By Shelby Brooks
In news some thought might never come, Victoria Police announced on Tuesday 23 November that a man had been arrested in relation to the disappearance of Pakenham woman Carol Clay and her camping partner Russell Hill, of Drouin.
The man was later identified in court as 55-year-old airline pilot Greg Lynn, who was charged with two counts murder.
Finally, the families of the missing pair were given some answers to their loved one’s fate.
In a tragic ending, police confirmed human remains were found in the search for bodies of Carol and Russell on Tuesday 30 November in bushland near Dargo.
The remains are yet to be formally identified and it is expected this process will take some time.
Victoria Police’s Missing Persons Squad Inspector Andrew Stamper was heading up the operation, with assistance from Missing Person Squad detectives and specialist resources including Search and Rescue and Major Crime Scene Unit.
It’s understood the search area was near Grant, an old gold mining town.
Carol, 73, and Russell, 74, were last heard from on 20 March 2020 when they were camping in the Wonnangatta Valley.
Russell left his Drouin home on 19 March, collected Carol from her home in Pakenham in his white Toyota Landcruiser, and then travelled via Licola spending one night at Howitt High Plains before heading into Wonnangatta Valley on 20 March.
Russell was last heard from on 20 March via HF radio stating he was at Wonnangatta Valley in the Victorian Alps when he made the call.
Campers found Russell’s vehicle with signs of minor fire damage at their campsite, which was completely destroyed by fire, near Dry River Creek Track in the Wonnangatta Valley on 21 March.
In November 2021, police released images of a blue four-wheel-drive – believed to be a mid-to-late-1990s model Nissan Patrol – taken by a safety camera in the area at the time Russell and Carol went missing.
Police are still searching for a rusty silver/blue 7×5 trailer with off road wheels that was attached to the Nissan Patrol, which is believed to have been sold on Gumtree between March to July last year.
