Murder of Lois Roberts
Lois Roberts | |
---|---|
Born | Lois Martha Roberts c. 1960 |
Disappeared | 31 July 1998 |
Died | c. 31 July 1998 Nimbin Police Station |
Body discovered | January 1999 |
Nationality | Australian |
Lois Martha Roberts (c. 1960 – c. 31 July 1998) was an Australian murder victim, whose death near Nimbin, New South Wales in 1998 remains unsolved.
Background
[edit]Roberts was the daughter of Pastor Frank Roberts, a minister with the Church of Christ and an Aboriginal activist, and Muriel Roberts.[1] She was the twin sister of the arts administrator and broadcaster Rhoda Roberts AO, and the sister of Philip and Mark.[2] Brought up and educated in the Lismore region in northern New South Wales, Roberts trained as a hairdresser until, at age 20, she was seriously injured in a car accident sustaining permanent brain damage.[3] She was rehabilitated sufficiently to care for herself and went to live on her own near Lismore.[citation needed] Subsequently, she had two children who were raised by her mother and twin sister.[citation needed]
Disappearance
[edit]Roberts was last seen outside Nimbin Police Station on 31 July 1998.[4][5] It would appear that she was abducted while hitch-hiking between Nimbin and Lismore and then tortured and abused before being killed. Her badly mutilated body was found about six months after her disappearance in January 1999. A bushwalker found the remains in Whian Whian State Forest, near Dunoon, deep in thick bush some way off a fire trail.[6]
Investigation and aftermath
[edit]The perpetrator or perpetrators of the crime have never been identified. An inquest was held in June 2002. The senior stipendiary magistrate of the Lismore Court Circuit, Jeff Linden, sitting as a coroner returned an open finding after a two-week hearing.[citation needed]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "I will never be silent again". 30 October 2011. Archived from the original on 30 October 2011. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Baker, Candida (25 January 2019). "'I want to teach our knowledge. I want to bridge the gap'". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
- ^ Kachor, Kate (15 December 2017). "Dirty Little Secrets: Mum-of-two's murder hides sinister past of NSW north coast". Nine News. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
- ^ "HER KILLER IS STILL OUT THERE". Northern Star. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
- ^ "A sister's heartbreak over the unsolved murder of her twin". www.9news.com.au. 31 October 2016. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
- ^ "Zoom". www.canberratimes.com.au. Retrieved 17 September 2017.[permanent dead link]
External links
[edit]- Death Of Lois Martha Roberts Archived 8 September 2008 at the Wayback Machine - speech by The Hon. Janelle Saffin in the Parliament of New South Wales 12 May 1999
- A Sister's Love - documentary (2006) by Ivan Sen
- Interview with Rhoda Roberts - Life Matters ABC Radio National (audio download available)
- Roberts faces her sister’s tragedy - article from Byron Bay Echo September 2007
- Web page about the documentary, A Sister's Love.
- Dirty Little Secrets unsolved murder series - series of articles by Kate Kachor for Nine News in 2017