RESTRICTION: USERS MUST CREDIT “SOUTH AUSTRALIA POLICE” HANDOUT —EDITORIAL USE ONLY — SHOTLIST: GARDEN ISLAND, AUSTRALIA (JULY 18, 2025) (SOUTH AUSTRALIA POLICE - RESTRICTED) 1. VARIOUS OF SEARCHING OPERATIONS BY DIVERSGARDEN ISLAND, AUSTRALIA - JULY 18, 2025 - RESTRICTION: USERS MUST CREDIT “SOUTH AUSTRALIA POLICE” HANDOUT —EDITORIAL USE ONLY — Police in South Australia have resumed efforts to locate the remains of Melissa Trussell, a 15-year-old girl who went missing with her mother in May 2000. During a renewed search operation on Garden Island on Friday, July 18, authorities discovered a vehicle in the area. A section of the vehicle’s front grill was recovered to assist with identification. The search, conducted by the State Police Water Operations Unit, focused on an unsearched area of water and mangroves identified during a recent cold case review. The operation was temporarily suspended and is expected to resume at a later date. Trussell and her mother, Rosemary Brown, 33, were last seen leaving their Blair Athol home around 2:30 a.m. on May 13, 2000. Brown’s body was discovered in the Garden Island mangroves on July 2 that year, but Melissa has never been found. Authorities are investigating whether the newly located vehicle is connected to Brown’s murder and the suspected murder of Trussell. The cold case review has led to new forensic testing using advanced DNA techniques and fresh leads in the decades-old investigation. “This search demonstrates that we will not give up looking for answers,” said Detective Superintendent Darren Fielke of the Major Crime Investigation Branch. Rewards of up to 1 million Australian dollars are being offered for information leading to a conviction or the recovery of Trussell’s remains. Writing by Berkay Gur