The best friend of a Lithuanian woman that went missing five years ago is studying criminology in an attempt to figure out what happened to her.
Giedre Raguckaite has been missing since May 29, 2018. The Lithuanian national was last seen being assisted into a home in Laytown, County Meath by two men.
Gardai believed she was "intoxicated" at the time and left with the same men a few hours later. Since then, there has been no trace of Giedre.
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The garda investigation is "ongoing" and they have renewed an appeal for anyone with information to come forward. Her best friend Gedville Hibner, who grew up with Giedre in Lithuania, told Dublin Live the case appears to have been "forgotten".
She said: "The body has not been found yet and nothing is going further in the case. It seems like it has been forgotten. One of the suspects killed himself and the other one is not in Ireland."
Gedville is studying criminology in London in an attempt to figure out what happened to her childhood friend. She said: "I am in my in the last [year of the[ course now. I am doing criminology in the London Metropolitan University.
"It is really good. I find it very interesting. I also started doing prison officer work. I am trying to get into it more because it seems like nobody else is going to help her."
She has accepted that her friend is most likely dead but wants to find Giedre's remains so there is a grave friends and family can visit. She said: "We still need to find the place [where her body is] or find the bones so we can have a place where we bring the candle.
"Just so we can have some peace because she is not an animal - she is a person. There are so many unsolved cases around there. I don't know why."
Gedville believes the two men seen with her put something in her drink which caused an overdose. She said: "I definitely think they put some drugs in her drink to drug her and an overdose happened. Then they get scared and they just dump her body somewhere."
A renewed appeal issued in 2021 by the gardai said Giedre rang her dad in Lithuania and told him she had been out socialising on the evening she went missing. It is not known what licensed premises she was in but it is believed it was in Dundalk where she had moved shortly before her disappearance.
The appeal read: "It is believed she was in the Dundalk area until approximately 8pm. She was last seen being assisted into a house in Laytown on the night of Tuesday, 29th May 2018 at 11pm by two men.
"It is understood she was intoxicated. It is believed she left that house with these men at approximately 1:45am on Wednesday, 30th May 2018. There have been no sightings or contact with Giedre since that time."
When asked how she felt about her friend being missing for five years and nothing being found, Gedville said: "I feel terrified. One day you are here and another day you are gone and nobody knows and you are missing.
"I feel very surprised. I never actually thought that [this could happen]. I don't understand how the body can be missing." A garda spokeswoman called on anyone with information to come forward. She said: "The investigation into the disappearance of Giedre Raguckaite is ongoing.
"Gardai in Dundalk continue to appeal to any person who may have information in relation to this investigation to contact the incident room in Dundalk Garda Station on 042 388 470, or the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111. All information will be treated in confidence."
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