Human Remains Found In Search Of Elderly Campers Who Went Missing 20 Months Ago

Authorities in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria located human remains while searching for two elderly campers who went missing about 20 months ago.

The campers, identified as Russell Hill and Carol Clay, went missing from their remote Wonnangatta Valley campsite in March 2020. Last week, a 55-year-old man, identified as Greg Lynn, was charged on suspicion of having a role in the disappearance of the campers, ABC.net. au reported.

The human remains were found in bushland near Dargo on the second day of their search operation. "The remains are yet to be formally identified and it is expected this process will take some time," an investigator told 9 News.

Police were assisted by the residents of Victoria's high country. Cops overcame the hurdles posed by dense shrubs in the area with the help of the locals who helped police bring a large excavator and a bobcat to the remote search site, which is about 15km north of the town of Dargo in Victoria's alpine region, 9 News reported.

The region where the remains were located is originally an old gold mining area known as the Grant Historic Area. The area is dotted with tough terrain, mine shafts, steep hills alongside the impenetrable bushland.

Lynn is scheduled to appear in court in May next year, according to ABC.net.au. He currently remains in custody.

In September, human remains found in a Florida nature reserve were speculated to be those of Gabby Petito, a young road-tripper who went missing on August 27, 2021. Police said personal items belonging to Brian Laundrie, Petito's boyfriend, were found in the Carlton Reserve near Venice, Florida. Laundrie was named the "person of interest" in Petito's disappearance. Laundrie was missing for weeks.

Petito had quit her job and set off for a cross-country adventure with Laundrie, starting in July, documenting their journey in a stream of social media posts. Police bodycam footage showed a distraught Petito saying she had had an altercation with Laundrie. In the footage, she was seen crying and complaining about having struggles with mental health problems. An autopsy positively determined the remains to be Petito's while the nature of the murder was determined to be homicide by strangulation.