A specific zone flagged in a community-driven investigation for the remains of a British child who vanished in the land down under fifty-five years ago has turned out to be a false alarm, local authorities said.
A group of searchers who used specialized canines in the quest for the missing child had hoped their finding would mark a major development in the case, which has remained a unsolved puzzle since she disappeared in 1970, when she was three.
But bones that were found in the area are from an non-human creature, police said in response to queries, adding that the search had "concluded."
Investigators believe Cheryl, who had moved from Bristol with her family, was abducted from Fairy Meadow beach in Wollongong in the start of 1970.
Recent Search Efforts
The recent operation happened in Balgownie, on a small pocket of woodland mentioned in a admission made by a young male.
In the year 2019, a court case of the suspect, known only by a alias, Mercury, who'd been charged with the crimes against Cheryl, ended abruptly. The individual, in his 60s then, had denied any wrongdoing.
Prosecutors later withdrew charges against him as a judge excluded the statement he made as a juvenile.
Unsolved Case
Authorities have carried out numerous investigations in the years since Cheryl went missing, but have found few leads as to what happened to her.
Local officials have announced a one million Australian dollar incentive for information on Cheryl's abduction and suspected murder.
Relatives' Views
Her sibling Ricki Nash, 62, has openly discussed what he thinks are errors in the police investigation dating back to the day she went missing.
He was seven years old then. He final sighting of his sister in the locker area at Fairy Meadow on the date she disappeared.
Community Action
A petition asking the state parliament to set up an inquiry into cases of disappeared individuals handled by the police force, such as this one, collected more than 10,000 supporters this season.
It was discussed in parliament, but in a letter responding to those who signed, state authorities made no commitment to holding an inquiry.
