Update: £10,000 reward for information leads to six new calls

Thursday 02 June 2016

A £10,000 reward offered for information leading to the discovery of missing Adrian Lynch has already led to half a dozen calls to the police.

An anonymous donor has come forward with the offer of a £10,000 reward for information that brings the long nightmare of the Lynch family to a close.

At a press conference yesterday, his father Danny said that they accepted that their son was dead, but that they hoped desperately that his discovery could let them move on with their grief.

Already, the reward has prompted Islanders to come forward - police say that it's too early to say if the calls that they have had will generate significant leads, but they say that they will be worked through.

Detective Chief Inspector Lee Turner, who is leading the operation, said this morning: "Further to yesterday’s publicity of an offer of up to £10,000 for information leading to Adrian Lynch being found, half a dozen calls to date have been received, and these will be examined and worked on.  It is too early to comment on any significance any of these may have. 

"The States of Jersey Police Facebook site has had over 30,000 hits since notification of the reward offer was made, and the leaflet produced has been shared well over 1,000 times.”

The police have emphasised that despite thousands of man-hours being put into Operation Panama – the codename for the search effort – there is still no evidence that points to foul play or to third party involvement in the disappearance of the 20-year-old, who vanished around the Carrefour Selous area in the early morning of 5 December.

The reward is available to anyone who gives information, even anonymously, that leads to the resolution of the search.

“We know he’s dead, it’s just where,” said Danny, Adrian's dad, at yesterday's press conference.

“Once we find a body and we can find out where he is, we can start putting everything together. Without that, there is no closure or anything.

“We want to know, but we know we might never get those answers.”

Adrian's step-mother Sharon said that they had been moved to tears by the offer of a reward, and said it came from someone that the family didn't know personally.

"It literally moved us to tears," she said. "Just saying 'thank you' doesn't feel enough to us. I don't think that we can show how much we really do appreciate it."

Detective Chief Inspector Turner said that after reviewing paperwork, they had found a small number of sites that would be checked again over the next three to four weeks.

He added that more information about the reward would be printed in leaflets in English, Portuguese, Polish and Romanian over the coming days.

DCI Turner said: “We are sadly now approaching six months since Adrian Lynch’s disappearance in the early hours of Saturday 5 December 2015, in the Carrefour Selous area of St Lawrence, after having earlier attended a Christmas party at a hotel in St Helier.

“Despite significant search efforts by many people, the tremendous support of the community, and an extensive police investigation, Adrian still remains missing.

“An open mind has always been maintained in respect of what might have happened to Adrian, but as yet there are no indications of criminal involvement – that however cannot be ruled out.

“A reward has now been offered, by a donor who wishes to remain anonymous, and who has come forward in support of Danny and Sharon Lynch.

“This anonymous donor is offering up to £10,000 for any information leading to Adrian being found.

“Anyone with information can call the States of Jersey Police on 612612, the independent charity Crimestoppers free on 0800 555111, or via the Crimestoppers website.

“You can contact Crimestoppers completely anonymously and still be eligible for this reward; this is the only formally recognised means by which anonymity can be guaranteed and you will not be asked for your name or address.”