Tanja Ebert murder: Police search husband Michael Burdon’s sheep station in Mid-North
UPDATED: POLICE are appealing for dashcam footage that may help them in their investigation into the disappearance and suspected murder of mother-of-two Tanja Ebert.
- Inside story: The backpacker, the grazier and a tragic mystery
- Devastated family speaks out: ‘We never saw this coming’
- The dramatic developments on Wednesday
- How a smile hid her secret pain of unhappiness
For help with depression, suicidal thoughts or personal problems, call Lifeline on 13 11 15 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636
SOUTH Australia police have appealed for any dashcam footage that may help them in their investigation into the disappearance and suspected murder of mother-of-two Tanja Ebert.
The last independent sighting of Ms Ebert happened about 3.20pm on Tuesday August 8 when she was seen on CCTV leaving the SA Museum with her family.
Detectives are trying to piece together her last movements and ask anyone with dashcam footage who travelled between Roseworthy and Mannahill, in either direction, between 7pm and 12pm on that day to contact police.
Major Crime detectives returned to the property where they believe the young mother may be buried on Saturday morning but no evidence was recovered.
Police have now suspended indefinitely their search there for missing mother Tanja Ebert.
Investigators arrived at Oulnina Park just before 9.30am on Saturday morning and were done by 10.30am.
The 410sq km sheep station is now being cared for by a man close to Michael Burdon, 41, and Ms Ebert, 23, who police believe has been murdered.
A breakthrough appeared possible on Friday when police zeroed in on a freshly moved dirt patch just 50 metres from the family home amid fears the mother of two was buried there.
But in a devastating blow to the Major Crime investigation into her disappearance 11 days ago, several possible burial sites, including adjacent to the Oulnina Park homestead, produced no leads.
Still desperately seeking answers, the families now face an agonising wait as senior police plan their next steps.
Family and friends of the German national are all but resigned to the sombre likelihood that she was murdered by her husband of six months, Michael Burdon.
Mr Burdon, 41, fatally shot himself as police searched their property in the state’s Far North on Wednesday.
As the land and air search, involving dozens of police and State Emergency Service volunteers, was called off last night, baffled detectives urged anyone with information to come forward without fear of consequences.
Speaking at the property last night, Major Crime officer-in-charge, Detective Superintendent Des Bray, described the search process as “frustrating”.
“There was very significant excavation done adjacent a creek near the homestead where recent earthworks had been undertaken but sadly that didn’t reveal anything,” he said.
“Again unfortunately we haven’t been able to find Tanja.
“It’s very frustrating, we’ve been working hard to get a result for Tanja’s parents and we would encourage anybody who has any information at all that might help us recover her body to contact police immediately so we can bring this to an end for that family.”
He added: “Experience has shown us that it’s actually quite rare for people to commit a murder and not to tell somebody.”
Investigators will this weekend review all their pieces of evidence and conduct further interviews with friends and family across the state as they desperately try to locate Ms Ebert, 23.
Det Supt Bray said the evidence review would help police plot their next moves.
It is unclear if detectives will return to search the sheep station, almost 400km northeast of Adelaide, which she shared with her husband and two sons, aged three and one.
Ms Ebert’s German-based parents have been briefed on the investigation as Mr Burdon’s “numb” family gathered at his sister’s inner southern suburbs home.
Her devastated parents are expected to fly into Adelaide shortly.
STAR Group officers with shovels, aided by police operating heavy farm machinery, excavated multiple sites on the property on Friday.
The disappearance of Ms Ebert, 23, is being treated as a murder investigation after she went missing following a family trip to Adelaide last week.
He was not under arrest and had not admitted to killing his wife after the couple returned from a holiday in Adelaide with their sons, aged one and three.
Major Crime detectives interviewed Mr Burdon at length on Wednesday — and police said there were no other suspects in her disappearance.
While police focused heavily on the site near the home from early on Friday morning, other digs began in several different locations.
Those locations were identified as “key areas of interest” by expert search co-ordinators on Thursday after reviews of the property by air and land.
State Emergency Service volunteers performed line searches elsewhere while police horses were used to navigate the rugged terrain of the 410sq km station.
Mr Burdon’s suicide has orphaned their children and left Major Crime detectives and other police with the daunting task of finding Ms Ebert’s body on the 410sq km sheep station.
The head of Major Crime, Detective Superintendent Des Bray, said State Emergency Service volunteers, STAR Group officers and police horses would be used to negotiate the rugged and undulating terrain.
“The search will initially start from the house and radiate out and there are some areas of interest that we’ll go to first but we didn’t receive any information in relation to her location,” Supt Bray said.
“Forensic work is still continuing at the house and the search of the premises are continuing.” While police hope to find Ms Ebert’s body in coming days, Supt Bray said he could make no “guarantees”.
“If we put in the effort and we have a bit of luck, we’ve got a chance of finding her,” he said.
The property, which is being treated as a crime scene, was returned to the control of Major Crime detectives on Thursday night, after a mandatory Commissioner’s Inquiry began, following Mr Burdon’s suicide.
The tragedy has rocked residents of the region, as Ms Ebert’s parents prepare to fly to Adelaide from their home in Germany.
The couple’s sons were being cared for by relatives of Mr Burdon, who showed no obvious signs that he was capable of killing his popular young wife, according to friends, including Melanie Lewis.
“I never had any indication from her or Michael that they were unhappy or under any sort of pressure other than the usual normal frustration that comes with parenthood. It’s just so sad,” Ms Lewis said.
Ms Ebert and Mr Burdon were married at Oulnina Park Station in February, almost five years after they met when she was backpacking across Australia.
The devoted mother, who police said may have been considering leaving Mr Burdon, was “an adoring mother” who was “extremely mature for her age”, Ms Lewis said.
“The boys adored her and were extremely clingy to her. She was a very hard worker, would give anything a go and always had confidence in her opinions of things,” she said.
Mannahill Hotel publican Dianne Highet, who was a guest at the couple’s wedding, said Ms Ebert was “very friendly”, while Mr Burdon was a “hands-on father”.
“Her and Michael came here quite often. Normally they would come in and get an ice cream ... even when they were here, sometimes he’d be sitting on the floor with (their boys). He would look after them and change their nappies,” Ms Highet said.
“It’s just so sad and there was no indication at all, the community is very shocked by what has happened.”
The probable murder-suicide is not the first tragedy for the Burdon family. Michael’s brother Mark took his own life in May 1997, and his father Peter died after a brain tumour in April 2014.
Michael Burdon had told police he and Ms Ebert had an argument as they drove from Adelaide to Roseworthy, near Gawler, on Tuesday, August 8.
Supt Bray said Mr Burdon claimed to have not seen his wife after she got out of their car with a “large amount of cash” and he had returned home with their sons.
However, Supt Bray said all signs pointed towards Mr Burdon having murdered his wife after their return home before concealing her body.
Ms Ebert’s family have been offered support upon their arrival by SA Victims’ Rights Commissioner Michael O’Connell.
Mr O’Connell said he had offered outreach services and financial assistance to help care for the couple’s children.
If you, or anyone you know, needs to talk to someone, call Lifeline 13 11 14, Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467 or MensLine 1300 78 99 78