The parents of a teenager missing in Spain have offered a one million euro (£879,000) reward for information leading to her discovery.

Irish expat Amy Fitzpatrick was 15 when she vanished as she walked home from a friend’s house on the Costa de Sol in January 2008. Police have failed to find any trace of her since. Her mother Audrey and stepfather Dave Mahon have now announced the massive reward for information which locates Amy alive or dead. The money has been donated by four anonymous friends of the couple.

Ms Fitzpatrick, 41, from Dublin, said at a press conference in Malaga: “This reward is for us to get Amy back one way or another. “Some days we hope and pray Amy ran away but we know that’s not the truth. Two years and three and a half months after her disappearance that’s impossible. Some days we think she’s alive, other days we think she’s dead. Not knowing what’s happened to her is awful. We’re desperately hoping Amy’s still alive but if she’s not we want to know and we want her back so we can grieve her loss and put her to rest.”

The reward money will be made available for a month between April 19 and May 19.

Real estate worker Mr Mahon, added that four friends had put up 250,000 euros each. “We believe someone knows something about Amy’s disappearance,” he said. “We are going through hell and we want to find out what’s happened to her either way. The month means they have a time limit. If they’re not going to give Amy up after a month after this long time, we think they never will.”

Amy’s parents promised the cash would be made available to anyone whose information led to her daughter’s discovery. It would be paid 15 days after she is found alive – or 15 days after police certified her dead. The couple promised callers would be able to remain anonymous and declined to give any details of the friends who have put up the reward money – insisting they want to remain anonymous.