It’s been 20 years since 19-year-old Belinda Peisley disappeared from Katoomba and her family still has no answers.

It took eight years for the police to report Ms Peisley’s death to the coroner, and in 2012 a coroner’s inquiry found she died in or around Katoomba, but couldn’t say how. The case was referred to the Unsolved Homicide Unit for re-investigation.

Ms Peisley was last seen on September 26, 1998 and her remains have never been found. She had inherited a significant amount of money before her disappearance, and was addicted to heroin.

An ABC documentary Who Killed Belinda Peisley? which airs on August 7 during national missing persons week, raises more questions about her disappearance.
 

Ms Peisley’s father Mark Wearne, who is part of the film, told the Gazette he didn’t believe his daughter’s disappearance had been adequately investigated.
 

“There are questions this documentary will not answer and there are holes it leaves. Did the police – the homicide squad – look at any other persons of interest? Were all these people’s [persons of interest] alibis tested?”

He said there also could be a link between the disappearance of Leura woman Maureen McLaughlin in 1992 (her body was found in Lithgow later that year) and Kellie Carmichael from Geelong who was last seen in a Katoomba hostel in 2001.
 

“They were women of similar age and similar social situation and were all travelling in the same circles,” Mr Wearne said.

“The common thread is the drug scene in Katoomba.
 

“Was there a serial killer operating in the Blue Mountains at the time?”
 

Mr Wearne said he has not been contacted by the homicide squad since 2013.

“There is so much that could have been done,” he said. “It’s been very difficult”.

Mr Wearne raised one of Ms Peisley’s two sons, Cody, until he turned 16 and, Mr Wearne recalls him frequently asking what happened to his mother and when he would see her again.

“How do you tell a six-year-old that, that there’s a strong possibility that his mother’s been murdered? … I evaded the subject when he was very young.”

Documentary-maker Helen Barrow followed the case for more than seven years, taking her cameras into the homes and lives of Ms Peisley’s family, neighbours, friends, witnesses and persons of interest, and into the courtroom each day of the inquest, to follow her story. 

“We started filming in 2012 and 2013 and the coroner and counsel assisting agreed to further filming in 2018, and the NSW police declined to be involved in the documentary,” Ms Barrow said.

A NSW Police spokeswoman said: “Despite extensive investigations and numerous ground searches by local police and the Homicide Squad over the years, Belinda has not been located. 

“Investigators identified numerous persons of interest and explored various lines of inquiry, which were tested during a coronial inquiry. 
 

“The investigation into Belinda’s disappearance and suspected murder will be formally reviewed under the new unsolved framework in coming months.” 
 

A $100,000 reward remains in place for the arrest and conviction of those responsible for Ms Peisley’s disappearance.
 

Mr Wearne has appealed for anyone with information, no matter how trivial, to come forward. Call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

 

'Items found' in police dig under Katoomba home of missing teen Belinda Peisley

By Jenny Noyes - SMH

Updated December 3, 2018

Forensic officers have found "items of interest" just hours into a forensic excavation and search at the former home of a Blue Mountains woman who went missing more than 20 years ago.

Police started digging with shovels under the former home of Belinda Peisley on Monday morning and are planning to divide the large backyard into sections and start digging it up on Tuesday.

By Monday afternoon, a NSW Police spokeswoman was already able to confirm that "items of interest have been located".

The nature of the items is unknown, as is the number that have been found so far.

Ms Peisley's father Mark Wearne told a media conference outside the house that the wait for more evidence had been painful for the family, and he was "very grateful" for the "very heavy police presence" there.

"I’d like to see every copper in NSW be here," Mr Wearne said.

Ms Peisley, then 19, was last seen in the Katoomba area on September 26, 1998.

In late 2012, investigators uncovered information suggesting she may have been the victim of foul play within the group of young people with whom she was spending time, many of them drug users.

Two years before she disappeared she had inherited a large amount of money and bought herself a home.

But by the time she died, Ms Peisley was a drug addict and the only money coming into her account was from welfare payments.

Police said she had "accumulated considerable debt" as a result of her drug problem.

An inquest into Ms Peisley's death was initiated and police began searching a large swath of bush land near Blackheath.

The inquest in 2013 heard that a few days after her death, Ms Peisley's house was broken into by a number of her former friends and acquaintances, who later used her identification cards to sell items at a western Sydney pawn shop. 

Two of the 19-year-old's former friends - Jeremy Douglas and Saxon Holdforth - became "persons of interest" at the inquest, with the scrutiny on their activities intensifying.

The inquest received evidence from multiple witnesses suggesting that Ms Peisley had been killed and thrown off one of the Blue Mountains' many cliff edges.

"I heard she was killed over drugs or she wouldn't give them what they wanted," Kerren Fittler said in a handwritten statement to police.

Mr Holdforth and Mr Douglas steadfastly maintained their innocence at the inquest.

 

Counsel assisting the inquest, Phillip Strickland, SC, said the evidence relating to the exact manner and cause of Ms Peisley's death was inconclusive, but that it did "point strongly to her death being the result of some sort of homicide or violence".

"Much of the hearing has been directed towards whether these persons of interest had knowledge of or direct involvement in the circumstances surrounding Belinda Peisley's death," he said.

"The evidence regarding these persons is inconclusive and not capable of convincing a jury that a known person committed an indictable offence."

Speaking after the hearing, Ms Peisley's aunt, Sharon Versace said she was "very, very disappointed" that charges would not be laid.

"At the end of the day, someone hurt Belinda but they're still out there living their life and they've taken hers," she said.

"I'll never give up, the detectives have come so far - I'm hoping that one day we'll get some good news. It won't bring Belinda back, but it will be a bit of justice for the family."

The inquest found Ms Peisley most likely died about the time of her disappearance but it could not determine the cause or circumstances of her death.

The last person to see her alive was a nurse at Blue Mountains Hospital, the coroner said, but there was "considerable suspicion" three other people had some knowledge or involvement in her death.

Despite extensive police investigations and ground searches, her body has never been found.

 

A $100,000 reward remains in place for information about her disappearance.

with AAP, Blue Mountains Gazette

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Missing persons expert slams investigation of young mother's suspected homicide

Updated 11 Feb 2019, 1:20pm

Police investigating the disappearance of 19-year-old Belinda Peisley in 1998 mishandled the case and missed a critical window of opportunity to gather evidence into her suspected homicide, a former NSW Police officer and missing persons expert says.

Karen Karakaya worked as a police officer in the NSW Coronial Support Unit and Missing Persons Unit in the late 1990s, during the time the young mother vanished from Katoomba in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney.

Ms Karakaya told the ABC's true crime podcast investigating the disappearance of Ms Peisley, Unravel, it was "surprising" NSW police marked Ms Peisley's missing person's report as needing "no further investigation" just four days after it was officially made.

"You would not expect to see 'no further investigation' on something that required investigation," Ms Karakaya told Unravel.

"Those first few days and weeks are really critical to the investigation … It's a shame that this has happened."

"The only time you would see that this early on is if [Ms Peisley] was located, and they were locating and writing off the report as no further actions required.

"It's just so sad that these things happen — that someone's out there that's missing."

At the coronial inquest into the disappearance of Ms Peisley, held over three weeks in 2012 and 2013, the officer who took Ms Peisley's missing person's report, Matthew U'Brien, agreed that in retrospect there were obvious steps he could have taken, but didn't, like visiting Ms Peisley's residence and interviewing her friends and associates.

However, the lack of police action at the time wasn't solely Mr U'Brien's responsiblity; the priority given to particular cases wasn't something decided by individual officers — it was also up to their superiors.

Police failed to test blood at Belinda Peisley's home

Prior to the missing person's report about Ms Peisley's disappearance being filed, two NSW Police officers and two detectives had attended the 19-year-old's home at Trow Avenue in Katoomba.

It was three days after Ms Peisley was last seen alive. A government caseworker who had been helping Ms Peisley had alerted police because she was concerned about the young mother's welfare.

In a report documenting their attendance at Ms Peisley's home that day, police officers described Ms Peisley as an "illicit drug user".

One attending officer later stated they remembered seeing what appeared to be blood in the bathroom — about "the size of an adult handful" — but this was not tested or collected for a sample.

Phil Strickland, the counsel assisting the coroner at the inquest into Ms Peisley's disappearance and suspected death, said the initial police investigation was "inadequate".

"The police never treated this as a potential homicide," Mr Strickland said.

"They treated this as a junkie who had gone missing, and so the police didn't do any proper forensic sampling, particularly of blood samples that were in Belinda's house, and they didn't interview a number of critical witnesses.

"It is known that it is the first part of the investigation [that] is the critical one, and if you don't do that right, then it's often very hard to pick up the pieces later."

At the conclusion of the inquest into Ms Peisley's suspected death, coroner Paul McMahon recommended that standard operating procedures in missing persons cases be changed if a missing person was deemed to be of high or very high risk of having been the victim of a homicide or suspicious death the Homicide Squad is immediately advised.

Mr McMahon also recommended that the Homicide Squad should, if it considers it appropriate, lead the investigation in the first 72 hours.

It was also recommended that the investigation into Ms Peisley's suspected death be referred to the NSW Police Unsolved Homicide Unit.

Ms Peisley's suspected homicide was one of 500 cold cases to be re-examined by the NSW Police's Unsolved Homicide Squad last year, and in December 2018 a forensic excavation of Ms Peisley's home uncovered three pieces of clothing and underwear that are being forensically tested.

 

To follow Unravel's ongoing podcast investigation into the unsolved disappearance of Belinda Peisley, listen to Unravel Season Three on the ABC Listen app, on Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Murder twist: Trees cut down in search for missing mum

Police have started cutting down trees and overgrown grass as they prepare to dig underneath a Blue Mountains’ home in the grim hope of finding the remains of young mum-of-two Belinda Peisley, who is believed to have been murdered 20 years ago . SIX ‘PERSONS OF INTEREST’ REVEALED. Daily Telegraph

 

Ms Peisley, 19, walked out of Katoomba Hospital on the night of September 26, 1998 and was never seen again.

The Daily Telegraph understands police decided to excavate Ms Peisley’s Katoomba home after reviewing the case this year and reinterviewing several witnesses.

The dig, led by the Homicide Squad, will concentrate on an area beneath a grey, weatherboard house on Trow Ave and parts of the grassy, acre block.

A NSW Police spokesman said the search was expected to last for three days and would involve the public order and riot squad along with Blue Mountains police.

The forensic excavation comes after an inquest in 2012 and 2013 when the Coroner found Ms Peisley most likely died from “the action of a third party” and referred the case to the unsolved homicide squad.

During the inquest six “persons of interest” were nominated and deputy state coroner Paul McMahon said there was suspicion at least three of those people had knowledge or involvement in her death.

He also found there had been a “failure” by NSW Police officers because her suspected death was not reported to the Coroner until eight years after her disappearance.

Belinda’s father Mark Wearne told The Daily Telegraph it took seven years for the police to start the investigation into his daughter’s suspected murder.

“The initial police investigation was disgusting. It was non-existent,” he said.

He believed it was possible two groups of people were involved in his daughter’s suspected murder but did not want to view his thoughts publicly.

“I’m of two minds of who is involved but I can see the plausibility of both,” he said.

At the time of her death Ms Peisley was a heavy drug user and had been intoxicated at a party on the night of her disappearance.

Police took her to Katoomba Hospital with several injuries but she walked out before seeing a doctor at 8.50pm on September 26. It was the last time she was seen alive.

All her personal belongings — including her patchwork handbag and wallet — were found at her home.

The Coroner found that she died about the time of her disappearance but did not make a finding on the manner or cause of her death.

The inquest into her death heard that a next-door neighbour heard that she and her boyfriend at the time — Justin Kondek — had an argument at her house on the day of her disappearance.

It was Mr Kondek who reported Ms Peisley missing to police on September 28, 1998 after he said he found the front door of her home open and all the windows smashed.

It was later found that he took her Westpac bank card and withdrew $1772 over the next several weeks.

He has denied having anything to do with Ms Peisley’s death and the Coroner found he was a credible witness and was unlikely to have been involved in her death.

The Coroner was less complimentary about three other “persons of interest” who knew Ms Peisley and were heavily involved in Katoomba’s drug scene at the time.

A large portion of the inquest — which ran over 15 days throughout 2012 and 2013 — focused on three Katoomba locals at the time: Jeremy Douglas, Heidi Wailes and Saxon Holdforth.

“The evidence available was inconclusive,” Mr McMahon found.

“The evidence did, however, raise considerable suspicion as to the possibility of such knowledge and/or involvement,” he said.

During the inquest Ms Peisley’s aunt Sharon Versace told the inquest her niece feared for her life.

“She believed that Jeremy Douglas was going to kill her. She said he had a gun.”

The court also heard Douglas and his girlfriend Wailes often frequented Ms Peisley’s home and in the week before her disappearance they broke into her home and stole a TV, microwave and a camera.

Yesterday a NSW Police spokeswoman said numerous ground searches had been conducted over the years for Ms Peisley’s remains but never at the Trow Ave location. “Investigators identified numerous persons of interest and explored various lines of inquiry, which were tested during a Coronial Inquiry,” a statement read.

“Detectives from the Homicide Squad continue to investigate Belinda’s disappearance and suspected murder under Strike Force Belonidae.”

Persons of interest

JUSTIN KONDEK — THE BOYFRIEND

A neighbour heard Kondek and Belinda arguing on the night of September 26, 1998. He told an inquest she smashed a mirror, Had blood on her hands and that she kicked him out of the house. He reported her missing to police on September 28 but later admitted He used her bank card to withdraw $1700 over the next several weeks. The Coroners found it was “unlikely” that he was involved in her death.

STEVEN KONDEK — BOYFRIEND’S DAD

Justin Kondek’s father Stephen was disapproving of his son’s relationship with Belinda and upset she had introduced him to drugs. A witness told an inquest she heard Kondek having a conversation about Belinda in 2007 in which he said, “Back in those days you could make someone disappear easily.” He denied saying this. The Coroner found “no cogent evidence implicating” Kondek in Belinda’s death.

JEREMY DOUGLAS — THE DRUG ADDICT

The then-boyfriend of Belinda’s friend Heidi Wailes. The Coroner found he had a reputation of violence towards women and the inquest heard Belinda had expressed fears of him. Belinda’s aunt Sharon Versace told the inquest, “She believed jeremy douglas was going to kill her. She said he had a gun.” The Coroner said the evidence raised considerable suspicion about Douglas’ involvement but “the evidence was inconclusive”.

HEIDI WAILES — THE BEST FRIEND

Wailes went to Belinda’s Katoomba home on the morning of September 27, 1998 and found it in a disturbed state but did not report it to the police. The coroner found her evidence was “most unimpressive and lacking in credibility”. The inquest heard she and Douglas had broken into belinda’s house a week before her suspected murder and stolen a TV, microwave and a camera.

WANDA LOYNDS — THE PUNCHER

A drug addict who admitted at the inquest to punching Belinda at a Katoomba house party on September 26, the last night she was seen alive. There was evidence Loynds had “confessed” to killing Belinda but the Coroner said considering she was a long-term user of illicit drugs, had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and admitted to telling untrue stories it was “unlikely she was involved”. He also found “no evidence Loynds harboured any pre-existing or continuing resentment or animosity towards Belinda”.

SAXON HOLDFORTH — THE ABUSIVE WITNESS

An associate of Jeremy Douglas and Heidi Wailes. Much of the inquest into Belinda’s death focused on whether the three of them had some knowledge or involvement in her death. “He had a reputation for being violent, particularly towards his girlfriend at the time, and about whom Belinda had expressed some disliking,” the Coroner said. He was found to be “generally unresponsive”, “abusive” when questioned, and “his performance did nothing to remove the suspicion that he had some involvement in the disappearance and/or death of Belinda.”