The brother of missing student Karen Buckley has appealed for anyone who may have seen her to contact police. Speaking from Sydney, Kieran Buckley told Newstalk's Lunchtime presenter Jonathan Healy that his sister "would always contact someone and would always come home".
The 24-year-old student nurse from Mourneabbey in Co Cork has been missing since Sunday morning after leaving a Glasgow nightclub.
“It’s very tough on everyone, so we are just trying to stay positive. Hopefully some good news comes soon, that I don’t know, some crazy excuse for Karen’s disappearance... that she just turns up safe and sound somewhere, we are all just hoping. That’s all we can do now really, just put our trust in the police in Glasgow,” Mr Buckley said.
He was made aware that his sister was missing on Monday morning [Sunday night UK time].
“I’m over here with my brother [Damian] in Sydney, so it’s very tough for both of us right now.
“I found out on Monday morning early, I woke up, my brother told me she was missing and that was it, that’s all we know. That was Sunday night back in the UK, we are just hoping Karen would just turn up, maybe her phone went dead, or she lost her phone or something like that, it happens,” he said.
Mr Buckley plans to travel to Glasgow from Sydney to support his parents in the search for Karen, who went missing after telling friends she was going to a nightclub toilet.
“It’s not her character at all, it’s just very strange, [that she is] just missing. She would always contact someone, she would always come home. It’s very strange. I don’t know what has happened, but it’s not like her to just go missing, it’s out of character obviously,” Mr Buckley said.
He appealed to anyone with information to contact police in Glasgow.
He planned to "just get more coverage out there, and if anyone has information, or recognises her, that's just vital to get to the police, that is the main reason behind the Facebook page, to get awareness [out there]", he said.
Parishioners in the Buckley family’s native Mourneabbey, outside Mallow in Co Cork have organised a special Mass on Wednesday night at Analeentha Church at 8pm to offer prayers for the missing student.