Disappearance of Cheryl Grimmer

Cheryl Grimmer
Born Cheryl Gene Grimmer
1966
Knowle, Bristol, England
Disappeared January 12, 1970 (aged 3)
Status Missing for 48 years, 9 months and 1 day
Nationality British
Known for Kidnapping victim
Parent(s) Carole Grimmer (mother)
John Grimmer (father)[1][2]

Cheryl Grimmer (born 1966) was a three-year-old toddler who went missing on 12 January 1970 from a Wollongong beach, in Illawarra, New South Wales, Australia. She had been in the shower block at the beach when witnesses claim a man took her and ran off.

Grimmer's disappearance has been without explanation for over 45 years. A suspect was arrested and charged in March 2017.[3]

Life

The family emigrated from Knowle, a suburb of Bristol, England to Australia in 1969[4] when Cheryl was two years old and they were living in a hostel near to the beach where she disappeared.[5] The family was mother Carole (26), father John (24) and sons Ricki (7), Stephen (5) and Paul (4). Cheryl was the Grimmers' only daughter.[6]

Disappearance

On the morning of 12 January 1970, the Grimmer family went to the beach at Fairy Meadow in Illawarra except for John Grimmer who was away working as a sapper for the Australian Army.[7] When the weather turned at 1:30 pm, Carole Grimmer decided it was time to go home.[5] The children all went to the shower block together whilst Carole Grimmer packed up their belongings. Ricki went back to Carole Grimmer ten minutes later saying that Cheryl was refusing to come out of the shower block.[8] She followed Ricki back to the shower block moments later only to find that Cheryl had disappeared. There has been no trace of her since.[5]

Theories

At the time, witnesses claimed that a man was seen holding Cheryl up to drink from a water fountain and then ran off with her wrapped up in a towel. She was also spotted being driven off in a white car.[5]

New South Wales Police Minister Michael Gallagher said that it is entirely possible that both Cheryl and her kidnapper were dead but that someone may know the truth. He also alluded to the possibility of someone being alive today suspecting that they may be Cheryl.[9] One reason for this is that Cheryl had a medical condition that made her belly button protrude outwards by 10 millimetres (0.39 in) and this would be easily identifiable if that person were alive today or if they had surgery to correct this.[10] In 2012 a woman thought that she might be Cheryl. She submitted a DNA swab taken from her inside cheek, but this proved to not be a match for Cheryl Grimmer's DNA.[11]

Investigation

Her disappearance sparked a massive manhunt and three days later, police received a note demanding $10,000 and saying that the child was unharmed. The police staged a drop for the money in Bulli,[7] but the kidnapper never showed despite police earnestly believing the note was credible. The police disguised themselves as council workers for the ransom drop,[4] but they fear this led to the kidnapper being spooked and that the large police operation may have also deterred the kidnapper from coming forward to claim their ransom.[9] The case became famous in Australia and the family relocated back to England for ten years afterwards to escape the notoriety.[10]

A local man confessed to killing Cheryl, but police investigations revealed that his confession was false.[11]

Aftermath

Police announced in December 2016 that they had a credible lead on a man who was seen carrying a fair-haired child at the time of Cheryl's disappearance from the beach. Police said that he was a teenager at the time, so would be in his 60s now, and appealed for him to come forward.[12]

In May 2011, a coroner ruled that Cheryl had died sometime after going missing due to an undetermined cause, but Carole Grimmer stated that she believed her daughter was still alive. Both Carole and John Grimmer have since died without knowing what happened to Cheryl.[13] Despite the coroner's ruling, police posted a $100,000 reward for information regarding Cheryl's disappearance.[9] In 2016, a review of the evidence was carried out and all of the evidence and witness statements were computerised for the first time. The review threw up many leads and information that was not pursued thoroughly enough in 1970. Wollongong detectives and the Homicide Squad's Unsolved Homicide Team combined efforts into a new task force called 'Strike Force Wessell'.[14]

On 23 March 2017, it was announced that a man had been arrested and charged with Grimmer's abduction and murder. Police stated that it is unlikely that Cheryl's body will ever be found as there has been substantial development of the once-rural area in the 47 years since the abduction.[15][3]

In April 2017, NSW police stated that they were trying to trace a family who gave a witness statement on the day of the abduction. The family moved soon after to Papua New Guinea and then back to their native Nottinghamshire in England.[16] Interpol helped to trace the witness, now 80-years old, whose testimony is expected to be crucial in the upcoming court case.[2]

In May 2017, it was revealed that the suspect who was arrested in March 2017 had confessed to Cheryl's abduction and murder back in 1970. However, police at the time did not believe him.[17] The accused is a 63-year-old man who was born in Britain and has been in Australia since the late 1960s. He has not been named, as he was 16-years-old at the time of the alleged offence and therefore a minor.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Lagan, Bernard (26 May 2017). "Toddler's 'killer' confessed to police five decades ago". The Times (72233). p. 15. ISSN 0140-0460.
  2. 1 2 Lagan, Bernard (27 May 2017). "British man key to solving 47-year-old Australian abduction". The Times (72234). p. 23. ISSN 0140-0460.
  3. 1 2 Mitchell, Georgina (23 March 2017). "Breakthrough in toddler Cheryl Grimmer 1970 cold case murder as man arrested". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
  4. 1 2 Grimshaw, Emma (7 December 2016). "Killer of three-year-old Bristol girl snatched from an Australian beach could soon be discovered". Bristol Post. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Morri, Mark (4 December 2016). "Cheryl Grimmer disappearance: Cops close in on little girl's killer 47 years later". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  6. ↑ "The disappearance of Cheryl Grimmer". forgottenillawarra.wordpress.com. forgotten illawarra. 28 January 2014. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  7. 1 2 Mardon, Cydonee (25 July 2014). "Heartache endures for lost little girl Cheryl Grimmer". Illawarra Mercury. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  8. ↑ Buckingham-Jones, Sam (5 December 2016). "Cheryl Grimmer: breakthrough in cold case abduction". The Australian. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  9. 1 2 3 "Reward for clues in 1970 child kidnap". The Australian. 10 September 2012. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  10. 1 2 Hoctor, Michelle (4 May 2011). "41 years on, family hunts for clues on Cheryl Grimmer disappearance". Illawarra Mercury. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  11. 1 2 Hicks, Stacey. "The day my baby sister disappeared" (PDF). justineford.net. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  12. ↑ "Cheryl Grimmer case: police reportedly identify suspect 50 years after toddler's abduction". The Guardian. 4 December 2016. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  13. ↑ "Breakthrough in 46-year mystery of missing toddler". BBC News. 6 December 2016. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  14. ↑ Thompson, Angela (5 December 2016). "Illawarra toddler Cheryl Grimmer's kidnapper and suspected killer still alive: police". Illawarra Mercury. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  15. ↑ "Man arrested 47 years after disappearance of 3-year-old Cheryl Grimmer". ABC News Sydney. 23 March 2017. Retrieved 24 March 2017.
  16. ↑ "Cheryl Grimmer: UK family sought over 1970 toddler death". BBC News. 13 April 2017. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
  17. ↑ "Cheryl Grimmer: Accused man gave evidence in 1971, court hears". BBC News. 25 May 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
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