– Backpacker missing Blue Mountains
– Police discover remains missing backpacker.
Accident – Death – Obituary News :
The remains of a backpacker from Geelong who disappeared 23 years ago have been discovered in NSW bushland during an unrelated search. Police officers made the grim discovery in the Blue Mountains near Katoomba on 30 April, with further remains found on 27 May following subsequent investigations.
The human remains found initially have been identified as belonging to Kellie Ann Carmichael, a young woman who went missing at the age of 24. Carmichael was last seen by hostel staff in Katoomba on 29 April 2001, where she had indicated she would return that same day to collect her belongings.
Concerned when Carmichael failed to return, her parents contacted the hostel five days later, only to discover that her personal items, including her ID, wallet, mobile phone, bank card, Medicare card, camera, and toiletries, were still at the reception. They subsequently reported her missing to the authorities.
Authorities initially considered the possibility that Carmichael may have taken her own life, particularly as she was known to be suffering from schizophrenia. The case was escalated to the homicide squad in 2004, but with no significant breakthroughs.
In 2011, a reward of $200,000 was offered for any information relating to Carmichael’s disappearance, following a coronial inquest in 2009 that confirmed her death without shedding light on the circumstances. Her parents, Margaret and John, have expressed their ongoing anguish over the unresolved mystery surrounding their daughter’s disappearance.
Margaret Carmichael lamented in 2011, “We’ve never had the chance to have our daughter…our family has never been the same.”
The unsolved homicide team is now leading an investigation into Carmichael’s case, with plans to compile a brief of evidence for the coroner. NSW police are working diligently to bring closure to this long-standing mystery.
– with Australian Associated Press
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– Police find remains backpacker missing Blue Mountains years ago
– Police find remains backpacker missing Blue Mountains NSW.
