WEBVTT - The Catch-Up - 5 0:00:04.440 --> 0:00:08.160 This is the Lady Vanisher's catch up episode number five. 0:00:10.320 --> 0:00:13.880 Hello and welcome back. I'm Alison Sandy and. 0:00:13.840 --> 0:00:17.600 I'm Brian Seymour. This time we look back on episodes 0:00:17.680 --> 0:00:20.919 twelve to fourteen. There was quite a bit of waiting 0:00:20.960 --> 0:00:24.279 for us during this period as things slowly started to 0:00:24.320 --> 0:00:27.400 move forward in this case. While it seemed to take 0:00:27.440 --> 0:00:31.400 forever at the time, there were some significant milestones along 0:00:31.440 --> 0:00:32.920 the way. 0:00:33.840 --> 0:00:37.040 One of those was when Marion Barter was finally placed 0:00:37.080 --> 0:00:40.839 on the missing person's list. Here we stepped back to 0:00:40.920 --> 0:00:41.919 episode twelve. 0:00:43.920 --> 0:00:47.320 A police review of the investigation into the whereabouts of 0:00:47.360 --> 0:00:51.559 a Queensland teacher has determined that information will be forwarded 0:00:51.600 --> 0:00:55.080 to the coroner and the case reinstated as a missing 0:00:55.160 --> 0:01:00.400 person case. Despite exhaustive inquiries in Australia and over sees, 0:01:00.760 --> 0:01:04.840 detectives from the tweed Byron Police District have been unable 0:01:04.920 --> 0:01:08.640 to determine her whereabouts. As part of the review, it 0:01:08.720 --> 0:01:13.240 was recommended Miss Bartby reinstated on the National Register owing 0:01:13.319 --> 0:01:15.919 to the unique circumstances of this case. 0:01:16.720 --> 0:01:18.880 Needless to say, we're pretty thrilled. 0:01:19.319 --> 0:01:22.560 I'm yeah, I'm quite elated. You know, I have a 0:01:22.600 --> 0:01:28.319 tear in my eye, and it's yeah, it's a big 0:01:28.360 --> 0:01:30.680 sigh of relief, you know, like it's just something that 0:01:32.280 --> 0:01:37.200 I have been fighting for by myself for a very 0:01:37.240 --> 0:01:41.200 long time, I feel, and you know, it's it's a 0:01:41.280 --> 0:01:43.760 very sad story, and it's in a very intriguing story, 0:01:43.800 --> 0:01:46.800 which most of our listeners on the podcast have I've 0:01:46.840 --> 0:01:50.040 also said, but my hair is standing on my head 0:01:50.080 --> 0:01:55.720 and I have goosebumps all over my body. Look, there 0:01:55.760 --> 0:01:59.200 are a lot of things that myself and you guys 0:01:59.200 --> 0:02:01.880 at Channel seven and all the soluthors that have been 0:02:02.400 --> 0:02:05.080 just constantly racking their brains and trying to come up 0:02:05.120 --> 0:02:08.680 with answers and you know, just looking for information that 0:02:08.720 --> 0:02:11.960 could pertain to what even happened to her, like working 0:02:11.960 --> 0:02:15.680 out a timeline, and oh my gosh, I can't even 0:02:15.720 --> 0:02:19.720 begin to say enough words, done enough to express my 0:02:19.760 --> 0:02:24.440 gratitude for all the people who take time and you know, 0:02:24.919 --> 0:02:27.960 time out of their day to worry about me, worry 0:02:27.960 --> 0:02:31.160 about mum, have an idea. And that's why I work 0:02:31.280 --> 0:02:36.120 so tiresly trying to answer everybody's questions. It takes me 0:02:36.240 --> 0:02:38.920 hours to do that, but I'm more than happy to 0:02:38.919 --> 0:02:42.000 do it because I understand these people are taking time 0:02:42.040 --> 0:02:45.000 out of their busy lives to actually help me as well, 0:02:45.520 --> 0:02:48.560 and I'm forever grateful, I really am. And I know, 0:02:50.040 --> 0:02:52.400 you know, even if my mum is alive and well 0:02:52.440 --> 0:02:55.960 and we find her, I'm sure she could appreciate the 0:02:56.000 --> 0:02:58.440 situation that I've been in and I think that she'd 0:02:58.480 --> 0:03:00.880 be very happy to know that people have really got 0:03:00.880 --> 0:03:02.799 behind me to help me find some answers. 0:03:03.360 --> 0:03:07.280 Although just to clarify, Marian is not being reinstated on 0:03:07.320 --> 0:03:09.920 the National Register as she was never put on it. 0:03:10.400 --> 0:03:12.640 She was only ever on the New South Wales Missing 0:03:12.720 --> 0:03:16.040 Persons list from two thousand and seven to two thousand 0:03:16.120 --> 0:03:19.200 and eleven. She will now be on the Australian Federal 0:03:19.240 --> 0:03:23.960 Police Missing Persons Register. In addition, New South Wales Police 0:03:23.960 --> 0:03:28.120 are confirming they have never located Marian and they are 0:03:28.200 --> 0:03:32.919 reopening the missing person's investigation into her disappearance. This will 0:03:32.960 --> 0:03:36.520 be conducted by the new Missing Persons Unit, formed after 0:03:36.560 --> 0:03:40.240 the old unit was disbanded one month after we launched 0:03:40.280 --> 0:03:44.960 the Lady Vanishers earlier this year. Undoubtedly, these major developments 0:03:45.360 --> 0:03:49.200 will lead to more police action on Marion's case, more searches, 0:03:49.680 --> 0:03:55.040 more checks, more investigations and If a coronial inquiry does 0:03:55.080 --> 0:03:58.560 go ahead, Sally will finally be able to access all 0:03:58.640 --> 0:04:01.960 of the documents she has been fighting for, while witnesses 0:04:02.000 --> 0:04:04.520 we found can be compelled to give evidence. 0:04:05.680 --> 0:04:09.080 One of our biggest endeavors has been helping Sally Leyden 0:04:09.440 --> 0:04:12.960 take her mother Marion's case to ENCAT, the New South 0:04:12.960 --> 0:04:18.520 Wales Civil and Administrative Tribunal. ENCAT is the place where 0:04:18.640 --> 0:04:22.039 ordinary people can go to sort out disputes on just 0:04:22.120 --> 0:04:28.080 about everything from tendency issues to building works. In Sally's instance, 0:04:28.440 --> 0:04:32.039 she's seeking access to documents pertaining to Marion in the 0:04:32.080 --> 0:04:37.560 investigation file held by New South Wales Police. We've previously 0:04:37.600 --> 0:04:41.240 obtained that file through freedom of information laws, but much 0:04:41.279 --> 0:04:44.719 of it was heavily redacted and we were denied access 0:04:44.720 --> 0:04:50.119 to documents containing the information we sought. Channel seven backed 0:04:50.160 --> 0:04:53.240 this legal action for Sally. We made submissions along with 0:04:53.320 --> 0:04:56.920 police and the New South Wales Information Privacy Commissioner. 0:05:00.000 --> 0:05:03.040 Hearing was set down for one day June twenty fourth. 0:05:03.240 --> 0:05:06.000 We are now a record in proceedings Leyden, the Commissioner 0:05:06.000 --> 0:05:07.640 plus Police Force. 0:05:07.880 --> 0:05:10.440 We have an audio recording of parts of the hearing 0:05:10.520 --> 0:05:13.320 and will be playing some of its. Remember we are 0:05:13.360 --> 0:05:15.960 seeking access to the police file. It's up to the 0:05:15.960 --> 0:05:19.760 Commissioner of Police responsible for denying us that access to 0:05:19.839 --> 0:05:24.440 prove that was the correct and preferable decision. After some 0:05:24.520 --> 0:05:26.599 general housekeeping, the hearing begins. 0:05:27.480 --> 0:05:32.760 The applicant is Miss Sally Leyden, miss Layden's mother. He's 0:05:32.800 --> 0:05:35.640 a lady by the name of Marion Barter and Miss 0:05:35.720 --> 0:05:40.200 Barta was reported missing to the New South Wales Police 0:05:40.520 --> 0:05:43.720 on the twenty second of October nineteen ninety seven and 0:05:43.760 --> 0:05:47.640 she's never been found. The New South Wales Police Force 0:05:48.360 --> 0:05:53.440 conducted an investigation into Miss Barta's disappearance and that investigation 0:05:54.279 --> 0:05:59.640 has been suspended since November twenty eleven. In a nutshell, 0:06:00.120 --> 0:06:04.840 the information that is the subject of this application is 0:06:04.960 --> 0:06:09.520 information that was obtained in the course of that police investigation. 0:06:10.080 --> 0:06:12.400 What I propose to do, by way of very brief opening, 0:06:12.600 --> 0:06:16.520 is simply to take you, Senior Member, to two documents 0:06:16.560 --> 0:06:21.160 which conveniently set out the background and some of the 0:06:21.240 --> 0:06:24.120 narrative to the course of investigation that we say is relevant. 0:06:24.560 --> 0:06:26.839 If I could have permission to approach and to hand 0:06:26.880 --> 0:06:29.400 them to you, I've got copies for my friends. I 0:06:29.400 --> 0:06:31.800 should note that these documents are actually sitting on They 0:06:31.839 --> 0:06:34.680 should be sitting on the file, but for convenience it 0:06:34.760 --> 0:06:36.080 might be easy for me to hand them up, so 0:06:36.120 --> 0:06:38.120 I'll just hand copies over to my friends. 0:06:38.440 --> 0:06:40.720 During the course of the hearing, Marian is referred to 0:06:40.800 --> 0:06:45.040 as a person of interest or POI. Also you'll hear 0:06:45.160 --> 0:06:50.480 talk of cops events cops. COPS stands for the Computerized 0:06:50.520 --> 0:06:54.240 Operational Policing System. It's the system used by New South 0:06:54.279 --> 0:06:58.360 Wales Police officers to record jobs on the internal police database. 0:06:59.680 --> 0:07:03.320 Our and Sally's lawyer, rico Ynjaichik goes on to outline 0:07:03.360 --> 0:07:07.000 the story of Marian's disappearance and explains what is known 0:07:07.040 --> 0:07:09.320 of the police investigation into the case. 0:07:10.720 --> 0:07:14.680 Thanks to Sally's application for a coronial inquest, New South 0:07:14.680 --> 0:07:18.360 Wales Police are taking some action. In an email dated 0:07:18.400 --> 0:07:21.840 the fourteenth of July, a New South Wales Police media 0:07:21.880 --> 0:07:23.320 spokeswoman wrote. 0:07:23.040 --> 0:07:27.800 This, Hi, Alison Detective Senior Constable Sheian will soon meet 0:07:27.880 --> 0:07:31.160 with senior investigators from the Homicide Squad to conduct a 0:07:31.240 --> 0:07:35.320 case review. This is a routine review to determine future 0:07:35.440 --> 0:07:38.760 direction of an investigation, but I am told for this 0:07:38.880 --> 0:07:41.960 case the Homicide Squad will discuss their recommendations with the 0:07:42.040 --> 0:07:46.160 coroner as her honor has expressed interest. I've been assured 0:07:46.160 --> 0:07:48.280 that we will be advised of the outcome so we 0:07:48.280 --> 0:07:50.800 can update you when it's appropriate to do so. 0:07:54.160 --> 0:07:58.280 Then four days later, on July nineteen, we receive the 0:07:58.320 --> 0:08:00.920 following statement from Police. 0:08:01.640 --> 0:08:05.440 New South Wales detectives have reviewed the police case looking 0:08:05.480 --> 0:08:10.000 into the unexplained disappearance of a Queensland teacher. Marion Barter 0:08:10.320 --> 0:08:13.520 was aged fifty one years old when she was reported 0:08:13.600 --> 0:08:17.240 missing by her daughter living at Byron Bay in nineteen 0:08:17.520 --> 0:08:21.920 ninety seven. Detectives from the Tweed Byron Police District have 0:08:22.040 --> 0:08:26.840 explored numerous leads in the case, including Marion's activities overseas 0:08:27.120 --> 0:08:32.160 at the time of her disappearance. Officers yesterday Wednesday, seventeenth 0:08:32.200 --> 0:08:37.080 of July twenty nineteen, conducted an official review of the 0:08:37.160 --> 0:08:41.320 case with colleagues from the State Crime Commands, Homicide Squad 0:08:41.679 --> 0:08:45.120 and the New South Wales Department of Communities and Justice. 0:08:46.000 --> 0:08:49.160 DAVE agreed to seek advice from the State Corner to 0:08:49.240 --> 0:08:52.880 determine whether the New South Wales Police Force formally has 0:08:52.920 --> 0:08:57.000 the jurisdiction to further its extensive efforts to find the 0:08:57.040 --> 0:09:00.240 gold Coast woman. The referral to the corner is in 0:09:00.360 --> 0:09:03.720 Cordon's With the new South Wales Coroners Act two thousand 0:09:03.760 --> 0:09:08.760 and nine, Tweed Byron detectives are preparing a comprehensive summary 0:09:08.880 --> 0:09:11.520 of the case for the coroner's consideration. 0:09:13.280 --> 0:09:16.800 So the police have sought advice from the coroner, which 0:09:16.800 --> 0:09:19.760 is good news for Sally because if this leads to 0:09:19.800 --> 0:09:23.360 a coronial inquest, all of the evidence must be laid 0:09:23.360 --> 0:09:24.200 out on the table. 0:09:25.720 --> 0:09:28.840 This investigation has established that part of the problem for 0:09:28.880 --> 0:09:32.040 Sally is that her mum's disappearance did not receive the 0:09:32.040 --> 0:09:36.680 attention it deserved early on, including Graham Childs, the police 0:09:36.720 --> 0:09:39.679 officer who took the initial statement from Sally Leyden at 0:09:39.720 --> 0:09:43.000 the Byron Bay Police station on October twenty second, nineteen 0:09:43.080 --> 0:09:47.240 ninety seven, and marked the incident as an occurrence. He's 0:09:47.280 --> 0:09:50.840 now retired and when we visited his house he was away, 0:09:51.280 --> 0:09:53.760 so we left a poster of Marion in his letterbox. 0:09:56.960 --> 0:10:01.240 Several days later, Sally and I managed to reach by phone. 0:10:03.120 --> 0:10:05.480 Hi Graham, Alison Sandy from the Seven network. 0:10:05.520 --> 0:10:07.720 How are you well? Thanks, that's good. 0:10:07.840 --> 0:10:11.240 I'm joined here by Sally. Hi Graham, Hi, you would 0:10:11.280 --> 0:10:13.720 have seen the poster we left. We came to visit 0:10:13.760 --> 0:10:15.120 you last week. 0:10:15.480 --> 0:10:19.040 Ah, it's all coming into place now, told us. 0:10:19.160 --> 0:10:22.360 After the initial report to police, nothing was noted in 0:10:22.480 --> 0:10:26.880 Marion's case file for ten years. It was two thousand 0:10:26.920 --> 0:10:29.720 and seven before Marion was placed on the New South 0:10:29.760 --> 0:10:33.880 Wales Missing person register, and that was only after Sally 0:10:33.960 --> 0:10:37.520 had contacted the Australian Federal Police. The lack of action 0:10:38.040 --> 0:10:42.360 has been almost as baffling as Marion's disappearance itself. We 0:10:42.559 --> 0:10:46.240 hoped Senior Constable Graham Childs would be able to provide 0:10:46.559 --> 0:10:47.280 some clarity. 0:10:47.840 --> 0:10:51.000 I'm not sure if you remember. I know that Gary 0:10:51.080 --> 0:10:53.760 Sheen had told me that he had spoken to you 0:10:55.200 --> 0:10:58.000 back a long time ago, like twenty eleven, and asked 0:10:58.040 --> 0:11:00.480 you if you had the recollection of the case of 0:11:00.600 --> 0:11:04.160 my mum being a missing person, and he had said 0:11:04.160 --> 0:11:05.040 to me that you didn't have. 0:11:05.200 --> 0:11:06.640 Thanks to Sally's election of it. 0:11:06.760 --> 0:11:09.760 But I wanted to call you and talk to you, 0:11:09.880 --> 0:11:11.880 or come to you and see you and just say 0:11:11.960 --> 0:11:13.400 hi and just see if we could get a bit 0:11:13.400 --> 0:11:16.600 more information. Now that you're retired from the. 0:11:16.559 --> 0:11:18.599 Police force, I've got to be really, really honest with you. 0:11:18.640 --> 0:11:24.960 When Gary Shan Rangy. I had just the vaguest of recollections. 0:11:24.960 --> 0:11:27.280 I can imagine twenty six years in the police force, 0:11:27.320 --> 0:11:30.559 and I've been out for sixteen, so it is a 0:11:30.600 --> 0:11:32.640 long time ago, and a lot of water has passed 0:11:32.679 --> 0:11:35.200 under the bridge and sent more. I'm more than happy 0:11:35.240 --> 0:11:37.800 to give you any information. It's not like I'm hiding 0:11:37.880 --> 0:11:40.840 secrets that I We're more than happy to give you anything. 0:11:41.200 --> 0:11:45.040 This only came up with me again a month or 0:11:45.040 --> 0:11:46.960 a couple of months ago. Someone told me they heard 0:11:47.000 --> 0:11:50.280 my name on a podcast saying that, and so I said, well, 0:11:50.440 --> 0:11:55.400 I think it's interesting but not relevant. 0:11:55.440 --> 0:11:56.040 But I. 0:11:57.520 --> 0:12:00.240 Don't really I vaguely remember you coming into the station, 0:12:00.360 --> 0:12:04.199 and I vaguely remember that I think we contacted the 0:12:04.520 --> 0:12:08.800 Federal police or someone in relation to it. But really 0:12:09.280 --> 0:12:12.280 that's about all I've got. I know that's really terrible, 0:12:12.280 --> 0:12:13.800 and I'm really sorry I'm not able to give you 0:12:13.880 --> 0:12:16.920 any more, but I really can't remember. 0:12:17.400 --> 0:12:19.439 I know it's a long time ago, and I obviously 0:12:19.520 --> 0:12:21.720 gas gathered too that there was a lot of things, 0:12:21.760 --> 0:12:24.960 but that obviously happened after that with you working there, 0:12:25.000 --> 0:12:28.480 and obviously trying to remember every particular person coming in 0:12:28.880 --> 0:12:29.480 is difficult. 0:12:29.600 --> 0:12:34.400 Were you responsible for those sorts of cases or were 0:12:34.520 --> 0:12:37.440 they referred to. I mean, what was the process for. 0:12:37.520 --> 0:12:42.200 What would normally happen when someone comes into report someone missing. Look, 0:12:43.240 --> 0:12:45.839 a lot of people talk about that thing. Oh I've 0:12:45.840 --> 0:12:47.400 got to be missing for twenty four hours. No, no, 0:12:47.600 --> 0:12:50.520 that's not actually the case it's about for me anyway. 0:12:50.559 --> 0:12:53.160 It certainly haven't dealt with a lot of missing persons 0:12:54.480 --> 0:12:57.920 that normally we would know the general duty follow would 0:12:57.920 --> 0:13:00.880 just be at the counter, would take the report back. 0:13:00.920 --> 0:13:04.199 In those days, we would have would have been logging 0:13:04.240 --> 0:13:07.000 it onto the computer, make a few inquiries, and then 0:13:07.120 --> 0:13:09.960 pass it. Usually passed something like that on if there 0:13:10.040 --> 0:13:14.960 was suspicious circumstances. The uniform guys don't have or didn't 0:13:15.040 --> 0:13:19.120 have the time at the time, probably the access to 0:13:19.280 --> 0:13:23.599 be looking at phone records or bank records and all that. 0:13:23.720 --> 0:13:25.480 So that would have been passed on and allocated by 0:13:25.520 --> 0:13:26.560 a case manager to one of the. 0:13:26.559 --> 0:13:30.160 Detectives in those sorts of cases, unless there was suspicious circumstances. 0:13:30.200 --> 0:13:32.040 Would you put it as a missing person case or 0:13:32.040 --> 0:13:34.320 an occurrence? Because I think Sally said at the initial 0:13:34.360 --> 0:13:36.760 stages it was just listed as an occurrence. 0:13:37.320 --> 0:13:39.839 Yeah, Well, all of those things were what we used. 0:13:39.920 --> 0:13:41.520 We used to go put on the occurrence pad, so 0:13:41.640 --> 0:13:44.199 anything that happened was an occurrence and that was just 0:13:44.320 --> 0:13:47.400 recorded as an occurrence and then determined from there. The 0:13:47.520 --> 0:13:49.200 duty case officer would have come in, had to look 0:13:49.240 --> 0:13:51.760 at all the things, the occurrences that had happened, and 0:13:51.960 --> 0:13:55.400 any cases would have been allocated to detectives or whatever 0:13:55.440 --> 0:13:58.520 that needed to have further follow up. You know, obviously 0:13:58.559 --> 0:14:01.920 when someone comes in and does a report commuting you 0:14:01.920 --> 0:14:03.760 know I've had my house broken into or whatever it 0:14:03.840 --> 0:14:07.000 might be, those jobs are allocated to the appropriate people. 0:14:07.040 --> 0:14:08.959 So this would have been the same. Would have the 0:14:09.040 --> 0:14:11.040 case manager look at it. The case manager would then 0:14:11.120 --> 0:14:16.439 decide who investigates that, And to be honest, I wouldn't 0:14:16.559 --> 0:14:19.920 think a missing person who how how long have your 0:14:19.960 --> 0:14:21.080 mum been missing at that stage? 0:14:21.680 --> 0:14:25.840 So she left Australia on the twenty third of June, 0:14:26.560 --> 0:14:28.360 and she'd been in contact with me up until the 0:14:28.360 --> 0:14:31.040 first of August yep, and then I came in to 0:14:31.120 --> 0:14:33.320 see you in the October. 0:14:33.600 --> 0:14:35.880 So it was an't answer for quite some time, so 0:14:36.120 --> 0:14:37.000 well August. 0:14:36.760 --> 0:14:39.480 To October, so two months she hadn't been spoken to. 0:14:40.360 --> 0:14:41.840 Yeah, and in the scheme of things that would have 0:14:41.840 --> 0:14:43.320 been a long time. I would have imagined you would 0:14:43.320 --> 0:14:44.640 have told me at the time then that there was 0:14:44.680 --> 0:14:46.480 a long time between phone calls. 0:14:46.960 --> 0:14:51.040 Sally tries to jog Graham's memory by recalling the circumstances 0:14:51.400 --> 0:14:53.880 that led her to go to police in Byron Bay 0:14:54.480 --> 0:14:57.360 and questions how he made the conclusions he did in 0:14:57.440 --> 0:15:01.680 his report, particularly in related to money drained from her 0:15:01.760 --> 0:15:02.800 mother's bank account. 0:15:03.440 --> 0:15:05.720 I'm just trying to work out how how I got 0:15:05.760 --> 0:15:08.160 that information? You have got that information? Would you have 0:15:08.200 --> 0:15:10.840 gone like So's people are questioning this Graham and saying, well, 0:15:11.200 --> 0:15:13.160 maybe it was a local like it's a country town. 0:15:13.200 --> 0:15:15.040 Maybe he just walked in and knew the bank manager 0:15:15.080 --> 0:15:17.840 and he asked the bank manager for information. Or would 0:15:17.840 --> 0:15:20.240 you have had to go through a process through Commonwealth 0:15:20.280 --> 0:15:21.480 Bank to get that information? 0:15:22.480 --> 0:15:27.360 And I'm guessing, and this is pure speculation, that it 0:15:27.400 --> 0:15:29.920 would have just been a phone call to the local bank. Okay, 0:15:30.200 --> 0:15:31.520 it would have been a phone call and they would 0:15:31.520 --> 0:15:33.440 have pulled up the records and had a look. And 0:15:33.960 --> 0:15:35.800 that's why it would have been quite Whether it be 0:15:35.880 --> 0:15:37.240 right or wrong, it would just be Ab'll just bring 0:15:37.280 --> 0:15:39.200 them Dave down at the bank. 0:15:39.880 --> 0:15:44.400 So just to clarify, and the Currence entry is basically 0:15:44.520 --> 0:15:49.080 to report an incident with no investigation required. That means 0:15:49.320 --> 0:15:52.760 any missing person's report would have been done in retrospect, 0:15:53.200 --> 0:15:55.480 and that only happened a decade later. 0:15:55.960 --> 0:15:58.840 I'm guessing by the fact that it's written off as 0:15:59.080 --> 0:16:03.560 occurrence only, so that to me that would have meant 0:16:03.680 --> 0:16:06.440 no further investigation at this stage, that there was the 0:16:07.000 --> 0:16:09.560 mum's come back into the country, or that whatever's happened, 0:16:09.920 --> 0:16:14.560 there's no suspicious circumstances. We're just recording it as an occurrence. 0:16:15.360 --> 0:16:17.280 So I'm guessing that that wouldn't have been a sign 0:16:17.320 --> 0:16:20.280 to anyone who would have been no further investigation From me, Well. 0:16:20.160 --> 0:16:22.560 I can't see anything like there's on the freedom of 0:16:22.600 --> 0:16:26.000 information and documentation. It's got your that statement and then 0:16:26.040 --> 0:16:28.840 it jumps to two thousand and seven, so there's nothing 0:16:28.920 --> 0:16:31.120 in between that would. 0:16:30.880 --> 0:16:32.480 Be right because it's an occurrence only. 0:16:33.160 --> 0:16:36.200 I really appreciate your time, like it means a lot 0:16:36.240 --> 0:16:38.480 that you've actually talking to me, because you've been a 0:16:38.560 --> 0:16:41.280 key person in my mind. I mean, obviously Gary's been 0:16:41.320 --> 0:16:44.080 working with me extensively on this for quite some time, 0:16:44.200 --> 0:16:47.600 but you know, pretty much since twenty eleven. He's kind 0:16:47.640 --> 0:16:50.320 of said to me, they've suspended the case, closed the case, 0:16:50.560 --> 0:16:52.760 and his hands are tired and he can't do anything more. 0:16:54.120 --> 0:16:56.080 He has indicated to me that there's more to it 0:16:56.240 --> 0:16:58.880 than meets the eye, but that his hands are tied. 0:16:58.960 --> 0:17:03.560 So it puts us in a pretty precarious situation. We 0:17:03.680 --> 0:17:06.040 were trying to just get some information and do the 0:17:06.119 --> 0:17:07.200 research ourselves. 0:17:09.000 --> 0:17:11.240 I would love to be able to say I remember 0:17:12.000 --> 0:17:16.560 talking to the mother and being able to pass that information, 0:17:16.640 --> 0:17:18.480 and I can't tell you anymore because you didn't want 0:17:18.480 --> 0:17:25.800 to have none of This is actually a very very 0:17:26.280 --> 0:17:29.879 sketchy sort of memory of it, and I don't know 0:17:30.000 --> 0:17:32.080 why it's not that. All I can say is that 0:17:32.160 --> 0:17:34.000 there's so many things you do in so many years, 0:17:34.880 --> 0:17:36.080 it just didn't stand out. 0:17:36.560 --> 0:17:39.240 So would it be normal behavior if you are normal practice, 0:17:39.600 --> 0:17:42.199 If you ring me and tell me that you'd located her, 0:17:42.240 --> 0:17:43.560 would you have written that on the file? 0:17:49.200 --> 0:17:51.320 Yeah? I'd like to think I would have, but I 0:17:51.400 --> 0:17:54.439 may not have. And that's not to say that I didn't, 0:17:54.640 --> 0:17:58.680 but I mean I don't remember it. I can't imagine, 0:17:59.359 --> 0:18:03.119 and I'm sorry this is awsommation because I can't imagine 0:18:03.119 --> 0:18:08.920 what you're going through, so that I would imagine I 0:18:08.960 --> 0:18:11.320 would be the only one that would do that, to 0:18:11.400 --> 0:18:13.680 be honest, I mean, and you're right, I am a 0:18:13.720 --> 0:18:16.880 good guy and I was a un a decorated policeman, 0:18:17.000 --> 0:18:20.520 you know, so I thought ex policeman. So I took 0:18:20.560 --> 0:18:23.440 my job very seriously. But if I did do that, 0:18:23.560 --> 0:18:25.159 it sounds like I fell down on my job by 0:18:25.200 --> 0:18:29.000 not recording. That sounds like, you know, I skipped a 0:18:29.040 --> 0:18:31.720 step there, you know. So if I did ring, it's 0:18:31.840 --> 0:18:35.240 pretty pretty lousy of me not to have recorded that, 0:18:35.359 --> 0:18:37.840 I know, and go back in and update the system 0:18:38.680 --> 0:18:40.639 and say that I made that phone call, So you know, 0:18:40.720 --> 0:18:42.600 I've fallen down there. I feel pretty bad about that. 0:18:43.359 --> 0:18:45.040 Well, I don't know if that was the case. I mean, 0:18:45.080 --> 0:18:49.359 I guess do you remember actually ringing somebody or speaking to. 0:18:49.400 --> 0:18:52.320 Somebody that No, And that might seem really hard to 0:18:52.359 --> 0:18:55.280 believe that. You can't think that I wouldn't remember that. 0:18:55.400 --> 0:18:59.200 But I mean, through the twenty six years, if I 0:18:59.359 --> 0:19:01.640 was shot out, stabbed, or was bitten by people with aids, 0:19:01.640 --> 0:19:03.600 a lot of those things at the forefront of my mind. 0:19:04.680 --> 0:19:09.600 And please, there's no disrespect in this at all becau. 0:19:09.600 --> 0:19:12.200 It's one person coming into the station making report of 0:19:12.240 --> 0:19:15.800 a person that I've recorded as an occurrence only, So 0:19:16.240 --> 0:19:20.520 it's quite low, probably on the memory scale. And please 0:19:20.560 --> 0:19:22.760 don't be offended by that, because you know, your mum's 0:19:22.760 --> 0:19:24.760 are obviously a very important person. And I don't mean 0:19:24.840 --> 0:19:26.160 any disrespect by that at all. 0:19:26.240 --> 0:19:28.520 We appreciate like from your point of view. I mean, 0:19:28.520 --> 0:19:30.520 there's only so much. Remember it was a long time ago. 0:19:30.560 --> 0:19:32.600 It was twenty two years and you know it was 0:19:33.480 --> 0:19:36.399 in the whole scheme of things in a place like 0:19:36.480 --> 0:19:39.159 Byron Bay. I mean you've seen it grow from. I 0:19:39.240 --> 0:19:41.119 mean back then it was probably still a bit more 0:19:41.160 --> 0:19:43.320 of a sleepy, sleepy town, was it. 0:19:43.880 --> 0:19:45.760 Well, when I went to Borron, but there was sixteen 0:19:45.800 --> 0:19:47.199 police here and we used to close the door at 0:19:47.200 --> 0:19:49.000 eleven o'clock at night and go home. There was no 0:19:49.080 --> 0:19:52.639 police in Barron after eleven o'clock at night, so you know, 0:19:52.880 --> 0:19:55.240 very different. Now this is about sixty five or seventy 0:19:55.280 --> 0:19:58.840 odd police there and very different, very different town, you know. 0:19:59.000 --> 0:20:01.000 So I mean we used to come in and open 0:20:01.119 --> 0:20:03.320 up the door and there was no one there. If 0:20:03.359 --> 0:20:05.280 we have a two sheep in the front yard, so 0:20:05.400 --> 0:20:07.680 it was this very different place that I'm not in 0:20:07.720 --> 0:20:10.080 the police force anymore. So I've got nothing to hide 0:20:10.119 --> 0:20:14.920 and I've got no problem with saying how it was 0:20:15.000 --> 0:20:17.720 or how it is and what my recollection it is. 0:20:20.800 --> 0:20:23.479 Some fantastic news we can tell you about. The new 0:20:23.560 --> 0:20:27.760 South Wales Police is establishing a new properly resourced missing 0:20:27.800 --> 0:20:33.399 persons unit. One month after the Lady Vanishers debuted, it 0:20:33.560 --> 0:20:36.320 was announced they were disbanding the old unit, which had 0:20:36.320 --> 0:20:39.840 failed to properly investigate dozens of long term missing persons cases. 0:20:41.600 --> 0:20:44.879 Now they have announced Project Aleathea to form a new 0:20:45.040 --> 0:20:48.640 unit of seven detectives and four analysts, along with state 0:20:48.680 --> 0:20:52.640 of the art technology to properly handle cases like Marion Barter's. 0:20:54.640 --> 0:20:56.800 It's a big win for our team and for Sally, 0:20:56.920 --> 0:20:59.879 and will hopefully prevent families in future from living through 0:21:00.080 --> 0:21:03.000 the ordeal of losing a loved one without knowing how 0:21:03.240 --> 0:21:07.040 or why, and without the full and proper assistance of 0:21:07.160 --> 0:21:10.520 those tasked with the responsibility and the power to find 0:21:10.560 --> 0:21:19.439 the answers. In episode thirteen, we learned that documents were 0:21:19.520 --> 0:21:25.719 being prepared for the State Coroner Sally email the new 0:21:25.760 --> 0:21:29.399 South Wales Coroner's Office on Monday, July twenty nine, seeking 0:21:29.520 --> 0:21:32.720 clarification on how long it might take for them to 0:21:32.840 --> 0:21:35.440 decide whether or not to take on Marion's case. 0:21:35.720 --> 0:21:37.600 Dear Sally, thank you for your email. 0:21:37.800 --> 0:21:41.440 She received an email response from Registrar and Lambino the 0:21:41.600 --> 0:21:42.240 next day. 0:21:42.640 --> 0:21:45.359 New Southals Police have advised they are preparing a report 0:21:45.440 --> 0:21:48.159 to the State Coroner for her decision on whether she 0:21:48.200 --> 0:21:51.320 will take jurisdiction in regards to the suspected death of 0:21:51.440 --> 0:21:55.080 your mother, Marion Barter. I understand this report is almost 0:21:55.200 --> 0:21:57.960 complete and we'll be far with the State Coroner soon, 0:21:58.119 --> 0:22:01.040 although an exact date has not been given. When the 0:22:01.119 --> 0:22:05.040 State Coroner receives the report from police, to accept jurisdiction, 0:22:05.320 --> 0:22:08.440 she will need to determine two things. One that your 0:22:08.480 --> 0:22:11.879 mother's disappearance is a suspected death Section seventeen of the 0:22:11.920 --> 0:22:14.920 Coroner's Act two thousand and nine, and two at the 0:22:15.000 --> 0:22:18.240 time of these suspected death there was a sufficient connection 0:22:18.440 --> 0:22:21.600 to New South Wales Section eighteen of the Coroner's Act 0:22:21.680 --> 0:22:26.000 two thousand and nine. An inquest is mandatory for suspected deaths, 0:22:26.400 --> 0:22:28.760 as the coroner needs to be satisfied that it has 0:22:28.880 --> 0:22:32.000 been sufficiently disclosed that the person has died. 0:22:32.640 --> 0:22:35.399