NEW LEAD IN MURDER COLD CASE
New leads in Sam Price-Purcell cold case
A THREE-year investigation into the death of missing Brisbane man Sam Price-Purcell came to a head when police started digging for his remains on a Leyburn property.
Firearms, an underground “drug lab” and other items police believe may be connected to Mr Price-Purcell’s death have already been found on the 70-hectare property, about five minutes south of Leyburn.
A large team of police detectives, forensic officers and 25 Southern Downs SES volunteers started churning the earth for evidence yesterday.
Detective Senior Sergeant Christopher Knight said he was confident the search would uncover results.
“A lot of things have happened that have led up to this point. This is a significant step in the investigation,” he said.
“We have come here for a very good reason because we truly believe there is, or has been, evidence at this property and we won’t leave until we’re satisfied we’ve done everything humanly possible.”
A major breakthrough came two weeks ago when the man’s mother, Leoni Price, appealed to people to come forward with information on the third anniversary of his disappearance.
Sam Price-Purcell went missing from a Mitchelton address in February 2015 and was believed to have travelled towards Toowoomba.
“He has never been seen again since,” Snr-Sgt Knight said.
Investigations have linked multiple suspects to the Leyburn property, but Snr-Sgt Knight said the property owners were not suspects.
The owners have been asked to leave the property for the duration of the search, which is expected to take the rest of the week.