Australia Australia - Marion Barter, 51, missing after trip to UK, Jun 1997 #3

[Loxoli]

There has been no mention of anything untoward being found by Marion's family in medical reports. However, I would imagine that if there was any kind of medical diagnosis the more logical explanation would be to go to Luxembourg and then Switzerland for assisted Euthanasia, the quickest way taking just 2½ hours.

Media sensation? What do you mean? The podcast ? They let slip that Marion had a rectal tumour and then retracted it saying that they had made a mistake! The fact that she had a colonoscopy before flying out to England and then visited the GP immediately on her return tells me that there were health issues.

Yes, this is the potential medical issue I was talking about in my theory. Thanks Housemartyn.

The slip up was bizarre and we still have no explanation for why they mentioned such a specific medical problem then quickly retracted it.

 

[Lord Peter Flimsy]

I know there is mention of a dentist being with her when she changed her name. How did Sally find out about the dentist?

The interview with the dentist Hilary Knight by Alison of 7news was not her finest hour. A few silences by the interviewer might have elicited some useful and incriminating answers. Unless proven otherwise I’m sure he knows more than he was allowed to let on and signed the likeness photos.

 

[Lord Peter Flimsy]

I know there is mention of a dentist being with her when she changed her name. How did Sally find out about the dentist?

The interview with the dentist Hilary Knight by Alison of 7news was not her finest hour. A few silences by the interviewer might have elicited some useful and incriminating answers. Unless proven otherwise I’m sure he knows more than he was allowed to let on and signed the likeness photos.

 

[Lord Peter Flimsy]

Of course there is the possibility Marion remarried in Tunbridge Wells. The Registry Office is a stone’s throw from where she was probably staying. This could explain the delay in arriving in the UK and finally disappearing on the 31 July 1997? Is it possible to go through the marriage records searching for Australian or Western European’s marrying in Tunbridge Wells in June to August 1997 under other names?

 

[Seriallyaddicted]

The Goran Markovich possibility is so far the only thing that makes sense to me. He has done dating scams, he has a link To Luxembourg, speaks multiple languages, travels between Aus, england and Europe, what really interested me was his grandmothers name was Natali. Would love to be able to get to the bottom of where he was in 1997 and could he have placed the ad in the paper in 1994 ? Marion may not have even seen the ad but he could have still been using that name as his cover in 1997. If not Goran I am sure there are others whom are as low life as him with a similar operating style, thankfully not many but some.

Also convinced that the reason Marion took $5k per day from her account was that she was asked to transfer it via western union or alike and they have a daily maximum limit. Scammers use the money transfer companies as it is easier to avoid detection than bank to bank transfer. Can anyone think of a way to check if there was a western union in Lennox heads in 1997

Yeah I reckon you are right about the $5k per day money transfer.
What do you think about the reason she came back to Australia was to get her money out as she couldn’t withdrawal it overseas because her bank account name was different to her passport name?

 

[Deleted member 249471]

I still think, like Sally said, that something happened to make her leave.
I think she was frightened of something, frightened enough of something or someone to change her name and try to disappear.
I think it was more than just meeting some man.

TootsieFootsie, I hear you!

Throughout the entire podcast, I leaned towards Marion leaving because she was afraid for her life, or she was made to leave if she wanted to stay alive. I found it really hard to imagine all this was due to a man.

I always suspected issues at TSS were the catalyst. Not only because of everything we know about the school, but also because this is where Marion’s life shifted and started unravelling - in the first few months of the school year of 1997. Prior to that, everything seemed normal and consistent.

I actually went back and listened to the podcast from the beginning and still believe something very dodgy was going on at TSS, especially since Luke Glover joined in 1995.

 

[Deleted member 249471]

According to Marion’s colleagues in Ep3, Luke Glover came from ‘a very unusual exclusive brethren religious sect’ which was a weird choice for an Anglican school. He was also a bully and had no respect for women or authority and regularly intimidated teachers.

In fact, by the end of 1995, Luke’s first year at the school, 11 out of 17 teachers at the school resigned!!!

Marion stayed because at this stage she was getting along with Luke and she even babysat for his kids at his home. But the relationship soured in 1997 to the point where she would come home from work and cry on Sally’s lap, feeling exhausted and defeated.

We now know that Marion was accused of sexually assaulting the children by Luke, the man who almost certainly did sexually assault students. Several of whom have committed suicide.

 

[Deleted member 249471]

I do not know the full extent of what happened at the school or how much it contributed to Marion’s disappearance. At a minimum, I do believe Marion was ready to leave the school and maybe even Brisbane. She had left other schools and cities for much, much less.

In the same episode, a colleague used the word ‘lonely’ several times to describe Marion. She was lonely and isolated at school. Her children were adults and at the beginning of their own adventures. On top of that, she may have been a sick or or very scared for her health.

To me, right now, it really does seem as though she was ready for a knight in shining armour to take her away from her problems and make her feel special - which made her vulnerable and ripe for the taking.

I worry that maybe Marion had extremely unfortunate luck, and ran from a bad man into the open arms of an equally bad man.

 

[Housemartyn]

Yes, this is the potential medical issue I was talking about in my theory. Thanks Housemartyn.

The slip up was bizarre and we still have no explanation for why they mentioned such a specific medical problem then quickly retracted it.

I just can't help thinking that this is the key issue to Marion's quick departure. It makes complete sense to me.

 

[Deleted member 249471]

I just can't help thinking that this is the key issue to Marion's quick departure. It makes complete sense to me.

Hey Housemartyn, can you elaborate? I'm keen to understand

 

[Sophie-Renee]

It is all very interesting with the name change. If she did change her name again and has since passed on there are very few people I can find on ancestory records with the date of birth 3/10/1945 and a fitting name. As it has been pointed out before the name Remakel does not even seem to appear in Australia. Marion's name change appears to be unique to Australia, one of a kind. There is the surname variation Remcle/Rumacles but even with this there are very few in Devonport, Tasmania and no Remakels or even Remacles. It makes me wonder if she just wanted to start a new life and have a remake.

Well for me the issue is also, there will only be a death certificate if there was a death FOUND. If she remained in Australia and died- it seems to me there is no body or Jane Does that have been identified as Marion- just as Sallys dna has uncovered no matches. The reason for no body would be either suicide or homicide. It is sad to have to say that if she is dead, I don't think it has been natural. I think she would have been found and identified by now if she had passed in her home. Unless of course for whatever reason, someone had agreed to with her to keep her natural death a secret and to carry on her wishes of nothing being known about her- but this is bordering on extremely bizarre, which granted, this case already is!

 

[Housemartyn]

Hey Housemartyn, can you elaborate? I'm keen to understand

See my previous posts.

 

[Estelle]

I still think, like Sally said, that something happened to make her leave.
I think she was frightened of something, frightened enough of something or someone to change her name and try to disappear.
I think it was more than just meeting some man.

Fear is a very motivating emotion.

If we go back to the beginning, the sequence of events seems to have been:

1. Complaints about her at the school where she taught. (when doing a search for this information it is rarely covered or glossed over) Were these complaints substantiated? Was there any truth to them? I would like to know more about these complaints as fear of being exposed could have been the initial motivating factor. Also having recently been awarded a prize for teaching, did she feel embarrassed or ashamed (even if she was innocent) and did not wish to teach that particular class again? There seems to be an assumption of innocence but had the parents of the boys let it go and things had become intolerable for her. I would like to know more about this.

2. In 1994, Marion purchased a home for $180,000 at 15 Merinda Court in Ashmore and began work as a teacher at The Southport School where she would eventually be awarded the Queensland Teaching Excellence Award in 1996 by Ita Buttrose. But on April 25, 1997, Marion sold her Merinda Court home in a quick sale for $165,000 three weeks later - at least a loss of $15,ooo. Why was she in such a hurry?

3. On May 15, 1997, Marion changed her name via Deed poll to Florabella Natalia Marion Remakel and obtained a passport under her new identity. But she continued to use her regular name at work and in correspondence with family and friends, and never mentioned her name change to anyone.

4. One month later, on June 20, 1997, Marion resigned from The Southport School citing her desire to travel and find a new job teaching in England in her resignation letter. The letter also made a request to renew her teacher's certification for the next school year. She gave the school a few days' notice.

5. Marion had had three marriages and divorces. Was she a woman who could not face not being married and was desperate to find another husband? Marion was seen with an unknown man.

6. On June 22, 1997, she left Australia for a year-long vacation in England with plans to travel throughout the United Kingdom and Europe. While on vacation, Marion sent family, friends, and former students postcards, letters, and gifts from locations around England postmarked: Tunbridge Wells in Kent, Sussex, and London

7. She called her twenty-four-year-old daughter, Sally Leydon, in late July and early August. They spoke for the last time on the evening of August 1, 1997.[1] Marion mentioned that she was extending her stay in Tunbridge Wells and decided to reschedule her upcoming reservation to ride the Orient Express. This was the last time Marion was ever heard from.

What else do we know happened in those early days before she left Australia which could be significant?

Did Marion travel with this unknown man? It appears to me that Marion could have been the codependent type in relationships and preferred to have a man to lean on. Was she confident enough to travel alone? Had she ever been overseas before? Had Marion become so depressed because of the allegations against her at the school, she just wanted to escape?

Some of her behaviour seems to be irrational to me eg giving the school such short notice that she was resigning does not seem fair to the school as they had to find another teacher quickly. Usually one has to give enough notice to give the school time to find a replacement. Usually one has to give notice according to how you are being paid - two weeks or one month. Perhaps the school put a lot of pressure on Marion to resign or she was forced to resign as they had already found another teacher.

Secondly, selling her house at a loss of $15,000 with no capital gain seems irrational to me as she could have let it out in the meantime. This sounded to be that she did not wish to live in that area again and had no intentions of ever returning to that school even though she applied to renew her teaching certificate so she could teach somewhere else.

Thirdly, her willingness to change her name could have also been a reaction to this fear or shame and is irrational to me. She just did not want to be Marion Barter in that area again. All this could have been coupled with her meeting a man whom she wanted to be rescued by so she was vulnerable to his suggestions. Maybe she had love on her mind but he had other ideas.

 

[Estelle]

Well for me the issue is also, there will only be a death certificate if there was a death FOUND. If she remained in Australia and died- it seems to me there is no body or Jane Does that have been identified as Marion- just as Sallys dna has uncovered no matches. The reason for no body would be either suicide or homicide. It is sad to have to say that if she is dead, I don't think it has been natural. I think she would have been found and identified by now if she had passed in her home. Unless of course for whatever reason, someone had agreed to with her to keep her natural death a secret and to carry on her wishes of nothing being known about her- but this is bordering on extremely bizarre, which granted, this case already is!

The reason for no body would not have been suicide. IMO it would be homicide and the perpetrator has hidden her body where it cannot be found. But where in the world would it be?

 

[Housemartyn]

The reason for no body would not have been suicide. IMO it would be homicide and the perpetrator has hidden her body where it cannot be found. But where in the world would it be?

Australia? ‍

 

[Meligator]

The interview with the dentist Hilary Knight by Alison of 7news was not her finest hour. A few silences by the interviewer might have elicited some useful and incriminating answers. Unless proven otherwise I’m sure he knows more than he was allowed to let on and signed the likeness photos.

Isn’t that a different dentist than the one who signed off on Marion’s documents? Just seems like the dentist who signed might be a critical piece of the puzzle.

 

[Loobyloo2]

So we have this appearing at a later date. Either a sleuth or journalist or really someone looking for Remakel. À la recherche de M. Fernand Remakel. So I looked up here in the UK people with the name Michelle Burnett and up pops Michelle Burnett (but has two l's in her name so may be a red herring) from no other than Tunbridge Wells area. The lady in question is approx 48 year's old and lives in a wealthy household. Throwing it out there but if it is the same Michelle then her mother would be the same age as Marion and maybe something happened so her daughter is trying to gather some information. I have messaged the lady who placed the advert looking for Remakel but no reply as yet.

 

[Sophie-Renee]

I am thinking that both for a possible homicide or suicide, if her last known movements were in Grafton- simply head to the coast. There seems to be a Clarence River that runs through Grafton. The most plausible explanation, if she remained in Australia and is not longer alive- she committed suicide by jumping into the river or going to the sea or someone killed her and got rid of her body that way themselves. There are other ways of hiding a body I suppose, but sea seems the most likely hope someone would have of it not being discovered. So, if they had taken Sally more seriously back in 1997 when she first reported her mother as missing, it would have been a case of sending out deep sea divers and people to dredge the rivers in New South Wales. Of course something like this could have happened sometime after 1997 too, but if they had established some sort of investigation at the time...well, who knows.

 

[Loobyloo2]

I am thinking that both for a possible homicide or suicide, if her last known movements were in Grafton- simply head to the coast. There seems to be a Clarence River that runs through Grafton. The most plausible explanation, if she remained in Australia and is not longer alive- she committed suicide by jumping into the river or going to the sea or someone killed her and got rid of her body that way themselves. There are other ways of hiding a body I suppose, but sea seems the most likely hope someone would have of it not being discovered. So, if they had taken Sally more seriously back in 1997 when she first reported her mother as missing, it would have been a case of sending out deep sea divers and people to dredge the rivers in New South Wales. Of course something like this could have happened sometime after 1997 too, but if they had established some sort of investigation at the time...well, who knows.

I know that homicide has always been mentioned as a possibility either in Byron bay area or elsewhere. The answers may still be in the UK at Tunbridge Wells if Marion never came back to Australia and someone took on her identity.

 

[Sophie-Renee]

So we have this appearing at a later date. Either a sleuth or journalist or really someone looking for Remakel. À la recherche de M. Fernand Remakel. So I looked up here in the UK people with the name Michelle Burnett and up pops Michelle Burnett from no other than Tunbridge Wells area. The lady in question is approx 48 year's old and lives in a wealthy household. Throwing it out there but if it is the same Michelle then her mother would be the same age as Marion and maybe something happened so her daughter is trying to gather some information. I have messaged the lady who placed the advert looking for Remakel but no reply as yet.

Wow, so this is presumably someone who met the same man as Marion may have- calling himself Remakel at least, or this may be another sleuth trying to get some info as you say. I noticed Michele is just with the one L which makes it seem more of a European name- of course that could also be to throw someone off and get them to think that. But if it is genuinely a lady who met him, with no awareness of the podcast- well it is very coincidental she starts looking for him NOW - but it may be an old ad- it doesn't seem to have a date on it. So we don't know if that is 23 years long time ago.. but what an amazing find- well done. I really hope you hear back from her.