This year is the 50th anniversary of the 1966 disappearance of the Beaumont children from Glenelg Beach in Adelaide – a case often considered to constitute Australia‘s ‘loss of innocence’, the day that suburbanites started locking their doors and ending the lackadaisical attitude of letting kids be kids largely unsupervised.
The case has never been solved. But, according to the South Australian Police, they have fielded nearly 250 calls and tips regarding the case in 2016 alone. It’s a pretty huge number for a long-passed case, but makes sense in the wake of what a huge, huge deal the disappearance of Jane, Arnna and Grant was for Australia.
It also might be because there is a $1 million reward for fresh and credible information on the case.
Additionally, 37 people have been named as “persons of interest” in the kids’ disappearance. Detective Superintendant Les Bray of South Australia Police says that “this is a case which has never reached the point where there are no leads to follow, despite the passage of time.”
Bray also says that prosecution would be difficult, as whomever is responsible for the crime would be aged between 70 and 100, if they’re even alive at all.
The anniversary date was January 22 this year. In an announcement prior to that date, police said they had a new lead they were pursuing. Bray has confirmed that lead has run cold.
Source: ABC News.
Image: Adelaide Now.
