NSW Police apply to increase Rachelle Childs reward from $200,000

Police have taken a major step on the financial reward for information on a woman’s murder, after our investigation into the cold case.

Police have applied to increase a financial reward for information on the murder of Rachelle Childs, following this masthead’s investigation into the cold case.

A week out from the 24th anniversary of the vivacious 23-year-old’s death, this masthead can reveal officers want the sum bumped up from the existing $200,000 to flush out new information.

Rachelle was last seen leaving work in Camden, southwest of Sydney, in her prized 1978 Holden Commodore in June 2001.

Nine hours later, her burnt and half-naked body was found about 100km away near a road in Gerroa.

The case was investigated at the time with a $100,000 reward offered for any information about her killer, but a series of avoidable blunders by NSW Police meant no one was ever charged and Rachelle’s case was never solved.

The reward was doubled to $200,000 in 2011, but no one came forward.

The police probe then effectively stalled with Rachelle’s killer still at large.

Murdered Bargo woman Rachelle Childs.

Rachelle Child's sister Kristy visit Rachelle's grave in Sydney.

Last year, Rachelle’s sister Kristy wrote to NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley to ask her why the case remained unsolved, and to ask if police could lift the reward money to $500,000.

The minister never replied. Her spokesperson previously told this masthead: “The Minister has no role in setting rewards.”

LISTEN TO THE DEAR RACHELLE PODCAST EPISODES BELOW:

Decisions to increase rewards for cold cases start with an application to a board of people who make the final decision, rather than by a single officer or the police minister alone.

However, police have now revealed an application has been made to raise the financial incentive.

“A $200,000 reward remains on offer for information that leads to the conviction of those responsible for Rachelle’s death,” a police spokesperson said.

“And investigators have made an application in support of a proposed increase which remains under consideration.”

NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley. Picture: Tim Hunter

Retired detective Damian Loone. Picture: Jeff Darmanin

The case has been described as “solvable” by retired Detective Sergeant Damian Loone, who helped solve the 1982 murder of Lynette Simms (Dawson) and helped bring her killer – her husband, Chris Dawson – to justice in the 2018 podcast, The Teacher’s Pet.

Loone is now working with the Dear Rachelle multimedia investigation team to try and find Rachelle’s killer.

“The most important part of what happened to Rachelle is that this matter is solvable,” Loone told the Childs family, who marked Rachelle’s 47th birthday last week.

“I can’t promise you that it will get that far. But I tell you what, I’ll have a bloody good go at it.”

The police investigation into Rachelle’s murder was reopened in January, without the knowledge of the Childs family.

For more information about our investigation, visit dearachelle.com.au.

If you have any tips or confidential information, please contact investigative journalist Ashlea Hansen at [e-mail].

You can also join our Dear Rachelle podcast Facebook group.

Originally published as NSW Police apply to increase Rachelle Childs reward from $200,000