The devastated family of a Celtic fan who vanished on holiday in Lanzarote two years ago have said they will “never give up searching for answers” amid concerns something “sinister” may have happened.
Gary Shearer disappeared hours after flying to the Canary Islands on 16 March 2023 to celebrate St Patrick’s Day.
The dad-of-one, from Renfrewshire in Scotland, was 53 when he went missing and would now be 55.
His family, including mum Ann McMurray and niece Darcie Deeney, are heading to the Spanish island this week as part of the continued effort to unravel the mystery of what happened and to encourage the police to reopen the case.
Ms Deeney told Sky News she believes something “sinister” may have happened, adding: “We have come to terms that something has definitely happened to Gary.”
“We’re unsure of what, but we know he is not coming back,” she said.
“We just want answers so that we can begin to grieve properly.”
She said the family “will never give up searching for answers”.
“We will spend the rest of our lives looking for answers until we finally get some.”
Mr Shearer arrived at the Oasis Apartments in Puerto del Carmen and sent his family a poolside photo.
He secured some belongings in his hotel safe, pocketed some cash and then headed out.
At around 5.30pm, he messaged his mum to say he was going to Bar 67.
At the time, he was wearing a Celtic top, white shorts and white trainers with a green and yellow trim, and carrying a black bag.
CCTV later captured Mr Shearer unconscious in a doorway near the bar at around 1.30am.
His family raised concerns when he failed to message his mum, with police eventually taking action when he missed his flight home to Scotland a week later.
Investigating officers found his passport, bank card, travel money, and diabetes medication in his hotel room, but his phone was never recovered or used again.
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In August 2023, Spain’s Civil Guard released CCTV images of Mr Shearer walking with an unidentified male on 17 March.
The man, who was described as being between 60 and 70, with a strong build and grey hair, was never identified.
In June 2024, police closed the case due to a lack of information.
Ms Deeney said: “The unknown is so haunting because we’re constantly trying to make sense of it and we’re constantly thinking of all the things that could have happened.
“At least if we knew what happened we could acknowledge that and begin to work on coping with the truth. It has had such an impact on every single member of the family.”
The situation was said to have taken a “huge toll” on Mr Shearer’s parents.
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Ms Deeney described her uncle as a “family orientated man” who “loved a joke and making people happy”.
She added: “Gary is so loved by all of us and so many friends.”
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While they are in Lanzarote, Ms Deeney said the plan is to “gain as much publicity as possible” in the hope police will reopen the case.
She said: “We’re also travelling to surrounding islands this time which we haven’t done before to try and spread the word further and place posters there also.
“We’ve got posters and leaflets to hand out and we’re going to try and speak to as many people possible and tell them Gary’s story.
“One little piece of information that someone has – that they might not think is relevant – could be all that we need to paint a bigger picture and for us to get Gary’s case opened up again.”
