Missing man’s brother lashes out at Leveson search site

THE brother of missing man Matthew Leveson has lashed out at media as the search for his brother’s possible bush grave continues.

Jason Leveson, the brother of Matthew Leveson, tries to stop TV crews filming his family at the search site in the Royal National Park near Waterfall. Picture: John Appleyard

THE brother of missing man Matthew Leveson has lashed out at media as the search for his brother’s possible bush grave continues.

Jason Leveson yelled “vultures” and grabbed at several cameras as photographers and TV crews filmed a woman placing flowers at the Royal National Park, where detectives have been led by the 20-year-old’s boyfriend Michael Atkins.

Mother Faye Leveson told her son to “stop it” before he was escorted away by a man believed to be a 60 Minutes producer.

No one was injured.

Jason Leveson, the brother of Matthew Leveson, tries to stop the media filming on the scene where NSW Police and Forensic officers continue their search at the site where they believe his brother Matthew Leveson is buried, Picture: AAP / Brendan Esposito.

NSW Police and Forensic officers continue their search for Matthew Leveson’s body in the Royal National Park, near Waterfall south of Sydney, on Sunday. Picture: AAP /Brendan Esposito.

Jason Leveson, the brother of Matthew Leveson, is pulled away after trying to stop TV crews filming his family at the search site. NSW Police are looking for the body of Matthew Leveson following evidence uncovered during the coronal inquest into his death. Picture: John Appleyard

The family and friends of Matthew Leveson, who was last seen leaving Darlinghurst’s ARQ nightclub in the early hours of September 23, 2007, have spent days watching as police used a digger to rip through matted undergrowth and scour the dense bush for remains.

The small team have combed the uneven ground covered with fallen trees using surveying equipment but so far haven’t unearthed any trace of Mr Leveson.

Michael Atkins reportedly took police to this site on Thursday where officers are searching for any trace of his former partner Matthew Leveson, who was last seen leaving ARQ nightclub in Darlinghurst in September 2007. Picture: AAP /Brendan Esposito

NSW Police and Forensic officers continue their search at the site where it is believed Matthew Leveson is buried, in the Royal National Park, near Waterfall south of Sydney. Picture: AAP /Brendan Esposito

Investigators were led there by Mr Atkins, Mr Leveson’s former lover, who was in 2009 acquitted of his murder.

For nine years he had refused to tell the family what had happened to Mr Leveson but relented after being forced to give evidence at a NSW coronial inquest where he admitted to lying to police and being offered conditional immunity from prosecution.

Michael Atkins has led police to a site in the Royal National Park in the search for Matthew Leveson’s body. Picture: AAP Image/Joel Carrett.

Matthew Leveson, a 20 year old gay man from Cronulla, was murdered on September 23, 2007. His partner, Michael Peter Atkins, was charged with his murder but later acquitted.

Michael Atkins and Matthew Leveson the night before he went missing.

Police began searching bush, not far from a bend in the road, last week after the inquest.

Mr Atkins maintained he thought Mr Leveson would return and suggested he may have vanished to Thailand to start a new life.

The family didn’t believe this, with Mr Leveson’s father Mark asking if the “lies” were the best he could come up with after nine years. According to Mr Atkins, the men had left the ARQ nightclub sometime between 2am and 3am because his much-younger lover had taken too many drugs and was pulling “manky faces.” That was the last time Mr Leveson was seen alive.

That same day Mr Atkins bought a mattock and tape and sensationally claimed they were for digging a vegetable garden at the Cronulla unit the men shared. Two days later Mr Atkins and Mr Leveson’s parents, Mark and Faye, reported him missing after he failed to turn up for work.

The parents have never stopped looking for Mr Leveson and fought to have the coronial inquest reopened hoping something would lead them to the remains of their son.

Originally published as Missing man’s brother lashes out at Leveson search site