Land search begins for missing man (34) and his pregnant girlfriend (21), both suspected abducted and murdered

Willie Maughan (34) and his pregnant Latvian girlfriend, Anastasija (Ana) Varslavane (21) disappeared on April 14, 2015, near Gormanston, Co Meath.

The tragic pair were planning on moving back to Willie's family home in Tallaght on the day they went missing,

Willie and Ana had been together since 2014 and lived in a caravan in Gormanston, Co. Meath.

His mother and father, Helen and Joe, have spoken publicly before about how they were making arrangements for their return to Tallaght.

On the morning of Tuesday April 14, 2015, Willie went to Balbriggan followed shortly afterwards by Ana. They ran some errands and made contact with Willie's mother Helen to arrange for her to travel from Tallaght to Gormanston to collect them and their belongings.

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William spoke to his mother at about 2.30pm.

The couple got a taxi together from Balbriggan to Gormanston just shortly after 2.30pm.

Helen arrived in Gormanston just before 3pm but could not locate William. She drove to Stamullen to look for him but didn't find him. She returned to Gormanston and called his mobile phone but it went straight to voicemail.

Willie and Ana never showed up and Helen became extremely worried, and reported both as missing.

An extensive investigation was launched with several searches and enquiries carried out. The case was upgraded to a murder investigation following a review of the case in September 2016.

One of Ireland's most notorious criminals, the now-deceased Cornelius Price, was suspected to have had the couple murdered because they may have had key information about the gang's activities including another murder. He denied any involvement.

Gangland boss Price (41) died in February 2023 in a Welsh hospital after a long illness.

No trace of the couple's bodies has ever been found but they are believed to have been burnt after the killing.

Today, gardaí investigating the disappearance and murder of William Maughan and Anastasija Varslavane have commenced a search of open lands in north county Dublin.

The search is being carried out by the Garda investigation team and is supported by the Meath Divisional search team and the Garda Technical Bureau. The area of land will be searched and subject to excavation, technical and forensic examinations over the coming days.

Gardaí confirmed the investigation is being carried out by the Serious Crime Unit, Meath Division and is led by a Senior Investigation Officer based out of an incident room at Ashbourne Garda Station.

"Given the passage of time since their disappearance individuals personal circumstances may now have changed and people may now be in a position to either speak to investigating Gardaí or to provide information now that they may not have been able to provide before," a spokesperson said as gardaí stressed they continue to appeal to anyone with information in relation to the disappearance and murder of William Maughan and Anna Varslavane.

Seven people have been previously arrested in connection with the disappearance and murder.