Hold off private Bronwyn search for now, say lawyers and brother
Any unofficial search for Bronwyn Winfield at a Sydney property where she may be buried under concrete could have dangerous pitfalls, say lawyers and family | NEW EPISODE
Any unofficial search for missing mother Bronwyn Winfield at a Sydney property where she may be buried under a concrete slab could have dangerous pitfalls while a live police investigation is under way.
Lawyers and Bronwyn’s brother Andy Read are united in believing a coroner and police should be given time to investigate the site before the owners are approached for permission for a private search.
The possibility of approval being sought for private examinations of the property is canvassed in a new episode of The Australian’s investigative podcast Bronwyn.
The owners of the Illawong property in southern Sydney could authorise the podcast to do a search, lawyer Dan Williams confirmed.
“They’re in control of their own property. But given that the reply from the coroner does indicate that there is a current investigation by the police … I would be inclined not to approach the owners for that purpose,” he said.
State coroner Teresa O’Sullivan’s office last week informed Mr Read, that his formal request for the property to be examined would be “considered in due course upon the completion of the current investigation”.
Before the podcast’s launch in May 2024, detectives from the NSW Police unsolved homicide team were adamant to Mr Read that they had exhausted all options and that there was no more they could do without further evidence.
New witnesses have since emerged during the series including retired nurse Judy Singh, who fears she saw Bronwyn’s estranged husband Jon Winfield transporting her body wrapped in sheets in the back of the family’s Ford Falcon.
Mr Winfield, who has always emphatically denied any involvement, was working at the Illawong property before and after Bronwyn disappeared from Lennox Head on the state’s far north coast in May 1993.
Council documents show a concrete pour was imminent at the site, where a house was being built at the time. Mr Read believes his sister may be buried under the garage and patio concrete slab.
He said he was “frustrated at the slow pace” of police investigations but had to trust appropriate checks would be done.
Lawyer Karina Berger, who has experience in coronial inquests and has been assisting the podcast, said it was reasonable for the coroner to await the results of ongoing police investigations.
“What the coroner seems to have said is that she’ll consider the application but wants to make an informed decision and wants police to conclude their investigations,” Ms Berger said.
“We should only get involved at this site if that’s the last resort because the police and the coroner won’t act.”
Mr Williams said it “might be suggested that there is a possibility that you have changed the evidence or planted evidence on that site” if any was discovered.
“There may come a time when it becomes clear that neither the coroner nor the police are going to take the matter further and at that point I guess you could revisit your options,” he told the podcast.
Do you know more about this case? Contact Hedley Thomas on bronwyn@theaustralian.com.au
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