Bizarre twist in 70-year-old mystery

Police have made a startling breakthrough in the search to find a young father missing from Sydney’s west for 70 years.

Donald Gordon Buckley, a 24-year-old labourer and father of three, was last seen at Warwick Farm in 1953.

Despite extensive investigations, the case went cold until Mr Buckley’s granddaughter reported him missing in early 2023.

Following an appeal, police were contacted by a member of the public and it’s since been revealed that Mr Buckley had changed his identity.

Police believe Mr Buckley instead died of natural causes in Moree in 1980 when he would have been aged 51.

Despite an extensive investigation by police in the 1950s, officers had been unable to track down Mr Buckley.

Following his disappearance, Mr Buckley exchanged minor correspondence with his family before suddenly ceasing contact in 1954.

At the time, he had two young boys, aged 2 and 4, and a baby but was reportedly experiencing marital troubles.

He continued to make child support payments following his disappearance in 1953, but those also ceased in 1954.