National Missing Persons Week: Heartbreaking stories from Sydney’s west
We take a look back on some of the mysterious missing persons stories, including a woman who went missing from Penrith Plaza and another who was last seen buying baby clothes in Target at St Marys.
Penrith
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More than 38,000 missing persons reports are received by police each year.
While most are found within a short amount of time, there are still more than 2500 long-term missing persons.
For National Missing Persons Week, we take a look at some of the cases that have links to Penrith and the Blue Mountains.
Lynette Melbin (5/6/1972)
Lynette Melbin was 15 years old when she went missing from Penrith Plaza on June 5, 1972.
She’d told her mother earlier that day at the Woolworths that she was going home to change before heading to her boyfriend’s house.
They agreed that Lynette would be picked up at 5.30pm, but when her mum arrived at her boyfriend’s house she was told Lynette had never arrived.
The last known sighting of Lynette was at a bus stop outside Penrith Plaza – she has not been seen or heard from since then, and no remains have ever been found.
The case had a new lead in 2006 when a witness identified a man seen with Lynette before she went missing.
The witness told police they had seen Lynette with a man that was much older than her, and it was out of character for her to be with him.
Lynette Melbin would now be 63 years old.
Ursula Barwick (1987)
A little different from the other cases in this list as it is a solved missing person’s case – with a twist.
Ursula Barwick was 17 when she boarded a train at Tuggerah on the Central Coast bound for Sydney in 1987.
It would be the last time her family would see her alive.
Ursula was officially missing for almost 30 years before a breakthrough in her case in 2015.
Police discovered Ursula had taken on the pseudonym ‘Jessica Pearce’ when she arrived in Sydney.
On October 27, 1987, Ursula was driving with three other people along the Hume Hwy when their car collided with a semi-trailer near Tarcutta.
Ursula was killed in the accident, but a friend gave her name as ‘Jessica’ when asked about her.
Her body lay unidentified in a Sydney morgue for 15 months before she was buried in Emu Plains under the name Jessica Pearce.
A coroner officially recognised Ursula Barwick’s death in 2018.
Gregory Bennett (4/11/1988)
Gregory Bennett was 41 when he was last seen by a friend at a house in the Lemongrove area of Penrith on November 4, 1988.
Police believe Bennett may have moved to a commune type area somewhere in the Blue Mountains, but he hasn’t been seen since.
His family hold grave concerns for his welfare.
Mr Bennett would now be 72 years old.
Tracey Valesini (8/1/1993)
Tracey Valesini attended Campbelltown court on January 8, 1993 at the age of 20. It was the last time her family would see her.
She failed to attend a subsequent hearing on January 21, and there have been no confirmed sightings of her since.
Just before Christmas, someone deposited almost $500 into her bank account, then withdrew money from the same account in the Blue Mountains five days later.
A coronial inquest in 2006 ruled that Tracey had most likely died of injuries inflicted by another person.
This came after traces of blood consistent with a gunshot wound were found in a Wentworth Falls house that Tracey lived in until May, 1993.
Tracey’s body has never been found.
Belinda Peisley (26/9/1998)
Belinda Peisley visited Katoomba Hospital after being hit in the face during a party on September 26, 1998.
She left the hospital at about 8.50pm, and called her mother at 10.30pm. She would never be seen or heard from again.
One of the most infamous missing person’s cases in the Blue Mountains, Belinda Peisley’s disappearance remains unsolved 22 years later.
When a friend visited Belinda’s address on Trow Ave, Katoomba, the next day, she found her bag stuffed down the back of a couch with her wallet inside.
Her then boyfriend then visited the home on September 28 and reported that the front door was opened and windows had been smashed.
Police attended the home on September 29, and one officer remembered seeing what appeared to be blood in the bathroom.
A 2012 inquest found that Belinda had most likely died shortly after her disappearance, and her death was most likely the result of injuries sustained from another person.
In 2018, police found three pieces of clothing underneath Belinda’s home. No remains were found.
Mark Taylor (14/3/2000)
Mark Taylor was last seen on March 14, 2000, at his family home in Wentworth Falls.
The 34-year-old left the property sometime between 8am and 2pm, and hasn’t been seen or heard from since.
He didn’t take any personal belongings with him when he disappeared.
He would be 53 years old today.
Kellie Carmichael (29/4/2001)
Kellie Ann Carmichael was 24 years old when she arrived at a Katoomba hotel during a vacation from her Geelong home.
She was last seen by staff of the hostel on April 29, 2001, when she checked out of the lodge ready to fly back to Geelong later that day.
She never returned home.
Police have found personal items that Kellie took with her on her trip, but no sign of Kellie has ever been found.
Kellie’s disappearance was originally treated as a potential suicide, but a homicide investigation begun in 2004 after a tip.
A coroner ruled in 2009 that Kellie had most likely died, but was unable to determine a time or place or the circumstances behind her death.
No remains have ever been found.
Jennifer Keegan (11/1/2010)
Jennifer Keegan, 52, was last seen at her Kingswood address by a neighbour on January 5, 2010.
She was reported missing the next day.
During investigations, Jennifer’s yellow 1981 Datsun Sunny was found abandoned at the Govetts Leap carpark in Blackheath.
A search of the area found no trace of Jennifer, and her car held no clues as to her whereabouts.
The last known sighting of Jennifer occurred on the afternoon of January 5 when she was seen on CCTV buying fuel on Parker St.
At the time, police said they weren’t ruling out misadventure as a cause of Jennifer’s disappearance, but were investigating who had driven her car to the lookout.
She would be 65 today.
Michael Ryan (10/12/2012)
Michael Ryan left his home on Hemmings St, Penrith, early in the hours of December 10, 2012.
He was reported missing the next day when he failed to return home.
His family said Michael did not take any extra clothing with him when he left.
Katherine Ackling-Bryen (19/2/2016)
Oxley Park woman Katherine Ackling-Bryen was reported missing by her husband when she failed to pick up her two daughters from school on February 19, 2016.
She was captured on CCTV buying children’s clothes from the Target in St Marys just after midday, but hasn’t been seen since she left the store.
A coroner ruled in 2017 that Katherine had died on or soon after her disappearance, but was unable to determine a cause of death.
The coronial inquest heard Katherine had suffered mental-health issues in the lead-up to her disappearance, and her husband does not believe she is still alive.
However, no remains have ever been found, and she is still officially listed as a missing person.
She would be 42 years old.
Elizabeth O’Pray (7/3/2016)
76-year-old Elizabeth O’Pray left her Medlow Bath home on March 7, 2016 to go for a walk, but she never returned home.
A resident later told police they heard cries from below Peckham’s Plateau at about 6.45pm on March 11, but it’s not known whether this was Ms O’Pray.
Police launched a large search in the hours after her disappearance, but no trace of Elizabeth was ever found.
It is believed she went missing somewhere near the Katoomba Airfield.
Michael Maher (25/4/2019)
Michael Maher was supposed to board a flight to Fiji on April 25 last year, but he never made it.
Instead, his passport and personal belongings were found at his Toongabbie house the next day.
His white Mitsubishi Pajero was later discovered in the Blue Mountains, and he was known to frequent the south coast where he has family.
Police hold serious concerns for Michael’s safety, but no trace of him has ever been found.