The police strike force investigating the disappearance of three-year-old William Tyrrell has charged a man and a woman over the alleged assault of a child.
New South Wales police said information had been received about the suspected assault of a child during ongoing investigations under Strike Force Rosann, set up to investigate the disappearance of William in 2014.
Court attendance notices were issued to a 56-year-old woman and a 54-year-old man on Wednesday, with the pair being charged with common assault. They will appear in Hornsby local court on Tuesday 23 November.
Police refused to provide any additional detail but multiple reports said the charge did not relate to William himself.
William disappeared seven years ago while wearing his Spider-Man suit at his foster grandmother’s home.
The charges come on the third day of a renewed search for William’s remains, with officers combing the mid-north coast property where he was last seen.
The NSW police deputy commissioner, Malcolm Lanyon, said investigators were committed to the active investigation.
“The NSW police will not stop until such time as we’ve investigated every possible lead,” he told reporters on Wednesday.
Police on Tuesday dug up the garden at the Kendall home, with a mechanical sift brought to the property. Officers also sprayed luminol, a chemical that detects traces of blood, during the night.
In nearby bushland, volunteers cut down trees to help in the search.
A grey Mazda was seized from a home in Gymea in Sydney’s south under a coronial order on 9 November. It was undergoing extensive forensic examination, which could take weeks.
Asked if police were investigating whether William died after falling from a balcony at the house, the police minister, David Elliott, said every option was being considered.
“With a mysterious incident like this, every single option has to be investigated, every scenario has to be reviewed and tested,” he said on Tuesday.
“Let’s hope whatever the conclusion is, (it) gives closure to the families and community.”
The premier, Dominic Perrottet, said on Wednesday the signs and reporting coming from the police investigation were “very encouraging” and police were doing a “phenomenal” job.
The police commissioner, Mick Fuller, confirmed there had been a significant breakthrough in the case, saying he was confident police would solve the mystery of what happened to William.
“There is certainly one person in particular that we are looking closely at,” he said.
The findings of a coronial inquest into William’s disappearance, which concluded last year, are yet to be handed down.
A $1m reward for information on the case still stands.
