Irish police searching for a potential breakthrough in the case of an Icelandic poker player who disappeared in Dublin seven years ago have identified a “person of interest” – but they claim he is unwilling to cooperate.
Jon Jonsson, a 41-year-old taxi driver and father of four, went missing on February 9, 2019, less than 24 hours after arriving alone in Ireland to participate in the Dublin Poker Festival, scheduled to commence the following day.
Jonsson lost approximately €4,000 while playing cash games at Dublin’s Bonnington Hotel, the location where the festival was being held, on the evening before he disappeared.
Around 11 a.m. the next day, he was captured by the hotel’s security cameras leaving along Swords Road before vanishing seemingly without a trace.
His absence was noticed by his fiancée, who arrived the next day for what was supposed to be a ten-day visit to the Irish capital.
Icelandic National
Gardaí (Irish police) revealed that the individual they want to speak to is an Icelandic national residing in Liverpool, England. The man declined an interview request through his legal representative, as reported by the Irish Independent on Sunday, August 23.
Authorities lack sufficient evidence to apprehend the individual and were hoping for a voluntary interview to address several inquiries, according to the publication.
The person in question, who has a criminal record, is believed to have entered Ireland approximately a month before Jonsson disappeared. While investigators have determined his entry into the country, his departure remains less certain.
No Trace
Earlier this year, The Irish Times disclosed that gardaí had pinpointed a UK-based individual as a person of interest and were collaborating with British authorities to potentially interview him.
According to the Independent, gardaí have received “unsubstantiated intelligence” indicating that Jonsson may have been harmed by another Icelander, possibly due to a gambling debt or a case of mistaken identity.
Despite extensive searches, numerous leads, and repeated public appeals, there has been no sign of the Icelandic man ever since.
In February 2024, authorities searched Santry Demesne in north Dublin following an anonymous tip linked to Jonsson’s disappearance. However, no evidence shedding light on his fate was uncovered.