National Missing Persons Week raises awareness of the significant issues surrounding missing persons across Australia.
This year the focus is on Unidentified Human Remains (UHR) and the importance of identifying these remains to provide closure to families and loved ones.
The Northern Territory Police have been working with the Australian Federal Police National DNA Program for Unidentified Missing Persons and the Facial Identification Team to re-create the likeness of historic UHR from Leanyer.
The remains were found by a bushwalker on 27 May 1987 in bushland in the vicinity of what is now Lee Point Road and Fitzmaurice Drive, Leanyer.
A small piece of yellow clothing was found on the remains.
Advancements in DNA technology and facial reconstruction have now created a profile for the remains that have since been dubbed The Woman in Yellow, an adult aboriginal woman.
Detectives from the Cold Case Taskforce and the Missing Person’s Unit are encouraging people to come forward and provide any information, relevant items or records they have at home that may assist in helping to provide a name to the unknown woman.
Acting Deputy Commissioner Michael White APM said “We are seeing advancements in technology every day that eventually lead to breakthroughs in cases where police efforts had previously been exhausted.
“The newly created image of this missing woman will hopefully result in someone, somewhere, knowing something.
“The Northern Territory Police currently have 64 UHR’s and strongly encourage families of missing persons to attend their local police station and provide DNA. This DNA will then be compared with UHR from all over Australia and may provide the information needed to solve these cases.
“No one should have their remains sit unidentified and no family should have to suffer the pain of not knowing what happened to their loved ones.”
