In a rare move, Roderic O’Gorman, the Minister for Children, has requested Tusla to promptly submit its records on Kyran Durnin, an eight-year-old lad from Drogheda, Co Louth, to a specialist board that investigates any child deaths linked to the state guardianship. Kyran is feared to have been deceased for roughly two years by the gardaí.
Normally, such documents reach the National Review Panel following the conclusion of an investigation by the Garda or other bodies. However, considering the uncommon circumstances surrounding this case, the leader of the Green Party reaffirmed his call for a swift transfer of the files. The investigation itself kicked off only a few days ago.
Kyran and his mother, Dayla Durnin (24), were officially reported missing from their Drogheda home in late August. As soon as the mother was located safe and sound in the U.K. in September, but without Kyran, a disappearance probe was initiated by the gardaí. The most recent positive identification of Kyran was in May 2022 when he was six. The gardaí are currently probing whether the boy was killed two years ago.
In a separate effort, officials are trying to figure out why the boy’s absence, who was removed from school in 2022, went unnoticed for markedly more than two years. At the period, it was supposed that he may have migrated to a Northern Ireland school. There already was some communication between Tusla and the boy’s family before he vanished.
Mr O’Gorman expressed on Monday that if any state-based organisation is found to have failed the boy following the conclusion of the Garda inquest, there will be “repercussions”. He also divulged that he mandated Tusla to notify the oversight group about the case at the earliest.
To understand Tusla’s role in this case, Mr O’Gorman already requested quicker access to the National Review Panel. As the investigation of this tragic incident continues, he also insisted that other areas of the state are likely scrutinising the incident.