Disappearance of Larry Griffin

Laurence "Larry" Griffin (1880 – 25 December 1929) was an Irish postman who disappeared from the village of Stradbally, County Waterford on Christmas Day 1929. Investigators concluded that Griffin visited a local pub after work where he was injured in a drunken altercation; he either died immediately from his injury or shortly afterwards in the adjacent Garda station. His body was then allegedly disposed of in order to hide the fact that the pub was illegally serving alcohol on Christmas Day, a fact which would have threatened the livelihoods of both the publican and several members of the local police force who were supposedly drinking there. This version of events has never been proven, and continues to be vehemently denied by the families of the accused.

The investigation into Griffin's disappearance was hampered by conflicting witness statements and a lack of evidence. Investigators eventually arrested and charged several Stradbally residents, but the prosecution's case fell apart in court when the key witness, Jim Fitzgerald, changed his testimony.^{: 144, 258–259} All charges were subsequently dropped and the case officially remains unsolved. Fitzgerald later claimed that he had changed his testimony under duress from the villagers, and reiterated that they had been involved in Griffin's disappearance.^{: 147–149} Several Gardaí who worked on the case have also expressed their certainty of the villagers' guilt.^{: 226–238, 262–264} Despite extensive searching, Griffin's body has never been found.

Many of the accused later took successful legal action against both the Gardaí and local newspapers.^{: 186–200, 241–243, 262–264} The disappearance remains a contentious issue in Stradbally, where visitors and journalists have been verbally abused and threatened with litigation for asking about it.^: 265–7 In 2009, all files from the original investigation were made public.^{: 298–300}