Gardai are pursuing a number of possible sightings of a 20-year-old man who has been missing from his home near Dunmore East, Co Waterford, since December.
Mr Shane Curran from Coxtown, about half a mile from Dunmore East, was last seen walking in the direction of the village, towards the Ship restaurant, shortly after 2 p.m. on December 30th.
Concerns for his safety had been growing, particularly as no money has been withdrawn from his bank account since. However, gardai are "reasonably hopeful" that Mr Curran is safe following a "very good response" to an appeal for information on RTE's Crimeline programme on Monday.
Sgt Martina Noonan of Dunmore East said they had received a number of reports of sightings of people matching the missing man's description following the programme. These had yet to be followed up and until then gardai were keeping an open mind.
A second-year architecture student at UCD, Mr Curran is described by friends as a "quiet, reserved" person. Interviewed on Crimeline, his mother, Ms Ann Curran, said her son was a very intelligent person who liked to travel.
Shane is her eldest son and he has two younger brothers, Luke (18) and Alex (12). She appealed for Shane, or anyone who could confirm he was safe, to contact the family. Mr Curran suffered from depression and had gone missing for a brief period earlier last year before returning home.
When last seen he was wearing a wine-coloured sweatshirt, blue jeans and runners. He is six feet, of thin build and has dark red hair, brown eyes and red eyebrows. Anyone with information is asked to contact Dunmore East Garda station at 051383112.