Siriyakorn ‘Bung’ Siriboon disappearance: Five years since Boronia schoolgirl went missing
IT’S five years since Siriyakorn “Bung’’ Siriboon left her Boronia home to walk to school, vanishing without a trace. But her family say they will never give up hope.
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IT’S five years tomorrow since Siriyakorn “Bung’’ Siriboon left her Boronia home to walk to school just a few minutes away, vanishing without a trace.
Her heartbroken parents say her disappearance has left a hole in their lives, but Fred Pattison and wife Vanidda still cling to the hope they will see their daughter again.
“We still hope and believe she’s alive; we have to,” Mr Pattison, Bung’s stepdad, told Knox Leader.
“There is no evidence otherwise; it’s a feeling in our heart.”
Anyone with information on Bung’s disappearance is urged to phone Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
An area in their Boronia home pays tribute to their missing daughter, set up like a Buddhist temple with candles and incense.
But the pain of the schoolgirl’s disappearance has been too much for Mrs Pattison — she moved back to Thailand because it had been “too hard for her” living in Melbourne.
She has recently made a trip back to Melbourne as her 25-year-old daughter graduates from university.
Mr Pattison told the Knox Leader it felt like longer than five years since Bung disappeared.
“We miss her everyday; it’s like there is part of your life missing, there is a hole there,” Mr Pattison said.
“We think about all the milestones we have missed, all these things we’ve been deprived of; it’s not fair.”
Bung left her home in Elsie St, Boronia, at 8.20am on June 2, 2011, headed for Boronia Heights College, a few minutes’ walk away.
COLD CASE FILES: Search 140+ unsolved Victorian homicide cases
She was seen by a neighbour a short time later in Elsie St, walking towards Albert Ave.
Police have investigated more than 1200 pieces of information but have been unable to find out what happened to Bung. They have previously said they hold grave fears for her.
A $1 million reward remains on offer for leads in the cold case.
Mr Pattison believed “someone has taken” his stepdaughter.
“By who, and by what sort of person I don’t know ... but there is no way she has left of her own accord,” he said.
He believed someone knew what happened to Bung, and urged them to come forward.
He said he still kept in touch with police, but they had told him there was “not a whole lot of new information” available.
“We still hope and believe she’s alive; we have to,” Mr Pattison said.
“There is no evidence otherwise; it’s a feeling in our heart.
“It’s been long enough, we need information, we want information about our daughter, about our angel, we want to know good or bad … if anyone out there knows anything, or suspects anything, come forward and tell the police.”
Meanwhile, Boronia K-12 College (formed in 2012 when Allandale Kindergarten, Boronia Primary School and Boronia Heights College merged) has created a special tribute to Bung, who would have been in Year 12 there this year.
Principal David Rose said they put a plaque in front of a tree in tribute to Bung, which would be lit up at night by a light to “guide” her home.
“Because she was one of our students, it was important for the school to honour her,” Mr Rose said.
He said staff and students who were at the school when Bung disappeared would hold a private ceremony this week to mark the anniversary of her disappearance.
“I think it is still very raw for a number of people who knew Bung at the time,” Mr Rose said.
Knox Leader contacted Victoria Police last week in relation to the anniversary and they did not provide any further information.
BUNG’S DISAPPEARANCE: HOW IT UNFOLDED
JUNE 2, 2011
8am: Bung says farewell to her parents and leaves her Boronia home on foot for the 10-minute walk to Boronia Heights College.
8.25am: A witness spots Bung walking to school in her school uniform. It’s the last official sighting of Bung police can confirm.
4.30pm: Bung’s parents raise the alarm after she fails to return home from school.
JUNE 3, 2011
3pm: Bung’s stepfather Fred Pattison is seen placing missing posters around Boronia Mall.
4pm: Leader breaks the news online about the missing teenager and reports are subsequently carried on television and in daily media.
JUNE 9, 2011
Police rotate an information van across Boronia in a bid to gather new information on the case.
JUNE 21, 2011
The homicide squad ramps up investigations and analyses Bung’s suspected multiple Facebook sites. Police also question 500 people in Boronia and the SES search streets near Boronia Heights College.
JUNE 28, 2011
After three weeks without answers, police fear Bung was abducted.
JULY 12, 2011
AN 11-year-old Boronia girl admits she made up a story about a masked man attempting to abduct her on her way to school.
NOVEMBER 1, 2011
Victoria Police announce the formation of Taskforce Puma to investigate Bung’s disappearance.
JULY 3, 2012
Police reveal they believe Bung may have been abducted by someone local.
AUGUST 13, 2013
Police swoop on Old Joes Creek Retarding Basin to search for clues about Bung’s disappearance, but it proved fruitless.
NOVEMBER 5, 2013
Taskforce Puma shuts down and homicide detectives take charge of the investigation.
DECEMBER 17, 2013
Police reveal they have twice arrested a man who says he killed Bung in a road accident. He was interviewed and released without charge. Police reveal hundreds of sex offenders have been checked and 1000 homes canvassed as part of the inquiry into Bung’s disappearance.
FEBRUARY 2014
Police offer a $1 million reward for information on the cold case.
JUNE 10, 2014
A girl fitting the description of missing teen Siriyakorn “Bung” Siriboon was seen looking through the back window of a car at oncoming traffic the morning she vanished.
JUNE 16, 2015
Four years after the disappearance of Boronia schoolgirl Bung, police are still no closer to finding out what happened to her.
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