Man arrested after body found in hunt for Belfast man John George missing in Spain
The father of a Belfast man John George who went missing in Spain and who he feels was murdered has warned others not to get caught up in the allure of the drugs trade.
Police in Spain are continuing to question a man after a body was found in the hunt for missing Belfast man John George.
The 37-year-old, from west Belfast, also known as John Hardy, had been on holiday in Alicante and was last in touch with his family on December 14.The father of two was reported missing four days later after he failed to board his flight home to Northern Ireland.Mr George’s family and friends travelled to Spain to search for him.His father Billy was told by Spanish police on Tuesday evening that they believed they had found his son’s body."There is no pockets in a shroud," he told UTV of his message to others.
"Don't do it. Money is not everything, your life is everything.
"Don't come over here [to Spain]. John was lured to his death, by people here but also by people back home. This was a set up."
On hearing his son had been found, Billy said there was "happy tears, but also sad tears".
"No parent wants to hear that call, but without that call we were not getting John back," he said.
John's brother Darren said the family would continue to fight to bring those responsible to justice.
He said John had been found on the side of the road: "You would not leave an animal on the side of the road. That shows you the type of people that did this.
"Just because John is found does not mean we are stopping we will continue to get justice for John. This will never stop."
Billy also paid tribute to those who had offered their support to the family.
"Without the support of the people back home we would never have been able to do this. I can't thank them enough. I don't know how I will repay them, but thanks very much, from the bottom of my heart."
Mr George’s family and friends travelled to Spain to search for him.
No details have yet been released on where the 37-year-old was found or how he met his death, with a postmortem examination set to be carried out.
UTV understands that Billy had hoped to identify his own son but he was not allowed to do so and he was told that it would have to done through DNA testing instead.
Belfast solicitors KRW Law, who are assisting Mr George’s relatives, said in a statement on behalf of the family that they are distressed but also relieved at the latest development.
“It brings to an end an extremely tortuous search process for the body,” they said.
Mr George’s parents Billy and Sharon, brother Darren, and sisters Courtney and Caitlin – along with up to 50 friends and wider family from Northern Ireland – were involved in the search operation.
The statement said a murder investigation has been launched and appealed for privacy for Mr George’s family.
It said: “The family want to thank all who have helped and supported them over the last number of days.
“They now respectfully ask for some privacy to allow them both time and space to engage on the next harrowing stages of what is now a formalised murder investigation.”
Police in Northern Ireland have been assisting their Spanish counterparts with their investigation and had issued appeals for information after Mr George was reported missing.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, Detective Inspector Jennifer Rea said: “My thoughts are, first and foremost, with Mr George’s family at this distressing time.“Our dedicated Family Liaison Officers continue to provide support to the family, and we continue to work closely with international law enforcement agencies.“I am keen to reiterate our appeal for anyone with information that could assist the Spanish Investigation Team with their enquiries to please contact us on 101.”The PSNI added: "Photos and footage, including CCTV, mobile phone or dash cam footage, can be shared with the Police Service through the Major Incident Public Portal at https://mipp.police.uk Information will be shared with Spanish Police."
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