It was an unforgiveable crime  - to murder someone and refuse to give up their body. And it became the ultimate terror threat of the IRA: “We will disappear you and no one will ever know.”

Those tragic secrets lay buried for many years but the truth always has a way of coming out.

The families of those who became known as “The Disappeared” gradually found their voices and, one by one, the bodies were found in lonely bogs and beaches. The remains of 13 of the 17 disappeared victims have been recovered, while four have yet to be found. 

Efforts to locate their bodies continue to this day and earlier this month a new dig for teenager Columba McVeigh was resumed on a bog in County Monaghan.

Sunday World Assistant Editor in Belfast, Gerry Millar, spent the early years of his career investigating these cases and was amongst the first to compile a list of what became known as 'The Disappeared'.

Crime World, with Nicola Tallant, is a weekly Iri…