Adam Coulson: Six months after vanishing, police find body of Hills man in Galston Gorge bushland

The grim discovery of a body in bushland in north Sydney ends months of heartache for a wife and Sydney community who were desperate for his safe return.

The body of a man missing from northwest Sydney has been found – almost six months after his disappearance kicked off a desperate multi-agency search campaign.

Family and friends of 52-year-old Adam Coulson will finally lay him to rest, after police recovered his body from bushland in Galston on February 14.

His body was found near where an army of volunteers had searched when he first went missing in August 2023.

Police have recovered the body of missing man Adam Coulson. Photo: Instagram

A NSW Police spokesman said officers attended bushland off Galston Rd following reports a body had been located by members of the public.

Police established a crime scene and commenced an investigation into the incident, and later identified the missing 52-year-old.

“The matter is not being treated as suspicious and a report is being prepared for the information of the coroner,” the spokesman said.

The tragic discovery ends months of heartache for Mr Coulson’s family, friends and community, who have hoped for months for his safe return.

Maria Terese Coulson shared a heartbreaking tribute to her late husband. Picture: Facebook

In a heartbreaking tribute to her late husband, Maria Terese Coulson, revealed the “devastating news” to social media, saying nothing prepared her for the “shock and pain” of his death.

Mrs Coulson said living without her husband “is like a nightmare”.

“Part of me died with him the day that he died. It’s very hard to cope with the huge loss,” she said.

“Even though we don’t have any anwers, and we may never really know, we now have him home again and he can be laid to rest in love and peace as he deserves.”

The community has rallied around the grieving widow, sharing their own tributes to the “kind and gentle soul” she had lost.

Mr Coulson was well known in the Castle Hill community for his psychic tarot and palmistry readings at the New Moon store in the Castle Towers shopping centre, with more than 25 years reading experience.

Maria Terese said “part of me died the day that [Adam] died”. Picture: Facebook.

In the wake of his disappearance on August 24, hundreds of customers and locals took to social media to plead for his safe return, joining his family’s frantic efforts to bring him home.

Friends and family notified police the Mr Coulson was missing after they were unable to locate or contact him.

A desperate search for Mr Coulson ensued on August 27 after his car was found near a bridge at Galston Gorge.

Over 80 NSW SES and NSW Rural Fire Service volunteers joined NSW Police in combing through the valley in the Berowra Valley Regional Park in North Sydney.

Police decided to “scale down land search operations” in the gorge on September 1, but would continue to conduct inquiries as smaller search operations continued.

Dozens of emergency service volunteers and community members combed through Galston Gorge to find Mr Coulson. Picture: NSW SES Manly Unit / Facebook

Mrs Coulson said her husband was “the most amazing man you could ever meet and he was my everything”.

“We had a fairytale love story and I’m so lucky to have been his wife. I cherish our beautiful memories and I miss him every single day,” she said.

“I take some comfort that he returned to me on Valentines Day, reinforcing our great lvove for each other. It was also his sister’s birthday.”

She said she was “incredibly grateful” to the people who found her husband’s body, even as they were looking for their own “loved one who is also missing in Galston Gorge”.