MP names person of interest in disappearance
The identity of a key person of interest in the disappearance of a British girl more than 50 years ago has been revealed by an Australian politician.
A member of the New South Wales Legislative Council used parliamentary privilege to name the man known as Mercury, whose identity is protected by law. The BBC chose not to name him.
Three-year-old Cheryl Grimmer was abducted from Fairy Meadow beach in Wollongong in 1970. Despite extensive searches, no clues were found.
Later in 2017, Mercury was charged with kidnapping and murdering Cheryl after officers discovered a confession made by a teenager in 1971. However, the judge ruled this was unacceptable and the case was dropped. Mercury says he’s innocent.
In parliament on Thursday, Jeremy Buckingham read Mercury’s teenage confession and called for a new investigation into Cheryl’s murder.
“Cheryl Grimmer’s family has suffered a lot over a long period of time,” he said.
“[Mercury] “He is a free man who lives with his identity suppressed by his neighbors, and no one has been punished for the kidnapping and murder of Cheryl Grimmer.”
Cheryl’s family, some of whom were in the public gallery with the Mercury’s name on Thursday, have been pushing for a new inquest since the trial took place six years ago. They gave Mercury an ultimatum last week, insisting that he reveal his identity and explain to the family how he knew the information in his confession and whether it was true.
“Enough is enough,” said Ricki Nash, Cheryl Grimmer’s older brother.
Cheryl was on the beach at Fairy Meadow with her family when she disappeared on January 12, 1970. While the family was packing up, eldest brother Mr Nash was given charge of his siblings and told to go to the bathroom block.
Giggling, Cheryl ran to the women’s locker rooms and refused to come out. Too embarrassed to go inside himself, Mr Nash returned to the beach to ask his mother for help. When they returned 90 seconds later, the little boy was gone.
The family had recently emigrated to Australia from Bristol where they were named Ten Pound Poms.
Last week the family released a lengthy document detailing the missteps made by authorities in NSW in their search for Cheryl.
The family were recently told that a four-year review of the case had found no new evidence that could lead to a conviction, despite three new potential eyewitnesses coming forward after the BBC launched the Fairy Meadow true crime podcast in 2022.
NSW Police have defended their investigation and reiterated that homicide detectives are still investigating Cheryl’s disappearance and a reward of A$1 million ($649,000, £486,000) remains offered for information.
The family, along with a team of volunteers using cadaver detection dogs, have recently been searching for a “point of interest” that they hope will be a breakthrough in the case. However, police said that only animal bones were found during a subsequent examination of the area.
Earlier this month, the NSW parliament announced an investigation into the state’s long-running disappearances, including Cheryl’s. How investigations were conducted and ways to improve the results will be examined.
