Family of girl who vanished 55 years ago give ultimatum to ‘person of interest’

‘Enough is enough. We want the truth to come out.’

The family of British girl Cheryl Grimmer, who went missing in Australia when she was three, have said they will name a person of interest unless he answers questions.

Cheryl was kidnapped from a changing area after going to the beach with her mum and three brothers in 1970, near the city of Wollongong in New South Wales (NSW).

A body has never been discovered.

A suspect in the case was charged with abduction and murder, but his 2019 trial collapsed – and he denies any wrongdoing.

The man, known as ‘Mercury’, is protected because he was a minor at the time – but his true identity could soon be revealed.

‘Mercury has until Wednesday night,’ Ricki Nash, Cheryl’s brother, said today.

Parliamentarian Jeremy Buckingham from New South Wales has said he will use his parliamentary privilege to name the suspect next week.

Cheryl’s brother has had enough and said he wants Mercury to explain how he knew certain information in his confession.

In a document, the family laid out what they call mistakes from authorities during the search for their sister.

‘We feel that we have been fobbed off numerous times by the police, saying that they’re conducting reviews of the case or exploring leads that make no sense to us,’ they wrote.

‘Cheryl disappeared more than 55 years ago. It’s time for answers, it’s time for accountability.’

‘The incompetence and negligence in the NSW police investigation of this case over much of the past 55 years is unfathomable.

NSW Police said: ‘Police continue to examine every line of inquiry and search for answers into Cheryl’s death.’

In 2020, on the 50th anniversary of the toddler’s disappearance, a reward of one million Australian dollars was offered for information about Cheryl.

A coroner in 2011 found Cheryl had died – but her cause and manner of death remained undetermined, NSW Police said.

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