October 23, 1986. Dublin, Ireland. After going home for lunch, 13-year old Philip Cairns leaves in order to return to school. He never arrives and vanishes without a trace. Six days later, Philip’s school bag appears in a laneway which had previously been searched, leading to speculation that it was planted there by the person who abducted him. In 2016, a witness implicates a former radio host and convicted pedophile named Eamon Cooke in Philip’s disappearance. By this point, Cooke is on his deathbed and even though he is questioned by investigators, he is unable to provide any conclusive answers. Did Eamon Cooke abduct and murder Philip Cairns, or was someone else responsible? On this week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold”, we return to Ireland to examine of one of their most famous unsolved disappearances. Special thanks to listener Aine Noonan for narrating the intro to this episode!

Additional Reading:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Philip_Cairns

http://www.thejournal.ie/philip-cairns-anniversary-3036664-Oct2016/

https://www.broadsheet.ie/2016/06/14/philip-cairns-and-a-trail-of-disinformation/

https://www.dublinlive.ie/news/dublin-news/philip-cairns-missing-sorry-what-11551067

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The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.