Gardaí Conduct New Searches in Fiona Sinnott Murder Investigation
New searches are underway in Wexford as gardaí continue their investigation into the 1998 murder of Fiona Sinnott. The operation, which began on thursday, has brought renewed hope to the Sinnott family, who have been seeking answers for over two decades.
Fiona Sinnott, the youngest of five siblings, was last seen in public in February 1998. Her disappearance was not reported to gardaí until ten days later, a delay that investigators believe gave her killer crucial time to conceal evidence, including her remains. Gardaí have long suspected that Fiona was murdered by someone known to her.
The investigation into ms. Sinnott’s death has been treated as a murder inquiry for the past 20 years.This contrasts with the cases of Annie McCarrick and Fiona Pender,who disappeared in 1993 and 1996 respectively. Their cases were only upgraded to murder investigations approximately 30 years after they vanished. While the circumstances of these three cases share a grim similarity, gardaí have stated they are not linked.
In september 2005, six arrests were made in connection with Fiona Sinnott’s murder, including that of the chief suspect. However, no charges have ever been brought.Previous searches and excavations for Ms.Sinnott’s remains were conducted in wexford in January and July 2006, but yielded no results.
Fiona’s sister, Diane, expressed a mix of nervousness and hope regarding the current Garda operation, stating, “We just pray to God now that this is it…it’s been a long time.” She added, “It’s upsetting, but we’re just praying that something will come out of this today. The guards came down to us not so long ago and they told us they’ll know more this evening.”
Gardaí have also appealed to two young men, who have never come forward, to contact them with any information they may have.