By Marnie Reeves, News Reporter
O’Sullivan vanished in the early hours of March 2, 2024, after attending a house party in Hotwells.
The 22-year-old was last seen walking along Bennet Way slip road towards the city centre. It was believed he was trying to get home to Flax Bourton, six miles from Bristol.
Despite police scouring 100 hours of CCTV footage, they found no trace of him.
Last Wednesday, his parents appealed to Westminster on Jack’s case, stating that they have been ‘desperately trying to have some help in finding him’, as Avon and Somerset Police failed them.
In an interview with This Morning, Catherine said she does not believe that any evidence was properly investigated, the police were not open-minded, and claimed confirmation bias.
After dismissing her concerns that her son had not returned home on the morning of March 2, police called her that same evening. They said CCTV placed him near the water and assumed he had fallen in and drowned.
Catherine grew up believing ‘the police are the police’ and best equipped to help you in a crisis. She questioned this when errors in the investigation came to light, as further opportunities to examine the case are now lost.
CCTV footage last showed Jack walking on a bypass over the river, not alongside it as police had initially insisted. Moreover, police dismissed information about where Jack’s iPhone was last activated that night.
In July 2026, former deputy harbourmaster Mike Ferguson spoke to the BBC that it was ‘impossible’ that Jack could have entered the water and not been found. Ferguson wrote detailed reports on what may have happened, accounting for tides, water levels, and currents that night.
Catherine said the reports gave her and her husband a new focus beyond the early narrative that the police set. They now call for the investigation to be handed over, and for a new one to begin.
Daniel Cale-Caplan
Dana Andrea Datu
Laurence Oliver, a private investigator for the family, said that ‘when you see the magnitude of the failures that have gone on over the last two years, you have to draw a line in the sand and say enough is enough’.
Oliver listed ‘glaring opportunities’ still available to find Jack, including speaking to witnesses at the party, reviewing additional CCTV footage, and investigating the iPhone data.
A spokesperson for Avon and Somerset Police stated:
‘We wholeheartedly recognise the devastating impact Jack’s disappearance continues to have on his loved ones. We know how difficult it is for his family that, despite extensive enquiries, we’ve not yet been able to find him or provide the conclusive answers they so desperately need’.
Catherine shared how her life is ‘completely on hold’, and she and her family will not give up hope of finding Jack.
Featured Image: Marnie Reeves
