Police probe homicide files in human remains case
POLICE are investigating solved and unsolved homicide cases alongside missing person cases as part of their hunt to identify human remains found in the Gympie region last month.
Heavily decayed human bones and clothing were found in a dry gully in bushland off Keefton Rd at Kybong by fauna experts on October 11 not far from the Gold Nugget Truck Stop on the Bruce Highway.
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These included a lower jaw bone with teeth and a femur bone that had a large plate about 15cm long with screws through it.
Detective Inspector Gary Pettiford said the plate indicated the person would have had a substantial fracture to the leg and significant surgery during their lifetime and believed this could make up a crucial part of the investigation.
He said the plate had a serial number on it and detectives were reaching out to orthopaedic surgeons in their identification process, but did not yet know if the surgery was performed in Australia.
The bones are thought to belong to someone who died at least two years ago or earlier, he said.
Police said there is an 85 per cent chance the human remains belong to that of a female, and believe based on the size 6 shoe size and femur bone the person was small in stature.
They estimate the person was between 150cm and 165cm.
Det Insp Pettiford said they can not tell the age or ethnicity of the person.
The remains were found in an area of land that is being used for research in the new Cooroy to Curra Bruce Highway upgrade that will bypass Gympie.
SES helped police search the area after the initial find.
A full set of clothes was also found with the bones that included a dark blue polo-style top, track suit pants, socks and runner-style shoes with the logo "Jet Star".
The shoe brand could be an important piece of the puzzle, Gympie CIB detective sergeant Rob Lowry said.
It was not immediately recognisable and it was unclear if it was an imitation fashion brand, he said.
He encouraged anyone with information that might identify the person to contact police.
He said police would continue to investigate solved and unsolved murder cases as well as active missing person cases of which there are 450 in Queensland.
But not all people who disappeared were reported missing, he said.
People sometimes become detached to the people in their lives, he said.
This was the case with human remains found near the Normanby Bridge between the Bruce Highway and the Mary River two years ago in June 2018.
Police identified the person as a Wellington Point man who was 41-years-old when he was last seen in early 2016.
He was estranged from his family and had never been reported missing.
His death was not considered suspicious.
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