Major Crime detectives have discovered a body in a camp area in Western Australia's Wheatbelt that is believed to be that of a man who has been missing for more than a year.
Dean Patrick White, known as 'Whitey' to his friends, was last known to be in Quairading on March 31 last year.
The 55-year-old's disappearance has since remained largely a mystery, with homicide detectives spreading out across WA in February in a bid to find out what happened to him.
Police said detectives had located the body of a man at a campsite north of Quairading.
"The investigation into his death is ongoing," a WA Police spokeswoman said.
"Investigators are still seeking to identify and speak with a family who are believed to have provided a lift to a male person from the Quairading town site to a camping area to the northern side of the township on or around 1 April 2017."
"The male person who was provided the lift was approximately 40 years of age and white skinned."
Mr White had previously been camping in Mildura, on the Victoria-New South Wales border, but had returned home to WA to be closer to his family.
His vehicle — a 1989 Toyota Landcruiser — was involved in a crash in Highvale, on the outskirts of Brisbane, in June last year.
The driver fled the scene before police arrived, but police do not believe Mr White was at the wheel.
Bank transactions raise suspicion
Detectives appealed for information during their widespread operation in February, when they particularly targeted the eastern Goldfields — where Mr White was known to have travelled to a number of communities.
Officers spent two days in Kambalda, while teams went from Cunderdin, 158 kilometres from Perth, to Cocklebiddy, 1,156km east on the Eyre Highway.
Police said their suspicions had increased when it was found that someone was continuing to access his bank accounts after he was last seen.
"That has to do with banking transactions that are inconsistent with his lifestyle … a change in the manner it's being done," Detective Senior Sergeant Walsh said in February.
"We don't make assumptions; that's probably the biggest no-no.
"But this is suspicious in nature, so we're treating it as a suspicious investigation."
Anyone with information has been urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
