Missing campers’ likely burial place revealed; ring uncovered in search
The bush grave where Russell Hill and Carol Clay were believed to be buried has been revealed, but crucial details remain a mystery in a case that is only just beginning to unfold.
Victoria
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The grim scene where the missing high country campers’ bodies were allegedly buried has been seen for the first time as police concluded their search of the site.
Detectives from the missing persons squad finished their three-day search of the suspected burial ground of slain campers Russell Hill and Carol Clay in Victoria’s high country on Wednesday.
The remote Union Spur Track became a major crime scene last Thursday when police received new information about the location of the human remains of Mr Hill and Mrs Clay.
It is alleged the remains were buried in a shallow grave under a rootball hole — a pit caused by a large tree falling over.
Meanwhile, a ring found at the crime scene may hold the key to give two grieving families closure.
Personal belongings found at the scene, including jewellery and a set of dentures, may offer the families of Mrs Clay and Mr Hill closure after 20 months of uncertainty.
DNA testing of bone fragments will continue over coming days as experts search for conclusive evidence they belong to the pair.
Other key lines of inquiry for police working the case will be results from forensic testing of a Nissan Patrol vehicle that was seized last week.
They will also investigate any leads after a public appeal to find a trailer sold on Gumtree between March and July last year, believed to be linked to the deaths of the campers.
Police are also yet to find Mr Hill’s drone – a new purchase at the time he and longtime family friend Mrs Clay went missing.
On Wednesday, Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Bob Hill drove from Melbourne to visit the crime scene.
He praised the tight-knit team led by missing persons squad boss Detective Inspector Andrew Stamper along with case lead Detective Senior Constable Brett Florence.
The pair has navigated one of Australia’s most high-profile alleged murder investigations, culminating in charging Jetstar pilot Gregory Lynn, 55, with two counts of murder over the alleged deaths of the missing campers last week.
It is alleged the campers were murdered on March 20 last year, hours after they set up camp in the Wonnangatta valley.
Their campsite was found charred by other campers in the area who raised the alarm to local police.
Mr Lynn, a father-of-three, was an experienced bushman who loved to fish, camp and take 4WD trips in regional Victoria.
He had also hiked the Kokoda Trail alone.
Mr Lynn will next appear in court on May 31 next year.
GRIM DISCOVERY IN BUSHLAND
Tuesday’s discovery of human remains came just five hours after police hired a large excavator to help them with their search.
Police investigating the pair’s death were stationed at the Union Spur Track in the Grant Historic area, 120km north of Sale.
Detectives working the case are hopeful they will finally be able to bring closure to the two grieving families.
The site is 24km north of Dargo and 6km north of a police roadblock.
Until Monday, it had not previously been searched by the force and details of the exact location of the site had not been made public.
Mr Hill’s best mate, Rob Ashlin, said the discovery was welcome news.
“It will be a huge relief for the families,” he said.
“It’s what I wanted them to find. I’m a good friend but the family is blood stock.
“It will be a big relief for them.”
He said Mr Hill’s amateur radio group had camped at nearby Talbotville many times.
DETAILS OF PAINSTAKING SEARCH
Detectives were looking for bones and had not called upon cadaver dogs for what they were hoping would be the final chapter of the extensive investigation.
The search area was contained to a 20x20m perimeter.
The meticulous process began with an excavator scooping a small pile of bushland before it was placed on to a blue tarp.
From there, detectives removed rocks and sticks from the tarp with their hands before placing the dirt through a sifter.
Any potential bone fragments were brushed and examined before being moved to a separate station where forensic experts bagged and processed their discoveries.
The Herald Sun understands the track is regularly used by deer hunters and has been regularly frequented over the past 20 months.
A challenge for police is that the area has been disturbed by extreme weather, as well as high foot traffic.
Dargo local Harry Hall brought a large yellow excavator to the police search site on Tuesday.
He described the terrain as difficult.
“We’re just doing a bit of earthwork up here,” Mr Hall said.
“It’s rough, mountainous, steep.
“It is definitely not easy.”
“We are digging about, doing the best we can.”
Mr Hall said he felt “privileged” to be involved in the investigation.
“Just happy to help to get a bit of closure for the families.”
Police first moved in on the suspected burial ground of Mr Hill and Ms Clay in Victoria’s high country on Monday.
Dozens of officers from the missing persons squad, the search and rescue squad, and the major crime scene unit squad, as well as forensic specialists assembled in Dargo — about 120km north of Sale — ahead of one of the force’s most high-profile search operations in recent years.
Police described the landscape within the Grant Historical Area search site as a “dangerous environment” with “risky terrain”.
Four unmarked vehicles, one carrying a quad bike, entered the cordoned-off area about 2pm Monday and completed several hours of work.
Missing persons squad boss Detective Inspector Andrew Stamper remained tight-lipped on the renewed search effort.
The search zone is one of Victoria’s most remote areas, with rough roads making the deployment of a high level of resources a laborious process.
CAMPERS MOVED ON FROM SEARCH ZONE
Campers who had unknowingly set up in the search zone were moved on by police in preparation.
Robert West, from Port Melbourne, came up to the area for a camping trip with a mate.
He said he desperately hoped police would find the remains of the campers.
“It’s so sad,” he said of the alleged murders.
“I hope they can find them for the sake of the families.”
Mr West regularly camps in the area and said he believed it would be “easy” to dispose of bodies.
“There are a couple of mine shafts going into the hills,” he said.
“There is a cemetery, too. I’m taking a punt — what’s a better place to hide a body than a cemetery?”
Bairnsdale resident Tristian Rose planned to camp in an area not far from the search site on Monday.
He said he witnessed some police officers about 15km north of the roadblock.
“There’s heaps of road-closed signs and police tape,” he said.
ARREST AFTER 20-MONTH MYSTERY
Jetstar pilot Gregory Lynn was last week charged with murdering the pair and has been remanded in custody.
The 55-year-old was charged last Thursday with two counts of murder following a gruelling 20-month investigation by detectives from the missing persons squad.
He was arrested last Monday when special operations group officers converged on a remote campsite near Arbuckle Junction in east Gippsland.
Before being charged, Mr Lynn spent three days in custody, during which he was questioned at length by missing persons squad officers.
Police have declined to say whether they have zeroed in on Monday’s search zone because of information gleaned in that interview.
Mr Hill, 74, of Drouin, and Mrs Clay, 73, of Pakenham, set off for the high country on March 19 last year, arriving at Wonnangatta a day later.
Their campsite was seen the next morning by a passer-by who noticed their tent and furniture had been wrecked by fire.
Mr Hill’s Toyota four-wheel-drive was still at the site but his new drone was missing.
One theory is that they were murdered within hours of Mr Hill making a final amateur radio call to a mate just after they arrived on the evening of March 20.
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