A Co Armagh man who was 'disappeared' by republicans almost 50 years ago "posed no threat to anyone."
The Independent Commission for the Location of Victims' Remains (ICLVR) announced this week it is investigating the disappearance of Seamus Maguire in the early 1970s.
In a statement the commission said the 26-year-old from Aghagallon, near Lurgan, went missing in 1973 or 1974
Lead investigator Geoff Knupfer also said that it was unclear what faction of the IRA was responsible for abducting Mr Maguire - the Provisionals or Officials.
No details were provided about the background to the disappearance.
However, The Irish News understands he was a regular at Downings Bar, which was located close to the old RUC station in Lurgan.
Sources last night said Mr Maguire, who was described as "harmless", was "taken" from the bar by two men through a door leading to North Street in September 1973.
It is understood that he was seen to "scuffle" with his abductors on the street outside the bar before he was put into a car and driven away.
The bar was demolished in the late 1970s to make way for a new police station.
Sources say Mr Maguire was not a member of any republican organisation but was prone to discussing politics, including the activities of republicans.
They say that before his disappearance he had been "warned to cut out the loose talk".
One source said "he was a harmless individual, considered close to his mother, who posed no threat to anybody".
"He was certainly not involved in any organisations."
At the time of disappearance Mr Maguire was said locally to have travelled to England to find work.
When Mr Maguire went missing, Lurgan was a hotbed of republican activity and dominated by the Provisional IRA.
While the Official IRA had a significant presence in the town in the early 1970s it was described as being "decimated" by 1973.
A year earlier it had called a ceasefire with sources saying many of its members were either in jail or had left the movement.
Mr Knupfer has stressed the humanitarian nature of the commission's work.
“As with all our cases our sole aim is to locate and recover the remains to return them to Seamus’ family," he said.
It is understood the commission is in regular contact with the republican movement and other organisations.
Mr Maguire's family said it is their wish "that he is brought home and given a Christian burial" and urged anyone "who can help the commission to do so by providing whatever information they know about where Seamus is buried".
They also asked for privacy.
SDLP Policing Board member Dolores Kelly said: "I know the family and want to respect their wishes for privacy and ask anyone with information to step forward to the commission."
The bodies of 13 people described as Disappeared have been recovered to date.
The remains of Joe Lynskey, Columba McVeigh and British Army officer Robert Nairac have also yet to be recovered.
