A Northern Ireland search and rescue team has begun efforts to find a missing Belfast man who Spanish police believe was murdered in the south of the country more than a fortnight ago.
John George, also known as John Hardy, last made contact with his father Billy on December 14.
Spanish police believe the 37-year-old father-of-two was shot dead soon afterwards.
Search technicians from K9 Search and Rescue NI (K9SARNI) travelled out to Alicante on New Year’s Day to help with the hunt for Mr George after a public fundraising campaign raised more than £23,000 to support the family.
Searches for John George (36) are continuing in Alicante
It comes after the award-winning charity revealed it would defy a controversial Department of Justice (DoJ) instruction to stop deploying its team to searches in NI.
Its members are all either current or retired members of the emergency services, along with a dozen highly-trained search and rescue dogs, but the group was last month refused registration to the NI Search and Rescue Register (NISAR).
The process of joining the register is governed by the Department of Justice. Groups which are not on the register are not insured and as a result cannot be tasked by the PSNI.
Despite initially complying with a DoJ request not to deploy search teams, K9SARNI has said it will now be accepting direct requests from families.
In a New Year post on its Facebook page, the group said: “Roughly six months ago, we were asked to stop deploying our team, even at the direct request of families.
One of the highly trained K9 Search and Rescue NI (K9SARNI) dogs being used to find John George
Members of the K9 Search and Rescue NI team heading out to Spain on New Year’s Day
“To show good faith, we complied with that request. We sincerely apologise to the families we’ve been unable to help during this period.
“However, with the initial decision of us joining NISAR (Northern Ireland Search and Rescue) under the Department of Justice NI still pending, we have made the decision to once again accept taskings at the direct request of families to search for their loved ones.
“As our appeal with the Department of Justice for Northern Ireland continues, we remain hopeful they will reverse their decision and allow us to join NISAR.
“This would enable the PSNI and other statutory agencies to officially task us, ensuring we can provide our services to those who need them most, here at home.
“This year, we remain committed to serving our community, standing ready to answer the call when needed. Thank you for your unwavering support — it means the world to us and helps us continue our mission.”
Read more
Allison Morris reporting from Spain, on the missing man John George