Crime Children who never came home
Long after the headlines have faded, these missing kids continue to haunt the nation
Joanne Ratcliffe & Kirste Gordon ‘I still leave a light on for my sister, praying she comes home’
Suziei Ratcliffertliff hash lleftft a light on for her missing sister Joanne for the pastt 43 years. It’s a custom thatt was started by the girls’ parentss Kath and Leslie, after 11-yearold Joanne and her four-yearold friend Kirste disappeared from an AFL match at Adelaidee Oval on August 25, 1973.
“If Joanne ever comes home,e, she’ll see someone waiting forr her,” Suzie tells Woman’s Day. .
The girls were last seen with a man but, despite detectives chasing numerous leads and even publicising a $1 million reward for information, no arrest has ever been made. The girls’ bodies have never been found – sadly, it’s presumed they were abducted and murdered.
“We lost hope over the years but we can’t give up completely – it’s all we have. We’ll continue to hope that one day we’ll find the girls and we can bury them with the dignity and respect they deserve,”de” Suzie explains.
Although she was born after Joanne’s disappearance, Suzie has felt first hand the torment a family experiences when a child goes missing.
“Growing up I used to talk to ‘Sissy in the photo frame’. She always took pride of place. And I’d hear Mum and Dad crying in their bedroom. That will always stick with me,” she says.
The Beaumont children Last seen holding hands and laughing
It was a hot Australia Day in Adelaide in 1966 when Jane, nine, Arnna, seven, and Grant, four, went to play at Glenelg Beach, an easy five-minute bus ride from their home. A local postman saw the children heading home and said they were “holding hands and laughing”. But they never made it. Fifty years later, police are still chasing new leads. The most recent investigation centres around convicted paedophile Anthony Munro, who lived nearby.
Eloise Worledge Snatched from her bed in the middle of the night
On the evening of January 12, 1976, Patsy Worledge kissed her eight-year-old daughter Eloise goodnight. Next morning Eloise’s four-year-old brother Blake noticed his sister wasn’t in her room. During the police investigation Blake revealed he’d heard someone in his sister’s room but was too scared to do anything. A hole had been cut in her flyscreen from the inside. Patsy and her husband Lindsay, who lived in the beachside suburb of Beaumaris, Melbourne, were initially treated as suspects, however the case is still unsolved.
Rachel Antonio Did a secret love affair lead to her demise?
On Anzac Day 1998, 16-year-old Rachel from Bowen, Queensland, disappeared after being dropped at the cinema by her mum. She was spotted at a nearby beach shortly afterwards, but hasn’t been seen since. Last July, a coroner found her secret ex-boyfriend, former surf club captain Robert Hytch, responsible for killing her. It’s believed Rachel faked a pregnancy when the couple split, and a violent altercation followed. Rachel’s body has never been found and Hytch maintains he’s innocent.
Craig Taylor There are two theories but no answers
The morning of his disappearance, September 3, 1993, nine-year-old Craig from Tasmania made breakfast for himself and his mother, went to get dressed – and vanished. There are two possible theories about what happened. Craig had a history of running away from home, and when a neighbour’s kayak was found upturned in the water, police thought he may have taken the kayak out and drowned. The second theory hinged on a witness who had seen a little boy matching Craig’s description hitchhiking towards Hobart.
Rhianna Barreau The TV was on but she wasn’t home
“She was listening to music and said, ‘Shoosh Mum, I’m listening to this.’ It was The B-52s hit Love Shack, one of Rhianna’s favourites,” says Paula Barreau of the last time she spoke to her daughter before her disappearance on October 7, 1992. The 12-year-old walked to the shops in Morphett Vale, Adelaide, to buy a card for her penfriend. When Paula returned from work the TV was on and the card was on the table, but Rhianna had vanished.
Helen Karipidis Did she run away or was she kidnapped?
In the late evening on December 22, 1988, Helen was playing with friends outside the flats where she lived with her mother Voula and six siblings in Marrickville, Sydney. But when Voula called her for dinner, she’d vanished. A coronial enquiry in 2012 concluded that whatever happened, the 10-year-old died that day or soon after.er. Six years after Helen went missing,g, her sister Maria committed suicide.cide.
If you have any information regarding a missing person, please contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.