Lisa Dorrian "would have laughed and joked with these people" - sister's plea for justice

4 months ago 287

The sister of Lisa Dorrian has made an emotional appeal on the 20th anniversary of her murder.

The 25-year-old was last seen alive on the night of Sunday, February 27, 2005 at a party in Ballyhalbert Caravan Park with police believing she was murdered that night or in the early hours of the morning.

Since that day her family have been fighting for answers, with Lisa's heartbroken mother passing away before ever finding out what happened to her beloved eldest daughter.

Read more: Lisa Dorrian: PSNI release CCTV of 'last known footage' of 25-year-old

Read more: "It is a travesty"- MLAs raise case of missing Lisa Dorrian as 20th anniversary approaches

On the 20th anniversary of her murder, police have issued a renewed appeal for information, releasing the last known CCTV footage of Lisa, which shows her socialising in the days before her disappearance. It is hoped this footage may "prick the conscious" of those who know what happened to her.

The move coincides with a new digital billboard and bus shelter campaign across Northern Ireland.

In a press conference at PSNI Headquarters in East Belfast on Thursday, Lisa's sister Joanne Dorrian made an emotional statement where she highlighted the pain her family have felt since losing Lisa and how she is still in their thoughts everyday as they continue their fight to bring those responsible to justice.

Still image shows Lisa leaving the premises

Still image shows Lisa leaving the premises

Joanne Dorrian said: "February 28, marks 20 years since Lisa was murdered and disappeared. Twenty years ago, we lost our beautiful sister and daughter but, even more importantly, Lisa lost her life at the hands of people she knew and trusted. Every day without Lisa is hard, but 20 years has been a lifetime of pain for us.

"Today we will start a new digital billboard and bus shelter campaign across NI highlighting this milestone 20-year anniversary.

"Lisa had dreams and aspirations, she wanted to get married one day and have children of her own. She was a vibrant person who always wanted more from life – she wanted to travel and explore the world. Lisa was denied all of her hopes and dreams.

"Since Lisa was murdered we have had family celebrations, birthdays, births and deaths and have felt the loss of Lisa at every single one. We talk about her to her nieces and nephews so that they will know what a loving auntie they would have had. Her absence in all of our lives has grown over the years – all of the ‘what ifs’ and ‘if onlys’.

"On the night that Lisa was murdered she would have laughed and joked with these people. She would have been her loving, kind, funny self. She would never have imagined that they would have caused her harm, murdered her and then decided to put her body somewhere so that it would remain hidden for 20 years.

"Our family has never been the same since the day we got the news that Lisa went missing. Our mum went to her grave never knowing what happened to her beautiful first-born daughter. The grief and pain was all consuming. Our lives have to go on around what happened to Lisa but she is at the heart of all of our thoughts and conversations daily.

Image shows Lisa enter the premises on the night of Friday 25 February 2005

Image shows Lisa enter the premises on the night of Friday 25 February 2005

"We are grateful to have an active PSNI investigation with a team intent on getting justice for Lisa. We hope to see Lisa's murderers in court one day.

"Today we will gather as a family at Lisa's bench and ‘garden for thoughts’ in Bangor to think of her and the 25 years we were lucky to get to spend with her. Lisa will never be forgotten and we will campaign until we find her and get justice for her murder. We will also visit mums grave where Lisa’s name was added last year and lay flowers in the hope that one day we will be able to give Lisa the Christian burial she deserves.

"Twenty years of secrecy could end with a phone call, a letter, a message. Please tell us where Lisa is. We love you Lisa."

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