Friend finds missing Donna’s body
A FRIEND has found the body of a woman believed murdered in Far North Queensland – in an isolated creek near his property.
Mark Seears discovered the wrapped female body, believed to be missing woman Donna Louise Steele, 42, on Sunday morning in Isabella Creek, a tributary of the Endeavour River about 20km west of Cooktown.
He and partner Roslyn Avard, one of Ms Steele’s closest friends, have neighbouring properties a short drive from the creek and had spent last week helping with the search after Ms Steele was reported missing last Thursday.
Police are considering a four-hour window last Wednesday to be crucial to their investigation — between when Ms Steele (pictured) was last seen in a Cooktown supermarket and when her two sons arrived home and found their mother missing.
CCTV in the Cooktown IGA supermarket showed her at 12.15pm and the children, aged 8 and 10, got home about 4pm.
Her husband returned from working out of town on Thursday and immediately raised the alarm.
Det Insp Marsh said police were confident she knew whoever was responsible for her death. He asked anyone who had seen her near-new white Toyota HiLux between Wednesday and Sunday morning to contact them.
“We’re hoping (finding the body) will embolden people to come forward with information they may have been reluctant to previously,” he said.