Police renewed $1m plea to put Marea Yann’s murderer behind bars
Victoria Police are hoping to find and secure the conviction of the person who bludgeoned the beloved 69-year-old mother and grandmother in her Healesville home almost 20 years ago.
Victoria Police have announced a $1m reward in a bid to put murdered Victorian woman Marea Yann’s killer behind bars.
The 69-year-old was found dead in her Healesville home by a gardener on September 30, 2003 after she was bludgeoned to death the previous night while resting on her armchair watching TV.
Police said the TV was still on and that there were no signs of forced entry.
Her son-in-law Joseph “James” Chuks Unumadu - who at the time of the murder recently separated from Yann’s daughter - was charged with the murder and stood trial in 2008, but was found not guilty.
The new million-dollar reward is an appeal for information that could lead to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for Yanns’ death.
Detective Superintendent Janet Stevenson of the Victoria Police Crime Command said despite the developments in the decades-old case, it was still “open and unsolved”.
“Marea was a much-loved sister, mother and grandmother and we know her family still feel her loss as keenly as they did almost 20 years ago,” Ms Stevenson said.
“She was a vulnerable older woman who was brutally murdered in the place she should have felt safest.
Superintendent Stevenson said the “smallest piece” of information can make a difference.
“Hopefully this public appeal provides the motivation for someone to contact police after all these years, who can help us solve Marea’s murder.”
A $100,000 reward offered in 2005 and an inquest in 2006 are among the past efforts by police to catch Yann’s killer.
In 2021, The Weekend Australian revealed detectives were reinvestigating the murder and spoke to Yann’s son, Jeff.
“She was a really shining light she was taken from such a brutal violent manner that we could never let this thing go,” Jeff said on Tuesday.
“Mom deserves justice. She never had justice 20 years ago and we’re so lucky to have the support of the community.”
Watch ‘Who Murdered Marea?’ on Wednesday 17 May from 8pm on Sky News Australia.
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