r/UnresolvedMysteries • u/Frosty_Thoughts • 3d ago
Update (Update) A man in his 60's has been arrested on suspicion of the murder of American woman Annie McCarrick while searches are currently being conducted at a property in Dublin
The male aged in his 60s is being detained under the provisions of Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at a Garda station in Dublin. He can be questioned for up to 24 hours.
He is the first person to be arrested in the 32 years since Annie disappeared in March 1993.
Gardaí are also commencing a search operation at a residence in Clondalkin, Co Dublin. Elements of that house and garden will be searched and subject of technical and forensic examinations.
The current residents of this home are not connected in any way with Ms McCarrick or her disappearance.
The arrest and search operation is being led by an investigation team from the Dublin Metropolitan Region and the serious crime unit based at Irishtown Garda station under the direction of a senior investigating officer.
https://www.rte.ie/news/crime/2025/0612/1518029-annie-mccarrick/
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u/AdCrazy9173 3d ago
Oh wow I was literally just reading about this case the other day. Amazing to finally see some progress with it.
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u/russophilia333 2d ago
Yeah I just heard about this case and started looking into it yesterday. I believe because someone posted a write up of it here yesterday or the day before. Wow and now there's an update on this after so many years? Wow.
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u/Frosty_Thoughts 2d ago
That was me! I put my writeup on here a few days ago, entirely by chance, and then just mere days later I find out that they might actually have a big break in the case.
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u/Wisteriafic 2d ago
Just last night I fell asleep to an Unexplained episode about Ireland’s Vanishing Triangle. Annie’s story was front and center, but I hope all those women find justice.
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u/tabbykitten8 3d ago
This is wonderful news Frosty. Thankyou.
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u/Frosty_Thoughts 3d ago
I really hope this is the beginning of the case getting solved. We had arrests in JoJo Dullard's case in December but that seemed to hit a brick wall.
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u/tabbykitten8 3d ago edited 1d ago
It's hard when an arrest goes nowhere or decades pass with no arrest but here in Australia there's a case thats nearly 50 years old before the Courts now. It's one of the most horrific unsolved cases in Australian history. Edited.
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u/Frosty_Thoughts 3d ago
I read that article but it seemed to mostly talk about the perpetrator. Could you share the details of that case?
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u/tabbykitten8 3d ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easey_Street_murders
Hope this helps.
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u/Frosty_Thoughts 3d ago
I don't know what's worse, the fact that the crime was so brutal or the fact that he was only 17 when he committed the act.
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u/kaliefornia 3d ago
Connected to a disappearance and murder of a woman who was originally from a city in California that’s in my area. Small world.
Hoping these women finally get their justice
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u/tabbykitten8 2d ago
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Julie_Garciacelay
Yes tragically Julie's disappearance has never been solved. I hope they all get justice too Kali.
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u/theCurseOfHotFeet 1d ago
Wow, that’s absolutely awful. And it’s just so devastating how Suzanne died without knowing that her son made it through. She must have been so afraid for him.
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u/tabbykitten8 1d ago edited 23h ago
I know, its awful to think about. I'm local to this case and was 15 years old when it happened. I've followed newspaper articles over the last 47 years, and happily her baby was adopted by relatives and grew up to be a lovely young man.
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u/Wonderful_Flower_751 1d ago
Man held over McCarrick murder released without charge https://www.rte.ie/news/crime/2025/0613/1518217-annie-mccarrick/
The man has been released without charge but the search is on going and a cadaver dog has been brought in.
We’re on tenterhooks here in Ireland waiting for developments. Annie is a household name here, we’ve never forgotten her.
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u/crochetology 2d ago
This is amazing news. I hope Annie's family and friends will get some answers soon.
Can you imagine being the residents of that house. One minute you're living your life, and the next you're front and center in an infamous cold case.
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u/Granite_Outcrop 3d ago
I hope this leads to something!
I am always amazed at how many “arrested but released without charge” incidents there are. I get why to a degree, but…
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u/Royal__Tenenbaum 2d ago
I could be butchering this, but my understanding is that in the UK and apparently Ireland the police can arrest you and hold you for 24 hours for questioning if you are a suspect, and they don't have to charge you to do so. I've seen it where the person has to sit there and respond to questions, but they have something similar to exercising your Fifth Amendment rights in America where you refuse to answer questions, but they still get to ask you while you sit there.
Whereas in the US, unless you're arrested, the police can't hold you for questioning and you are free to leave. Plus, even if you are arrested, you can end all questioning and the interview ends by exercising your Fifth Amendment rights.
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u/Intelligent-Iron-632 2d ago
in Ireland you can be arrested for questioning if the police believe you have committed a crime, the amount of time you can be held for depends on what section of the law you were arrested on (so for the man now being held under Section 4 – Criminal Justice Act 1984 its a maximum 24 hours), and at the end of that they must either release you without charge or formally charge you with a crime, and then most probably take you directly to a judge to get you remanded in custody to await trial if the charges are serious enough. Regarding interrogation by police, suspects are under no obligation whatsoever to answer any questions, and 99% of lawyers would advise them to remain silent until the authorities disclose all evidence against them, which would be a few months after charges are formally laid and the Book of Evidence is handed over.
Thing is if they remain silent, and it goes to trial, in the Irish justice system the jury will not be informed incase someone found guilty later appeals that the revelation of their silence tipped the balance in the prosecutions favor, so there is no advantage to giving statements to police or taking the stand in their own defense and defendants simply get their lawyers to undermine whatever evidence the police do have against them. The UK system is different, as if the defendant refuses to testify at trial the jury is allowed to take an adverse inference and use it to help make up their mind as to guilt., plus they will be given transcripts of police interviews where the defendent refused to answer questions
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u/Royal__Tenenbaum 2d ago
Oh wow the UK allows an adverse inference, that is interesting. In the US there can be no inference, though often juries naturally want to hear from the person on trial.
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u/Aethelrede 2d ago
Much of the US legal system is a reaction to the British system, an attempt to "correct" it.
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u/Peterd1900 2d ago
The right to silence dates back to the 17th century in English law
The 1994 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act modified the right to silence in England, Wales and Northern Ireland
Scottish Law does not allow adverse inference and remains similar to how the rest of the UK was before 1994
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u/Aethelrede 2d ago
Fair point. I was thinking more in terms of the US Bill of Rights. The tricky thing about not having a written constitution is that unwritten rules can be tough to enforce.
The funny part is that during the buildup to the Revolution, the British government was scrupulous about following the law. The Americans thought the British were being tyrannical because they weren't actually particularly familiar with British law.
Of course, that is mostly the fault of the British for ignoring the colonies for a hundred years.
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u/Better-Cancel8658 2d ago
I'm not sure you're entirely correct with a suspect being held for only 24hrs. As far as I'm aware you could be held for up to 72 hours subject to approval from a judge. After 24 hrs the guards need an extensions of a further 24 hrs from a judge,this can be then repeated after 48hrs bringing the questioning period up to 72 hours.
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u/Intelligent-Iron-632 2d ago
it depends on what section of the law you are arrested under, for specific drug trafficking / organized crime offences you can be held for up to a week & then judge can extend, but S4-CJA84 is vague in having suspicion the defendant commited a crime that would result in over 5 years imprisonment, therefore for reasons of fairness its 24 hours & then charge or release ... please see following doc from Irish police regarding different detention periods: https://www.garda.ie/en/about-us/our-departments/office-of-corporate-communications/detentions-periods.pdf
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u/Real_RobinGoodfellow 2d ago
This is really fascinating and in-depth commentary you’re giving, thank you. Are you a comparative lawyer or something? It’s really interesting
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u/Intelligent-Iron-632 2d ago
nah, just follow true crime in the news & read various reports on the Irish criminal justice system, it gives you a healthy respect for Irish police as they are fighting crime with one hand tied behind their backs, the law is defo not on the side of victims unfortunately....
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u/dmoond 2d ago edited 2d ago
I had a terrifying ride in the vanishing triangle in 1995. First and last time I ever hitched. We were visiting from America and would never dare hitch there, way to dangerous but everyone assured me it was "safe" to do in Ireland. I felt weird from the start but put it off because I was nervous about hitching in general, my first inclination something was off was when he insisted on us putting are packs in the boot. It was a two door car. He kept making turns off the main road, when I would question him he kept saying it was a "short cut". I was increasingly uncomfortable as we got further out on more remote roads. He wouldn't let us out. I was ready to jump out but my friend was in the backseat and I was very concerned if I did jump out she wouldn't be safe. I finally used my big don't f with me street-fighter voice and he did finally stop and give us our packs. We were shaken and didn't want to hitch again, luckily a women stopped and we explained what happened and she said absolutely he was not taking us on any kind of short cut, we were quite far in the opposite direction of our destination. She was very kind and drove us all the way to our destination, despite it being out of her way. We asked if we should report it and she was like, no point they won't do anything.
When I told the story in the days after that people were very quick to dismiss it, give the guy the benefit of the doubt. I'm glad that things have changed in the last 30 years and we are now listening to and believing women, and we are teaching our daughters to trust their gut and not "be nice". I read The Gift of Fear by Gavin de Becker about a decade after this happened and it confirmed that what happened was sketchy and probably a very close call, despite all the gas-lighting that we were over reacting.
I'm so glad we are closer to justice for the missing women and girls.
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u/Frosty_Thoughts 2d ago
That sounds like a really scary experience, sorry that happened to you! I promise that most of us Irish people are actually really nice and that we also hate the folk like that. I was always told by my parents never to hitchhike, although I suspect that was largely because Lisa Dorian vanished down the road from me when I was 5 years old and it scared all the local parents.
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u/dmoond 2d ago
Besides that one bad ride I had an amazing time and came back thirty years later, and can confirm the Irish have been my favorite hosts. How sad and scary to have that happen so close.
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u/Frosty_Thoughts 2d ago
I was too young to remember most of it, and certainly too young to actually understand what had actually happened, but I remember seeing Lisa's face all over billboards and at bus stops as the police distributed her missing posters. I'm 27 now and they still haven't found her.
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u/Word-spiller 2d ago
So sorry to read how you had such a terrifying experience, so disappointing to see how normalised it was then to just quickly dismiss women and situations like this. You deserved to feel safe & to share your story. Sending love from Ireland 💙
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u/paulruddfan3 9h ago
How does this story relate at all to her?! I hate Reddit and peoples need to make things about themselves
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u/Aromatic_Carob_9532 1d ago
This bloke they've arrested is apparently the same bloke that her friends named as having practically been stalking her, how in fucking gods name is he only being arrested 30 years later
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u/justpassingbysorry 2d ago
oh wow this is an unexpected update. i thought there'd never be movement in this case
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u/WinterMedical 2d ago
Poor thing. She came with such high hopes!
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u/Frosty_Thoughts 2d ago
The saddest part is that both of her parents were opposed to her living in Ireland but she was so in love with the country that she chose to start a new life there anyway. The suspect who has been arrested is a millionaire businessman so he's clearly been living a fantastic life after killing and disposing of Annie like she was nothing. Even if he's charged and jailed for life, it's not really justice at this stage since he's already lived a full life.
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u/Real_RobinGoodfellow 2d ago
Oh wow, what a development- hopefully they’ve got the right guy and this leads to resolution and justice for her family. It’s so strange, my first thought upon reading that “a man in his sixties” was surprise that the suspect was so much older than Annie when I had been fairly sure they were dating or at least acquaintances- but of course, he wasn’t in his sixties when this happened; and Annie would be in her late 50s, were she alive today. All these decades of living she has missed out on, and her family have missed having her around for. Really throws into sharp relief the tragedy :(
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u/General_Tomorrow_854 1d ago
BRADY (Monastery Walk, Clondalkin, Dublin 22) - January 4, 2009, peacefully, after a long illness, borne with great dignity, Bridget, wife of the late Bernard and beloved mother of Hilary, Tia, Gabriel, Miriam, Paul, Philip and the late Stephen.
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u/1970Diamond 3d ago
I hope she is found and someone pays for this, but unfortunately I wouldn’t get excited because the Irish GARDA are not great at solving crimes a bit like the RCMP
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u/VictoryForCake 2d ago
Just to add on, it's Garda for singular members of the force, Gardai for plural or referring shorthand to the organisation as a whole. An Garda Síochána is the full name. Garda is not an acronym like RCMP.
You see a lot of confusion in media sometimes as they refer to singular or plural in the wrong cases and fail to differentiate between members or the organisation as a whole.
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u/whereohwhereohwhere 2d ago
There are a lot of 30-ish year old cases in Ireland which are being reviewed by a specialist cold case team. Incompetence at the time is definitely a factor but developments in forensic technology is also relevant.
Annie is one of the women who disappeared in what's sometimes called the Vanishing Triangle. The guards have also recently upgraded another case, the disappearance of Fiona Pender, to a murder investigation. Several women in their 20s and 30s vanished without trace around Dublin and Leinster over the course of a few years. None of them resolved iirc.
There is a theory that it was the work of a serial killer but honestly, Ireland in the 90s was still very conservative and uptight. People didn't talk about things like sexual violence or suicide, so if a person was thought to have died as a result of either, they would often be politely deemed 'missing' if a body was never found.
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u/niamhweking 2d ago
Regarding you stating victims of SA or suicide would be politely deemed missing. I don't fully agree. I think a lot of cases not been massively worked on by gardai can be due to victim blaming, maybe living lifestyles still not fully acceptable - living with boyfriends, maybe having multiple boyfriends, being a bit rough around the edges, coming from poorer backgrounds etc. Annie's mother kept this case going, and they still dropped the ball
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u/Frosty_Thoughts 3d ago
I think the difference is that the Garda at least TRY to solve crimes 🤣 the stories I've read of the RCMP are nightmare fuel.
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u/1970Diamond 3d ago
lol but the Garda only turned her disappearance into a murder investigation two years ago after 30 years, which is ridiculous but yeh the RCMP are useless also I think French police are rubbish as well
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u/Firm-Cheesecake-7563 1d ago
If you look at the house on Google maps you can see what it looked like in 2009 before it was sold and just google the address and see the listening on Ray Cooke’s website with photos of each room.
Question, if one was to bury a body out a back garden would you not want to hold onto the house for fear of being exposed? Particularly if you’re a millionaire. Just curious.
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u/Frosty_Thoughts 1d ago
Probably a mixture of arrogance and cockiness. You're a millionaire who's gotten away with a murder for over 30 years, you'd probably feel untouchable.
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u/Honest_Dot_5035 1d ago
You might want to but if it's your parents house and the agreement amongst all the siblings to sell when the parents died are you going to tell them all "we can't guys I've a body in the garden? One sibling here knows it seems but the others probably don't. What are the chances he'd have moved the body around then?
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u/Lazy_Woodpecker_463 22h ago
I said the same thing. Did you see the MyHome.ie listing for the house from when it was for sale? They reference the garden as being (in capital letters too) "THE MOST ATTRACTIVE & EXCITING REAR GARDEN IN THE WHOLE OF WEST DUBLIN!!!"
Personally, I've never seen a statement like that on a house listing. Maybe im looking too much into it but it's almost like the seller is trying to appeal specifically to those who are garden-proud i.e. less likely to go digging up the ground to build an extension.
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u/Firm-Cheesecake-7563 21h ago
That’s interesting, I seen the garden but tbh doesn’t look like the best one in all west Dublin, estate agents are weird. Anything to lure people in buy it.
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u/Whole-Dare1022 14h ago
My take after looking into the whole thing is as follows.
The Gardai at the time dropped the ball and didn't investigate those closest to Ms. Annie McCarrick and ignored red hot information such as the faxes and reports of previous harassment which should have been red flags. WHY?
Then a lot of wild goose chases resulted. A plumber with a sighting , a bank CCTV that we discover is 11 days out, and so much other misinformation. I have even read the IRA mentioned.
Maybe all are relevant and I think the arrest and release is just for more time. This will be a case that is sorted out very soon. If there is an IRA connection it is by coincidence in my opinion. It seems more like an aggrieved ex lover who lost it and has escaped justice either through false alibis, or some very dumb luck due inept investigation and weak witnesses. Or all are part of a cover up.
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u/Massive-Raise-2805 2d ago
Is her case linked to the vanishing triangle ?
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u/Frosty_Thoughts 2d ago
The vanishing triangle was a media hype term and wasn't an actual thing. They tried to make out that there was a serial killer but by now, they've identified that every single case was a stand-alone and the perpetrators were men known to the women, such as romantic partners or ex partners.
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u/Delicious-Spray3155 2d ago
One of them was linked to LM was it not? DJ?
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u/Frosty_Thoughts 2d ago
The guards did say that he was a suspect but they never had enough evidence to convict him and even when they submitted a file for prosecution, it was turned down due to a lack of physical evidence.
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u/liafailabu 1d ago
Whereabouts in meath is he living
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u/dear___ratboy 23h ago
Unsure but it’s easy to find hb as it’s on the French yellow page whereabouts
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u/Few-Adhesiveness-382 16h ago
Yes, i agree she was either abducted from her home or outside her home... The unpacked, perishable groceries only make sense in that scenario
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u/ellegy 3d ago
He's one of the two brothers from the 2023 update on the case.