GARDAÍ say they have no record of four missing Irish girls following the appearance of posters in Dublin appealing for information on their whereabouts.

The girls – aged between two and four years old – went missing in Drumcondra in March 2007, according to posters that have appeared in the area.

However, gardaí were unable to verify the claims and there are no current reports of missing children fitting that description.

The man who claims to be the father of the children told the Sunday Tribune they were taken from him by a group of men near the canal more than two years ago.

"I was here in 2007 and these guys took away my four children; I don't know who it was," he said. "It happened by the canal. I was with the four children and three guys came over and took them away from me and I haven't seen them since. I was on my own at the time."

The man said that he had been in the US for six months and that since his return he decided to relaunch an appeal for help in tracking down his children. However, while he appeared genuinely concerned for their welfare, he said he had no photographs of the girls and he was reluctant to give contact details for his estranged partner and mother of the children.

The man, who claims to be a qualified accountant, said he has reported the matter to gardaí and written to politicians in a bid to raise awareness. But despite his pleas and efforts to highlight his cause with posters, gardaí have said the children's names and descriptions do not match anything on their database.