🔗 Share this article

A legislator from NSW has employed legislative immunity to reveal the name of a individual previously accused in relation to the suspected abduction and murder of British young girl Cheryl Grimmer fifty-five years ago.

Disappearance at Fairy Meadow Beach

Grimmer disappeared from near a shower block while with her mother and siblings at Fairy Meadow beach in the coastal district of New South Wales on 12 January 1970.

Legal Proceedings and Pseudonym

The man, known under the pseudonym “Mercury,” underwent a court case in 2018 after pleading not guilty. Yet, the trial collapsed when a judge ruled that a nineteen seventy-one interrogation where he admitted to the crime was not admissible.

Mercury made the reported admission, which was the foundation of the prosecution's case, when he was 17 years old and still a child under state law, and less than 18 months after the child disappeared.

Parliamentary Disclosure

On Thursday, a member of the NSW Legalise Cannabis party disclosed the name of Mercury while shielded under legislative immunity.

The media outlet is choosing not to identify the man. The man could not lawfully be named during the trial because he was just 15 at the time of the reported crime.

Parliamentary Interruption

Ahead of Buckingham revealing the name, the president of the upper house of NSW, Ben Franklin, stopped him. He asked if the member was about to reveal the identity, which is currently required to be suppressed by court ruling.

Franklin said: “Can I just point out before you continue under immunity, a member is protected from the repercussions which would normally result from violating a court order of this nature, which could otherwise amount to a contempt of court.”

“Nevertheless, all members have the obligation to use their privilege judiciously, and this house can take action against members who are deemed by the house to have misused privilege. The cooperation between the legislature and the courts should not be taken for granted, and I ask the representative to consider these matters carefully before proceeding.”

Family Demand

The disclosure of the man’s identity has occurred after the toddler's relatives gave an unprecedented ultimatum to the man last week – consent to speak with them by midnight Wednesday or Buckingham would reveal his identity in parliament.

They also revealed a file which holds the confession the suspect made when he was 17, according to the legislator.

Case Reopened

Police reopened the investigation after a 2011 inquest finding determined that the child was deceased and advised that authorities re-examine.

Mercury was arrested in March 2018, and was then in his sixties. He was freed a year after the interrogation was ruled unacceptable.

Without it, the state prosecuting authority found there was inadequate evidence for the case to continue.

Confession Details

During the court case, the court heard that during an interview with officers in the early 1970s, the accused had admitted to killing Grimmer, informing officers he had planned to have “sexual relations” with the girl before allegedly killing her.

Judicial Ruling

But the judge ruled the interview could not be used as evidence in the trial.

In his judgment in the NSW supreme court, the justice said the questioning was inadmissible because of the way in which it was conducted and the specific susceptibility of the defendant at the time.

“No parent, adult or lawyer was in attendance at any stage of the police interview,” the justice said.

He received evidence from two psychiatrists who agreed that the youth had a below average intelligence, was undeveloped and more at-risk than the typical 17-year-old.

History of the Defendant

The court heard the suspect had a difficult connection with his family, a record of running away from his residence, relocating internationally, low intellect and restricted education.

The crown submitted that at the time of the questioning, there were no mandatory requirements or standards for an adult support person to be present when questioning juveniles.

The additional evidence before the judge was made up of records from the time and reports from the early seventies, obtained from his involvement with the juvenile justice system.