Australia Australia - Niamh Maye, 18, Snowy Mountains, Batlow to Cootamundra, then to Sydney, Easter 2002

[dotr]

August 2 2020
Renewed call for help to solve cold case disappearance after 18 years
''Niamh Maye should be celebrating her 36th birthday this year, but she hasn't been seen in nearly two decades.

Niamh Maye should be celebrating her 36th birthday this year, but she hasn't been seen in nearly two decades. (Supplied)
On Easter Saturday, 2002, the then-18-year-old had been fruit-picking with friends in the Snowy Mountains. She was booked to catch a bus north from Batlow to Cootamundra and then a train to Sydney, to spend Easter with her family. But she never showed up.
Detectives hit a wall in their investigation, and no one has ever been charged.
"I was only 20 at the time and I think I had some naive optimism that maybe we would still find her, but realistically we knew immediately when she didn't get on that bus that something had gone wrong," Niamh's sister, Fionnuala Hagerty, said.''

"No matter how insignificant: something you heard, something you saw, something that's just bothered you," Ms Hagerty said. "We just want to bring her home – or bring her remains home, and give her the farewell that she deserves."
As police launch National Missing Persons Week, they're just as determined as ever to find answers.''

 

[Mel 1303]

NoCookies | The Australian
The DNA tests were arranged after Hagerty inquired with NSW police about a new program aiming to solve some of Australia’s toughest missing person cases.

The National DNA Program for Unidentified and Missing Persons was unveiled by Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton this month, with almost $3.6m in funding from the proceeds of crime — the luxury homes, sports cars and bank accounts of drug traffickers and other offenders being returned to the community in a meaningful way.


Her family reported her missing to police, then after a week of their own frantic inquiries reached Jason Nicklason, a fellow fruit picker and new acquaintance.

Nicklason said he gave Niamh a lift from a Jingellic camping ground on Easter Saturday and dropped her off on the roadside near Tumut in the Snowy Mountains, and that she planned to hitchhike the rest of the way to Sydney.

“Pretty much as soon as we all heard that, we just knew that something had gone very wrong,” says Hagerty, 39. “We don‘t believe that she ever would have hitchhiked.”

Seven months later, Nicklason was arrested for the rape and violent assault of a woman in Brisbane and, as police escorted him to collect some belongings, jumped to his death from a building. It left nothing but questions.

 

[Mel 1303]

Victoria Cafasso was murdered in a still unsolved crime at Beaumaris Beach, Tasmania in 1995. Although probably unrelated, Nicklason was 25 at this time, and grew up less than an hour away.

 

[dotr]

https://www.fm929.com.au/post/missing-person-s-week-highlights-local-cold-case
Oct 12 2020
Police this week renewed their appeal for information on the disappearance of Armidale teen Niamh Maye who went missing from Jingellic campground on Saturday 30th March 2002.

Niamh Maye’s father, Brian Maye, remembered his daughter as a happy and creative young woman with a great sense of humour.


“Niamh is always with us in spirit and we will always honour the 18 years she filled us with her brightness,” Mr Maye said.


“Not a day goes by we don’t think of Niamh and the life she would have lived. We miss our beautiful, loving, cheeky, fun daughter, sister and aunt"

 

[boomburger]

Australian true crime podcast Casefile will be doing a series on this case. (Missing Niamh | The disappearance of teenager Niamh Maye, missing since 2002)

One of the two men she hitchhiked with (and was last seen with) was a violent man who was arrested on a sexual assault charge only months after Niamh went missing, and ultimately he killed himself before his interrogation.

A missing woman who was last seen by an accused rapist, it seems the most likely scenario is staring us all in the face but without evidence this case is destined to be unsolved.

 

[dotr]

WOLTER PEETERS/SYDNEY MORNING HERALD
Brian and Anne Maye's 18-year-old daughter Niamh disappeared 20 years ago.
Mar 27 2022
Our daughter’s gap year turned into a chasm: The family haunted by a 20-year mystery | Stuff.co.nz
''Niamh Maye aged 18 last spoke to her family 20 years ago today.

Niamh (Irish, pronounced Nieve) had been picking apples with friends Jess and Brodie camping at Batlow Caravan Park near Tumut in southern NSW, Australia, to earn casual money on a gap year. A talented student with high HSC results, she had a place at UTS to study film production.
The youngest of six sisters and a brother, she’d planned to head home to Armidale via Sydney for Easter.
She didn’t arrive. The gap turned into a chasm.''

''Twenty years ago, her parents, Anne and Brian, posed with for a photo in the Herald appealing for information. They have made 15 trips from Armidale to Tumut conducting searches with a metal detector.''

“She called to let me know the CountryLink bus she had reserved for the following day had been on-sold because she hadn’t got back into Batlow to pay for it in time,” she said. “She booked the next available ticket on Easter Sunday.” (March 31, 2002)

Two men, Jason “Jack” Nicklason and Garth Gemmell arrived earlier at the campsite in a 1969 black Holden hearse. Friend Brodie had headed to Victoria and Jess headed to Byron Bay. Jess – Jessica Ribeiro a Melbourne-based musician – told the Herald how she grew up in Armidale with Niamh. She describes her as petite, fearless, outspoken, creative and confident.''

''Six months later, Nicklason, who claimed to have dropped Niamh off near Tumut, was in police custody having been arrested in Brisbane for raping a 19-year-old woman. He then took his life.

But the investigation continued. Ten years later in 2012, there was an inquest in Glen Innes before Coroner Hugh Dillon. The officer in charge delivered an entirely new theory revealing in shocking detail the apparent location and manner of Niamh’s death, yet there have been no new searches and no arrests.

The court recorded that Niamh “died on or about March 30, possibly March 31st 2002 and that her death took place somewhere in the vicinity of Tumut”.

''A website missingniamh.com was launched by the family on March 27 and a podcast “Missing Niamh” will be launched later this year.''

 

[dotr]

March 27 2022

Missing Persons' Week: Search for Armidale's Niamh Maye continues after 18 years since Riverina disappearance | The Armidale Express | Armidale, NSW

Niamh MAYE (australianmissingpersonsregister.com)

The Missing: Niamh Maye. Our Daughter on Apple Podcasts

 

[StillDiggin]

On the day Niamh would have turned 40, police offer $250k in push to solve decades-old mystery

Niamh Maye was 18 years old when she disappeared from a country town in NSW in 2002. With her family still desperate for answers, police are hoping a large reward will encourage someone to come forward.

www.abc.net.au

 

[dotr]

On the day Niamh would have turned 40, police offer $250k in push to solve decades-old mystery

Niamh Maye was 18 years old when she disappeared from a country town in NSW in 2002. With her family still desperate for answers, police are hoping a large reward will encourage someone to come forward.

www.abc.net.au

By Penny Burfitt
Posted 9h ago9 hours ago, updated 6h ago

''New South Wales Police are offering a $250,000 reward for information that leads to a conviction or the recovery of the remains of a teenager who disappeared in the state's south more than two decades ago.

Key points:​

• Niamh Maye's family say they "desperately want to find her and lay her to rest" with dignity
• A man who was wanted in connection with her disappearance died in custody in Queensland
• Police say "the smallest amount of information" could help them solve the mystery

Niamh Maye was 18 years old when she was last seen on Saturday, March 30 2002 in Jingellic, in the state's Riverina region.

A 2012 coronial inquiry found she died at or near Tumut on March 30 that year and police believe she met with foul play.

Riverina Police Superintendent Andrew Spliet said the reward was announced today to coincide with Ms Maye's 40th birthday.''

 

[Mel 1303]

Casefile presents podcast "Missing Niamh" has been released today.

 

[dotr]

Disappearance of Niamh Maye - NSW Police Public Site

www.police.nsw.gov.au

''A $250,000 NSW Government reward has been announced for information
leading to an arrest and conviction regarding to the disappearance of
Niamh Maye in the state’s south 21 years ago, or for information that

leads to the discovery of her remains.

Niamh Maye was aged 18 when she was last seen near Jingellic on Saturday 30 March 2002.
She was planning to catch a bus from Batlow to the train at Cootamundra,
to travel to her sister’s home in Sydney. She has never been seen or heard from since.
It is suspected she met with foul play.

At the time of her disappearance, Niamh was carrying personal belongings in a backpack,
including clothing, camera equipment, camping gear and cookware;
none of which has ever been located.

Strike Force Yola was established by officers attached to Riverina Police District, who have conducted extensive investigations at the time and over the years, including public appeals for information into Niamh’s whereabouts, however, they have been unable to locate her.

To prompt those who know something to come forward, police have today (Wednesday 21 June 2023) announced a reward of a quarter of a million dollars for information that leads to the discovery of Niamh’s remains, or for information leading to an arrest and conviction.

Riverina Police District Commander, Superintendent Andrew Spliet, is hopeful the reward will be an incentive for those who know something to speak up.

“Any information, no matter how small, could be the missing piece of the puzzle we need to locate Niamh and finally bring answers and some peace to her family,” Supt Spliet said.

“Today is Niamh’s 40th birthday, and it’s about time her family can celebrate her life without the heartbreak of not knowing where she is.

“We have never given up on Niamh, and we’re not about to,” Supt Spliet said.

Now aged 82 and living in a retirement village in Sydney, Niamh’s mother Anne Maye said she and her family need to lay their daughter, sister, aunt and friend to rest.

“Today Niamh should be celebrating her 40th birthday with her family and friends, instead we mourn the beautiful soul and precious time that have been taken from us. We still desperately want to find her and lay her to rest with the dignity and respect she deserves. If you know something, or can help find her, please do the right thing and come forward.

“Words can’t describe how special Niamh is to our whole family. Her disappearance has left a gaping hole and we have never given up on finding her. We hope this reward will lead us to the answers we have sought for more than twenty years now,” Mrs Maye said.

As investigations under Strike Force Yola continue, anyone with information that may assist police is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 and can do so anonymously.

Anyone with information that may assist Strike Force Yola detectives is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000 or https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au.Information is treated in strict confidence. The public is reminded not to report crime via NSW Police social media pages.''

 

[dotr]

2022

 

[Cliff Hardy]

Casefile presents podcast "Missing Niamh" has been released today.

Have listened to about half the 'Casefile' episodes and it is a tragic but fascinating case.

I found it absolutely chilling when it was revealed at only 18, she was left for her final few days, alone and without any means of transport or communication.

Strongly recommend the 'Casefile' podcast to anyone interested in the case and even if you aren't, should you listen, you soon will be.

 

[Cliff Hardy]

Missing Niamh - Casefile Presents

When 18-year-old Niamh Maye went missing in 2002, her family did everything they could to help the police find her. But, like so many...

casefilepresents.com

 

[Cliff Hardy]

Two men, Jason “Jack” Nicklason and Garth Gemmell arrived earlier at the campsite in a 1969 black Holden hearse. Friend Brodie had headed to Victoria and Jess headed to Byron Bay. Jess – Jessica Ribeiro a Melbourne-based musician – told the Herald how she grew up in Armidale with Niamh. She describes her as petite, fearless, outspoken, creative and confident.''

''Six months later, Nicklason, who claimed to have dropped Niamh off near Tumut, was in police custody having been arrested in Brisbane for raping a 19-year-old woman. He then took his life.

Having now listened to most of the podcast and taking into account his pattern of very strange behavior after Niamh disappeared, it is hard to look past Nicklason as the major suspect. What a pity he isn't around to answer to the crime.

 

[Cliff Hardy]

The more we subsequently find out about Jason “Jack” Nicklason, the more he firms as Niamh's likely killer. He was a career criminal, a longtime sexual predator and offender and his strange behavior after Niamh''s disappearance raised red flag after red flag. At 30 plus, Nicklason's fixation on teenage girls like Niamh was clearly evident and extremely disturbing.

 

[Cliff Hardy]

The coronial inquest findings were farcical. Devastating for the family.

 

[Cliff Hardy]

Such a terrible scenario for the Maye family.

- Daughter Nianh missing for 22 years, presumed dead.
- Key suspect - Jason “Jack” Nicklason - long dead as well.
- '3rd wheel' in the story, though not a suspect, Garth Gemmell, also dead.
- Very little clue as to where Nianh's body might be located.
- Over time likely body locations have been disturbed making it unlikely she will ever be found.

 

[bbbounce]

Have listened to about half the 'Casefile' episodes and it is a tragic but fascinating case.

I found it absolutely chilling when it was revealed at only 18, she was left for her final few days, alone and without any means of transport or communication.

Strongly recommend the 'Casefile' podcast to anyone interested in the case and even if you aren't, should you listen, you soon will be.

I found that chilling also. I would not want to be left alone there as an adult with a car and a phone. I was really shocked that they would even as a group of young girls, end up at a remote train station at 3am with no means to get to their next destination.

It was a different t time back then, and I guess some country folk are more comfortable with the remoteness. I also don’t want to victim shame, as Niamh and any young woman should be able to be safe travelling our wonderful country.

The reality is though that travelling as a solo woman opens us up to risks that might not otherwise be present if we had trusted others with us. And scary folk are just as present in remote locations as they are in the big cities.

I hope Niamh’s remains can be found one day, so her family can have some semblance of peace. An unimaginable pain of losing a daughter must be so much to bear, made worse by 20 years of searching.

 

[Cliff Hardy]

I found that chilling also. I would not want to be left alone there as an adult with a car and a phone. I was really shocked that they would even as a group of young girls, end up at a remote train station at 3am with no means to get to their next destination.

It was a different t time back then, and I guess some country folk are more comfortable with the remoteness. I also don’t want to victim shame, as Niamh and any young woman should be able to be safe travelling our wonderful country.

The reality is though that travelling as a solo woman opens us up to risks that might not otherwise be present if we had trusted others with us. And scary folk are just as present in remote locations as they are in the big cities.

I hope Niamh’s remains can be found one day, so her family can have some semblance of peace. An unimaginable pain of losing a daughter must be so much to bear, made worse by 20 years of searching.

Sadly, there are people who prey on younger, more vulnerable people, particularly young girls and Niamh had become more and more vulnerable as time wore on.

Jason “Jack” Nicklason was around 31 at the time and he's getting around with the 18 year old Niamh. Alarm bells are ringing straight away. Factor in that, although Niamh wouldn't have been aware of it, Nicklason was an absolute creep with all sorts of 'form' and this was almost guaranteed to end badly.