Found Deceased Australia - Russell Hill, 74, & Carol Clay, 72, Wonnangatta Valley, 20 Mar 2020 #5 *charges*

[Detective Willy]

Now where is the trailer??

Allegedly sold on Gumtree March to July last year.

This will likely add a big piece to the jigsaw IMO.

 

[JBowie]

Now where is the trailer??

Allegedly sold on Gumtree March to July last year.

This will likely add a big piece to the jigsaw IMO.

Unless someone comes forward as being the buyer, I guess police will have to plow through the trailer registration records and try to whittle down possibilities, and hope that it hasn't since been taken interstate.

 

[BrumbyJack]

No I just mean in general that if some random person were to murder some other random person, but they really believed (or hoped) enough time has passed that the coppers wouldn’t be able to tell how they died, then that someone might be more willing to tell them where the body is, thinking they’d get a manslaughter instead of murder charge. Hypothetically. Not saying that’s what happened here, I’m just trying to be careful because of the rules now that were said the other day. Sorry if it sounded too vague.

No I don't.

You might have to spell it out for me. What is your idea on how they died ?

 

[TootsieFootsie]

Oh I understand now, thanks.

No I just mean in general that if some random person were to murder some other random person, but they really believed (or hoped) enough time has passed that the coppers wouldn’t be able to tell how they died, then that someone might be more willing to tell them where the body is, thinking they’d get a manslaughter instead of murder charge. Hypothetically. Not saying that’s what happened here, I’m just trying to be careful because of the rules now that were said the other day. Sorry if it sounded too vague.

 

[SP2500]

All pretty simple police work tbh. Should not have taken anywhere near this long. But pleased with ultimate result.

 

[sleuther123]

I think someone's defence plan just went out the window.

True!!

And airborne, perhaps..

 

[sleuther123]

Very sad to finally have proof. My thoughts are with RH and CCs families and loved ones. RIP

 

[DRT]

Remains found in search for missing campers

At about the 1.48 mark the comment is "His information has led them to..." I am guessing this is an assumption. Not hearing anything else that has come out of the interview.

 

[DRT]

Human remains located following disappearance of Russell Hill and Carol Clay

Looks like the identification process is going to take a while.

 

[BrumbyJack]

Nice catch

At about the 1.48 mark the comment is "His information has led them to..." I am guessing this is an assumption. Not hearing anything else that has come out of the interview.

 

[andersdahl]

It says that for the last two days police have used an excavator to lift chunks of topsoil, and then have placed the topsoil on blue plastic. Then they have been painstakingly sifting the soil and removing any items of interest, tagging them, and putting them in bags.

Hopefully this isn't off topic but does anyone know a good resource about bushland search techniques? One that is relevant to the Australian landscape.

After reading about soil sifting in the William Tyrrell search I became curious about what these searches usually involve. I've read about them using GPRs, metal detectors, different search dogs and drones, but I'm mostly curious about how they deal with the environmental conditions e.g. how humid weather could hinder or help a search, or what considerations they need to make in reserves with threatened flora.

 

[Kemug]

I disagree Kemug. After the DM initially reported something similar no other Media outlets reported this. The news reports tonight say this is the vital piece of evidence that Police have been looking for and combined with the earlier statement that they were searching this site due to Intelligence they had gathered leads me to believe that after 3 days of questioning GL did not confess.

Hope he rolls over now though...

Me too!

 

[Kemug]

Maybe some of their burned belongings were buried with them.
I'm hoping that Russell and Carol weren't burned

I'm thinking the search will continue.
I imagine they would search the area really well, for anything connected, including finding his DNA on anything. empty can, lolly wrapper etc.
The more evidence they have the better.

I'm not convinced he won't plead not guilty.

Sorry Toots, you'll have to explain that last sentence to me - too many negatives for me at this time of night!

 

[Kemug]

Re our thoughts re guns or no guns, it has occurred to me that any camper would have some sort of knife I should think.

 

[minusfour]

I read today, (Daily Mail I'm afraid, and I don't know how to link) that a formal review of the disappearance of Revelle Belmain has led to properties in Sydney being searched for her remains. She disappeared in Sydney, in 1994. This is another disappearance that seemed unlikely to ever be solved. Again, hard to know exactly what to hope for, but answers and justice have to beat limbo for families.

 

[TootsieFootsie]

Yes I read that too, and was going to post it on Revelle's thread but it was already posted.
Our WS members are pretty quick off the mark

Here is Revelle's thread.
Australia - Australia - Revelle Balmain, 22, Kingsford NSW, 5 Nov 1994

I read today, (Daily Mail I'm afraid, and I don't know how to link) that a formal review of the disappearance of Revelle Belmain has led to properties in Sydney being searched for her remains. She disappeared in Sydney, in 1994. This is another disappearance that seemed unlikely to ever be solved. Again, hard to know exactly what to hope for, but answers and justice have to beat limbo for families.

 

[TootsieFootsie]

It means I think he might plead not guilty. I'm not convinced that he won't, but we'll see.

Sorry Toots, you'll have to explain that last sentence to me - too many negatives for me at this time of night!

 

[JBowie]

Re our thoughts re guns or no guns, it has occurred to me that any camper would have some sort of knife I should think.

Going bush without some sort of cutting tool is not advised. Experienced bush campers will often carry a few knives, each with its own purpose.

 

[Theodora]

Yes I think he would have left 15 or 20 years before if he was going to leave his wife. CC must have accepted that, even if she wished they were living together. However, RH's wife now knows that for 20 years he was having an affair with the glamorous woman she saw as a family friend. Unless RH had a history of affairs, his wife presumably wrongly assumed their relationship was monogamous.

Although it seems that he wasn't going to leave her.

 

[ScottToorak]

Just throwing it out there. Lets say the bodies have decomposed and there is no clear cause of death and the trailer is found but has no dna to prove rh & cc were ever in the trailer or 4wd. On this basis GL walks from a murder charge. Perhaps charging him with murder gives LE the chance to negotiate a guilty plea for manslaughter. If I were GL and had not already confessed and had disposed of the trailer never to be seen again and was confident a cause of death could not be linked then a plea of not guilty to murder and the very real likelihood of non conviction is better than spending the next 15 years in a cell. I am still confident GL gave a no comment interview. It doesn't take 3 days to tell someone what happened over 6 hours.