The arrest this week of a male suspect marks a big development in the investigation

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Missing person poster of Jo Jo Dollard. Photograph: Bryan O'Brien
Missing person poster of Jo Jo Dollard. Photograph: Bryan O'Brien

On the 9th of November 1995, Josephine “Jo Jo” Dullard disappeared on her way home from a night out and was never seen again.

The Kilkenny woman’s disappearance was initially treated as a missing persons case, but was later upgraded to a murder investigation in 2020. Up until this week, no arrests had ever been made in relation to the case.

On Monday, a 55 year-old man, who is a member of a well-known family in the Kildare-Wicklow region, was arrested by Gardaí and taken in for questioning on suspicion of murder. He was later released without charge.

Detectives believe the arrested man was in the village of Moone, Co Kildare, when Dullard (21) phoned a friend from a call box on the night she disappeared.

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In conjunction with the arrest, Gardaí are also conducting an open ground search in the east of the country.

On today’s episode of In the News, Irish Times crime and security correspondent Conor Lally paints a picture of Dullard’s last known movements and explains how this Garda operation marks a major development in this 29 year-old cold case.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

Bernice Harrison

Bernice Harrison

Bernice Harrison is an Irish Times journalist and cohost of In the News podcast