Nearly seven years after a British father and son vanished on the Costa del Sol, police are renewing their appeal for answers – and increasing the reward for information that could finally crack the case.
Daniel Poole, 46, and his son Liam, 22, flew from the UK to Malaga on March 31, 2019. They were last seen just days later in Estepona and have never been heard from again.
Now, charity Crimestoppers has raised the reward for information leading to a conviction to £30,000, as investigators continue to treat the case as a suspected double murder.
A trip that ended in mystery
The pair, from Burgess Hill in West Sussex, had travelled to southern Spain for what police initially described as a trip to play golf or look at holiday properties.
But early clues suggested something was wrong.
Their luggage and passports were found in their hotel room, while their hire car – a grey Peugeot 308 – was later recovered abandoned.
The last confirmed sighting of the father and son was on April 2, 2019. Then they vanished.
A case with unanswered questions
In the years since, Sussex Police have taken over the investigation from Spanish authorities and reclassified it as a murder inquiry.
Two men were arrested in 2024 but later released under investigation, and no charges have been brought.
Despite extensive enquiries, what exactly happened in those final hours remains unclear.
Links, suspicions and a family’s theory
While police have not publicly confirmed a motive, details that have emerged over time have pointed to possible criminal links.
Daniel Poole, a car mechanic, had previous convictions for drug dealing and was reportedly connected through family ties to the notorious Richardson crime family in south London, a gang known for its violent reputation in the 1960s.
Liam, by contrast, had no criminal record and worked as a computer technician.
His grandmother, Kathy Catney, previously said that she believed the disappearance was linked to a deal that went wrong.
‘I do think Liam’s died. I think he’s been killed,’ she said in 2019, ‘I think his dad got into some bother and Liam got caught in the crossfire.’
She added that the family had long suspected Daniel Poole was involved in questionable activities, although they did not know the details.
‘He was going to Spain to do some sort of deal. Whether that was property or drugs, I really didn’t know,’ she said.
Her account also raised further questions about the circumstances of the trip. According to Catney, Daniel Poole was not a golfer, despite initial suggestions that the visit was linked to golf.
The pair had also travelled to southern Spain multiple times in the months before they disappeared.
A ransom demand and silence
In a further twist, the family reportedly received a ransom demand of £100,000 the day after the pair vanished.
The call was traced to Morocco, and the money was raised within hours, but the trace went cold.
Catney later travelled to Spain herself in search of answers but she said she was met with silence.
A region under scrutiny
The Costa del Sol has long been a hotbed of organised crime networks, particularly due to its drug trafficking routes with North Africa and South America.
Police have not directly linked the Poole case to such activity, but the wider context has fuelled speculation about what may have happened.
Family still searching for answers
For the family, the uncertainty has been devastating.
‘Not a day goes by when we don’t think about Danny and Liam,’ said Lauryn Poole.
‘Living without answers has been agonising. We need to know the truth.’
She has urged anyone with information – no matter how small – to come forward.
With the reward now increased, investigators hope that someone may finally break their silence.
For now, one of the Costa del Sol’s most puzzling disappearances remains unsolved.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
