Hackers and investigators used in bid to solve disappearance of Tej Chitnis
University student Tej Chitnis disappeared without a trace in 2016, and now police are ramping up their search for the Burwood East boy by employing hackers and investigators to scour for clues.
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The unsolved disappearance of Melbourne university student Tej Chitnis is being probed by an elite team of cyber experts in a fresh push for clues.
Online hackers and investigators have been enlisted to help crack open the 2016 missing persons case.
The experts will scour the internet for new clues on the case.
Any new intelligence will be handed to Australian Federal Police and the National Missing Persons Coordination Centre for investigation.
The intelligence push is a nationwide first and hopes to finally deliver his family with answers.
Mr Chitnis disappeared without a trace on April 27, 2016.
His family raised the alarm after he failed to return to his Bonview Crescent home in Burwood East for his dad’s birthday dinner.
His car, a VW Golf Hatchback, registration TTF 517, was last seen travelling east on Maroondah Highway in Healesville at 11.34am that morning.
Today he would be aged 24.
His is among 12 national missing persons cases put under the microscope at the first-ever National Missing Persons Hackathon in Canberra today.
A total of 354 ethical hackers and investigators will mine the internet for fresh leads on each case.
Assistant Commissioner Debbie Platz hoped the event will provide key information to help police solve the cases.
“Police often say that the community are our eyes and ears. We’re taking this concept to a new level,” she said.
“By involving the community, and in this case hackers, into the search for missing persons, we hope to solve more long-term missing person cases in a way that police could not do alone.”
The joint intelligence push is being led by Australian Federal Police, the National Missing Persons co-ordination Centre, The AustCyber Canberra Cyber Security Innovation Node and Trace Labs, an open-source intelligence gathering group.
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AFP and the NMPCC will investigate any new information generated by hackers.
Mr Chitnis’ and his car have never been located and his disappearance is described as “out of character”.
Mr Chitnis was last seen wearing a T-shirt, jeans and black Adidas runners.
He is between 170-175 cm tall, of Indian appearance with a medium build, with short black hair.
If you have information that may assist police to locate him please call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.