Arabic version: عائلة ريفرز تطلب إجابات بعد خمس سنوات على اختفائه

According to ABC News, the family of Jeremiah “Jayo” Rivers is still seeking answers five years after the 27-year-old Gija man from Warmun in Western Australia’s Kimberley region disappeared in Queensland.

Rivers was last seen on October 18, 2021, while travelling with six other men. The group had travelled from Victoria through New South Wales and Queensland towards the Northern Territory, despite COVID-19 border restrictions then in force.

Queensland police resumed searching the remote Noccundra area in south-west Queensland in May 2024 after receiving new information. Later that year, Queensland coroner Donald MacKenzie found Rivers was deceased and likely met with foul play, citing a reasonable suspicion of homicide. However, he could not identify any person responsible.

The coroner said police received at least seven different accounts from the men travelling with Rivers. He found that the changing accounts delayed the police response and diverted search and rescue resources. Witnesses gave differing explanations for the trip, including hunting and transporting cannabis to Darwin for sale to remote communities.

Rivers’s mother, Joanne Rivers, said the family needed to know the full story. His aunties said they wanted the matter brought before a court and hoped continuing attention would encourage someone to provide information. The police investigation remains open, and police have asked anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers.