A recent volunteer-led search for the remains of Cheryl Grimmer, a British girl who disappeared in Australia 55 years ago, has not yielded the expected results. New South Wales Police confirmed that the area identified during the search did not produce human remains, as bones found belonged to an animal. This search was conducted using cadaver detection dogs in Balgownie, near a woodland area linked to a confession from a teenage suspect.
Cheryl Grimmer, who moved from Bristol to Australia with her family, went missing in January 1970 when she was just three years old, allegedly abducted from Fairy Meadow beach in Wollongong. In 2019, a trial against the man known by the codename “Mercury,” who faced charges of Cheryl’s abduction and murder, collapsed. The case against him fell apart after a judge disallowed a confession made when he was a minor, leading prosecutors to drop the charges.
Over the past several decades, authorities have conducted numerous searches related to Cheryl’s disappearance but have found limited evidence. In a bid to gather more information, New South Wales authorities have offered a reward of A$1 million (approximately $660,000) for leads on Cheryl’s case.
Ricki Nash, Cheryl’s brother, has publicly expressed concerns regarding what he perceives as shortcomings in the police investigation from the time of her disappearance. He was seven years old when his sister vanished and last saw her in the changing rooms at Fairy Meadow.
This summer, a petition calling for an inquiry into missing persons investigations by NSW Police, including Cheryl’s, gained significant traction with over 10,000 signatures. While this petition was debated in the state parliament, the authorities did not commit to conducting an inquiry.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y8z8kmpgyo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss