The family of Cheryl Grimmer, a three-year-old girl who vanished from Fairy Meadow beach in New South Wales, Australia, in January 1970, has expressed frustration over the police’s handling of the case. Despite a four-year review, no new evidence has emerged, and three potential eyewitnesses who came forward after a BBC podcast were not formally interviewed. Cheryl’s brother, Ricki Nash, described the situation as ‘total frustration,’ emphasizing that the family cannot move forward without police assistance. The podcast, which has been downloaded five million times, prompted witnesses to share their accounts, including one man who claimed to have seen a teenage boy carrying a child from the beach changing rooms on the day of Cheryl’s disappearance. Retired detective Damian Loone criticized the police for not pursuing these leads, calling it ‘sloppy police work.’ In 2016, a man was charged with Cheryl’s abduction and murder based on a 1971 confession, but the charges were dropped in 2019 after the confession was deemed inadmissible. The family has launched a petition for an inquiry into missing persons investigations, which garnered over 10,000 signatures but has yet to result in action. NSW Police stated that all information received was assessed, but not all leads warranted formal interviews. The case remains unresolved, leaving Cheryl’s family desperate for answers.
Missing Cheryl Grimmer: Family’s anger over police decision not to contact witnesses
