Police call off latest search for William Tyrrell

Words: Nicholas Jensen Producer: Louise Starkey

The month-long search for the remains of missing toddler William Tyrrell has come to an end after forensic investigators failed to uncover his body.

NSW Police relaunched their search for evidence across multiple sites in Kendall in mid-November, where the three-year-old vanished from the home of his foster grandmother in September 2014.

The large-scale operation involved hundreds of police officers and volunteers who scoured bushland, waterways and several locations of interest.

The decision to revive the search for William was made in response to new evidence "obtained over the course of the investigation" and was "not speculative in any way".

Investigators focused their search at a site about 900m from the property William went missing from on Benaroon Drive, Kendall, on September 12, 2014. Authorities also seized the foster grandmother's car from its new owner. No charges have ever been laid in connection to his death.

Investigators collected multiple items of interest, including animal bones, pieces of material and fabric, soil samples and plastic bags in the course of their search. One piece of fabric was reportedly compared to a sample of a red and blue Spider Man suit — the costume William wore on the day of his disappearance.

"Numerous exhibits have been seized which have been progressed forensically through Newcastle into Sydney and the progress of those results have been submitted to the coroner to assist with the inquest."

Darren Bennett Police Detective Chief Superintendent

William was last seen outside the family at Heatherbrae McDonalds, north of Newcastle, on September 11, 2014.

About 9.30am on September 12, 2014, the toddler's foster mother recalled seeing a car drive past and do a u-turn in a neighbour's driveway. At 10.57am the same day, she called police on the landline to report William going missing about 10.30am. Shortly after, at 11.06am, the first police officer arrived at Benaroon Drive.

Later that day, veteran sniffer dog PD Gov was unable to locate any scent of William from the garden to the nearby forest, indicating he did not wander off.

On September 16, 2014, Strike Force Rosann was established to investigate William's disappearance, which Inspector Gary Jubelin became in charge of in February 2015. In 2016, a $1million reward was offered by the NSW government for information leading to the discovery of William's whereabouts.