found that Robert Howard was responsible for the death of Arlene<\/a>.<\/p>\nCoroner Brian Sherrard noted: “Robert Howard, a violent sexual offender, and the last person to be seen with Arlene in the early hours of 14 August 1994, was responsible for her death.”<\/p>\n
The coroner also ruled that the death occurred in Northern Ireland, but the precise location remains unknown.<\/p>\n
Howard was arrested but was later released without charge. Following further investigation, he was re-arrested in 2002 and charged with her murder, but acquitted in 2005.<\/p>\n
An NI Police Ombudsman’s Office investigation in 2008 found that the Royal Ulster Constabulary failed to properly investigate the disappearance of Arlene Arkinson.<\/p>\n
Howard – originally from Co Laois – died in prison in England in 2015 while serving a life sentence for the rape and murder of 14-year-old Hannah Williams from London.<\/p>\n
Kathleen Arkinson said her family learned a lot from the inquest, adding while, it mended some wounds that it didn\u2019t mend them properly – “those are in progress,” she said.<\/p>\n
PSNI Detective Superintendent Chris Millar said while all active lines of inquiry have concluded, it is not too late for anyone with information to come forward.<\/p>\n
“My thoughts at this time are, first and foremost, with Arlene\u2019s loving family. Arlene Arkinson, who was just 15 years old, went missing in August 1994. Our investigation into her disappearance and murder was both dedicated and extensive, and we share genuine frustrations that her body has never been found.<\/p>\n
“Thirty-two years have now passed. That\u2019s 32 years of ongoing torment for a family and loved ones, who have never been given the closure they deserve.<\/p>\n
“While all active lines of enquiry have concluded, I\u2019m keen to offer assurance that it\u2019s not too late for anyone with information to do the right thing and come forward.”<\/p>\n
Superintendent Millar asked anyone with information “no matter how insignificant it may seem” to contact officers on 101 in Northern Ireland. Alternatively, information can be provided to the independent charity Crimestoppers, with total anonymity, on 0800 555 111 in NI.<\/p>\n
‘A bubbly 15-year-old, brilliant at art’<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, An Garda S\u00edoch\u00e1na said based on information received, it conducted several search operations in Co Donegal as part of ongoing efforts to locate Arlene Arkinson.<\/p>\n
No new information emerged from these searches.<\/p>\n
Anyone with information is urged to contact garda\u00ed in Letterkenny 074 9067100 or the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111.<\/p>\n
Kathleen Arkinson said that her last memory of her sister, who she described as a “bubbly 15-year-old, brilliant at art,” was when she left for Bundoran on 13 August 1994.<\/p>\n
Kathleen and Arlene\u2019s mother died in 1990. Kathleen says her father died of “a broken heart”.<\/p>\n
“It should never have happened\u2026some days you think; did this really happen? This really did happen.<\/p>\n
“I beg people out there. It doesn’t matter how small it is. I\u2019d appeal for anyone [with any information] to come forward. Thirty-two years is a long time,” she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A sister of Arlene Arkinson, the 15-year-old who went missing after a disco in Bundoran in 1994, will…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":592781,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[61,60,43],"class_list":["post-592780","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592780","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=592780"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592780\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/592781"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=592780"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=592780"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=592780"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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