About five weeks ago, two garda detectives appeared at the door of one of the houses on Hand Street in Drogheda, Co Louth.
It was evening, and the home-owner, who works long hours and isn’t there during the day, was one of the remaining people on the street who had yet to answer questions.
“They were asking about a young woman and her son. I had never seen either of them before in my life, so I couldn’t help. They didn’t show me any photos. I signed the statement and they left,” the man said.
A familiar and troubling narrative has taken hold around the disappearance and alleged murder of eight-year-old Kyran Durnin.
Little is known about the little boy — his likes and dislikes, his hobbies and friends, where he played or who his favourite people were.
This week on Hand Street, the only known address associated with him, more than eight home-owners couldn’t say if they had ever laid eyes on him.
More chillingly, definitive answers about when he was last seen by anyone remain elusive.
The last public sighting of the child that gardaí have been able to confirm with certainty was in May 2022.
However, he was not reported to them as missing until August 30 this year — more than two years later. It was this missing person’s report, filed at Drogheda garda station, that triggered a garda appeal for information on September 4.
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In it, gardaí asked for the public’s help in tracing the whereabouts of Dayla Durnin (24) and her son, Kyran. The appeal said they were last seen on Wednesday, August 28, at about 11pm.
The appeal was covered by local and national news outlets, with the child’s grandmother Rhonda Byrne Tyson telling Drogheda Life she wanted her daughter and grandson to come home.
Ms Byrne Tyson said Dayla had been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes and spent most of the summer in hospital. She would have to inject herself five times a day.
Her mother said she had been calling her daughter several times a day since she disappeared, but her calls went straight to voicemail.
She also expressed concern for her grandson, whom she said she wanted home “safe and sound”.
This week, one neighbour described Ms Byrne Tyson as a devoted grandmother. The same neighbour said Dayla would often not contact her mother for long periods and it would not be unusual for her not to hear from her for several months.
It is understood that Kyran attended a school in nearby Dundalk until he reached senior infants.
There has been a suggestion that the authorities did not notice Kyran was absent from school after that point because the school was led to believe he was enrolling in a primary in Northern Ireland.
There is no record of Kyran attending any school on either side of the border after May 2022.
As news of the disappearance of the two began to spread locally in late August, Dundalk woman Brittany McEnteggart began to follow the story.
“I don’t know the family, but when I first heard about this little boy being missing, I assumed he would turn up,” she said.
“Then there was nothing about him and I was wondering what had happened.
“Then, all of a sudden, people started sharing the appeals for information again. I just kept thinking, why hasn’t anyone found this little boy?”
While authorities finally began looking for the missing child in September, they now believe they were already months, if not years, behind the search.
As information came to light that led detectives to suspect Kyran had been missing for more than two days, the investigation began to take a different turn.
Dayla Durnin is believed to have been located in the UK, alive and well, last week.
At 9.30am on Wednesday, gardaí announced that the September 4 media appeal for help in tracing the whereabouts of Dayla was being stood down.
Minutes later, they announced a new appeal for information on Kyran, who was now “presumed dead”.
They issued a statement on Wednesday saying: “Following inquiries to date, investigating gardaí now believe that Kyran is missing, presumed dead. A murder investigation has been commenced.”
On Hand Street, as news of the turn of events filtered through, Ms Byrne Tyson was standing outside her house in tears, according to neighbours.
The announcement was met with widespread shock, both locally and nationally.
The case, more than any other in recent times, has posed more questions than answers.
If he is indeed dead, how did he die and where are his remains?
And, most disturbingly, how could an eight-year old boy not be seen in public for more than two years without any action taken by authorities?
Detectives are believed to have spoken to the boy’s father, who is understood to have been making efforts to contact his son.
They have also spoken to a large number of relatives, but it is understood they have received different and even conflicting stories in relation to the child.
Ms Durnin has three children. She had moved between Drogheda and Dundalk for a period, before moving in with her mother on Hand Street.
Gardaí had been going through extensive CCTV footage and carrying out door-to-door inquiries over the past months in an effort to find mother and son.
Searches have also been carried out in at least one property and a car has been examined.
An incident room has been established at Drogheda garda station.
In a picture issued this week, Kyran is seen grinning from ear to ear, dressed in a Spider-Man top.
In light of what gardaí have revealed this week, he is not eight years old in the picture. His sixth birthday, celebrated on May 15, 2022, may well have been his last.
Since then, two birthdays have passed. Two Christmases. Countless milestones, so often captured on camera and treasured forever.
How did no one notice he was not there to mark them?
What child protection measures were in place, and how did they fail to keep him from harm?
Gardaí had been liaising with the child and family agency Tusla in recent weeks as concerns mounted for the safety of Kyran, sources said.
Detectives have also obtained Tusla files relating to the boy following an application to the district court.
Tusla would not comment on what it described as a “sensitive” case, but gardaí are aware the agency had “extensive” contact concerning Kyran.
There was no indication he was a victim of abuse.
In the silence over Kyran’s short life from those closest to him, strangers have stepped in to fill the void.
Tonight in Dundalk’s Market Square, Ms McEnteggart will host a candlelight vigil in his memory.
Attendees have been asked to bring something blue, light a candle and come together to reflect on the life of the child who disappeared.
“I just thought someone needed to do something for this little boy,” Ms McEnteggart said. “His story needs to be told.”