Woman’s Day (Australia)

William Tyrrell mystery finally solved?

Police believe a new suspect will provide vital answers

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Almost seven years to the day after little William Tyrrell vanished, police are set to interview a new suspect they believe could be responsibl­e for his disappeara­nce and death.

In this shock developmen­t, NSW Police are confident they will solve the case and finally give William’s family a much longed-for explanatio­n for what happened to the toddler.

According to reports, this as-yet-unnamed person was previously interviewe­d by police but not considered a suspect or person of interest.

But a new line of inquiry, which had never been explored before, led to a breakthrou­gh in the investigat­ion, according to The Daily Telegraph.

“It shines a new complexion on what investigat­ors believe happened to William,” an officer involved in the case told the newspaper.

The suspect, who cannot be named for legal reasons, will soon be confronted with this informatio­n and interviewe­d by police, who are confident they are closing in on the truth about what happened.

However, William’s fosterpare­nts have called this new developmen­t “fake news”. In a statement issued last week, they wrote that the new claim, which they say is “unverified”, is “disrespect­ful and devastatin­g to everyone who knows and loves William”.

EXTENSIVE SEARCH

Three-year-old William vanished on September 12, 2014 while outside his foster grandmothe­r’s Kendall, NSW

home. He was wearing a SpiderMan suit and playing in the yard with his five-year-old sister.

After he was originally thought to have wandered off, Kendall residents and members of local emergency services searched for William in nearby forest, creeks and fields. But police soon decided the boy had likely been abducted or was the victim of other human interventi­on.

Since then there have been numerous investigat­ions and

‘The day he disappeare­d we lost everything’

forensic searches into William’s disappeara­nce, with thousands of people interviewe­d in connection with the case, nearly 700 people of interest identified and a $1 million reward for informatio­n offered in 2016.

But no trace of him has ever been found and no suspect charged. There have been numerous theories about what happened, including the possibilit­y William was abducted by a local paedophile network or that he was the victim of an accident by a hit-and-run driver.

Despite not having any breakthrou­ghs in the case, police have continued to reassure William’s family and the public that they’ve not given up hope of finding out what happened to him.

Last June, on what would have been the boy’s 10th birthday, Homicide Squad Commander, Detective Superinten­dent Danny Doherty said the investigat­ion was still very much “ongoing”. He confirmed that Strike Force Rosann, a team made up of five fulltime investigat­ors, were continuing to work on the case.

“Detectives are reviewing all evidence obtained since William’s disappeara­nce and have recently sought the assistance of numerous experts to ensure no stone is left unturned,” he explained.

Police have also been working closely with the Deputy State Coroner, but the findings of an 18-month coronial inquest, set to be delivered in June, have been postponed.

Because of state laws, neither William’s foster or biological family can be identified, although they have made anonymous appeals for informatio­n over the years. In March, William’ s fostergran­dmother passed away, without ever knowing what happened to cause him to disappear from her garden.

FAMILY PLEAS

During the inquest, William’s foster mother said that after the little boy vanished, “our world and the contented life we knew collapsed around us”.

William’s sister was unable to tell police much about what happened to her brother the morning of his disappeara­nce.

In the inquest however, the 10-year-old said she wants to become a police officer when she is older so she can help find her missing brother.

“The day he disappeare­d we lost everything. We lost my innocent brother,” she said. “He now needs to be found so please help our family, but most of all help me find our precious William.”

 ??  ??
 ??  ?? The toddler’s abduction sparked Australia’s biggest manhunt.
The toddler’s abduction sparked Australia’s biggest manhunt.
 ??  ?? Police searched dense bushland near where William disappeare­d as part of the investigat­ion.
Police searched dense bushland near where William disappeare­d as part of the investigat­ion.
 ??  ?? William vanished while playing out the front of this house in 2014.
William vanished while playing out the front of this house in 2014.

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