Carly McBride: Missing mum’s body found after two years

POLICE have revealed they have spoken with the close friend of Carly McBride’s boyfriend after her body was found in bushland almost two years after she was reported missing.

POLICE are investigating a number of people over the murder of young mother Carly McBride, whose body has been found in bushland almost two years after she was reported missing.

One of the people police have spoken to is James Cunneen, who is currently in jail after police found drugs and weapons at his Muswellbrook property during an extensive search of the region for 31-year-old Ms McBride.

Cunneen, who police believe may be able to assist with their inquiries, is a close friend of Sayle Newson, Ms McBride’s boyfriend who ­reported her missing on September 20, 2014, after he had dropped her at the Muswellbrook home of her former partner Andrew Easton to visit her then-three-year-old daughter.

Mr Newson told police he returned to pick up Ms McBride later that day only to be told Ms McBride had stormed off after an argument and set off to walk to a McDonald’s about 2km away.

Carly Dawn McBride, 31, was last seen on Calgaroo Avenue at Muswellbrook on Tuesday, September 30, 2014.

A homicide investigation began before Ms McBride’s body was found.

Police said all their inquiries indicated Ms McBride never made it to McDonald’s.

“One theory is Ms McBride met her killer after leaving the home where her daughter was while en route to the McDonald’s,’’ Detective Sergeant Ian Wright said yesterday.

Ms McBride’s remains were found after police received new details about her death, which led them to search a rural property outside Scone, about 40km from where she went missing.

Detective Wright said they also found several items which were now undergoing forensic testing.

Strike Force Karabi was set up soon after Ms McBride was reported missing, with detectives convinced early on there was a high likelihood she had met foul play.

The missing mum was believed to be walking to Muswellbrook McDonald’s when she vanished. Picture: Peter Clark

She had left this house in Calgaroo Avenue, Musswellbrook. Picture: Peter Clark

“We have interviewed a large number of people during our investigation who were considered persons of interest,” Sgt Wright said.

“Many were eliminated and we now have a few people­ who remain persons of ­interest.’’

Sgt Wright said although certain people had been identified as possibly being involved in Ms McBride’s death, they were also following other lines of inquiry.

“We’ve been looking closely into Carly’s background and people involved in Carly’s life, including the people involved with Carly around the time of her disappearance,” Sgt Wright said. “Nothing has changed in that ­regard but obviously we are keeping an open mind to all possibilities.”

Police divers searched a farm dam on the outskirts of Muswellbrook last year. Picture by Peter Lorimer.

A preliminary post-­mortem examination established that the remains found in bushland were Ms McBride’s but there was not an immediate or ­obvious cause of death.

Ms McBride had been living at Belmont, near Newcastle and was driven to Muswellbrook by Mr Newson, her boyfriend of three months.

The police investigation has been unrelenting, with US investigators consulted after it emerged Ms McBride’s Facebook profile was ­deleted shortly before her disappearance.

Superintendent Guy Guiana said detectives were now dealing with “a fairly vast volume” of fresh evidence­. “We have got so much new evidence now that it is going to take a lot of work but we are well into it,” Supt Guiana said.

Months of doorknocking residents along Ms McBride’s likely route and inspecting CCTV footage from cameras that might have picked up her movements failed to find any trace of her.

Nor did repeated police searches of nearby dams, properties and stock routes.

Ms McBride’s remains were found on a property near Scone on Sunday.