Zac Barnes inquest: Witnesses reveal vanished teen’s chilling last words

Key witnesses say a missing New South Wales teenager was not himself before he walked into bushland, never to be seen again.

A friend of missing teenager Zac Barnes has revealed his final words before he vanished into bushland.

Mr Barnes, 18, stepped out of Matt Hindwood’s car near Thornton train station in NSW Hunter region on November 13, 2016, and has not been seen since.

Mr Hindwood told an inquest into Mr Barnes’ death that he had turned up at his home on the Friday before he went missing after losing his job.

Mr Hindwood and his partner Courtney Jones were the last people to see Mr Barnes alive, Daily Mail reports.

The trio had become close friends since meeting at TAFE nine months earlier, but Mr Barnes’ demeanour during that weekend was markedly different.

“He was upset and didn’t seem himself,” Mr Hindwood told the inquest at NSW Coroner’s Court on Tuesday.

Maitland teen Zac Barnes has been missing since 2016. Pic: Facebook.

Mr Barnes’ drug use was evident during the weekend at the East Maitland home, and on Sunday night, things took a turn for the worse.

“He was definitely stressed; I could tell he wasn’t his laughing character he normally was,” Mr Hindwood said.

The pair stopped to buy cigarettes during the car ride to drop Mr Barnes off at East Maitland train station.

However, Mr Barnes’ agitation resurfaced en route, and he demanded they stop the car.

“He grabbed the back of the seat and shook it,” Mr Hindwood said.

Mr Barnes was last seen walking into bushland. Pic: Facebook.

Eventually, Mr Barnes got out of the car and walked into bushland.

“He was starting to calm down,” Mr Hindwood recalled.

“He said, ‘I’m going to see a mate up the road,’ and that I’d see him tomorrow and don’t stress. He gave me a hug and said, ‘I’ll see you tomorrow’.”

That was the last anyone saw or heard from Mr Barnes.

Despite efforts from his family to report him missing, questions arose about the urgency of the police response.

Mr Barnes told mates he was going to meet friend up the road. Pic: Facebook.

According to Detective Senior Constable Christopher Walker, who took charge of the investigation eight days later, no risk assessment was done into the urgency of the search surrounding Mr Barnes’s disappearance.

The young man’s family, who have been present throughout the inquest, told media they hope proceedings will finally provide the answers they’ve sought for the past seven years. “This is the day we’ve (been) fighting for a long time, and we’re hoping to get some answers,” Mr Barnes’ mother told reporters outside the court.

“We’re hoping to bring our boy home, whether he’s alive or not.”

Despite a search by NSW Police, no signs of Mr Barnes have ever been found.

Questions have been raised about the length of time it took for detailed searches to begin.

The proceedings continue and are expected to wrap up this week.