Police release digital facial reconstruction to help solve 2012 body found in bag at Tweed

Police have released a new digital forensic facial reconstruction in an effort to solve the mystery of a man whose body was found in a bag on the banks of a Northern NSW river in 2012.

DO YOU KNOW THIS MAN? As part of Missing Persons Week 2021, Tweed/Byron Police District are renewing a nationwide appeal to help identify a man shown here as an artist's impression, whose decomposed body was found on the state's Far North Coast almost a decade ago.

The body in the bag mystery was a sad discovery which has perplexed police and the Northern Rivers community since 2012.

Now, by issuing a digital forensic facial reconstruction of the man whose decomposed body was found in a bag on the bank of the Tweed River, police hope to solve the mystery of his identity bring peace to the man’s family.

As part of Missing Persons Week 2021, Tweed/Byron Police District announced they were renewing a nationwide appeal to help identify a man whose decomposed body was found nine years ago.

Police said about 7pm on Saturday, November 24, 2012, a cotton-fibre style bag was found on the banks of the Tweed River at Tumbulgum, about 10km east of Murwillumbah, by a member of the public.

While a post mortem examination was unable to determine the man’s cause of death, with no visible signs of injury and the body heavily decomposed, it did establish that the man was caucasian and aged between 50 and 70, was 163cm tall, with a thin build and grey hair tied in a ponytail with a blue band. The man wore dentures.

Despite exhaustive inquiries and comparisons to missing persons cases from across the country, detectives were not able to identify the man at the time.

Tweed/Byron detectives established Strike Force Tukara to investigate the man’s death and to determine his identity.

A coronial inquest in 2013 returned an open finding, explaining that the man could not be identified, and the date, place, manner and cause of his death were undetermined.

Strike force detectives have worked closely with forensic experts to conduct a range of DNA tests, including phenotyping, which involves using genetic sequencing to predict a person’s physical characteristics.

In early 2020, investigators engaged a forensic artist from the Centre for Anatomy and Human Identification at the University of Dundee in Scotland to construct a 3D virtual sculpture and digital forensic facial reconstruction.

Tweed/Byron PD Crime Manager, Detective Chief Inspector Brendon Cullen, pleaded with people to take the time to look at the facial reconstruction, hoping they may recognise this man from their past.

“We have no doubt there are friends and family members somewhere around Australia who have a relative or loved one who just vanished – perhaps they weren’t listed as a missing person at the time,” he said.

“Any piece of information which could help us find out who he is will help us establish his links, his history, his associates, and ultimately determine the circumstances surrounding his death.”

Police and Emergency Services Minister David Elliott said police need help from the community to give this man back his rightful identity.

Anyone with information about this investigation is asked to contact Tweed Heads Police Station or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au.

Information is treated in strict confidence. The public is reminded not to report information via NSW Police social media pages.