair.

When last seen, he was wearing a navy-coloured tracksuit, runners, a white t-shirt with red writing on the front, and a blue fleece top.

John Keaveney

John Keaveney disappeared from Cork city after discharging himself from Cork University Hospital (CUH) on August 21, 2023.

The then 43-year-old, who was staying in Castlemartyr with his wife and three-children, had suffered an epileptic episode the night before and was taken to CUH for medical treatment.

It is believed that he suffered another epileptic episode in hospital, leaving him disorientated and confused.

While staff at CUH had wanted to keep John for a second night for further tests, he left the hospital and travelled to Wilton Shopping Centre to purchase a phone charger.

After this, John powered up his phone and made contact with his family. His family booked him a room at Isaac’s Hotel, where they were due to collect him.

However, John never checked into his room and was last seen on CCTV footage in the vicinity of Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

A number of sightings of John have been recorded in the hours prior to his disappearance, including CCTV footage of him at the Marina filling station on the Centre Park Rd.

Additionally, a taxi driver had interacted with John on the night, having told investigators that John had asked to be taken to an address in Dublin – but because the taxi driver had refused the fare, John subsequently exited the vehicle.

His family has said that his home address in Dublin has an identical name to an area in Cork – which could have contributed to his confusion.

“This kind of thing just shocks you, you never expect it to happen to someone close to you,” said Cathal Keaveney, who is John’s uncle.

“Castlemartyr was a favourite spot for him and his wife. He loved Cork, he spent a lot of time here.

“He was a huge lover of music, a massive Oasis fan – he went to over 70 of their concerts between Ireland the UK.

“He was very familiar with the Marquee, so we think that he was going in that direction, thinking there was a concert on, but once he realised there was nothing on there, he kept going towards Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

“We have him on CCTV walking near there at 1.45am, but that was the last we saw of him.” 

Cathal said he and his wife Yvonne joined the search for John almost immediately after his disappearance, staying in Cork for over two months to assist investigators.

“We were out every single day looking for him,” said Cathal.

“We just want to know what happened to him – it's always in the back of our minds.

“We just need something that will give us a lead on where he might be. Hope is constant, and we will never stop hoping.”

Yvonne said that following John’s disappearance, a phone line was set up for leads, which remains active to this day.

“We’ve had so many calls over the years, and we’ve followed them all up, but none of them were John,” said Yvonne.

“We just hope that he will be found, wherever he is – the worst thing is not knowing.

“Closure would be good. That’s where we’re at now. We have to find him, he’s out there somewhere.” 

Cathal and Yvonne have asked anyone who may have information on John’s whereabouts to please call them at 083-462-2598.

John is described as being 5ft 9in, of a slim build, with brown eyes and bald.

When last seen, he was wearing a pair of navy trousers, a grey Umbro hoodie that had the Irish soccer logo, and multicoloured trainers.

Anyone with information regarding the missing persons cases of Pearse Cremin and John Keaveney is asked to contact gardaí in Anglesea Street Garda Station on 021 452 2000, or the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111.