A fresh search for the remains of Cheryl Grimmer, the toddler who disappeared more than five decades ago, has concluded without any significant findings.
Police conducted a thorough investigation of a bushland area in Wollongong, first named in a confession over 50 years ago, but the effort did not yield any results, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported on Friday.
The location was initially mentioned in a 1971 confession by a man referred to by police as “Mercury”. His name was kept confidential because he was just 17 when the alleged crime took place.
The confession contained specific details, including fence lines, cattle grids, and the type of tree near which he claimed to have left Cheryl’s body. At the time, authorities deemed the statement unreliable, and the area was never investigated.
Cheryl was just three years old when she disappeared from Fairy Meadow beach near Wollongong in January 1970, sparking one of Australia’s longest-running missing persons investigations.
Despite extensive searches, appeals, and repeated reviews of the case, her fate has remained a mystery for 55 years.
On Friday afternoon, NSW Police released this statement: “Bones were located and photographed within the search area. Following expert advice, the bones were confirmed to belong to an animal. The search was concluded. The investigation into the abduction and suspected murder of Cheryl Grimmer remains an active investigation by the NSW Police Homicide Squad’s Unsolved Homicide Unit.
“A$1m reward for information remains, anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.”
Earlier on Thursday, Australian authorities said they made a breakthrough in the decades-long search for Cheryl Grimmer.
A volunteer group using cadaver dogs to search for the remains of the child said they had identified an “area of interest”. Police had also confirmed that new information had emerged. While officers had not disclosed precise details, the development was expected to bring long-awaited answers to the Grimmer family, who have endured decades of uncertainty.
Cheryl’s family, who emigrated from England to Australia shortly before her disappearance, have continued to call for answers.
The investigation into Cheryl’s disappearance has faced many twists. A man was charged with her murder in 2017, but the case collapsed due to insufficient evidence.
“This should have been done 55 years ago. The police have never canvassed this area in detail even though they had a confession,” Grimmer’s brother Ricki Nash told the outlet. “My question is, why wasn’t it?”
He added: “We always live with the hope that someone took her that couldn’t have a child, raised her well. One day she’d grow up, find out she didn’t belong to that family. We’ve had people over the years do that to me and to our family: knock on the door and say that they are Cheryl and your heart rate goes at a million-to-one.”
“We were hoping for it to be Cheryl one day. So, to be here looking for a body or part thereof, I mean, it’s not a good thing.”
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