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Story Notes
Geoff Knupfer’s job is to find ‘disappeared’ bodies.
The Megraw family have been waiting for the return of Brendan Megraw’s body for 36 years.
‘Walking The Line’ follows the work of Geoff Knupfer over the course of the year, through the eyes of one of the families of the disappeared –the Megraws.
Geoff Knupfer’s role as head of the investigation team of the ICLVR (Independent Commission for the Location Victims Remains) is to the find the bodies of the missing ‘disappeared’ – people who were abducted by the IRA, murdered and secretly buried around the border area during the troubles.
Brendan McGraw was abducted and murdered in 1978. He was only 23. In 1999 as part of the peace process the IRA admitted he had been secretly buried in Oristown bog in County Meath.
In 2005, the ICLVR hired Geoff Knupfer. He specialises in forensic archaeology, something he moved into after playing a lead role in the search for two missing children murdered by Ian Brady and Myra Hindley – the Moors Murderers. In 1987, Knupfer walked around the Manchester Moors on two occasions with Myra Hindley, holding her hand because she was so unfit and helped her climb over rocks as the child murderer pointed out ‘places of interest’ in their search for the two missing children. The body of teenager Pauline Reade was recovered and she was buried two decades after she had been murdered.
Seventeen people were acknowledged as ‘disappeared’ during the troubles. The ICLVR was set up in 1999 to find the bodies and Geoff Knupfer began heading up the operations in 2006 and to date ten people have been located with the last person, Peter Wilson found in 2010. At the beginning of this year, the commission was searching for seven ‘disappeared’ bodies.
Geoff Knupfer’s job and role is unique. Anyone who supplies him with information, this evidence cannot be used in a prosecution. The former Manchester detective is not working to make arrests and the documentary, ‘Walking The Line’ details the balancing act that his investigations requires, as he liaises directly with families of the victims, former paramilitaries and both governments as he drives the country roads and isolated bogs of the border area looking for the ‘disappeared’.
This documentary, ‘Walking the Line’, told by Brendan Megraw’s brothers - Kieran and Sean follows Geoff Knupfer over the course of the year beginning in April with a dig in a field in Shercock, County Cavan and culminates in the Autumn when a dig is held at Oristown bog, outside Kells, county Meath and a major development.
Produced by Ciaran Cassidy. Sound supervision was by Damian Chennells.
Anyone with information on the Disappeared should contact the ICLVR on 00800 555 85500, by writing to ICLVR, PO Box 10827, Dublin 2. or via the website www.iclvr.ie.
Story Credits