Cold case abduction murder: Nathan Davidson was just 11 when his mother and Melissa vanished in 2000
NATHAN Davidson was just a boy when he last saw his mother, Rosemary. Although he can still remember his last vision of her, their final conversation has now faded from his memory.
NATHAN Davidson was just a boy when he last saw his mother, Rosemary. Although he can still remember his last vision of her, their final conversation has now faded from his memory.
While he knows his mother is dead, he still clings to a faint hope his half-sister, Melissa, who also vanished the day his mother was last seen, may still be alive.
“I want to know how and who — of course I do — and if Mel is still around,’’ Mr Davidson said. “Any closure would be good.’’
The abduction and murder of mother and daughter Rosemary and Melissa Brown is one of Adelaide’s most disturbing unsolved murder cases.
The remains of Rosemary, 33, were found in the Garden Island mangroves on July 2, 2000 — seven weeks after she and Melissa, 15, were last seen.
Major Crime detectives believe it is likely Melissa was also murdered and her body dumped with that of her mother. But her remains were never recovered, despite exhaustive searches by divers.
The only clue so far to solving the crime has been Rosemary’s handbag, which was found on a Northfield street the day after she was last seen alive. It was not handed in to police until May 23, with its contents.
Mr Davidson, 28, was just 11 when his mother and Melissa vanished.
After the crimes, he spent five years living with various relatives and friends, and then made his own way in life from the age of 16.
The family had been living at the Windsor Gardens Caravan Park but were evicted on May 7, 2000.
They spent that night in a friend’s caravan, which was parked in the carpark near the Garden Island walkway, not far from the location where Rosemary’s remains were found.
The caravan was then moved to the back yard of a Blair Athol house, where Rosemary and Melissa were last seen on May 13, 2000.
Mr Davidson said the last time he saw his mother was in the caravan on the night of May 12, before he went to a friend’s house.
‘There were quite a few people there and she didn’t look happy, she looked tense,’’ he said.
“I remember we were struggling at the time, homeless and moving around a bit.’’
He said he and Melissa were attending schools at Windsor Gardens and after school they would help their mother with her work.
Rosemary was working three jobs at the time to provide for her children — cleaning jobs and landscaping.
Mr Davidson stayed at his mate’s house that night and returned to the Blair Athol house the next day and waited for his mother’s return.
“I stayed there for a week but they didn’t come back and then it got reported,’’ he said.
Major Crime case officer Detective Brevet Sergeant Jodie O’Brien said the investigation was still active, with information being provided by the public every month.
She said Rosemary had been at work as usual on Friday, May 12, and had then spent some time visiting friends at the Windsor Gardens Caravan Park before going to the Blair Athol address. Detectives had not yet ascertained why the pair left the Blair Athol address early on May 13.
“Rosemary has left the caravan and Melissa has followed her,’’ Brevet-Sgt O’Brien said. “That is the last time they were seen.”
Numerous people have been questioned at length over the murders — including the owner of the caravan — but there is no firm suspect.
The investigation has been hampered because no crime scene evidence is available and there is little forensic evidence.
A cause of death for Rosemary Brown has not been released. Detectives are anxious to hear from anybody who mixed in the circles Rosemary Brown did, anyone who may have seen the pair in the vicinity of the Garden Island walkway between May 7 and July 2, or who may have seen the pair after May 13.
“There may be people who know something who were reluctant to talk to us then who can now assist us,” Brevet-Sgt O’Brien said. “Allegiances change over time and Nathan certainly needs closure so he can move on.”
Mr Davidson, who wants to become a house painter, said the tragedy had left him “alone’’ for many years and his life now revolved around his two daughters — Imogen, 6, and Rikki-Lee, 4.
“They have given me purpose and are my focus now,’’ Mr Davidson said.
A reward of $200,000 is available for information about the murder of Rosemary Brown and a $1 million reward is available for information on Melissa’s murder and the recovery of her body.
Details of the crimes are featured on playing cards which are distributed through the state’s prisons as part of the Operation Persist cold case initiative.