A volunteer search team investigating the decades-old disappearance of Cheryl Grimmer in New South Wales say they have identified an “area of interest,” raising new hope in one of Australia’s most haunting cold cases, Stuff reported.

After 55 Years, Potential Break in Australia’s Missing Child Case

Grimmer, a British child, was just three years old when she vanished from Fairy Meadow Beach near Wollongong in 1970. Despite extensive investigations, her body has never been found.

This week, volunteers from Search Dogs Sydney, using cadaver detection dogs, reported a promising location in Balgownie to New South Wales Police. The site was first mentioned more than 50 years ago in a detailed confession by a teenage boy, one year after Cheryl went missing.

Police confirmed on Friday that specialist officers would conduct a search of the location as part of ongoing inquiries.

Cheryl’s brother, Ricki Nash, who was seven at the time of her disappearance, told the BBC the latest development was long overdue. “This should have been done 55 years ago. The police have never canvassed this area in detail even though they had a confession – a very detailed one,” he said, reported Stuff.

A man in his 60s was previously charged with Cheryl’s abduction and murder, but the case collapsed in 2019.

According to a report by Stuff, Search Dogs Sydney spokesperson Chris D’Arcy said his team believed they may have made a breakthrough. “What we believe we have located is an area of interest and will pass the information on to the authorities. The dog showed a distinct change in behaviour,” he said.

Police say the new search is expected to begin on Saturday.

Cheryl’s disappearance remains one of Australia’s longest-running mysteries, but her family hopes this latest effort could finally bring answers after more than half a century.