The Beaumont children’s disappearance that shocked Australia | Forensic Files

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he knocked her by 1955 grant Beaumont better known to friends as Jim entered a city hotel in Adelaide on a high after a
win at the horse races the Australian Army veteran had recently returned to South Australia after years spent
serving overseas and was now working as a taxi driver for local cab company suburban taxis he owned several vehicles
working hard of long hours to earn extra income keen to celebrate his win at the
races with a drink Jim walked into the Victoria Hotel on high interest rate in the heart of Adelaide City his attention
was immediately drawn to a woman who was sitting eating a meal with another couple struck by her natural beauty and
warned Brianna's Jim worked up the courage to approach the woman who introduced herself as Nancy Ellis the
two hit it off immediately just six weeks after their first date Jim proposed to Nancy and by December that
year the pair were married nine months later in September 1956 they gave birth to their first child a daughter they
named Jane NAR ter November 1958 marked the arrival of Anna Kathleen the Beaumont second daughter by July 1961
their idyllic family was complete upon the arrival of a third and final child a boy named after his father grant Ellis
the bone months were the quintessential was he family by 1966 41 year old Jim Beaumont had traded driving taxis for a
new career in sales he worked as a traveling salesman for a linen company Wally's wife 39 year old knees he stayed
home to take care of their three young children nine-year-old Jane Beaumont was wise
beyond her years incredibly well-spoken and intelligent Jane was a shy girl who enjoyed reading
writing poetry and playing outdoors she had a love for academia that encouraged a dream of becoming an author or teacher
when she grew up her polished composure would crack when excited causing her speech to delightfully stutter as the
oldest of the three Beaumont children Jane exuded a level of maturity and protectiveness that her parents likened
to a 15 year old Jane embraced her natural maternal qualities by watching protectively over her two younger
siblings seven-year-old honor Beaumont was the more extroverted of her siblings with a wild imagination that could keep
her entertained for hours outgoing and affectionate Anna loved seeing dancing playing dress-ups and putting together
concerts that she would perform in front of her family sometimes roping her brother and sister in on the act the
baby of the family four year old grant Beaumont jr. was a little gentleman who idolized his father he'd shadow gym
around the house watching as his father completed domestic tasks and pretending to be he's a little assistant
in another attempt to pay just like his dad grant would zip around in a red go-cart
acting as though it was a taxi grant was a sweet and friendly little boy and to the family doted on him lovingly
Jim Vermont's job as a traveling salesman men he often had to spend days at a time on the road and while he
disliked being away from his family it afforded them a modest the comfortable lifestyle to keep him up to date with
the happenings at home Jane would send her father handwritten letters detailing the little events of
her day which Jim would keep tucked safely in his briefcase to read each night for a reminder of home one such
letter read dear loving daddy when auntie Tolly came down to stay with us yesterday we went to the good wood fool
last night honor and grant swam in the toddler's pool which was up to my waist on me but auntie mummy and I swam in the
three foot six inch pool while we were there I learned how to over my eyes under the water forever so long and I
learned how to kick my legs and to make my arms float and a dive gracefully dive
races dive and planed off I learnt all this from Artie Talley there is only one thing I can't do breathing out as I'm
swimming along tonight I had a hot pie fritz and sauce sandwich and rainbow ice cream aunty tally bought a great big
roast chicken from her father for nothing most of all I want to wish you much luck
with your hot tiring work well goodbye I have to go Neil I love you Loving Jane whenever Jim managed to take
time off work he would take his family caravanning to visit his old army mates in Victoria or explore different parts
of South Australia during one trip along the great ocean road on Victoria's west
coast the family stopped at the iconic Twelve Apostles landmark Jane and Donna sat on either side of grant as the
Beaumont children happily posed on the cliffs in front of the limestone stacks the memory captured in a photograph Jim
and Nancy Beaumont cherished these holidays savoring every moment the family were together
[Music] [Music] by 1966 the Beaumont family was living the Australian dream their suburban home
on Harding Street in Somerton Park allowed them to take advantage of the iconic Aussie beach lifestyle the
seaside suburb of Glenelg who was only a 20-minute walk away and to the Beaumont's like many others were regular
visitors during the warmer months the cool pristine waters of Glenelg Beach provided respite from the harsh
Australian Sun enter the stretch of golden sand was the ideal space for the kids to run around and play South
Australia's metropolitan coastline stretches for 30 kilometres from south to West plenty of lies towards its
center on the shores of holdfast Bay located 11 kilometres southwest from Adelaide central business district as
the oldest European settlement on mainly into South Australia Glenelg is home to
many historical hotels restaurants and attractions which overlook the scenic seafront during the summer months the
beach is flat serene sea provides perfect swimming conditions for thousands of daily visitors the central
hub of mostly square frames the shores of the beach intersected by the Glen old - city tram line neighboring the square
is collie reserve an experience of lush green lawns shadowed by tall pine trees providing a popular space for picnics
and sunbathing aside from cosmetic and modern refurbishments the Glenelg beachfront
intense surrounds are very much the same today as they were in the 1960s back then the Glen old jetty was in a state
of disrepair after suffering extensive damage from a major storm in 1948 and had yet to be restored
in 1969 a much shorter jetty was constructed in its place which remains standing today in January 1966 Adelaide
was experiencing a prolonged heat wave with temperatures soaring towards 40 degrees Celsius
to cool off the Beaumont family had spent a significant portion of the summer school holidays at Glenelg Beach
Jim Beaumont had been lucky enough to enjoy four weeks of holidays over the Christmas period spending many days of
his break at the beach with his children Jim was officially back to work on Tuesday January 25 and was to embark on
the hot 150 kilometer journey to snow town for his first round of sales calls for the year before leaving that morning
Jim agreed to give his three kids a lift down to Colonial Beach to save them from
having to ride their bikes in the heat upon reaching the Glenelg foreshore Jane Anna and grant got out of their father's
Holden station wagon and rushed down to the beach like a majority of Ozzy kids in the early 1960s the Beaumont siblings
enjoyed a great amount of Independence the quiet close-knit suburbs of Adelaide were carefree and safe where everybody
knew their neighbors and looked out for one another spending time inside was discouraged and
parents typically sent their children outdoors alone to play for hours on end urging them to return home before the
street lights flickered on at night in the hot Australian summer suburban streets backyards parks and beaches
filled with local children who would gather to play games sports ride their bikes and make new friends scrounging up
enough loose change to buy ice creams hot chips mixed lollies and soft drinks these were the days before television
sets were commonplace before the hole in the ozone layer presented sun exposure threats and
before parents felt the pre-cooling omnipresence of stranger danger jim beaumont trusted his three children
completely the maturity of his eldest daughter Jane served her younger siblings well Jane confidently led honor
and grant on summer outings herding them on and off the bus carrying grant on her
hip and ensuring her little brother and sister never went deeper than their belly buttons when swimming in the ocean
there were good sensible kids who took great care of each other and obeyed their parents rules before Jim Beaumont
drove onwards for his work trip he sat in his car observing contentedly as his three children played on the beach
four-year-old son Greene caught sight of his father watching and ran towards him
waving happily and calling go on daddy don't worry the following day of Wednesday January
26 1966 Nancy Bowman woke at 7:00 a.m. after another hot and sticky night's sleep she
lay in bed enjoying the peace and quiet before her children arose it wasn't long
before honor and grant burst excitedly into their mother's room jumping on Nancy's bed and asking if they could
spend at the day at the beach school was due to recommence the following week and
the kids wanted to make the most of their remaining time off together while they still could it was Australia Day a
national holiday that marks the anniversary of the arrival of the first fleet of British ships to Australian
chores although the accompanying public holiday was anticipated for the upcoming weekend
Glenelg Beach were still guaranteed to attract thousands of visitors that Wednesday eager to join in on the day's
festivities unlike the rest of her family nancy beaumont didn't care much for the
beach but with her husband away for work she was the only one available to accompany the children to Glen Elk she
agreed to consider taking them once her daily housework was complete after breakfast the Beaumont children were
becoming impatient as Nancy had several chores she had the finish she caved in and agreed to let her children go to
clean orgone their own it was a trip the three had made without parental supervision many times before and with
the wires and maturer Jane leading them Nancy had nothing to worry about while it was only a short walk and even
shorter bike ride to Glenelg it was far too hot for the children to make the journey on foot the diagonal road bus
stop was only 100 meters away from the Bauman's house and to the bus route led straight into glen old stopping on
mostly street a short walk from the beach nancy decided catching the bus would be the quickest and therefore best
option for jane owner and grant the eager Beaumont children quickly dressed in their bathing suits the
eldest Jane or pink one-piece bathers with pale green shorts and a tartan canvas and shoes middle child Hana wore
red and white striped one-piece bathing with tan shorts and tan sandals the youngest gran
wore green and white bathers with green cotton shorts red leather sandals and remained shirtless jane packed three
beach towels into a green airline style shoulder bag along with a paperback copy
of the novel Little Women Nancy handed her eldest daughter eight shillings and sixpence to use for bus fares and to
lunch which Jane carefully placed inside a white clip top purse they were instructed to use the change from their
lunch to buy tickets on the midday bus home [Music] with the children out of the house
it didn't take Nancy long to finish her housework at around 10:30 a.m. she jumped on her bike and rode over to
visit a friend who lived nearby five minutes before the midday bus from Glenn old was due to arrive
Nancy rode to the diagonal road stop to meet up with her children however when the bus arrived the only person to
disembark was an elderly woman Nancy suspected her kids must have missed the midday bus and would instead jump on the
following bus which would arrive to the diagonal road stop around 2 p.m. I'm concerned
Nancy rode home soon after she arrived a couple of friends stopped by for a surprise visit during their stay
Nancy kept a watchful eye on the clock but 2:00 p.m. tick by and still there was no sign of Jane Ana or grant she
reminded herself that the kids knew the local area like the back of their hands and there were several different routes
they may have taken to walk home if they missed the bus Nancy decided to wait a short while
longer as the 3:00 p.m. bus would be arriving at the diagonal road stop from Glenn old soon and there was a likely
chance her children would be on board shortly before 3:00 p.m. June Beaumont's Holton station wagon unexpectedly pulled
into the driveway he wasn't scheduled to return home from snow town until the following day but as
sales were slow in the weeks following Christmas holidays Jim thought his time would be better spent at home with his
family Nancy informed her husband that their kids hadn't returned home from the beach
and she was starting to worry Jim assured Nancy there was nothing to be worried about believing they would have
heard something by now if an accident had occurred it was the same thing Nancy had been telling herself all afternoon
reassured by the fact that an accident injuring all three children was highly unlikely she was thankful for the fact
that if one child was hurt the other two were there to seek help she had always believed in safety in numbers there was
still no sign of the children by 3:30 p.m. Nancy waited expectantly at home in case
they arrived at any moment while Jim drove to Glen old to see if they were still there the seaside town was packed
with thousands of people making it impossible for Jim to spot his children through the crowds he returned home to
pick up Nancy and the pair comb to the beach their initial concern quickly growing into full-blown panic as they
failed to uncover any sign of their children at 5:30 p.m. Jim and Nancy Beaumont walked into the gunnel police
station in mostly square and declared to their three children Jane honor and grant to be missing
the constable led the Glenelg police station took a description of the beaumont children but assured their
concerned parents everything would be okay an abduction involving three children was unheard of
so the constable was certain the kids a day they lost track of time lost their way home or had been involved in an
accident nonetheless he called police headquarters in Adelaide to file the report German means he returned home to
Harding Street disheartened to find that the kids hadn't returned during their absence
soon after two police officers arrived to conduct a search of the Beaumont house believing there was a chance the
children were simply hiding from their parents to avoid getting in trouble for failing to meet their curfew when this
search proved fruitless the officers began a more detailed line of questioning with Nancy Beaumont asking
for exact information about what the children were wearing and what time they had left home
she described her children nine-year-old er Jane was four foot six inches tall thin with freckles and sun-bleached pair
cropped to her ears with a pushed back fringe at the front seven year old Anna was four foot tall of plump build with
Sun tanned skin and short dark brown hair with a fringe four year old grant was just three foot tall thin with short
brown hair and an olive complexion with very Sun tanned skin the police left the
search Glenelg and the surrounding Somerton park streets with a frantic Jim Beaumont in tow they searched the
coastlines of Glenelg Somerton West Beach Sea Cliff and Brighton looking for any sign of the children including the
bag towels and clothing they had left the house with that morning the hot temperature made the search extra
challenging as the beaches were still packed with crowds of people late into the night
Jim Beaumont quickly ruled out the possibility his children drowned in the sea later stating quote the beaches were
parked and the sea was calm one kitty perhaps could be drowned but the three together I just can't imagine that there
would have been some evidence they had there green beach bag with them they had their clothes I found nothing like that
at all struggling to see properly in the dark the police called off the search until
the morning light June Beaumont feared that he wouldn't return home without his children and continued to search the
streets and beaches alone until 7:00 a.m. supported by friends and neighbors nancy beaumont kept a vigil at home as
word of the children's disappearance trickled on to late-night radio news and television reports nancy wondered
whether her children had fallen into a hole or down a cliff the children's love for one another was strong and if one
was hurt the other two would never abandon them all three were afraid of the dark and they may have taken shelter
somewhere for the non the possibility of abduction crossed to Nancy's mind but the idea of someone kidnapping three
children at once seemed so far-fetched as she quickly dismissed the prospect wracked with guilt
Nancy blamed herself for allowing her children to go to the beach alone that morning the increasing fear that her
children were deceased fueled such intense anxiety in Nancy her local doctor was called to the house to
administer her a strong sedative when an exhausted June Beaumont returned home from his futile search he found his wife
slumped in a chair in a medicated sleep her face stained with tears the extensive police search for the
Beaumont children resumed at daylight the following morning on Thursday January 27 five boats from the sea
rescue squadron scan to the Glen Hope shoreline while officers trudged on foot through storm water drains sand dunes
and dense scrub police from City and suburban patrols joined the ongoing search conducting door knocks and
checking backyards sheds and a vacant properties police issued detailed descriptions of the children's physical
features into clothing to the media ball police cars fitted with loudspeakers drove the streets of Glenelg Co killing
for help by mid-morning June Beaumont addressed gathering members of the press on the
back porch of his Harding Street home sick with worry and struggling from sleep deprivation he pleaded desperately
for his children to come home telling the media quote it's a complete mystery I can't understand it my kids will be
crying their eyes out it's like a nightmare overwhelmed with emotion Jim bowed his head and broke down in
tears Nancy Beaumont was too distraught to face anyone and remained indoors in a
medicated fog as news of the disappearance spread the Glenn old police station was quickly inundated
with information from the public people wishing to speak to police had formed a line that stretched 20 meters long
outside the door with just the one sergeant and four detectives the Glenelg police station was ill-equipped to
handle the unexpected in the large scale case for the small team interviewing every single person and following every
possible lead was impossible they painstakingly typed each given statement using the station's only typewriter the
search for the missing Beaumont children quickly escalated into a statewide frenzy police roadblocks were
established on all major South Australian highways and Adelaide's Airport and Dru railway station were put
under heavy surveillance members of the public volunteered their time to wade in the search including
taxi drivers who had previously worked with Jim Bowman they cruised the streets in their cabs while members of Jane
Bowman's Briony Park rode their bikes around the surrounding neighborhoods searching for their missing friend three
kids matching the ages of the Beaumont children were sighted at 7:00 p.m. on the night the siblings vanished the
children were seen standing by the water's edge at the paddock were longer Boat Haven a marina just one kilometer
north from collie reserve a woman spoke to the children briefly and who they had
informed her that they didn't live in the area given the high profile and urgency of
the Beaumont children case police were taking no chances the marina which had a surface covering 70 acres and a depth of
six feet was drained for the first time since its establishment in 1959 in what would become one of the largest single
searches for the Beaumont children so far 80 young police cadets dragged themselves through the thick black
foul-smelling mud at the bottom of the empty marina using broomsticks they prodded the mud for any sign of the
missing children but to no avail despite these efforts not a single piece of evidence was located to indicate
where the children had gone it was determined that the siblings left home carrying around 17 or so items with them
including bags clothes towels as well as Jane's bulk and purse none of these items were recovered at any of the key
locations the children were expected to have traveled nor where they spotted on the shoreline of glenelg beach this made
the possibility the trio had drowned all the more unlikely given their belongings
would have been left behind on the sand and a later discovered the search for Jane Anna and grant Bowman soon became
the most extensive missing persons search in South Australian history within the first 48 hours of the
Beaumont children's disappearance police had received hundreds of calls from people claiming to have seen the three
young siblings one woman claimed to have seen a man into three children enter a vacant house opposite her home in
Adelaide's eastern suburbs but the group was mysteriously gone the next day another believed she saw the three
children accompanied by two men sitting at a bus stop multiple suburbs away in semaphore Park
most reported sightings led nowhere all were ruled out completely but with the help of several reliable corroborating
witness statements detectives were able to piece together what was likely to have been Jane owner and grant
Bartlett's movements prior to their disappearance while reports from witnesses who believed they saw the
children on the morning of January 26 varied in specifics there was enough information provided for police to
establish a fairly reliable timeline and identify several potential leads at approximately 10:15 a.m.
Jane owner and grant Beaumont boarded a public transit bus to Glen Hulk from the
diagonal road stop as confirmed by the driver an older couple traveling on the bus recalled to Jane Beaumont sitting on
the back seat greeting little women while honour and grant messed around treacly putting their arms out of the
windows just to get a rise out of their older sister the bus arrived to Glenelg just a few
minutes later entered her siblings disembarked on Mosely Street several streets back from the sea from local
postman Tom Patterson who knew the Beaumont family from his daily mail route saw Jane honor and grant walking
along those Lee street holding hands and laughing Tom heard one of their children
yelling out to the others look there's our post e into little grant and waved hello Tom struggled to recall the exact
time he saw the bone on children uncertain if it was in the morning or afternoon but police believed the
sighting occurred as the children first headed to the beach several witnesses observed the Beaumont children playing
in the shallow waters just north of the gun old jetty which formed the busiest section of the beach it was the same
area they had swam in the day before when their father dropped them off before his work trip to snow town honor
and grant were only comfortable splashing in the shallows and to never ventured beyond to waist deep shortly
after 11 a.m. the children finished swimming and made the short walk from the jetty to collie
reserve where they laid their tails out on the lawn here they were witnessed playing under a water sprinkler as they
washed the sand off their feet this siding was further corroborated by a school friend of Jane Bowman's who saw
the siblings at the reserve at around 11:25 am an old early woman sitting on a bench in front of the knee by holdfast
sailing club observed a men approached the Beaumont children as they played out on the lawn he was described to be in
his 30s six foot tall with an athletic build tend to skin long face high forehead and a wavy blond hair
he wore navy blue bay the briefs with a distinctive white stripe after speaking to Jane and her younger siblings the man
placed his own tail on the grass a few feet away then lay on his stomach and - watched the children play within 15
minutes of the man's arrival the children were seen jumping over him the oldest girl playfully flicking him and
her siblings with her tell a half hour later the elderly woman observing the group left Kali Reserve noting the men
and her children were still frolicking together on the lawn when she departed sometime between 11:30 a.m. into midday
the Beaumont children entered wenzels cake shop on Mosely Street where they often purchased their lunch when in town
the bakery was located right next to the bus stop the siblings would use to get back home to Somerton Park these actions
seemed to be in line with their original plan to buy a lunch and return home by midday as advised by their mother Nancy
Berman had given Jane 8 shillings and sixpence in silver coins to purchase lunch for her and her younger siblings
enough for each of the children to buy a pasty and have enough left over for the
bus fare home at wenzels bakery the three children purchased five pasties 6 finger buns and two large bottles of
soft drink one of the children also stated something along the lines of and a pyre for the man it was an unusual
request given the children had arrived to the store alone and the shopkeeper who had served the Beaumont children in
the past did not recall them ever purchasing a meat pyre before this large order far exceeded the amount of food
the children required for lunch whilst racking up a bill beyond what they could afford with the modest amount of money
given to them by their mother but when it came time to pay the children handed over a one-pound to note a significant
amount in 1966 and more money than the Beaumont children ever had access to after leaving the bakery around midday
the children did not go straight to the bus stop and returned home as expected instead minutes later they were spotted
back in collie reserve this time near the Glenelg surf club building an elderly couple sitting on a bench saw
the three children arrive and start speaking to the same tall blond-haired man seen playing with the children
earlier this unknown man then approached the elderly couple seated nearby and within earshot of the children asked if
they had seen anyone going through their belongings he exclaimed someone's nicked
our money this conversation was overheard by another woman close by who watched as the men returned to the
children and began helping the young Beaumont girls put their shorts on over their bathers the woman noted the action
as odd as the oldest girl looked much too old to require assistance getting dressed the men then went into the
change sheds behind to the surf club building to get dressed taking nothing but a pair of trousers and a towel the
three children patiently waited for him on a bench outside and were still there when the elderly couple left Khali
Reserve at around 12:15 p.m. after this there were no further reported sightings
of the men or of Jane Erna or grant Bowman based on witness descriptions a sketch of the unknown men last seen with
the Beaumont children was drawn up witnesses could remember certain physical features but not other
distinguishing characteristics such as the color of his eyes or the shape of his nose or mouth this led to a vague
sketch with the artist left to fill in the gaps using his own creative interpretation this rough sketch was
widely circulated and although it didn't lead to a positive ID it did prompt another witness into coming forward the
witness provided additional details about the man's appearance describing him as being in his late 30s or early
40s with a slim build and fair - librarian hair parted on the left-hand side the sketch was subsequently updated
but the men at portrayed never came forward to clear himself making him the lead suspect in the Beaumont children's
disappearance according to witnesses the Beaumont children appeared completely at
ease in the company of the unknown men and did not seem at all distressed based on this information police suspected
Australia day was not the first time they had all met and - the men may have frequented the Glenelg area or have
already been known to the children in some other capacity ana Beaumont had recently told her mother that Jane had a
boyfriend down at the beach a comment that Nancy had brushed off innocently at the time but now had her questioning
whether the unknown men could have been James hypothetical crush the witness who
saw the men Halbert Jane get dressed further added to this theory Nancy Beaumont described Jane as a shy modest
girl who was very particular about her body it would be uncharacteristic of her to permit a total stranger to touch her
in such an intimate way investigators developed the theory that the unknown man was a pedophile who may have been
grooming the Beaumont children during their unsupervised visits tickle an old building a rapport with the siblings
over time spotting them unsupervised on Australia Day may have presented him with a clearer opportunity to target
them a wolf in sheep's clothing it seemed to like no coincidence that when Jane and her siblings were due to take
the bus home her money had mysteriously disappeared the police considering the likely scenario that the man himself had
pocketed the child's money or purse feigning concern into maintaining the deception by questioning park visitors
about the supposed theft the 1p under note the children used in the bakery was perhaps one last act by
the perpetrator to secure his prey a generous offer to the down-and-out kids to spend lavishly on their lunch having
earned to their trust the men may have then offered to take Jane Anna and grant home this theory would have the children
willingly leaving collie reserved with their abductor without drawing any attention to themselves or sensing any
danger for June Bowman the possibility that his children had been abducted synched plausible he told the media
quote someone must be holding the children against their will otherwise they would have come home by now Jim
speculated that an abductor may have been observing the children for some time watching as they played in their
parents presence at the beach over the summer upon noticing they had no adult supervision on Australia Day
the abductor may have seen it as the perfect opportunity to strike they might have approached Jane Eyre and grant and
lured to lure the children into their vehicle perhaps by offering to go for a surprise visit to see their father or
fabricating a story about their parents being involved in an accident the fear that her children were being held
captive fled at Nancy Beaumont to tell a journalist for the Herald newspaper quote I think as a mother I'd rather
kill the children myself and get it over quickly than have them at the mercy of some bad person for so long
running with the theory the Beaumont children had been abducted by a pedophile the Sunday Mail newspaper
printed a story that played on every parent's worst nightmares with a headline declaring sex crime now feared
the article went one step further stating the police suspect that the three Beaumont children had been slain
and to voice the concerns that the Beaumont attacker could strike again parallels were drawn with the unsolved
murders of 15 year olds Mary Ann Schmidt and Christine Shara at Sydney's Wonder Beach the previous
year suggesting the same perpetrator could be responsible for both cases the wonder beach in Beaumont cases shared a
noticeable similarities as both involved two children going missing from a crowded beach during the January school
holidays but unlike the Wonder Beach case where Mary Ann and Christine's bodies were found within a day of their
disappearance near with our last seen alive no trace of the Beaumont children had
surfaced in close to a week by day five in the ongoing search for the Beaumont children South Australian
police had received over 1,000 phone calls in relation to the identity of their prime suspect further reports
placed the Beaumont children on airplanes in cars and at various locations throughout Adelaide interstate
newspapers had also picked up on the story leading to alleged sightings in other states as well with the
investigation now focusing on identifying the men last seen with the Beaumont children police turned to their
attention to known sex offenders around to the holdfast Bay Area as the suspect was seen by witnesses carrying only a
tail and trousers it was speculated he live below Killeen as those visiting from further away would be inclined to
come better prepared for the trip possibly carrying a bag to hold their positions however most known sexual
predators who lived locally were able to provide solid alibis for the day that Beaumont childrens vanished Detective
Sergeant alex palmer urged the Glenelg residents to check their properties for any sign of the children quote there are
many vacant homes both old ramshackle buildings in the old area of Glenelg and to new houses in the nearby suburbs and
the children could have been lured into them and anything could have happened days turned into weeks and still there
was no sign of Jane honor or grant Beaumont the South Australian state government put forward a modest the
reward sum of five hundred pounds for any information about the whereabouts of the missing children the reward was
deemed highly inadequate prompting local businessman and private citizens to contribute to the amount in the hopes of
encouraging others to follow suit Jim Bowman agreed to sell his house to boost the reward fund if anyone came
forward with information leading to the safe return of his children with donations from the local community the
reward grew to just over ten thousand pounds this increased amount coupled with the extensive media coverage of the
case led to an onslaught of false reports hoaxes and wild theories about what happened to the children people
showed up unannounced on the Beaumont doorstep to share their visions psychic readings and extended their religious
beliefs Jim and Nancy listened patiently to everyone who reached out to them but
the constant media attention and wild speculations were taking their toll opportunistic strangers tried to take
advantage of the grieving couple while others added insult to injury by trying to point at the anguished parents as
suspects a man with a foreign accent called afternoon tabloid newspaper the news claiming he was holding the
Beaumont children for ransom when the receptionist tried to connect the man with the editorial department he hung up
and was never heard from again the call was quickly ruled a hoax thought to be inspired by the kidnapping
for ransom of Sydney schoolboy Graham thorn six years earlier in 1960 which received huge nationwide media attention
at the time the kidnapping of Graham thorn was covered in episode 75 of case file
the federal police received a phone call from Adelaide resident purlins grocer reporting that he had sighted three
children matching the descriptions of the missing Beaumont children according to grocer the three children were being
driven in a car by a lone men grocer alleged the men held him up with a pistol and demanded he fill his car
radiator with water before fleeing with the children to the Barossa Valley a renowned wine producing region 75
kilometres from Adelaide later grocer admitted he had made this report while highly intoxicated and two that it was
based on nothing more than his own theory he and a friend were prosecuted for making the false allegation
[Music] following a report that the Beaumont children were being held captive by a
man and a woman at a home on kalenna logs Esplanade the homicide squad raided several houses in the area
who found a no trace of their children the men who made the report admitted it was a lie driven out of spire the couple
had falsely reported as the Bauman's cutters were actually his estranged wife and her new boyfriend after Melbourne
based the newspaper the truth published an ostentatious story declaring the Beaumont children to still be alive
multiple witnesses claimed to have seen a man fitting the description of the prime suspect driving a green Ford
utility truck along the highway between Adelaide and Melbourne the witnesses stated the men had two girls and a boy
in the back however given the amount of time that had passed between the alleged
sightings and the witness statements police mostly discounted these sightings as unrelated to the case the media
speculated the perpetrator could have taken the Beaumont children as far as New Zealand as no passports were
required to travel between the two countries at the time pitches and descriptions of Jane Eyre and grant were
sent to New Zealand authorities with advise to remain on high alert a summit in park resident reported
seeing three children walking along Boundary Road a residential suburban street with links to mostly Street
shortly before 3 p.m. on January 26 the children were in the company of a man described as aged between 30 and 35 6
feet tall with light brown hair high cheekbones and a son reddened complexion he was carrying a dark airline style bag
and walked with a slight distinct swagger as this description was inconsistent with the characteristics of
the unknown men last seen with the Beaumont children investigators mostly ruled this sighting
out after two weeks of searching had failed to uncover any signs of Jane Anna and gran Jim Bowman hesitantly returned
to work in an attempt to restore some semblance of normalcy to his life Nancy joined her husband on the road
desperate for a distraction and a change of scenery as every corner of their empty family home reminded her of their
missing children with leads reaching dead ends and to no new information surfacing stories of the Beaumont
children's disappearance started to fade from the headlines in an attempt to keep
the story in the news Jim and Nancy sporadically agreed to interviews with the press but their discomfort in the
spotlight was clear and for the constant trauma of having to relive their ordeal
caused the couple great distress without any new compelling information to report
the media attention and public assistance in their case began to dissipate Australia's then leading forensic
psychiatrist dr. John McGeorge was interviewed by journalists looking for a fresh angle on the story doctor McGeorge
had assessed the many of Australia's worst criminals and his experience had earned him a shining reputation for
correctly forecasting the outcome of criminal cases based on his experience into knowledge he predicted all three
Beaumont children were dead and to that killer was a psychopath or some on the borderline mental illness and two
perverted tendencies dr. McGeorge depicted the children's killer as a reserved person with limited
intelligence and few friends who likely lived in a boarding house or with elderly parents by a stone 1966 Jim and
Nancy Bowman refused to give up hope that their children were alive they kept their home perfectly intact wanting to
keep everything exactly as it had been the day the children left everything from the backyard swing set to the kids
books toys and the box awaited their return even the girls straw school hats hung expectantly on their usual hooks in
the hallway through their despair Jim Minton E&C remained optimistic that their children had been abducted by
someone who was keeping them alive and well there had been reports throughout Australia of desperate childless couples
attempting to kidnap children to raise as their own so the prospect of the Beaumont children being alive wasn't
completely without merit Nancy Beaumont told a reporter quote they can't have just vanished off the
face of the earth nobody can do that we go over and over it between ourselves and to the logical thing seems to be
that someone has them it could be a friend or someone we have never met if they had got into a stranger's car it
would only have been because the younger two children had talked to Jane into it
[Music] September 1966 marked seven months since the Berlin children vanished without a
trace on September 27 Senior Constable Ron grows was attempting to make a call to police headquarters in Melbourne from
his police station in conniver a small Victorian town 25 kilometers east of the South Australian border as he waited for
the call to connect his line became crossed with a conversation occurring between two females Senior Constable
grows heard one of the women say we're bringing the Beaumont kids back from Hobart and we are tired and think it's
time to give up convinced the call was authentic grows reported the conversation to the Victorian Homicide
Squad who quickly notified South Australian authorities upon hearing news of the phone call Jim and Nancy Beaumont
thought it was the strongest lead there had been since their children's disappearance months prior and quickly
clung to hopes that the call was genuine Jim behrman drove 320 kilometres to conniver to speak to Senior Constable
wrong grows in person and was told the exclusive brethren a subset of the Christian evangelical movement were
active in the remote areas around conniver this information sparked to Jim's attention as rumors had been
circulating that a religious sect could be holding his children captive Nancy Beaumont made a heartfelt play on
television news quote please whoever you are please listen with your heart I feel
that in different ways you have been kind to our children but I beg you show a greater kindness by letting them come
home the suspicious call ever heard by Senior Constable Ron gross was successfully
traced a few days later the two women on the other line were identified and clarified to police they had been
talking about the Beaumont case before switching the conversation to an unrelated topic regarding some other
children that they knew police were satisfied the women were being truthful and had nothing to do with the Beaumont
case quickly eliminating them from the investigation 1966 was a big year for Australian news
Prime Minister Sir Robert Menzies retired after 17 years in the top office to be replaced by Harold Hope Australia
made the move to the decimal currency system with the Australian dollar replacing the pre-existing Australian
pound Japan replaced the Great Britain as Australia's largest trading partner an assassination attempt was taken out
on Labour Party leader Arthur Calwell entertainment and sporting venues were allowed to trade on Sundays for the
first time as these stories dominated national headlines and prong times the unsolved case of the missing Beaumont
children was a vastly overshadowed something big needed to happen to prevent the case from fading into
obscurity Jim and Nancy Berlin had already been approached by many self-proclaimed spiritualists who
claimed to know the whereabouts of their children one such spiritualist the claim
to tow ever saved a vision of the children buried in a grave at the bottom of a cliff in the beachside suburb of
Marino nine kilometres south from Glen elk his premonition promptly sparked a police search of the suspected saw but
nothing was found in a bid to help solve the mystery an employee of South Australian newspaper the advertiser
wrote a letter to famed dutch clairvoyant Gerrard Chrisette asking for his assistance to help locate the
missing Beaumont children Cosette who claimed to have started receiving psychic missions during his
adolescence had earned a reputation in the Netherlands for assisting police in solving murders and missing person cases
his fame had spread throughout Europe into the United States and his help was sought in many high-profile criminal
cases from his home in Holland Creuset responded to the newspaper employees letter stating he believed the Beaumont
children had been involved in a tragic accident unrelated to foul play he said they could have been playing
innocently when something around him collapsed causing them to lose a battle against sand or water cruisers visions
revealed the children's bodies were lying on a stretch of open land not too far from the sea about half a mile from
where they were last seen he requested to be sent photographs of Glenelg and Assyrians in order to determine exactly
where the Bomont children were located Croix Jets interest in the Beaumont children was the fresh group needed to
bring the case back into the media spotlight word of Cruz's vision was quickly published by the advertiser with
several other publications reaching out to the Dutch psychic and printing their own take on the story the new media
attention renewed public interest with many members of the public flocking to caves and hollows throughout Glenelg and
at neighbouring coastal areas to search for Jane Eyre and grant based purely on cruisers word upon receipt of
photographs and further information Cruz's visions became more vivid he described thing the three children's
bodies lying in a cave near rocks on the beach with scrubland and a square house to the right hand
side and the shoals are a coral reef in the distance South Australian citizens believed to Girard Cruiser had
identified at the Minda home in Brighton a residential support and education facility for the intellectually disabled
Minda home was located on the coast three kilometres south from the Bauman's property the media quickly entertained
theories that the perpetrator could have been a patient at Minda home who after kidnapping and killing the Beaumont
children buried them on the foreshore in front of the Mandir grounds from his home in Holland crews had
advised that allowed citizens they were on the right track and encouraged them to keep digging front-end loaders were
brought into Mendes coastal boundary to remove tons of sand and soil but the excavation revealed nothing and the D
key became a public embarrassment in November 1966 two prominent Adelaide businessman funded a trip to bring
psychic Gerard Cruiser to Australia ten months had passed since the disappearance of the Beaumont children
and it was believed that croix Jets physical presence in the key locations from where they had vanished would
strengthen his psychic abilities and help lead authorities to Jane Anna and grant one donor was Barry Blackwell of
Brighton car company Midway motors who had already made several generous contributions to the bone on
investigation including a significant boost to the reward money the other donor was calm polite ease a self-made
Adelaide property tycoon who relished being in the limelight given the amount of contact to Jim and Nancy Beaumont had
received from self-proclaimed psychics the couple were skeptical about Cruz's claims and were not actively involved in
the efforts to bring the clairvoyant to Australia Gerrard Cruz had agreed to stay in Adelaide for two days and
refused any payment for his involvement in the case he was conducting his search
for the Beaumont children in good faith claiming he was 90 percent sure he would
be able to pinpoint the location of their bodies his arrival in Adelaide prompted a media frenzy that out shown
the arrival of British rock and roll band The Beatles two years earlier a crowd of 2,000 people greeted Cruz
about Adelaide Airport including 30 reporters and cameramen with anticipation running higher that he
would finally solve the mystery that had been haunting residents for close to a year cruiser was overwhelmed by the
reception saying all he wanted to do was help solve the tragedy and to release the city from fear
the next morning crews that visited Colley Reserve where it was believed to Jane Anna and Grant Beaumont were last
seen he then walked three kilometres along the Glenelg foreshore with a media crew following close behind later crews
that was driven through the streets of Cornell in to past the Minda home which Adelaide residents had pinpointed as the
location he had envisioned in previous psychic visions despite previous large-scale were digs of the area
proving fruitless upon his arrival to the area Perez at claimed he was now very close to finding their children the
next day he searched a vacant blocks of land without uncovering any evidence before complaining that too many people
were following him and all the attention was weakening his psychic abilities on his final morning in Adelaide Gerard
Cruzatte held an impromptu press conference to reveal that new information had since come to light
overnight a woman claimed she had heard her children's voices in a disused warehouse near her home in the early
morning hours of January 27 1966 the night the Beaumont children went missing at the time the warehouse was a vacant
having previously been used for brickworks it had since been converted into a joinery company and although
extensive renovations of the building had been conducted in August it was possible that several underground chutes
leading to the old brick kiln still existed cruiser led police and members of the press to a warehouse on Wilton
Avenue in paraná Park less than 500 meters from the Beaumont home believing the children were buried two
to three meters deep in an underground bunker he walked to the northern wall of the warehouse and said this is where
they are buried according to his visions gérard Krawczyk claimed the beaumont children were
afraid to go home in the dark so they huddled for shelter near the empty warehouse the trio was standing on
planks of wood which then caved in causing them to fall underground the floor of the warehouse had since been
concreted meaning the children's bodies were entombed underneath after bestowing
this information Gerrard Cruiser supported the idea of excavating the concrete floor and then promptly he left
the country residents of Adelaide took rosettes word as gospel believing he had uncovered the
final resting place of Jane Anna and grant Bowman under pressure from the public the South Australian government
deliberated whether to dig up the warehouses concrete floor using taxpayer money based on nothing more than a
psychic premonition although Jim and Nancy Beaumont had met with crews at briefly during his visit and appreciated
his interest in the case they were not convinced of his psychic abilities and did not support the dig police
investigated Cruz's claims by researching what the conditions of the old warehouse were like in January of
1966 and determined there was nothing plausible about Cruzatte so-called vision the building owners assured
police all then ground pits were thoroughly inspected before concreting work began and there were no signs
indicating the children had fallen into any in late November 1966 South Australian premier Frank Walsh stated
quote investigations have shown conclusively without a shadow of a doubt that there is no possible chance the
factory is the burial ground of the missing children it was decided that an excavation of the concrete flooring
would not go ahead however the public wasn't convinced of the findings and were certain cruisers visions were
correct a Citizen Action Committee banded together to conduct a public survey in
support of the excavation and raised 7,000 dollars to fund the project the excavation took place the following year
in March 1967 workers demolished 60 feet of the concrete flooring revealing an old staircase a brick kiln a piece of
cloth lolly wrappers lemon peel and two newspapers none of which were found to have had any
relevance to the Beaumont case the remains of Jane Anna and grant were not discovered on behalf of the South
Australian government premier Frank Walsh apologized the Jim and Nancy Bowman for the continued anxiety and
sorrow by the one-year anniversary of the Beaumont children's disappearance their parents were still clinging to the
belief that Jane owner and grant were alive as it was the only thing giving them the energy to carry on
Jim Beaumont continued to grasp under his theory that the children were lured and abducted quote a man or woman or
probably a man and a woman together persuaded them to get into a car and drove them away somewhere
they might told them Nansen dialed in an accident and if they've got them somewhere it would have to be a station
or some isolated place like that my god if they could only see what it's doing Denis it's in me it's no good without
their children not when you have had them I just can't understand the life without my kids there's no point to it
despite Jim and Nancy Bowman's continued hope their children would be returned to
them alive by the two-year anniversary of the disappearance investigators were no closer to uncovering the mystery
emotionally exhausted Jim and Nancy decided to take a step back from the media spotlight after providing one last
in-depth interview they spoke to the press in detail about Jane owner and grant and what they missed most about
the well-behaved sweet-natured children they had always dreamed of having whilst
thanking the South Australian police for their tireless work and praising the community for all the ongoing support
the heartfelt interview ended with Nancy Beaumont response to the question of whether she and Jim would relocate to a
new home for a fresh start Nancy said quote I can't go in case the kiddies come home you see I'm waiting
for them to come back here perhaps someone could drop them at the front gate wouldn't it be dreadful if I were
not here in the days following this interview Jim and Nancy Beaumont was shaken when a letter arrived to their
home signed by their missing daughter Jane written in childlike handwriting the letter read dear Mum and Dad
we are safe so there is no need to worry about us oh we really missed you in the
past two years at the beach on that day we were walking to the bus stop when a man in a car stopped us and asked if we
wanted a ride I said that we did and that is how it all started the men would not let us write before he's the letting
us right now because he saw the article in The Herald tonight and to felt sorry for you both he watched us a lot for
about six weeks and then he did not watch us so much honor and I often talk about you the grant does not remember
you at all after more than two years we have been fed well all the time I as well as honor and grant hope that you
are both well the man said to me just Nia that he will willingly let us go if he will come over
to Victoria to get us as long as you do not call the police in the letter Jane went on to request
that her father come to Dandenong to meet their captor a southeastern suburb in the neighboring state of Victoria 760
kilometers away from the Bowman's home the rendezvous was scheduled to take place at the front of Denton a local
post office at 8:50 a.m. the following Monday February 26 Janey instructed her father to wear a dark coat and white
pants ensuring he would be easily identifiable to their captor she stressed there was a very important that
the police must not be informed Jim and Nancy Beaumont believed the handwriting in a letter bore similarities to that of
James and felt it possible the letter was indeed written by their oldest daughter their major concern was that
Anna's name had been misspelled in the letter using only one end instead of two despite the fact that Jane knew the
correct spelling of her sister's name not wanting to disregard the letter on what could have been a simple spelling
mistake Jim and Nancy contacted the head of the South Australian Homicide Squad Detective Sergeant Stan Swain and to
talk him into helping them organize a secret trip to Dandenong Swain agreed and put the plans in place keeping his
involvement strictly confidential as to not alert the alleged captor to the involvement of law enforcement prior to
his arrival to Denton on Swain called ahead and booked the room at a local hotel where he would stay for the
duration of the scheduled Meetup when making the booking the detective sergeant gave the hotel manager his full
name as there had been some thefts in the Dandenong area recently the owner of the
hotel was wary about letting a complete stranger stay in his establishment to make sure this guest didn't present a
threat he contacted a local police officer to run a background check on the name Stan Swain the local officer
discovered it belonged to a South Australian homicide squad detective who was heavily involved in the Beaumont
case instead of treating this information sensitively the officer then called a reporter at
the melbourne-based Herald newspaper to advise him of Detective Swain surprise appearance in town the Herald newspaper
sent a group of reporters and photographers to the Dandenong region to discreetly scope out the detective
Swain's whereabouts convinced his presence had something to do with the Beaumont case at the same time the news
newspaper in Adelaide had received a tip-off from someone close to the Beaumont family and sent their own group
of reporters and photographers into state to investigate on the morning of Monday February 26 Jim
Beaumont stood alone at the front of the Dandenong post office has he been instructed to do in the letter from Jane
detective sergeants den Swain was watching discreetly from nearby posing as a window cleaner the telephone rang
inside the den and on post office and to the male caller asked the staff member to inform Jim Beaumont that he was
running late but would be at their designated meeting spot as soon as possible throughout the
day other nearby businesses received calls from the unknown male who instructed employees to relay further
messages to Jim the mysterious man maintained he was still on his way desperate to believe he would be
reunited with his children along last June Beaumont stood in front of the Denton on post office for three days
however there were no signs of Jane Anna grant or the mysterious man dejected Jim
and Nancy returned to Adelaide where two more letters were awaiting them upon their arrival one letter was allegedly
from Jane who said their captor was very disappointed that they brought the police with them to Dandan all the
second letter claimed to be from the captor himself he wrote dear mr. and mrs. Bowman I am terribly sorry that I
could not hand your children back to you when you were in Dandenong but I knew you had detectives with you and to the
Main Street were so busy I am taking extra good care of the kiddies for you the writer went on to buying the
Bauman's for going against his wishes and informing the police he said it was too late now and that one day in the
near future he would put their children on a train to Adelaide so they better have their bedrooms ready for their
arrival the following week a third letter arrived from Jane this one saying quote I want you to know and never
forget no matter what happens that we will still love you both very much [Music]
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case file join the movement the 60s came to an end without any major breakthroughs or new leads in the case
of the missing bone one children and if there are no further letters sent from the person claiming to be Jane Beaumont
or the men alleging to be holding the children captive the constant trauma and heartbreak endured by Nancy and Jim
Beaumont led to their eventual divorce although they maintained a valued friendship thereafter they both moved
away from the family home on Harding Street in Somerton Park leaving behind the crushing hopes that their smiling
children would one day swing open the gate and a walk inside with the media now firmly focused on the
Vietnam War the disappearance of nine-year-old Jane seven year old owner and four-year-old grant became a distant
memory what was once the biggest criminal investigation in South Australia was now overseen by a single
detective over the years the occasional piece of information related to the case
filtered through and police continued to follow up on all lines of inquiry no matter how speculative but nothing
substantial ever surfaced seven years after they vanished memories of the Burma and children's disappearance
flooded back into the adelaide consciousness as news of a similar abduction made headlines on august 25
1973 11 year-old er Joanne Ratcliffe escorted four-year-old Kirsty Gordon to the bathrooms doors during a football
match held at Adelaide Oval a large football and cricket stadium on the banks of the Torrens River less than two
kilometres north of the CBD the trip should have taken just a few minutes but 20 minutes later the girl still hadn't
returned to their families the alarm was quickly raised under police were contacted promptly
initiating a full investigation Joanne and Kirsty were last seen by several witnesses struggling with a man who then
dragged the girls out of the oval southern gates the men was described as being of average height with a stooped
posture wearing a wide-brimmed Akoo burst all her horn rimmed glasses gray checkered sports jacket and brown
trousers investigators had learned a lot since the Beaumont case enter now new missing
children cases should no longer be handled conservatively this time abduction and a probable murder were
suspected almost immediately and reported in the media as such yet despite efforts Joanne Ratcliffe enter
Kirsty Gordon were not located nor was the men last seen with them identified the investigation into finding Joey and
Kirstie played out similarly to the Beaumont case in that no evidence was uncovered and to the subsequent search
was bogged down by bogus sightings wild speculations hoaxes and unsubstantiated visions from spiritualists including
input from Gerard Crozier the Dutch clairvoyant whose psychic visions failed to uncover any sign of
the Beaumont children based on witness accounts a watercolor sketch of the man seen abducting Joann and Kirsty was
drawn up and widely circulated similarities were immediately drawn to the sketch of the unknown man seen in
Kaali reserved with the Beaumont children just before they vanished in 1966 both sketches depicted a
middle-aged man with a long lean face and well-defined bone structure Peter Alexander from the Police Association of
South Australia later said quote there is a big chance these two crimes are linked this type of offender this type
of killer you just can't get a handle on even on a worldwide basis these are extraordinary crimes the psychology and
supreme confidence of the guy is astounding one group of children taken from a crowded Beach the other from a
crowded sporting field both in broad daylight by the late 1970s and early eighties
South Australia was once again struck by a spate of horrific abductions and murders five young men went missing over
those years their bodies were later found in various locations throughout Adelaide police
believed a network of sadistic pedophiles were responsible for the crimes men who held prominent positions
within Adelaide society as the perpetrators were suspected to go to great lengths to prevent one another
from being detected the brutal slayings were dubbed the family murders in November 1984 Adelaide accountant
Bevan Spencer von Arnim was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of 15 year
old Richard Kelvin the fifth family murders victim in 1990 the details of a committal hearing held prior to Bevan
Spencer of an item's murder trial were released to the media after a series of suppression orders were lifted a Crown
witness identified only as mr. BAE who had previously partnered with von einem in drugging and assaulting male
hitchhikers had testified at the hearing mr. B told the court that von einem had
confessed to committing at least 210 murders including the deaths of the Berlin children von einem had admitted
to abducting the Bomont children before connecting them up and performing some quote brilliant surgery on them after
one of the children died he killed the other two and dumped the bodies that either my ponga or marijuana two areas
are located on the southern coast of adelaide von einem also mentioned that he had picked up two children at the
football as in the case of a Joe Ian rackleff and Kirsty Gordon despite these alleged confessions many aspects
spotlighting Bevan Spencer von einem as a suspect in the Beaumont case didn't add up
although he's build a match for that of the man last seen with the Beaumont children von einem had only been 20
years old at the time of their disappearance this was much younger than witness descriptions who consistently
reported the man last seen with the children as being middle-aged in his 30s or early 40s the Beaumont children also
didn't fit the profile of on items preferred victims who were typically males in their teens and early 20s Bevan
Spencer von Arnim denied any involvement in the abductions of the Beaumont children or Joanne Ratcliffe and Kirsty
Gordon however speculation of his involvement in the Beaumont children's disappearance was reignited when reports
a later circulated that spectator resembling a young von einem was caught in the background of archived
in news footage watching as police divers searched the paddle along a boat Haven as killers have been known to
return to the scene of their crime to wear the relive their fantasies or check on police progress it was speculated
that von einem was exhibiting textbook criminal behavior an expert in forensic facial mapping compared the images of
the spectator to that of a young von einem and concluded there were considerable differences between the
pair's facial structures the von einem look-alike was determined to be just that a look-alike nevertheless Bevan
Spencer von Arnim was not ruled out as a suspect in the Beaumont case following mr. BAE's allegations South Australian
police turned to their investigations to the Mike Luongo reservoir the location von einem told mr. B he had dumped the
bodies of the three children On February 2 1990 police divers from the underwater
recovery unit arrived to the Florio Peninsula 60 kilometres south from Adelaide to conduct a search of the my
ponga reservoir the major undertaking presented multiple challenges as the reservoir held 28,800 mega litres of
water with the depth of 100 metres in some places making it difficult for divers to reach the bottom before
decompression stops were needed the water also contained fine silt that significantly reduced the visibility and
tons of accumulated silt would have gathered over the years since the children went missing effectively
burying any remains police revealed they were searching for bodies but refused to
comment on whether it was those of the missing bone on children days of searching failed to uncover any remains
enter the search was eventually caught off a month later police confirmed suspicions that they had indeed been
searching for the remains of the Beaumont children as well as those of Kirsty Gordon and Joann rackleff but
nothing had been found another massive and devastating setback to the Beaumont case occurred in 1992 advances in
fingerprint technology presented the opportunity to test the fingerprints found on the handwritten letters
supposedly penned by Jane Bowman and her captor back in 1968 the letters that prompted g-men to Nancy Beaumont to
travel to Dandenong in Victoria with the false hopes of being reunited with their
children testing of the fingerprints revealed the author of the letters to be a 41 year old man from Victoria when
confronted by police the Victorian man had admitted he had originally written the letters as a teenage prank which had
quickly spiraled out of hand he had since expressed the great remorse for his immature behavior regretting the
hoax in his out of years police determined the men had absolutely no involvement in the Beaumont children's
disappearance and he was promptly eliminated as a suspect given the amount of torn that had elapsed and his age at
the time of the : no charges were ever filed against him as the 1990s came to an end another
person of interest was named in the Beaumont case Arthur Stanley Browne in 1998 Browne was charged with the 1970
murders of sisters Judith and Susan Mackay aged five and seven in his home town of Townsville Queensland Bryan
managed to avoid detection for the murders for almost 30 years after his eventual arrest
Arthur Brown's photograph was widely circulated in newspapers and television reports nationwide jogging the memory of
a witness to the 1973 abduction of Joanne Ratcliffe and Kirsty Gordon who identified Brown as the
girls that doctor even in his older years Brienne bore haunting similarities to the identikit sketches and witness
descriptions of the suspect right down to the wide brimmed a kübra style heart and horn rimmed glasses he often wore
although brown was settled in Queensland he had frequently traveled interstate for work and it was possible he had
passed through South Australia over the years as the sketch of Joanne and be cursed his abductor has been widely
compared to that of the man last seen with the Beaumont children Brown was considered a suspect for both crimes by
the time he was arrested for the Mackay sisters murders 86 year old Arthur Brown
was suffering from Alzheimer's disease and dementia and determined unfit for trial he was therefore released to live
out the remainder of his life in a nursing home without ever facing trial for the 45 charges which had arisen
since his arrest including rape murder sodomy and deprivation of Liberty he died in 2004 legally as an innocent man
in May 2004 convicted child killer Derrick Ernest Percy was named as yet another potential suspect in the
Beaumont case first he was convicted in 1969 for the abduction and murder of 12 year old Yvonne tui from a beach in
Victoria he was found not guilty due to reasons of insanity but was held in custody indefinitely police suspected
Percy could have been involved in up to nine unsolved crimes related to missing or murdered children throughout
Australia during the 60s this included the unsolved Wanda beach murders covered further in Episode one
of case file a collection of personal Diaries and drawings written and illustrated by Derrick Percy detailed
disturbing torture fantasies the boss striking similarities to real crimes committed against children that had
occurred prior to his arrest strengthening the suspicion he was far more prolific when questioned about his
involvement in other unsolved crimes Percy told police he believed he was in Adelaide at the time the Beaumont
children went missing but insisted he had no memory of anything else even if Percy's memory was correct he
was just 17 years old in 1966 much too young to be the men witnessed in the company of the Beaumont children police
have also been unable to determine whether Percy had access to a car at the time of the children's disappearance
which investigators presumed would have been necessary to facilitate a quick getaway the reliability of Percy's
claims was one of contention given the fact he had been deemed legally insane in July 2013
Derrick Percy died without providing any deathbed confessions that many were hoping for leaving members of law
enforcement and many grieving families including the Bowman's with the audience's at the turn of the new
millennium the truth of what happened to the Beaumont children remained unknown but the list of suspects potentially
involved in their disappearance continued to grow in the 2000s convicted child killer James Ryan O'Neal became
the subject of the ABC documentary titled the fisherman journey into the mind of a killer O'Neil was charged in
1971 for the abduction and sexual assault of four young boys in Victoria but skipped bail fled the state and
changed his name four years later in 1975 he was located in Tasmania where he was arrested and later convicted for the
abduction and murder of nine-year-old Tasmanian boy Ricky Smith during production of the documentary
O'Neil developed the friendly rapport with his interviewer former Victorian police detective Gordon Davey after
spending three years getting to know the convicted killer for his documentary Davy suspected O'Neill could have been
involved in several other missing children cases including the Beaumont children O'Neill denied having ever
visited Adelaide but his work in the opal industry put him in the South Australian mining town of Coober Pedy up
to 15 times throughout the late 60s and early 70s a trip that facilitated a stopover in Adelaide to return to his
hometown in Melbourne as Davie interviewed O'Neill's former acquaintances the retired detective
learned from multiple sources that O'Neill had boasted about being responsible for the death of the three
Beaumont children Davies suspected O'Neill could have taken the children all the way to coober
pedy 846 kilometres north of Adelaide where he then dumped their bodies down an abandoned Des Moines shaft Davie took
his information to South Australian police who subsequently interviewed O'Neill but ultimately ruled him out as
a suspect yet another two suspects in the Beaumont case were uncovered when allegations
made by the adult children of Adelaide businessman Alan Maxwell McIntyre were heavily publicized in 2007 McIntyre's
children who had publicly accused their father of being an incestuous pedophile claimed that he along with business
colleague and former scout master Anthony Monroe went to Glenn old Beach on Australia Day in 1966 when the two
men returned home they were both visibly agitated McIntyre's children claimed sand and blood were visible in Monroe's
car and professed to seeing the bodies of three children in the boot of the vehicle police investigated these
shocking claims but ultimately cleared Owen Maxwell McIntyre and Anthony Monroe of any involvement in the Beaumont
children's disappearance yet McIntyre himself later admitted that there was partial truth to the allegations during
an exclusive interview with Adelaide newspaper the advertiser McIntyre vindicated himself and pinned to the
entire crime on his friend Anthony Munroe alleging that on Australia Day 1966 Munroe arrived at his property with
three bodies in the back of his car McIntyre described Munroe as quote one of the most evil pieces of work that
ever drew breath McIntyre continued to deny any personal involvement with the crime up until his death in 2017 that
same year 2017 72 year-old Anthony monroe clinic guilty to 10 unrelated child sex crimes dating back to the 60s
some of which occurred in glenelg during the time period the Beaumont children went missing
Munroe was sentenced to 10 years in prison with a non-parole period of five years and five months and will be
eligible for parole in 2022 at the time of the beaumont children's disappearance
Allen Maxwell McIntyre owned a block of land in the York Peninsula town of Stansbury 200 kilometers west of
Adelaide his children alleged that a sinkhole on this property was filled in just weeks after the Beaumont children
disappeared the police refused to excavate the land due to lack of evidence in 2006 to commemorate the 40th
anniversary of the Beaumont children's disappearance true from author Alan Whitaker released an in-depth book
exploring the case titled searching for the Beaumont children several months after its release
Whitaker received a phone call from a woman named Angela alleging her former father-in-law was responsible for the
abduction and murder of Jane Anna and grant Bowman Allen Juanita remained skeptical over the decades the high
profile mystery had attracted elaborate hoaxes speculation and theories with investigators and journalists weeding
out countless claims from people who believed they even knew the whereabouts of the Beaumont children or the identity
of the trio's killer some of the more outrageous claims included people coming forward claiming to be the grown-up
Beaumont children the nation's desperate need for closure ensured every lead was
investigated but none were substantiated however the information provided by Angela to ellen Whittaker was compelling
as it were authentically with known facts of the case she alleged her ex husband Hayden had once confessed that
his father had something to do with the Beaumont children's disappearance adding that the children were quote in
the pit although she was shocked by the comment at the time angela was unsure what to
make of it Hayden had only recently confided that his father had subjected him to horrific
sexual abuse throughout its childhood and was in an emotionally fragile state it wasn't until the Angela read Allen
winokur's book about the Beaumont case that her gut instincts told her Hayden's allegation might be true in his book
Whitaker explained that on Australia Day 1966 the Beaumont children had paid for
their lunch at wenzels Cates shop using a mysteriously lavish one-pound a note this was one of the cases most
significant clues as it was suspected the money was given to the siblings by someone involved in their disappearance
according to Angela her wealthy former father-in-law was notorious for handing out one-pound notes to his son and his
friends to entice them to go out and play so he could be left alone immediately intrigued Allen Whittaker
informed his research partner Stuart Mullins about Angela's phone call and Mullins dive headfirst into
investigating the allegations the suspect in question was Harry Phipps a millionaire businessman who was regarded
as charming and charismatic in 1966 Phipps lived in glenelg with his wife and teenage son and owned and operated
the Castaway Factory in North Clinton located four kilometres north of his home the Phipps house was located on the
corner of augustow and Sussex streets and me three hundred meters away from both a wenzels cake shop and to the
chain shed in collie reserve where the Beaumont children were last sighted this provided a perfect triangle between the
investigations to key locations and the suspects property in fact the lawns of collie reserve could be seen from the
suspects home and was less than a minute walk away down or Guster Street a residential Road lined with character
homes and pine trees additionally Harry Phipps was aged in his early 40s in 1966 and his appearance
or striking resemblance to the sketch of the man last seen playing with Jane Anna
and gran he was approximately six feet tall with an athletic build long face high forehead and wavy light brown -
blond hair parted to the side as Angela's claims continued to gain merit the investigation was handed over to
private detective bill Hayes a former detective for the South Australian police by the time Angela had implicated
her former father-in-law in the Beaumont children's disappearance Harry Phipps had been deceased for two years having
succumbed to Alzheimers in 2004 nevertheless researcher Stuart Mullins proceeded to look into the life of the
prominent respected businessman to determine whether the accusations against him could be true Mullins
arrived to Glenelg visiting the house behind the collie reserve where Harry Phipps lived until his death the house
now belonged to Phipps 2nd wife during a tour of the house Mullins was taken into
an underground cellar which Phipps had used as his workshop there Mullins caught sight of something sitting on a
shelf there was a white clip top vintage purse in pristine condition the very same kind jane beaumont had left home
with on january 26 1966 unable to take his mind off this bizarre sighting the next day miles returned to the house the
question fits a widow about the purse when he mentioned Janne Berlin had owned that exact type of purse FIPS Widow
became defensive claiming she had bought it from an op shop the previous week this claim struck Mullins as odd given
the woman had inherited millions of dollars from her deceased husband's estate and had no need to buy a cheap
secondhand child's purse Mullins informed police of the discovery but when a detective visited the house days
later to retrieve the purse Phipps widow advised she had thrown it away before threatening Mullins with legal action if
he returned in 2008 Harry Phipps son Hayden agreed to an interview with private investigator bill
Hayes to provide further insight into his allegations that his father had murdered the three Beaumont children
according to Hayden his father was far from the image of charming respectable businessman he
projected but instead her predatory pedophile and abusive alcoholic with a love for guns
Hayden recalled a chilling memory from over 40 years prior occurring on January 26 1966 on that summer's day teenaged
Hayden was smoking cigarettes in a cubby house in the backyard of his family's Glenn old home when he caught sight of
his father walking into the house with three young children in tow they each had short cropped hair the oldest one
was carrying a shoulder bag and all appeared to be lost the three children went inside the FIPS home but never
emerged Payton later saw his father load four large bags into the boot of his car
and drive away when Hayden entered the house the children were nowhere to be seen
Allen Whitaker and Stewart Mullins presented their research into Harry Phipps in a 2013 novel titled the
certain man uncovering the mystery of the missing bone on children the title was inspired by Phipps insatiable sexual
fetish for the silky fabric rather than aiming Harry Phipps out write pseudonyms
were used to protect the identities of the accused and his family in the book Harry Phipps was referred to as Hank
Harrison following the release of the certain man media interest in the new Beaumont case suspect Hank Harrison was
high when channel 7 Current Affair show today tonight aired the story they can to the pseudonyms in exchange for use of
the real name's Harry Phipps was exposed but today tonight revealing Phipps former business as the castaway Factory
in North Clinton had sparked the memory of two brothers who came forward asserting they had been hired by Harry
Phipps to dig a hole at the factory site in 1966 just three days after the beaumont children went missing the
brothers now aged in their 60s with teenagers who lived locally at the time and often picked up odd jobs to earn
extra cash 50 instructed them to dig a hole with the dimensions of one meter wide two
meters long and two meters deep there was a searing hot weekend and to the factory was closed as Phipps watched
the brothers closely urging them to dig deeper two days later they were paid handsomely for their work with Phipps
handing them both one pea under notes when the brothers heard the Castaway factory mentioned on today's annoy they
were hit with the haunting realization they could have unknowingly dug a grave for the three beaumont children their
story also corroborated allegations Harry Phipps son Hayden had made to private investigator bill Hayes who said
his father had buried the children at the industrial saw it Hayden told Hayes quote they are in the sandpit bill
although police maintained there was no evidence to substantiate allegations made against Harry Phipps in relation to
the Beaumont children's disappearance they agreed to conduct a search of the Castaway factory saw it the factory had
changed significantly since 1966 and if the brothers were unable to pinpoint the
exact location where they had originally dug the hole the one brother believed he
had a general idea in October 2014 South Australian police used ground penetrating radar to locate
a small anomaly in the cited area but upon excavation of the one made a square segment of earth nothing was found this
excavation effort was widely criticized as neither brother was on site during the dig and critics believed the police
didn't dig deep enough or in the correct spot investigator bill Hayes said quote
it wasn't anyone's fault it was the geography that had changed when we saw the aerial photos we knew we'd ducked in
the wrong place in January 2018 South Australian police launched a highly publicized to joint
investigation with Channel seven and Flinders University to conduct a more thorough excavation of the Castaway
factory with further assistance from the brothers forensic scientists uncovered an area of disturbed earth approximately
the size of a grave it had been 52 years since nine-year-old Jane 7 year old Anna
and 4 year old Grant had mysteriously vanished and expectations across Australia were higher hoping this second
more thoroughly planned and orchestrated dig would lead to a major breakthrough yet the excavation revealed to nothing
more than rubbish and a few animal bones major crime detective Superintendent Dez
Bray said quote we are confident there has been a hole or holes dug here historically into those holes have been
used for at least a period of time as some sort of tip there's nothing at all that's being located today that's in any
way connected to the Beaumont children sadly this means for the Beaumont family we still have no answers we will always
do everything humanly possible to locate the Beaumont children and return them to
their family as of late 2018 the whereabouts of Jane Anna and grant Beaumont remains unknown
the investigation into their disappearance is regarded as one of the largest criminal investigations in
Australian history and holds the tragic legacy has been one of the country's most infamous unsolved mysteries to this
day a 1 million dollar reward remains on offer for information that leads to the
truth about what happened to the Beaumont children that summer day in 1966 Jim and Nancy Berman are both aged
in their nineties and still reside in Adelaide they have not officially spoken to the media in over 40 years and have
come to terms with the likelihood that they may never learn what happened to their three children
although presumed murdered if the Beaumont children were still alive today Jane would be 62 years old Anna would be
59 and the grant would be 57 the sketch of the unknown man seemed plain with the
Beaumont children a collie reserve remains the only circulating image of the suspected perpetrator no other
criminal case in Australian history has attracted as many suspects with hundreds
of people investigated over the years including the most notorious and vials from across the country in February 2018
South Australian major crime detective Superintendent Dez Bray set up to a dozen potential persons of interest
could not be excluded by police this list includes Bevan Spencer von einem Arthur Stanley brown Derrick Ernest
Percy James Ryan O'Neal Anthony Monroe Alan Maxwell McIntyre and Harry Phipps in Australia there are more than 2,000
long-term missing people and over 500 archived sets of unidentified human remains in June of 2018 Susy Ratcliffe
the younger sister of Joanne Ratcliffe the eleven-year-old girl abducted from Adelaide Oval in 1973 called for all
evidence in long-term missing children cases to be urgently retested for DNA like the Beaumont children
Joanne Radcliffe and Kirsty Gordon have never been found and to their abductor never identified susie rackleff believes
the remains of her sister could be amongst the unidentified remains along with those of Kirsty Gordon and to the
Beaumont children Suzie is supported by Rena and forensic scientist dr. Jody ward who once Australia to commit to a
laboratory dedicated solely to missing persons case worked according to dr. Ward the current capabilities in DNA
forensics could allow experts to match remains with some of Australia's long-term missing persons cases and
potentially provide relief to suffering families the unexplained disappearance of the Beaumont children on Australia
Day in 1966 irreparably shuddered Jim and Nancy Bowman who for years lived in the hopes that Jane honor and grant
would one day walk through the gates of the family home their loss was felt by the whole nation creating a legacy of
paranoia and fear that remains to this day the Beaumont story has been a cautionary
tale for generations providing a stark awakening to the evils that lie in the underbelly of our society January 26
1966 has been coined as the day Australia lost its innocence with the disappearance of the Beaumont children
paving the way for a greater awareness of stranger danger the names Jane Anna and grant Bowman have become itched
into Australian hee and to their legacy will never be forgotten the investigation remains open
a large collection of candid photographs exhibits the short though carefree lives
of Jane owner and grant Bowman taken by their parents during holidays and special moments the black-and-white
images perfectly capture the essence of the Bowman family's idyllic life the photos show the children all smiles as
they go about their daily lives grant grinning on his tricycle Jane and Donna side-by-side riding the elephant
cart at the Adelaide Zoo and a Jane carrying her baby brother in a wooden laundry basket in one photograph the
three inseparable siblings stand together excitedly showing off their loot from the 1965 Royal Adelaide show
for Jim Bowman these photographs along with letters written by his oldest daughter Jane embody the memory of the
family who lost the last letter J never wrote to her parents would serve as a constant reminder of the kind caring and
protective nature of the young girl who would always go to great lengths to shield her younger siblings from harm
[Music] just days before Australia Day 1966 Jane was proudly babysitting her younger
siblings while her parents enjoyed a night out with friends before she retired the bed for the night Jane wrote
her parents a note to fill them in on the events of the evening dear Mum and Dad I am just about to go to bed and the
time is nine I've put grants nappy on so there is no need to worry about him wetting on the
sheet grant wanted to sleep in his own bed so one of you will have to sleep with
honor although you will not find at the rooms in very good condition I hope you'll find of them as comfortable as we
do good night to you both Jane pay yes I hope you had a very nice time wherever you went
[Music] [Music] [Music]

Case 100: The Beaumont Children

The Beaumont’s were the quintessential Aussie family. By 1966, 41-year-old Jim Beaumont had traded driving taxis for a new career in sales...

CREDITS

Narration – Anonymous Host Research and writing – Elsha McGill Additional editing – Milly Raso Production, scoring – Mike Migas Additional scoring – Andrew Joslyn

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Brief Summary

The Beaumont children vanished on Australia Day 1966, leading to a massive investigation and numerous suspects, but their fate remains unknown.

Key points

The Beaumont Family. A glimpse into the idyllic life of the Beaumont family before tragedy struck.
A Day at the Beach. The Beaumont children excitedly plan a trip to the beach on Australia Day.
Desperate Plea for Help. Jim Beaumont addresses the press, overwhelmed with emotion, pleading for his children to come home.
Theories of Abduction. Investigators develop theories about the children's abduction, suspecting a man may have groomed them.
Psychic Claims and Public Interest. Psychic Gerard Croiset's visions reignite public interest in the Beaumont case.
The Disappearance of the Beaumont Children. The Beaumont children vanished without a trace, leading to a nationwide search.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

The maturity of Jane served her younger siblings well.

Describing Jane's protective nature.

12:14WatchNov 20, 2018

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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