Speaker 1: From The Australian. I'm Claire Harvey. We've loved bringing you
Speaker 1: insights from our journals around the nation and the world
Speaker 1: this year. Over this holiday break, we're revisiting some of
Speaker 1: our biggest and best episodes from a huge year in
Speaker 1: the news. This episode originally aired on March one, when
Speaker 1: New South Wales State Coroner Teresa O'Sullivan handed down her
Speaker 1: findings in an inquest into the nineteen ninety seven disappearance
Speaker 1: of Queensland mother Marion Barter. It's hosted by our senior
Speaker 1: reporter Matthew Condon. This is a case that's captivated the
Speaker 1: nation for years, and O'Sullivan said the possible involvement of
Speaker 1: fraudster Rick Bloom Warren's further investigation, directing the authorities to
Speaker 1: send the case to the homicide squad. The Front will
Speaker 1: return with all new episodes on Monday, January thirteen. Just
Speaker 1: hit follow or subscribe to hear the latest every morning.
Speaker 2: Today, I'll be delivering my findings in the inquest into
Speaker 2: the disappearance and suspected death of Florabella Natalia Marion Ramical
Speaker 2: known as Marion Bart and who I'll be referring to
Speaker 2: as Marian that was New.
Speaker 3: South Wales State Coroner Magistrate Teresa O'Sullivan. In a story
Speaker 3: that has more twists, turns and intrigue than a thriller novel.
Speaker 3: Coroner O'Sullivan's somber conclusions in a courtroom in Lidcombe in
Speaker 3: Sydney's West yesterday tied off some chapters in this painful saga,
Speaker 3: but left the door ajar for the hunt for Marion's killer.
Speaker 2: First of all, I'd like to welcome Marion's family and
Speaker 2: friends who are joining us here in person or via
Speaker 2: the live stream today. I'd especially like to acknowledge Marion's
Speaker 2: daughter Sally Layden, and Marian's son in law Chris Leyden,
Speaker 2: and her grandchildren. My thoughts are with you today.
Speaker 3: So here's a recap of one of the most remarkable
Speaker 3: and peculiar missing persons cases in this nation's criminal history.
Speaker 3: Marion Barta, once married to Australian's soccer great Johnny Warren,
Speaker 3: was a well loved teacher at the exclusive the Southport
Speaker 3: School on the Gold Coast, when in mid nineteen ninety seven,
Speaker 3: at aged fifty one, she abruptly resigned her position, sold
Speaker 3: her house and traveled overseas leading up to her trip An.
Speaker 3: Unbeknown to friends and family, she had officially changed her
Speaker 3: name to the elaborate Flora Bella Natalia Marian Ramachel, Returning
Speaker 3: to Australia later in the year without contacting her loved ones,
Speaker 3: she made a series of large cash withdrawals from her
Speaker 3: bank account before she completely disappears. It took more than
Speaker 3: a decade before police began to seriously investigate the Barter mystery.
Speaker 4: Good Morning Everyone, detecting Superintendent Danny Dolty, Commander Homicide Sport
Speaker 4: to State cron Command, a new South Wales government together
Speaker 4: in the New South Wales Police Force announced a two
Speaker 4: und fifty thousand dollar reward relating to the nineteen ninety
Speaker 4: seven disappearance of Marion Bart. Marion Barter was fifty one
Speaker 4: when she was last seen in Scarborough Street near Railway
Speaker 4: Street at Southport in Queensland, at a bus step. In
Speaker 4: the week's leading up to her disappearance, Marion was seen
Speaker 4: with a tall male who was unknown to us and
Speaker 4: to her family.
Speaker 3: Finally, a protracted inquest into the case began on June
Speaker 3: twenty one, twenty twenty one. It ended yesterday Well Coroner
Speaker 3: O'Sullivan found Marian's disappearance to be troubling. She was unequivocal
Speaker 3: about the missing teacher's fate.
Speaker 2: I come now to the formal findings. As a result
Speaker 2: of having considered all of the documentary evidence, the oral
Speaker 2: evidence given at inquests and submissions, I find, on the
Speaker 2: balance of probabilities that Floribella Natalia Marion Ramical, formerly known
Speaker 2: as Marion Barter, is deceased.
Speaker 3: A heartbreaking conclusion for the family and Marion's supporters who
Speaker 3: packed the Lidcom Court yesterday, but hardly unexpected. In late
Speaker 3: nineteen ninety seven, Marian's daughter Sally, officially reported her mother
Speaker 3: missing to Byron Bade Police. Catastrophically, police didn't deem Marian
Speaker 3: as missing, but in fact as a person not wanting
Speaker 3: to be found. Of this decision, the coroner was scathing.
Speaker 2: I find that the nature and adequacy of the police
Speaker 2: investigation into the disappearance of Marian was not adequate.
Speaker 3: But that was just the start of this labyrinth of
Speaker 3: a case. Thanks in part to an Australian podcast, The
Speaker 3: Lady Vanishers, Amateurs Sloths were unleashed on the investigation trying
Speaker 3: to piece together the Marion Barter mystery, and one of
Speaker 3: those sloths made a critical breakthrough linking Marion to a
Speaker 3: Belgian born convicted conman by the name of Rick Blum. Blum,
Speaker 3: now in his eighties and based in Australia since the
Speaker 3: nineteen seventies, had a string of convictions for fraud and
Speaker 3: had in the past gone under at least fifty aliases.
Speaker 3: The inquest heard evidence from vulnerable women who had been
Speaker 3: deceived by Blum as it transpired in wild and perambulating
Speaker 3: evidence before the coroner. Blum confirmed that he had been
Speaker 3: in a relationship with Barta in the months before she disappeared.
Speaker 3: He had also once used the alias Remachel, but he
Speaker 3: vehemently denied he had anything to do with her disappearance.
Speaker 3: In court, Blum denied he had suggested to Barter that
Speaker 3: she buy a school in the UK in order to
Speaker 3: persuade her to withdraw money from her bank account. He
Speaker 3: also strongly denied he had had any contact with bart
Speaker 3: after she'd returned to Australia from overseas in August nineteen
Speaker 3: ninety seven. The coroner, in her final findings, though ultimately
Speaker 3: expressed misgivings about Blum as a witness.
Speaker 2: In short, I do not accept as accurate anything mister
Speaker 2: Bloom has said in evidence in the absence of independent
Speaker 2: corroborating evidence. She added mister Bloom's evidence in the final
Speaker 2: days of the inquest, when asked by counsel assisting, would
Speaker 2: you like to say anything further in relation to the
Speaker 2: disappearance of Marion Barter, was extraordinary. This evidence, along with
Speaker 2: his lies and deception throughout the inquest, has convinced me
Speaker 2: that he does indeed no more than he's saying.
Speaker 3: Coroner O'Sullivan wasn't done with the enigma that was Rick Blum.
Speaker 3: Investigations by the Australians National Crime correspondent Dave Murray and
Speaker 3: others uncovered Blum's eye popping backstory as a globe trotting
Speaker 3: coin collector with a taste for fine hotels and champagne,
Speaker 3: also as a man accused of swindling unsuspecting widows of
Speaker 3: their money. Blum, who lives in the New South Wales
Speaker 3: Northern Rivers region, has called the accusations a pack of lies.
Speaker 3: The coroner concluded.
Speaker 2: I make the following further findings regarding mister Bloom. Firstly,
Speaker 2: that he has further knowledge about the circumstances of Marian's
Speaker 2: travel overseas, Secondly, that he has further knowledge of his
Speaker 2: relationship with her in the months prior to her disappearance. Thirdly,
Speaker 2: that he has further knowledge of her circumstances following her
Speaker 2: return from overseas. Fourthly that he has further knowledge of
Speaker 2: the withdrawals and transfer of her money. And finally, that
Speaker 2: there is a sufficient basis for a finding that he
Speaker 2: was and is deliberately unwilling to divulge this further knowledge
Speaker 2: to the court.
Speaker 3: The coroner said any future action against Blum, be it
Speaker 3: for alleged perjury or giving false statements before the inquest,
Speaker 3: was up to prosecuting authorities to pursue if they so judged.
Speaker 3: As for New South Wales Police and the continued investigation
Speaker 3: into Marian Barter's whereabouts, coron O Sullivan was unequivocal.
Speaker 2: I recommend that the New South Wales Commissioner of Police
Speaker 2: calls the investigation into the death of missing person Floribella
Speaker 2: Natalia Marian Ramakol, formerly known as Marion Barter, be referred
Speaker 2: to or to remain within the State Crime Command unsolved
Speaker 2: a homicide team for ongoing investigation, review and monitoring.
Speaker 3: So the Barter case is not over by a long shot,
Speaker 3: or is it coming up? What this case has in
Speaker 3: common with other notorious Australian mysteries. While I've got you,
Speaker 3: I wanted to let you know. Subscribers can access more
Speaker 3: of this in depth reporting anytime at The Australian's website.
Speaker 3: Check us out at the Australian dot com dot au.
Speaker 3: We'll be back after this break. The Australians National Crime
Speaker 3: Correspondent Dave Murray worked extensively on the Marian Barter missing
Speaker 3: person investigation. We spoke to him after the coroner's findings
Speaker 3: were delivered.
Speaker 5: The coroner came back with some very significant findings. Firstly
Speaker 5: that Marion Barter is dead, that she is no longer alive,
Speaker 5: that she died some time after nineteen ninety seven, the
Speaker 5: year that she went missing. It's what her daughter, Sally Leyden,
Speaker 5: has suspected for a long time. It's not something that's
Speaker 5: easy for her to accept, I think, but the longer
Speaker 5: and longer it's gone, all the milestones that have passed
Speaker 5: without any word or sign from her mother being alive,
Speaker 5: she was forced to come to that conclusion.
Speaker 3: Dave wasn't convinced that the inquest would have satisfactorily served
Speaker 3: the Barter family. Only time would tell.
Speaker 5: But you have to wonder what's actually going to happen
Speaker 5: with this case. How are they going to take it
Speaker 5: for because it becomes just one more of however many
Speaker 5: unsolved cases that the homicide squad will periodically come back
Speaker 5: to and have a look at, and unless there's some
Speaker 5: kind of major development, it goes back and gathers dust
Speaker 5: again and there's no answers and Sally Layden has left
Speaker 5: without any resolution. It's completely unacceptable for that to happen.
Speaker 5: There are avenues to pursue this case further, and I
Speaker 5: think our police forces owe it to Sally Layden to
Speaker 5: be doing everything they can to solve this case because
Speaker 5: there has just been so many stuff ups along the way.
Speaker 5: And no one should accept.
Speaker 3: That Marion's daughter, Sally a tireless advocate for the truth
Speaker 3: about her mother the coroner's court yesterday without talking to reporters.
Speaker 3: But the final words of Coroner O'Sullivan must have been
Speaker 3: ringing in her ears.
Speaker 2: It's fitting to end with the words shared by Sally
Speaker 2: to the court, reading from the family statement, the statement
Speaker 2: in which she described Marian as a kind, caring, soul
Speaker 2: with a wicked laugh. She was intelligent, she was cultured,
Speaker 2: and she had so many friends who loved her and
Speaker 2: miss her still. She would always bring you flowers or
Speaker 2: a cake. She was a very generous human. I close
Speaker 2: this inquest.
Speaker 1: You can read all the nation's best news, sport, politics
Speaker 1: and business anytime at the Australian dot com dot au