Theo Hayez inquest: Potential for ‘breakthrough’ evidence

New information gleaned from a popular social media app could mark a “potential breakthrough” in the inquest into the disappearance of Belgian backpacker Theo Hayez.

Police rescue search bushland in Byron Bay after the disappearance of Theo Hayez in 2019.

New information into the disappearance of Belgian backpacker Theo Hayez could mark a “potential breakthrough” in a coronial inquest examining the mystery.

The inquest into Theo’s 2019 disappearance started in Byron Bay last year and evidence continued before NSW State Coroner Teresa O’Sullivan on Wednesday.

The 18-year-old was last seen leaving Cheeky Monkey’s nightclub on Jonson Street in Byron Bay about 11pm on May 31, 2019.

He was reported missing on June 6 after he failed to arrive in Melbourne as planned.

He had not contacted family or friends and did not check out of his Byron Bay accommodation.

Ahead of the inquest’s resumption on Wednesday, police announced a $500,000 reward for information about his mysterious disappearance.

Counsel assisting the coroner, Kirsten Edwards, told the inquest of the promise of new information that could help shed more light on Theo’s movements in the final hours before his disappearance.

“There’s been a potential breakthrough and I don’t want to overstate it, your honour, but we know Theo was engaged in some WhatsApp activity just before 1am on the 31st of May,” Ms Edwards said.

This was prior to a “critical” five-hour window when his phone stopped communicating with the nearest tower.

“It was an area of intense focus by the police and by the family very early on in the investigation,” she said.

“A press conference was held, Home Affairs became involved, but nothing was able to be determined about that activity.”

Ms Edwards said the investigating team had now found “somebody who was communicating with Theo on the 31st of May”.

More work is being done to clarify whether they spoke during the most relevant time period.

Theo Hayez inquest: Timeline of his movements

• Wednesday, May 29, 2019: Theo arrived in Byron Bay about 2pm before checking into the Wake Up hostel at Belongil. He paid in full to Monday, June 3 although he was only planning to leave for Melbourne on June 5.
• Before the night of May 31, Theo was in the general vicinity near the Cheeky Monkey's bar at least three times, including at the Woolworths and cinema across the road. It is therefore believed he was not completely unfamiliar with that part of Byron Bay. 
• Thursday, May 31: That morning, Theo told a family member he was tired after being up speaking to a friend on Facebook late the previous night. By the evening, he has met another Belgian traveller and they decide to go out with a group of other people. 
• 9.35pm, May 31: Theo, the other Belgian traveller and four women arrive together at Cheeky Monkey's 
• 11.03pm: Theo is ejected from the club on the basis of alleged intoxication, although evidence about his intoxication is ambiguous. 
• 11.56pm: Theo's phone left the beach and travelled upwards through thick bushland for about eight minutes 
• 12.55am, June 1: Theo sends a message to his step-sister Emma. This is the last message he sends. 
• 1.02am: Theo's phone stopped transmitting data 
• 6.17am: Theo's phone began transmitting data again with a weak signal until it stopped altogether about 1.47pm. 

The inquest is this week hearing evidence from police involved in the first days of their land, air and sea search and a professor of telecommunications.

“We‘ll be looking particularly at areas of the search that we now know, because of the Google data, were areas Theo traversed or had been near,” Ms Edwards said.

Senior Constable Louis Papworth was the land, sea and air search co-ordinator on the first and second day, June 9 and 10, 2019.

The inquest heard Senior Constable Papworth was trained in search techniques in March of that year.

But the course didn’t include training on a crucial computer system used by Police Rescue.

SES volunteers during the search between The Pass and Wategos.

Senior Constable Papworth told the inquest only two participants, including himself, would have had access to the system – the rest were general duties officers – so he was set to be trained in using the system at a later date.

He received that additional training later on, after the Theo Hayez search.

The inquest heard that computer system allowed search co-ordinators to create and add to a “live document” for helpful map layering throughout a complex operation.

This can draw upon GPS data from devices held by the searches.

“Me using a paper map and a laminated map it’s a lot harder to add those layers,” Senior Constable Papworth said.

Laurent Hayez, father of missing Belgian backpacker Theo Hayez, outside Byron Bay Court House during the inquest into his son's 2019 disappearance in December, 2021. Picture: Liana Boss

He said he was not involved in the decision not to begin a formal search until days after Theo was reported missing, and was not aware of the reasons for that delay.

Senior Constable Papworth did however hold concerns about the time that had lapsed since Theo was last seen.

While the “vast majority” of police searches involve a sense of immediacy, nine days had passed since the backpacker left Cheeky Monkeys.

“Being nine days, it was concerning,” he said.

“(I had) concerns there was a possibility Theo was injured or somewhere remote and needed medical attention desperately after nine days.

“That time sort of made it more pressing to search those more secluded areas.”

Reflecting on the process, Senior Constable Papworth said he wished he’d been more proactive in the initial stages to learn more about working theories of Theo’s disappearance.

He told the inquest the Theo Hayez search had the greatest magnitude and complexity of any he had conducted as of June 2019, or since then.