John Farmer | 7th July 2010 - Toowoomba Chronicle

A FLICKER of hope has shone on the case of a missing Toowoomba man after almost a decade shrouded in darkness.

In the week of the 10th anniversary of Steven Goldsmith’s mysterious disappearance, a Toowoomba health worker has made an anonymous phone call claiming to know the whereabouts of the 38-year-old.

She told The Chronicle she had met Steven in Normanton, where he was homeless.

The call was the first regarding the case since the months immediately proceeding Steven’s July 2000 disappearance.

It came a fortnight after The Chronicle published the first interview in four years with Steven’s father David Goldsmith, in which he revealed a trip to Australia from England was being planned in another desperate bid to locate his son.

Nicole Morris, the creator of the Australian Missing Persons Registrar, hailed the anonymous phone call as a long-awaited breakthrough in the case.

“This phone call is exactly what I want the anniversary to bring forth,” she said.

Ms Morris said she expected Steven’s family to take solace from the phone call considering it had been more than a decade since they had seen their son.

“It’s one of those milestones where you have to ask how can it be 10 years.” Ms Morris said.

“But it’s just not right.

“Ten years is an atrocious amount of time for (the family) to wait.”

Toowoomba CIB have forwarded the information from the anonymous caller to Normanton district police to be investigated.

Steven was living and working in Toowoomba as an aborist when he said goodbye to friends and vanished on July 6, 2000.

The last confirmed sighting of the British migrant was at an ATM in an outer Brisbane suburb three days after he left Toowoomba.

In October 2007, a coroner’s report concluded Steven was “dead, although I am unable to make any finding as to the circumstances of his death”.

 

Disappearance triggers decade of torment

Tim Lockett fought back tears as he pinned a missing person poster to a tree in New Farm.

Mr Lockett's friend, fellow Englishman Steven James Goldsmith, who he first met in Hampshire, went missing from his Sydney Street apartment in July 2000 and has not been heard from since.

Days after visiting a friend in Toowoomba on July 6, Mr Goldsmith failed to appear for a doctor's appointment in Brisbane and his car was found locked in his New Farm garage.

According to police none of his personal items or clothes were missing but no trace was left of the 28-year-old.

When Mr Lockett and his family travelled to Australia from England earlier this month he decided to put up the posters in the New Farm area in the hope of gathering information which could help close the book on his friend's disappearance.

"There's not a clue, there's not a sign or a hint or anything," he said.

"No body has ever been found.

"It's just incredibly frustrating because you want to believe he's alive but all the signs point to the fact that he is not. But you can't give a send off or a memorial or anything because you just never know for certain [what has happened to him]."

Nicole Morris of australianmissingpersonsregister.com has been following the case for more than five years and has experienced the terrible effect Mr Goldsmith's disappearance has had on his parents in England.

 

 

FOR 17 years Dave and Lesley Goldsmith have waited for their son Steven to walk back through the door.  

While the initial trauma of his disappearance left wounds that not even time will heal, the family is standing strong, vowing to never give up their search for Steven.  

In July 2000 the British-born Toowoomba arborist went missing, having last been seen in Brisbane.  

Mr Goldsmith, then 28 at the time, spent the majority of 1999 alternating between stints living in Toowoomba and Brisbane while working in the Garden City as a tree surgeon.  

Six weeks after moving from Toowoomba into a New Farm apartment he vanished.   

A mystery phone call and CCTV footage of a $3000 ATM withdrawal, later deposited onto his credit card the night of his vanishing, are the only clues left behind from his puzzling evanescence.  

The phone call, made to Brisbane police shortly after his family inquired about his whereabouts, amounted to nothing.  

Now, almost two decades since Steven last made contact with his family, his parents are appealing to the public for any new information. 

The hardest part is not knowing and wondering where he is and what has happened," his mother, Lesley Goldsmith said.

"Not receiving the regular cheeky phone calls took a lot of getting used to and when we missed a call we always wondered whether it was Steve trying to get in touch."

Lesley maintains a strenuous link to her son - a Facebook page dedicated to helping find the now 45-year-old.

Posts on birthdays, Christmas and other major milestones clog the page's feed but it doesn't make the days, months or years in his absence any easier for his family.

"We now attempt to get on with life as best we can but, of course, he is always in our thoughts," Ms Goldsmith said.  

In the years since 2000 the family has made numerous trips to Australia from their Sussex home, taking part in press conferences and media appearances that only added to the heartbreak that set in the day they had to clean out their son's Brisbane living quarters.  

"As you can imagine that (his apartment) was heartbreaking," Ms Goldsmith said.  

When asked whether the family has ever contemplated giving up, Ms Goldsmith is firm in her answer.  

"No, never," she said.  

"We live our lives in hope but feel it is rather doubtful after all these years."  

The family is hoping that anyone with any information in relation to Steven Goldsmith's whereabouts will finally step forward, urging them to contact Crimestoppers on 1800 333 000.

 

COLD CASE

Family’s desperate appeal on missing son

• The Chronicle 12 Jul 2018  ANTON ROSE

Reward offered for information regarding the disappearance of Steven Goldsmith

At the time of his disappearance Steven was living at a residential unit in Sydney Street, New Farm.

He was an arborist subcontracted to Toowoomba City Council and other tree-lopping operators and would return to Brisbane on weekends.

He spent time in the Fortitude Valley and New Farm areas and was known to frequent bars, clubs and boarding houses and was experimenting with drugs.

Steven’s disappearance has been subject to a thorough investigation and extensive inquiries in relation to possible sightings, however despite efforts that crossed two decades, the matter remains unsolved.

The case is now subject to review by the Crime and Intelligence Command’s Homicide Investigation Unit.

Detective Inspector Damien Hansen of the Homicide Group said following a review by detectives, police believe Steven was murdered around the time he disappeared and that there are people in the local community who know what happened.

“We encourage anyone who has information and for whatever reason has remained silent, to put that aside and come forward and speak with us,” Detective Inspector Hansen said.

“Steven’s disappearance was out of character. He was in regular contact with his family in England and he had upcoming plans in life he was looking forward to”.

“We strongly believe there are people within the community with crucial information regarding this case. Steven’s parents need and deserve to know what happened to their son.”

Minister Ryan said this renewed appeal for information calls on the community to help our police find Steven, give his family answers and bring those responsible for his disappearance before the court.

“A $250,000 reward is now in place for information that may lead to the conviction of the person or persons responsible for Steven’s disappearance,” the Minister said.

“It is particularly important to stress the importance of the matter of indemnity offered along with this reward.

“Any person who was involved in the crime but did not commit the crime who comes forward and speaks with police, is eligible for this indemnity from prosecution.

“Please take the time to consider this offer carefully.”

At the time of his disappearance, Steven was 28 years of age. He was around 175cm tall, spoke with an English accent, had red hair and freckles and a fair complexion. Steven had several tattoos, including an eagle on his shoulder blade, and walked with a slight limp (as the result of a serious injury to his left leg from a workplace incident in 1997).

In 2007, Steven’s disappearance was referred to the Coroner whose findings determined Steven to be deceased.

Police offer $250k reward to solve cold case disappearance of arborist Steven Goldsmith

ABC-  2/2/21

Queensland police have offered a $250,000 reward for information on the suspected cold case killing of Toowoomba arborist Steven James Goldsmith more than two decades ago.

Mr Goldsmith, 28, was last seen withdrawing money from a bank ATM in New Farm in inner-city Brisbane on July 10, 2000.

Homicide squad Detective Inspector Damien Hansen said there was "no evidence of Mr Goldsmith" living beyond that date.

"The proof of life checks that we conduct with missing persons, with homicide investigations, there has been no movement — bank accounts, contact with family, contact with friends," he said.

Detective Inspector Hansen said police especially wanted to speak to an anonymous repeat caller who had last spoken to police in 2006.

He said this person had direct knowledge of the crime and could be a candidate for the reward.

"I won't go into the specifics but the information would lead us to believe [Mr Goldsmith] has been murdered," he said.

Detective Inspector Hansen said police would consider offering immunity from prosecution to anyone not directly involved in the murder.

"I think from the information that has been provided to date, I wouldn't suspect that [anonymous caller] to be the offender," he said.

UK-born Mr Goldsmith lived in a unit in Sydney Street in New Farm.

Detective Inspector Hansen said Mr Goldsmith commuted to work during the week in Toowoomba, where he was contracted by the local council as an arborist.

He also had a noticeable limp from an injury in his line of work.

Police said he was "experimenting with drugs" and spent time in bars, clubs and boarding houses around New Farm and Fortitude Valley.

Investigators found his unit and vehicle locked and his personal belongings intact after he went missing.

Detective Inspector Hansen said Mr Goldsmith's withdrawal of $3,000 from a Commonwealth Bank ATM "could well be" linked to the events leading to his death.

Police Minister Mark Ryan, who approved the reward offer, said the announcement was to "draw attention to a matter which needs justice delivered".

"Whenever there is a crime against the community, particularly heinous crimes like homicide, the Queensland Police Service never give up," he said.

"They're relentless in their pursuit of justice, because justice never sleeps."

‘We deal with it the best we can’: Brisbane cold case remains open

 

Jocelyn Garcia Brisbane times

March 9, 2021 — 10.00pm

 

 

Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size

Two decades have passed since Englishman Steven Goldsmith withdrew cash from an ATM near his inner-Brisbane unit in New Farm. He has not been seen since.

His mother, Lesley Goldsmith, still holds out hope that one day she will get answers.

 

 

 

 

He was last seen by a friend in Toowoomba on July 6, 2000, and was captured on CCTV withdrawing cash at Merthyr Village Shopping Centre on July 10.

Mr Goldsmith’s car was still in the garage and no personal items were missing from his Sydney Street unit, with a load of washing still in the dryer.

In 2007, a coroner determined Mr Goldsmith had died. Police suspected foul play.

 

Mr Goldsmith, who had experimented with drugs, spent time in the Fortitude Valley and New Farm areas and was known to frequent bars, clubs and boarding houses, police said.

Almost 21 years later, police have offered a $250,000 reward for information about his disappearance.

“Unfortunately, we have no idea as to what has happened to Steven … Someone out there must have been involved in his disappearance and must know something about what happened,” his mother said.

Ms Goldsmith last saw her son in 1999, when he returned to Britain for a visit.

 

“He was quite happy at that time and pleased to catch up with former friends,” she said.

“We enjoyed meals out with him and old friends and were particularly thankful that photos were taken of him and us with him at that time.”

Ms Goldsmith said “all seemed fine” the last time Steven called home was on June 27, 2000, and spoke with his father.

“He’d previously called on June 23, leaving a voicemail, and prior to that on the sixth of June, when he told us about the apartment he was moving to in New Farm,” she said.

The police investigation went cold but an ounce of hope emerged when an anonymous caller contacted investigators four times, with the last call in 2006.

 

A Queensland Police Service spokeswoman said people came forward following the fresh reward offer.

“Investigators are appreciative of the information provided from members of the public as a result of our appeal for assistance earlier this month, but do believe there are further people out there who have crucial information that could assist police in progressing this investigation,” she said.

Long-time friend Chris Bond lived with Mr Goldsmith in NSW in 1996.

“I was actually in France when he went missing and his parents called and asked if I had heard from him,” he said.

“We were arranging to go on a fishing and camping trip, which obviously never happened.”

 

Mr Bond described his friend as a thrill-seeker who was independent and one of the kindest people he had known.

“He was the first to leave home, get a proper job and did everything on his own,” he said.

“He was good at going off camping on his own for a couple of days.

“That’s why none of us really worried about it at first because we just thought he’s gone walkabout.”

 

Mr Bond said not a day went by when he did not think of his friend, even sharing old stories with his 11-year-old son.

“Goldie and I were actually driving at the time to go to Port Arthur [in 1996],” he said.

“Our ferry was due to arrive as the gun went off during the massacre [the mass shooting at Port Arthur in April 1996 in which 35 people were killed].

“Fortunately we got stopped by police for speeding and we couldn’t afford to go any more so without telling anyone, we turned around to head home.

 

“We’d sleep on the side of the roads but didn’t tell anyone so by the time we got back, everyone was furious because they thought the worst.

“My parents still haven’t forgiven me for it.”

Mr Bond said Mr Goldsmith’s friends never stopped trying to find answers, calling people and writing to media outlets.

“We were never contacted by police at the original stage. You’d think his close friends would be the first ones to call,” he said.

“But now the effort is incredible. I was interviewed recently and detectives are flying to Sydney for a second interview with me.

 

“I just hope, especially for the sake of his parents who are getting older, that we can all get answers.”

People with information about this cold case can call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.