NSW Police have reformed their Unsolved Homicides Unit, meaning hundreds of cold cases, including three in the Blue Mountains, will be re-examined and prioritised.
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The cases of Maureen McLaughlin, Kellie Carmichael and Belinda Peisley are still unsolved, and half a million dollars in total is available to anyone who can help solve these cases.
Police believe there are people in the community that could be sitting on vital information and the substantial rewards may encourage those people to come forward. The rewards will be offered for information that leads to an arrest.
A $100,000 reward is being offered for information about the disappearance of teenager Belinda Peisley in 1998.
Nineteen-year-old Belinda Peisley was last seen at her home on Trow Avenue, Katoomba, on September 26, 1998.
The Blue Mountains Police Local Area Commander at the time, Acting Superintendent Rob Vellar, said police had conducted extensive inquiries, but needed further public assistance.
“Our investigations have revealed that Belinda received a considerable inheritance prior to her death, and that as a result she had many people frequenting her residence,” he said at the time.
“She had also developed a significant drug problem and had accumulated considerable debt.
“We believe she met with foul play but need more information from the public to put the pieces of the puzzle together and make a breakthrough,” Acting Supt Vellar said.
When Ms Peisley disappeared, she left behind two sons.
Police have also offered a $200,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of persons responsible for the murder of Maureen McLaughlin. A $100,000 reward was offered in 1994 for a period of 12 months, but no one came forward.
It's believed the 23-year-old Leura woman was last seen on March 31 in 1992, at a hotel on Main Street in Lithgow.
Previously, Ms McLaughlin attended Katoomba RSL on March 30, where she made three separate ATM withdrawals; the last being at 4.37pm. She then caught a taxi home to Leura before leaving again a short time later. Her father reported her missing on April 3, 1992.
Investigations were launched by local police into her disappearance, before police received a report from a bushwalker on April 13, 1992, who discovered a body at Lithgow.
The body was found in a shallow grave off State Mine Gully Road, with a number of injuries to the head and body. The deceased was later identified as Maureen McLaughlin.
Unsolved Homicide Team Investigator Detective Inspector John Lehmann said, "Police have and will continue to dedicate all necessary resources in an effort to find closure for Maureen McLaughlin's family.”
A further $200,000 reward has also been offered for information about the 2001 disappearance of a Geelong woman last in Katoomba.
Kellie Ann Carmichael, then 24, was last seen staying in a Katoomba hostel on April 29, 2001.
At the time Ms Carmichael left, she told staff she would be back later that day to collect her belongings. “Tragically, that was the last time she was seen alive,” former police minister Michael Daley said.
“Her parents, John and Margaret, contacted hostel staff on May 5 and after discovering that her belongings were still at reception, they reported her missing to Katoomba Police.”
Around May 12 Ms Carmichael’s parents arrived in Katoomba and collected her belongings – which included her ID, wallet, mobile phone, bankcard, Medicare card, camera and toiletries. The parents spent two days searching for their daughter, and were later joined by their son Danny for another unsuccessful week.
In 2004, State Crime Command Homicide detectives took over the investigation. Despite numerous inquiries police have been unable to arrest anyone for the crime.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. Information can be given anonymously at any time.
