SA Police ask for public help after body of Jasmeen Kaur found in Flinders Ranges shallow grave near Hawker, shoes and ID found in roadside bin
Murder victim Jasmeen Kaur’s ID and shoes have been found stuffed into a roadside bin between Quorn and Hawker.
Police & Courts
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Murder victim Jasmeen Kaur’s shoes, ID and other evidence have been recovered by police after a member of the public found them inside a bin between Quorn and Hawker a day after they appealed to the public to help locate the items.
Major Crime detectives believe Jasmeen Kaur’s alleged killer had been stalking her for weeks, and that he probably abducted her from the nursing home where she worked.
Detective Superintendent Des Bray told ABC Radio Adelaide on Friday a person visiting the Kanyaka Ruins, which is on the road between Quorn and Hawker noticed some odd things in a bin and called police.
“I can say we have recovered from that bin Jasmeen’s identification, the black slip-on shoes we were looking for and also some other important evidentiary items,” Det Supt Bray said.
“That’s just a good example of someone who’s really alert in the community who’s seen things.”
The new revelations come to light as police appeal for public help as they painstakingly re-trace the precise route taken by her alleged killer from Adelaide to the Flinders Ranges.
Senior detectives revealed Jasmeen was most likely abducted from her North Plympton workplace just after 10pm last Friday night, with her alleged killer then driving directly to the remote location she was buried.
Det Supt Des Bray asked for information from anyone who had seen a well-groomed Indian man near Southern Cross Care’s Bucklands nursing home, where Jasmeen worked.
Det Supt Bray said in the weeks prior to Jasmeen’s abduction, the charged man had been driving his own Silver Commodore and this may have been seen near the North Plympton aged care home.
He said detectives were gathering evidence to indicate Jasmeen was being stalked by her alleged killer in the weeks leading up to her death.
Police want to hear from anyone who may have heard or seen anything suspicious in the carpark of Southern Cross Care’s Bucklands nursing home, at North Plympton, around 10pm last Friday
“We believe it to be extremely unlikely that Jasmeen left willingly with anybody,’’ he said.
“If she was taken by force it is possible someone saw something that may be helpful to the investigation.’’
Police are continuing to search for some of Jasmeen’s belongings including a brown handbag, which may have been discarded at a truck stop, parking bay or thrown from the vehicle during the journey.
A plate and a knife may also have been discarded and are being sought as part of the investigation, but neither were used to kill Jasmeen.
Her alleged killer, a 20-year-old Kurralta Park man, was driving a 2009 model blue Holden Commodore – registration S267 CJD – that he had borrowed from a friend for the night.
After leaving the North Plympton premises the car activated a safety camera while heading north on the Sturt Highway at Willaston, near Gawler, at 10.48pm. At 11.30pm it activated a safety camera while heading south.
Detectives believe the driver may have driven on South Road initially, but missed the Port Wakefield Road turn-off and realised he was heading the wrong way before turning around.
The man charged with murdering Jasmeen was driving, but she could not be seen in the vehicle.
Detectives believe after backtracking the vehicle then turned onto Port Wakefield Road and was photographed by the safety camera at Two Wells at 12.09am on Saturday. At 12.40am it activated the safety camera at Port Wakefield as it travelled north.
At 3.07am it activated a safety camera at Stirling North, but detectives do not know if the man drove to Port Augusta or turned right at the Quorn turn-off and headed towards Hawker.
“We would appeal to anyone with dashcam between 10.48pm and about 11pm that night on the road to Gawler or Willaston to make contact with us,’’ Det Supt Bray said.
“Similarly, anyone who was on the Port Wakefield Road between 12.09am and 12.40am on Saturday.’’
Det Supt Bray also appealed for anyone who may have seen the vehicle in Port Augusta after 3.07am Saturday, in case the driver went there to buy food or drinks and then headed towards Hawker.
He said detectives were trying to ascertain where the vehicle was in the 11-hour period between it activating the Stirling North Camera at 3.07am and again at 2.27pm when it was photographed heading south.
“If you take out travelling time, that leaves about eight hours to bury Jasmeen, it is a considerable amount of time unaccounted for,’’ he said.
Jasmeen was reported missing by her aunty and uncle on Saturday after her employer rang them and said she had not arrived for her usual shift.
On Sunday, Major Crime detectives spoke with the man later charged with her murder, who agreed to take them to the burial site north of Hawker, in the Flinders Ranges. Her body was exhumed on Tuesday.
“As a result of that examination, investigators were satisfied that Jasmeen had not died at her own hands and in fact had been the victim of a murder,’’ Det. Supt. Bray said.
A subsequent post mortem examination has confirmed that Jasmeen was murdered, but the cause of death has not been revealed.
It is believed Jasmeen was most likely killed in the early hours of Saturday, but that has not been confirmed.
In Port Augusta Magistrates Court on Tuesday Magistrate Greg Fisher suppressed the identity of the Kurralta Park man, 20, alleged to have murdered Ms Kaur.
A police prosecutor told Magistrate Fisher it was unclear exactly where Ms Kaur was killed and there may be multiple crime scenes yet to be examined by police.
The prosecutor said detectives were still investigating the precise route the charged man took to get to the location north of Hawker, in the Flinders Ranges, where Ms Kaur was buried in a shallow grave in a dry creek bed.
The charged man has been remanded in custody to face court again in December.
On Wednesday Ms Kaur’s family told The Advertiser she was in her final year of studying to be a registered nurse and had made plans to visit her mother in India next year.
Her cousin Ramanpreet Kharoud described how close she was to Ms Kaur.
“She played so many roles in my life,’’ she said.
“She cared for me like a mum and a sister. She was the most helpful person. Her smile was my stress-buster.’’
Ms Kaur lived at Flinders Park with her uncle and aunty and Ramanpreet, with whom she shared a room.
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