Father of missing man Michael Purse hoping son’s body will be found after three men charged with his murder appear in court

For two years Jeffrey Purse has wondered where his son’s body was callously stashed. As three men face court over his alleged murder, he’s desperately hoping for closure.

The arrest of three people accused of murdering Michael Purse two years ago is potentially one step closer to laying his son’s body to rest, his mourning father says.

Jeffrey Purse said the arrests were positive in the development in the case and would hopefully lead to the discovery of his 32-year-old son’s body.

“To not have Michael with us and to have him basically lost or cast away out there is just tragic,” Mr Purse said.

Michael Purse was confirmed murdered in 2019.

“At least we can end one part of this if we can get him back.”

When the Sydney man received a call from South Australian Major Crime Detectives he said he was both “sad and happy”.

“Happy that there’s been progress and that now the police are one step forward and hopefully one step closer (to locating Michael’s body),” Mr Purse said.

Michael Purse was last seen in February 2019, and reported a missing person on April 24 of that year.

A homicide investigation was launched and police alleged Michael was murdered by three men at a Kilburn address, before his body was placed in a car and dumped somewhere in the Adelaide Plains.

Michael Purse’s mother, Donna Ipers, his brother Andrew Purse, and father Jeffery Purse during a police press conference in 2019. Picture: Mark Brake

On Wednesday, three men were arrested and faced the Adelaide Magistrates Court charged with Mr Purse’s murder on Thursday.

Neither Edwin James Hinrichsen, 36, nor David Graham Young, 39, applied for bail.

The third man, 24 - whose identity was suppressed, as were the reasons for the granting of that suppression order - also did not apply for bail.

The trio were remanded in custody to face court again in September.

Mr Purse urged anyone with information on the whereabouts of his son’s body to contact police.

“Hopefully these arrests will … encourage people who know where he is to come forward,” he said.

Mr Purse said he appreciated the work of witnesses and police over the past two years.

“We are very appreciative of the work by Major Crime in South Australia police, they’ve worked really hard on this. It’s been a difficult case, it’s been a long case,” he said.

Mr Purse said life without his son is sad.

Michael Jeffrey Purse was last seen on February 6, 2019 in Adelaide. Picture: Australian Federal Police

“(There is) quite a feeling of emptiness and loneliness unfortunately, and it changes your life substantially. You think about it all the time, you think about it day and night,” he said.

“It’s a very unfortunate club to belong to.”

Michael grew up in New South Wales and moved to Adelaide to work in computing and IT.

But his vast knowledge in the industry was part of his undoing, after he was found guilty of defrauding the taxation office in 2014 and was sentenced to two years behind bars.

Mr Purse said despite his son’s trouble with the law, he was kind and generous.

“He did do some bad things, but none of that deserves him to be murdered,” he said.

“Even though he was mixed up in crime and such and the wrong people … he did actually helped people out, he always looked out for his friends and his colleagues, he was kind to them.

“He made sure if someone was down on their luck, he gave them a somewhere to stay, gave them a meal. He was generous in that way.”

Mr Purse said he will always be saddened by the circumstances that led to his son’s death.

“He was a good brother to his siblings and a good and kind son to his parents,” he said.