"It feels horrible" – Community speak out after missing Daniel’s remains are found

Concerns for the boy, who would be seven years old if he were alive today, were first raised by Tusla [Child and Family Agency] on Friday, August 29, after a child benefit claim was made on his behalf.

Gardaí [Police] are preparing to bring in specialist equipment before exhuming the body, to capture any forensic evidence at the site.

That evidence could then be used to prosecute anyone responsible for his death.

They also want to extract DNA from the body to confirm that the skeletal remains definitely are Daniel’s.

The gardaí’s extensive search began on September 1. Officers continue to investigate the disappearance of Daniel, and have continued house-to-house inquiries at the Gallery Apartments complex, where the child previously lived with his parents.

Tusla welfare checks found no record of a child with his name at the school he was supposed to be attending.

Daniel’s mother is understood to have told gardaí that he was dead and eventually confessed he had died four years ago, aged just three.

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Police continue to investigate the case of Daniel Aruebose.

Despite the mother changing some details from her initial account, sources said she has provided "specific" details on what she said happened to her son and attended the site of the search several times.

Daniel’s father has also continued his co-operation with gardaí, albeit from afar, after leaving Ireland in early 2023 for a new life in South America.

Both the mother and father have insisted that the child died of natural causes. They have claimed they buried him just a few inches below the surface of the soil without informing the authorities because they were afraid they would be blamed for his death.

The boy’s mother was born in Africa, but she moved to Ireland as a minor, while the child’s father is originally from the west of Ireland.

It’s believed that their relationship broke down shortly after Daniel’s death, and the father left for South America over a year later.

On September 2, Tusla confirmed it had contact with the family five years ago after being informed by the boy’s parents that they would not be able to care for him.

But after being placed in foster care, when Daniel was around 18 months old, his mother changed her mind and he was returned to her and the child’s father.

The matter has been referred to the independent National Review Panel for investigation. Many locals in Donabate were shocked and saddened by the news, but added that there was relief that the recent development had been made in the case after more than two weeks of searching for remains.

One resident of the Gallery apartment complex told Extra.ie that people living there generally "keep to themselves".

"It was shocking because this is such a quiet, pleasant place to live. No one expects it to happen around here, but people would be surprised no matter where they are. I haven’t noticed much of a difference in the atmosphere at the apartments; we all keep to ourselves.

"No-one is familiar with their neighbors," he continued.

A former resident of the complex, which is just under 2km from the search area, said that she "can’t imagine what it would be like trying to sleep at night with such a tragic event having happened in the area".

The woman added: "People always want to blame Tusla for this kind of story, but I was a midwife with the HSE [Health Service Executive] for a number of years and I know how a lack of staff can cause big issues. There needs to be more staff involved in these services."

Another local man told Extra that the community appreciated the efforts of gardaí over the past weeks, adding: "I was very surprised when I heard about the search. I know it’ll take a long time but hopefully soon the truth will come out.

"It’s like a double-edged sword, because we’re all glad that a body’s been recovered but it’s very, very sad. It feels horrible the past few weeks going past the site each day.

"It’s worrying that the child was missing for so long but then again there was no reason for authorities to have been in connection with the family."

Minister for Children Norma Foley said yesterday that she was saddened by the news and that a "check-in" register for children along various stages of their development could be set up.

Ms Foley said "well-being check" on children in 42,000 cases that were closed by Tusla while schools were closed during the pandemic would be "independently managed".

The Minister added that she had faith in Tusla and she expected the agency to complete a "rapid review" of Daniel’s case by the end of the month. Further questioned if there should be a framework for monitoring, Ms Foley said: "I think there is scope for us to do more work in this space."

* This article was originally published on Extra.ie.