William Tyrrell’s foster mum pleads not guilty to misleading crime commission
The foster mother of the missing toddler has pleaded not guilty to giving false or misleading evidence to the crime commission.
The foster mother of missing toddler William Tyrrell has pleaded not guilty to providing false or misleading evidence to the NSW Crime Commission.
The woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was charged with providing false or misleading evidence in April.
While it remains unclear what information is alleged to have been false or misleading, the allegation is related to evidence she gave during a hearing into William’s disappearance from his foster grandmother’s home in September 2014.
The foster mother and her solicitor did not appear at Tuesday’s mention at the Downing Centre Local Court, with the registrar receiving correspondence saying she would plead not guilty.
In March, the foster father of the missing boy was charged with a similar allegation for the information he provided to the state’s Crime Commission, and has also pleaded not guilty.
It is the latest in a string of charges that comes after the foster parents of the missing boy were charged with stalking and intimidation by NSW Police.
The couple has pleaded not guilty to a separate count of common assault against a child, which allegedly occurred at a home in Sydney last November.
The woman faces two counts of stalking and intimidation, as well as two counts of common assault against a child, who is not William.
The man is alleged to have committed one count of common assault and one count of stalking and intimidation against a child.
Those charges are unrelated to William.
Strike Force Rosann, which was established to investigate William’s disappearance, conducted a new search for the boy in three areas surrounding Kendall on the NSW Mid-North coast.
It is understood detectives were searching for William’s remains in the belief his body was disposed of in the bush rather than buried in the area.
Detectives were told any potential remains of William would be in the dam or creek only if they had naturally moved from their original location over time.
Despite a $1 million reward, no one has been arrested or charged over William’s disappearance.
The maximum sentence for misleading the NSW Crime Commission is five years imprisonment.
The foster mother is due to return to the Downing Centre Local Court on June 7.
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