Cleo Smith and William Tyrrell cases have chilling similarities

Veteran homicide Detective Gary Jubelin was instantly reminded of William Tyrrell when he saw the heartbreaking news that four-year-old Cleo Smith had vanished.

It’s now been more than a week since four-year-old Cleo Smith disappeared from a WA camp site and former homicide Detective Gary Jubelin - along with the rest of Australia - has been holding his breath for her safe return.

After four years leading the investigation into missing three-year-old William Tyrrell, Jubelin knows first-hand the protracted and painful aftermath of a missing child, especially when there’s suspicion of foul play.

“When children disappear it does resonate with me and sort of brings me back to William’s disappearance and I think everyone would probably feel the same way,” Jubelin said.

“It’s something that, and I think I’m not alone in thinking, ‘oh well, let’s hope there’s a happy ending with this one and it’s not a mystery that can’t be solved.”

Former homicide Detective Gary Jueblin knows first-hand the protracted and painful aftermath of a missing child Picture: John Appleyard

William was last seen on September 12, 2014, playing in his Spider-Man suit at his foster grandmother’s house in Kendall, on NSW mid north coast.

Seven years on, the little boy – presumed abducted – has never been found and an inquest into his disappearance and suspected death at the NSW Coroners Court is yet to deliver findings.

But for the best possible result, how the first hours and days are handled is critical.

“The focus should always be on recovering the child and 99.9 per cent of the time that happens.

“It’s these very rare cases where answers aren’t forthcoming that create the mystery, so the importance of making sure that any available evidence is gathered in the initial stages is vitally important,” Jubelin said.

While every case comes with its own set of specific circumstances, Jubelin advocates for a dual approach in which police prioritise finding the child but concurrently begin investigating as if a crime may have occurred.

William Tyrrell was last seen on September 12, 2014

Chloe Smith who vanished from her tent while camping with her family in West Australia.

“The urgency should never be underestimated to find the child, but the ideal situation running parallel with that is the investigation, depending on the circumstances … the sooner that the detectives are on the ground, the better. As soon as information is being gathered and assessment, collated, analysed, the better,” he said.

Jubelin earned himself a reputation as one of the nation’s top homicide detectives during his 34-year policing career, and was leading the investigation into missing three-year-old William Tyrrell when he was forced to resign after NSW Police charged him with illegally recording a suspect in the case.

“I led the investigation for four years as a Detective Chief Inspector, so I was overseeing the whole investigation. I took the investigation over five months after he disappeared, [and] worked on it for four years. It did cost me my career — there was allegations against me and that I had recorded the legally recorded conversations of a person I was speaking to about William’s matter.”

“Personally, I still haven’t stepped away from the case. It’s very, very dear to me. And I sincerely hope we find out what’s happened to we and the families deserve it. And I think society deserves to find out what happened,” Jubelin said.

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Originally published as Cleo Smith and William Tyrrell cases have chilling similarities