Investigations into the suspicious death of a Monto grandmother will continue into the new year.
This comes after the car of the Monto woman Wendy Hansen was found in September at a Brisbane train station, and Wendy’s remains were located in June half-buried in NSW bushland.
New South Wales Homicide Squad detectives are still appealing for information about Wendy’s disappearance under police operation Strike Force Osbox.
The 63-year-old North Burnett woman was last seen withdrawing cash from an ATM on Newton Street in Monto on Thursday, 29 February 2024.
Queensland Police were notified and commenced inquiries after Wendy failed to return home and was uncontactable.
The police obtained CCTV footage of Wendy driving her silver 2007 two-door Mitsubishi Pajero, with Queensland registration 645TCZ, south on the Bruce Highway near Wild Horse Mountain on the Sunshine Coast at 2.30pm that same day.
Almost four months later, on Tuesday 18 June, New South Wales officers attached to the Coffs / Clarence Police District found human remains half-buried in bushland near the Jordan Esplanade at Coffs Harbour.
NSW Police reported that those remains were then identified as Wendy Hansen’s, who was last seen almost 800km north of Coffs Harbour.
NSW’s State Crime Command’s Homicide Squad then established Strike Force Osbox to investigate Wendy’s suspicious death.
Further investigations and a public appeal for information helped uncover Wendy’s car in a carpark near Geebung Railway Station in North Brisbane on Saturday, 7 September, -more than 400 kilometres from where she was last seen alive in Monto, and almost 400km from where her remains where found near the Jordan Esplande.
Police seized the vehicle for forensic examination, however Wendy’s personal items -including the mobile phone she had when she went missing- were not found in the vehicle and are still yet to be found.
As investigations continue, detectives are appealing to the public for any information, CCTV or dashcam footage that may assist the investigation to contact NSW Police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Strike Force detectives are specifically appealing for any dashcam vision or information about Wendy or her car’s movements between February and June 2024.
