by Justine Ford
Since Tamara disappeared, Eugene and his brothers have asked the public for their help time and time again. Some people would give up after forty years without a word, but not Eugene Milograd.
‘I’ve talked about it for a long time, yes,’ he says.
‘But I’ll talk about it forever if I have to …’
Everything Zen? The family of Thai-born Siriyakorn ‘Bung’ Siriboon blame karma for the 13-year-old’s disappearance. She was abducted on her way to school in June, 2011.
Poona Dam Man: When an unidentified man took his own life beside a dam in Nambour, Queensland, he left behind a mysterious calling card which read, ‘Smile, have a nice life.’
Kind to Strangers: Adelaide counsellor, Christine Redford loved to help strangers in need. Did someone need her too much? She disappeared without a trace in 1998.
The Teeth Tell the Story: Forensic Odontologist, Dr Tony Hill has been identifying human remains by their teeth for more than 20 years.
Crouzon Syndrome: Police hope this cranio facial reconstruction can help identify Silvan Dam Man.
Dead in the Water: Silvan Dam Man was found floating in Melbourne’s water supply in 1989. Police are still trying to identify him but believe it's now safe to drink the water.
Silvan Dam Man’s Shoes: The Leopard brand runners were imported into Australia from Korea in the early 1980s. Know who wore them?
Lady of the Night: The body of a young woman, thought to be a prostitute, was buried in a Melbourne backyard. Are her breast implants the biggest clue to her identity?
Jamie Herdman and his beloved combi, ‘Edna’. Convinced that his past was catching up with him, the Kiwi traveller disappeared from Daly Waters in the Northern Territory in 2006.
The End of Everything: Childcare worker Raechel Betts lost her baby, her fiancé and her job. Then she met serial killer John Leslie Coombes and lost her life.
Not a runaway: In 1997 Bathurst teenager Jessica Small was kidnapped and probably killed, but for years no-one believed it.
New Leads: Detective Sergeant Peter Smith suspects Jessica Small’s abductor had local knowledge, so was he from around town?
Kinglake Central: A farmer thought he’d found a store dummy on his property, but soon realised the arms and legs weren’t plastic.
Stabbed repeatedly: The body of an unidentified man found in bushland at Kinglake West.
Perth’s Mystery Man: When a young man, dressed for the office, walked headlong into a speeding train, had he intended to kill himself? Police can’t say conclusively because they still don’t know who he is.
More than a John Doe: Senior Constable Jen Robinson and Sergeant Bert van der Woede at the grave of Perth’s Mystery Man. Jen organised a funeral service for the man whose family may not even know he’s missing. (Photographer: Gary Merrin/Newspix)
Clue Finder: Detective Senior Constable Mark Rippon was a member of Victoria Police’s highly successful Taskforce Belier, set up to match the missing and the dead.
Best of the Best: Detective Senior Sergeant Ron Iddles has worked on more than 260 murder investigations, with extraordinary results. He plans to find the body of Terry Floyd and bring his killer to justice.
Mother, Daughter, Prostitute: Laura Haworth was many things to many people so surely someone knows why she disappeared during Canberra’s Summernats car festival in 2008.
Tenacious: Senior Constable Karen Clarkson uncovered the identity of a missing sailor, Fred Marriott.
Remote Wooramel: Musterers stumbled upon Fred Marriott’s remains by accident when trying to retrieve an abandoned dinghy from the mud flats at Wooramel Station, 120 kilometres south of Carnarvon.
Mourned by a nation: The remains of 13-year-old Daniel Morcombe, once Australia’s most recognisable missing child, were found in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland in 2011.
Smiling, but united in grief: Gerry and Kate McCann, the parents of missing girl, Madeleine, met with Daniel Morcombe’s parents, Denise and Bruce, in 2011. They have become firm friends.
Stood Over: The body of this unidentified murder victim was found at a vehicle-testing area near the Melbourne suburb of Roxborough Park in 1995. Can you identify him?
Staged Disappearance? More than 40 years ago, wild child Tamara Milograd planned to disappear. Today she’d be approaching retirement, but her family’s convinced she’s still out there somewhere.
Success Story: Members of Victoria Police Homicide Squad and Taskforce Belier (L-R) Detective Leading Senior Constable Peter Towner, Detective Senior Sergeant David Snare, Detective Sergeant David Butler, Leading Senior Constable Helen Nugent, Detective Leading Senior Constable Allan Wood, Detective Leading Senior Constable Mark Rippon. Detective Senior Sergeant Ron Iddles is seated.
Acknowledgements
My most sincere thanks go to all the family members of the missing (and found) people featured in this book.
Sandra Betts, Beth Cassilles, Daryl Floyd, Carole Grimmer, Steve Herdman and Debbie Morton, Carl Herdman, Mac Manulevu, The Marriott Family, Eugene Milograd, Bruce and Denise Morcombe, Vanidda and Fred Pattison, Jean Priest, the ‘Robinson’ family, Roger Russell, Carol Redford, Ricki Small and Beverley Walker.
Thank you for entrusting your stories to me – you are all very special people. May you find some peace through getting the answers you need. I do hope this book can help.
Many thanks also to all the police jurisdictions who have made the book possible – Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, ACT and the Northern Territory.
Special thanks go to the following outstanding, dedicated officers who have donated their time to this project in the hope that it may bring forth the vital information they need.
From Victoria: Ron Iddles, David Butler, David Snare, Damian Jackson, Mark Rippon, Tony Combridge, Wayne Newman, Justin Tippett, Allan Wood, Helen Nugent and Peter Towner.
From New South Wales: Peter Smith, Mick Kyneur and James Dark.
From Queensland: Damien Powell and Claire Gillespie.
From South Australia: David Sheridan and Lucy Schiek.
From Western Australia: Karen Clarkson, Jen Robinson and Bert van der Woede (retired).
From the ACT: Richard Gough.
From the Northern Territory: Kerry Harris.
I take my hat off to you all.
Thanks also forensic odontologist, Dr Tony Hill and Media Liaison Consultant, Deb Withers, from the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine.
My gratitude also goes to all the police media liaison / Film and TV unit team members who have endured my endless emails: Andy Lee, Vicky Vassilopoulos, Peter Sambell, Ilias Iliadis, Phil Green, John Weiling, Bridie O’Sullivan, Tim Archer, Nicci Lycett, Ros Weatherall, Anthea Healey, Rebecca Glenn and Katie Fowden.
Many thanks to my agent extraordinaire, John Timlin, who asked me if I had any ideas for a book on Australian crime. Turned out, I did. Thank you for believing in this project and for your ongoing support. It has been incredible.
And to my fabulous publishers, Julia Taylor and Poppy Grijalbo at The Five Mile Press for giving me the opportunity to tell these important stories – thank you so much.
Another huge thank you goes to my editor, Brooke Clarke, for handling the manuscript so thoroughly and with such sensitivity towards the subject matter.
Special mention also goes to Kathryn de Reus, for the haunting cover and Shaun Jury for the internal design.
Bruce Morcombe and Ron Iddles – thank you for your kind words of endorsement. I am truly humbled.
On a personal note, thanks to Mum and Dad for suggesting I write a book – sure, it took me a while to get around to it, but hey! To the friends who offered their endless encouragement, in particular, Kate and Michael Mills, Carmel, David and Debbie Hanrahan, Angela and Steve Prescott, Tania Palich, Carol Long, Kylie Johnson, Effi Vasiliadis, Helen Baxter, Louisa Millward, Ivo Burum, Ineke Prochazka, Craig Graham, Maureen Edwards, and my friends at the Sydney Eye Hospital. Also to my father-in-law, ‘The O
ld Case,’ for the Port Melbourne jargon – you must have had a colourful early life with everyone talking like that!
And to my wonderful husband Darren Casey for everything – but most of all, for reminding me that I could write something that mattered, and for being a brilliant chef.
Justine x
Justine Ford is a TV producer and journalist with a background in news and current affairs. She was a presenter on the top-rating crime series, Australia’s Most Wanted, and her producing credits include the hit shows Missing Persons Unit, Border Security, RPA and Random Acts of Kindness. She has also worked as a radio producer/presenter and as a magazine features’ writer.
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Copyright © Justine Ford, 2012
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First published in paperback and eBook 2012
Page design, typesetting and eBook creation by Shaun Jury
Cover image © Getty Images
ISBN: 9781743004111 (pbk.)
ISBN: 9781743460344 (ePub)
ISBN: 9781743460351 (mobi)
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