An anonymous benefactor has offered a £100,000 reward for information leading to the whereabouts of 22-year-old student Jack O'Sullivan, who has been missing since March 2024 after leaving a house party in the Hotwells area of Bristol.
Avon and Somerset Police said the reward was being publicised by the family and that a senior investigator will carry out a further review of the inquiry. The force said it has taken an "evidence-led, open-minded and transparent approach" since Mr O'Sullivan was reported missing and continues to ask the public to come forward with information.
Mr O'Sullivan, who was 22 at the time he vanished, was last seen after attending a birthday party in Hotwells. On the night he disappeared he told his mother he would take an Uber home. Police said he attempted to ring a friend at 03:24 GMT but the call failed; when the friend called back about 10 minutes later they heard only a brief "hello" before the line went dead. Mr O'Sullivan's phone remained active on the Find My Friends app until 06:44 GMT the same morning.
The family said they initially questioned whether the reward offer was genuine. His mother, Catherine O'Sullivan, said: "Once we established that it was real, we were overcome by the generosity... it was a lot to take in." His brother, Ben, added: "We're in a position where we'll take any help we can get... any chance of being able to get the answers we require, we'll take."
Since Mr O'Sullivan's disappearance, the family have reported receiving abusive and threatening messages, including from people alleging they were holding him and demanding a ransom. Catherine O'Sullivan said those messages had been "incredibly hard to deal with" but that the family remained determined to find out what happened. The Missing People charity has supported the family and deployed digital posters around Bristol to raise awareness of the case.
Avon and Somerset Police said more than 30 different teams were involved in the initial search and that investigators have reviewed more than 100 hours of CCTV footage as part of the inquiry. The force said the further review will ensure officers have done everything possible to locate Mr O'Sullivan and exhaust all lines of enquiry.
Police urged anyone with information to contact Avon and Somerset Police directly or to provide details to the Missing People charity. The family has also established a webpage for information and updates. The force reiterated its request that anyone who saw Mr O'Sullivan on the night he went missing, or who has dashcam or doorbell footage from the Hotwells area in the early hours of the morning in question, should come forward.
The reward announcement comes more than a year after Mr O'Sullivan was last seen and follows several appeals from the family and the police. Investigators said they continue to consider the case open and active while the review is carried out.
The family described living with uncertainty as "like being on the worst roller coaster ride" and said hope remained central to their search for answers. Avon and Somerset Police asked anyone with information to contact them and stressed that even small details could be important to the ongoing investigation.