Matthew Mitchell: Reward for information after Sandy Beach tragedy

A mother has opened up on the terrible toll of losing her son - and the pain of not knowing exactly what happened the night he was found by the side of a Coffs Coast road.

Matthew Mitchell was found by the side of the road in Graham Drive, Sandy Beach, in 2013, after being struck by a motor vehicle, a Coroner's Court found.

A mum whose son died after an incident at Sandy Beach nine years ago says the lingering anguish of not knowing what happened that night continues to torment.

Matthew Mitchell, who was 30 at the time of his death, was found on Graham Drive with a serious head injury after a nearby party on August 17, 2013.

A coroner’s inquest in 2016 found that Mr Mitchell sustained the injury after being struck by an unidentified vehicle.

He was flown to Sydney’s Royal North Shore Hospital where he remained in a coma for about a month, until he died of complications from his head injury on September 19.

Julie Mitchell has a folder of tears - filled with statements and documents about the case.

His mother, Julie Mitchell, is still not 100 per cent sure what happened.

“The hospital informed us no way was it a car (which caused the injuries),” Ms Mitchell said.

She said her son was tall and expected his body would have sustained multiple grazes if he had been hit by a vehicle.

Magistrate Helen Barry wrote in the Coroner’s Court findings that: “I am satisfied on the evidence that Matthew was killed as a result of a motor vehicle collision”.

“There is insufficient evidence, to establish to the required standard, the identity of the person driving the vehicle.”

The findings said an autopsy in 2013 found the cause of death to be a head injury caused by a blunt object.

“The absence of described other injuries to the organs of the body and the skeletal structures is not typical of a pedestrian v motor vehicle collision,” the initial autopsy stated.

Matthew Mitchell grew up in Sandy Beach and loved football and surfing.

But a further report in 2015 found it was “entirely possible” Mr Mitchell’s injury could have been as a result of impact with a car.

The autopsy report found considerable force had been applied to Mr Mitchell and his injury could not have been caused by a fist or falling and hitting his head.

The pain of not knowing for certain what happened to her son bites hardest for Ms Mitchell.

She said it was scraped raw again this week as he would have marked his 39th birthday.

“He wasn’t a big drinker, but he probably would have had a few beers with his mates (to celebrate),” she said.

Ms Mitchell, who lives in Geelong, said her son had been on a pension, after breaking his back as a 17-year-old in a work accident - spending close to a year in a wheelchair.

The uncertainty surrounding the incident which claimed her son’s life had exacted a terrible toll on the family.

Mr Mitchell’s father, Peter, had moved back to Coffs Harbour in a search for answers.

Peter Mitchell at the memorial he made to his son.

“He (Peter) passed away last year, he was only 61,” Ms Mitchell said.

“He went to sleep and never woke up.

“It was the heartache which killed him.”

Ms Mitchell said investigating police had been in touch over the years, and she had a folder of tears - filled with statements and documents about the case.

In 2018, a reward of $300,000 was posted for information which could crack the case and Ms Mitchell said that remains on the table.

“I’d hate for it (her son’s death) to be forgotten,” she said.