8 hours ago
Jón Jónsson answers are in Iceland, not Ireland, his brother says
The brother of missing Icelandic man
Jón Jónsson
agrees with
Garda
detectives that the answers to his brother's disappearance six years ago
lie in Iceland
. The poker player had been in Ireland less than 24 hours when he disappeared after leaving the Bonnington Hotel in February 2019 during the Dublin Poker Festival.
'You would think the answers are in Iceland,' said Jón's brother, Davíð Karl Wiium. 'Probably something prior to his disappearance has something to do with his disappearance.'
Five gardaí have come to Reykjavik for the first time this week to work on the case, a development that is welcomed by Wiium and his family. Gardaí are working closely with members of the Icelandic police.
'We are very happy that they're here. It's a huge milestone in the case. It's been six years,' Wiium said.
READ MORE
He hopes that in Iceland, gardaí will get answers that will point them in the right direction.
'I hope, by coming here, the Irish police can get a better understanding of what he was doing before he came to Ireland. Look into his closest surroundings, talk with people of interest, the family, friends,' Wiium said.
'You get to know the person. You get to know what he was doing, and where he was before, and what he was involved in.'
[
'I'm almost certain something happened': Family fear missing Jón Jónsson was killed by hitman in case of mistaken identity
Opens in new window
]
Wiium met gardaí in Reykjavik this week as they began to take statements in Iceland. He has felt momentum pick up in the case again with recent media appearances such as The Late Late Show, which the family appeared on in March. A podcast series on Jónsson's disappearance also came out in January.
'We really felt the snowball rolling,' Wiium said, adding that the podcast has given the family extra strength. 'It has probably been the most positive impact from the beginning. It was like an extra push that we needed after a long, long time.'
Where is Jón?/Hvar er Jón?
is a co-production between RTÉ and Icelandic broadcaster RÚV. It delves into Jón's background over seven episodes, through interviews with his family and friends.
Jón's family welcomed the podcast's focus on Jón's case and hoped it would bring them answers. Wiium said it was important also that the podcast 'portrayed Jón as who he is. He was a really good man, a great person and father that coincidentally started playing poker a couple of years before he disappeared.'
Wiium said his brother had been looking forward to the tournament and remembers him speaking about it for weeks beforehand. 'I know he really wanted to be a poker player. He was not a sports guy. He was into board games, poker, video games, that kind of stuff. And he wanted to be really good at poker.'
He speaks of a man who was always there for everyone. 'A 'family comes first' kind of man. So it's very much out of character.'
The toll it has taken on Jón's family has been immense. 'It's hard for everyone. It's a big family, and emotionally it's hard. When you have someone disappearing very close to you, it starts to tear you up inside. It always creeps back. It's always there.'
'We just really want to find him, and hopefully figure out what happened.'
