The body of a missing teenager was recovered by sub-aqua divers from the River Liffey at Celbridge yesterday. The tragic find behind an old mill in the village was made at 4.30 p.m. during the search for Brian McCrea (16), of Castletown Drive, Celbridge, by gardai and local people.
He had been missing for a week. The body was taken to Naas General Hospital for a post-mortem.
Just two hours earlier, two gardai had tramped the muddy banks of the river in the village as fears for the boy's safety heightened. Some yards behind, the boy's uncle peered into the murky waters and hunted for clues along the river's edge.
Speaking earlier in the day, Mr Ronald McCrea said his son had been looking forward to beginning work experience at an electrical repairs shop next week and that his disappearance was a mystery to everyone, but admitted he feared the worst.
"His two older brothers are of the same mind as me. You fear the worst and hope for the best. His little sister, Alene, just thinks he's been naughty and has gone off and not come home. She has a toy ready for him to fix up for her when he gets home."
The boy, who looked younger than his 16 years, took a lift to The Roost pub in Maynooth from his father at 8.30 p.m. on Tuesday, December 29th. He had said he was beginning work an hour later than usual in the lounge bar, but he had other plans.
He was not on duty that night and instead headed off to a party in The Grove, Celbridge, which is on the other side of the river to his own home.
It is not known how he got there, but he arrived some time after 10 p.m., joining the group of teenagers there.
The festivities wound down just after midnight and Brian and two other boys remained on drinking.
At 3.28 a.m. a video camera at the Maxol Service Station in Maynooth recorded the trio arriving and chatting to a friend working in the late-night shop.
At one stage, Brian is said to have asked his friend to let him in, but was told he could not for security reasons. After 15 minutes they returned to the house in Celbridge where the party was held.
Brian left his friends some time before 4.30 a.m., planning to walk back to the service station in Maynooth, three or more miles away.
By this time, his anxious father had already been driving around the streets of the village looking for him.
He and Brian's mother, Margaret, had been sitting up chatting with the boy's grandfather, who was recovering from a stroke.
Brian had been upset by the event, although his grandfather had made "a miraculous recovery" since his disappearance.
When Brian did not contact his parents or arrive at their home in the Castletown estate they became concerned and Mr McCrea drove around the area and called at friends' houses, finally giving up at 6 a.m. The following day they became alarmed and went to the Garda.
The family have two other sons Douglas (18) and Gordon (17) and a daughter, Alene (8).