'I shouldn't have left': Brother breaks down as cold case murder heats up
Nearly 50 years have passed since Cheryl Grimmer was abducted from a Wollongong beach, but the pain her older brothers still feels was plain when he spoke out today.
With his two brothers by his side, Ricki Grimmer, who was with little Cheryl on that fateful 1970 day, broke down as he told reporters of the heartache he endures on a daily basis.
“Everyone says it wasn't my fault but come and stand where I'm standing, see what it feels like,” he said at a press conference on Monday at Fairy Meadow Beach, Cheryl’s last known location.
Ricki Grimmer, (centre), along with brothers Stephen, (left), and Paul, (right) address the media following a new development in the disappearance of their sister Cheryl Grimmer 46 years ago. Source: AAP
Cheryl Grimmer disappeared from outside a shower block on January 12, 1970. Photo: 7 News
“Heartache... decisions I made on the day were wrong. I shouldn't have left.”
NSW Police have identified a male suspect in the unsolved abduction of a three-year-old girl from a Wollongong beach almost 47 years ago.
Cheryl Grimmer disappeared from outside a shower block on January 12, 1970 in Fairy Meadow Beach near Wollongong and no trace of her was found despite an extensive search at the time.
Police believe they have now identified a suspect - a teenager who would now be in his 60s - who was believed to have been loitering around the area in the morning and afternoon on the day Cheryl vanished.
“Just let us know where she is, give us something so we can mourn. It's cost me and my family everything,” a distraught Ricki Grimmer pleaded.
The Grimmer family: John and Carole sit with their three boys - Ricki, 8, Stephen, 6 and Paul, 5. Photo: 7 News
Three days after her kidnapping, a ransom note for $10,000 was sent to Cheryl’s parents. Photo: 7 News
The brothers embraced after an emotional press conference at the site their little sister went missing 46-years ago. Source: AAP
Detective Inspector Brad Ainsworth from Wollongong Local Command said witnesses returned to the Fairy Meadow Surf Club a couple of weeks ago.
He said they staged a re-enactment and did a “walk-around”, which jogged their memories of what they believed happened on the fateful day.
“This male suspect has been described and included in these witness versions,” Det Ainsworth said.
Police re-enacted the scene where they suspect a teenage male, who would now be in his 60s, stole their little sister. Source: NSW Police
Police have identified their suspect as a Caucasian teen aged between 16 and 17, of medium build and fair complexion, with brown hair and blue eyes, approximately 152cm tall.
NSW Police are asking for the male suspect to come forward.
“We are appealing for anyone to come forward with any further information to assist us with this enquiry,” Det Ainsworth said.
Volunteers, police and members of the community searched for Cheryl near Wollongong in 1970. Photo: 7 News
Ricki Grimmer said he has to live with the heartache of losing his sister every single day. Source: AAP
"It's time to come clean and absolve yourself and tell us what happened on that day -- and, more importantly, for the family. If not for yourself, do it for them," Detective Sergeant Damian Loone told The Daily Telegraph.
About 47 years ago, the weather turned and Cheryl’s brothers Ricki, 8, Stephen, 6 and Paul, 5, were told to go and shower at a toilet block near the surf club.
Minutes later, Ricki ran to his mother and told her Cheryl was gone.
Cheryl’s parents, John and Carole, died without knowing what happened to their daughter.
Photo: 7 News
Her disappearance sparked a major search, however no trace of the missing girl was ever discovered.
There were previous reports a little girl was seen being lifted to drink from a bubbler and in another case someone said she was driven off in a white car.
The Grimmer family also reportedly received a phone call from a man saying he had strangled Cheryl the same way he had killed Vicki Barton in the Blue Mountains 18 months earlier, the newspaper reported.
A psychic also said she had dreamt Cheryl was taken by a woman who lost her own child six months earlier.
Three days after her kidnapping, a ransom note for $10,000 was sent to Cheryl’s parents, but nothing ever came of it.
