‘Time to let William go’: Former person of interest speaks out 10 years after Tyrrell disappearance

EXCLUSIVE

A man once questioned by detectives over the disappearance of William Tyrrell believes it’s time to let the toddler and the community “rest” as the boy’s family marks 10 years since he vanished.

William went missing from the small town of Kendall, on NSW mid-north coast, a decade ago on September 12, 2014.

How and why he disappeared remains a mystery, with no one charged over the little boy’s suspected death — an incident one Kendall local grimly recognises “put us on the map”.

The three-year-old was last reportedly seen at his foster grandmother’s home on the serene Benaroon Drive, with a final photograph capturing him wearing his Spider-Man suit.

Paul Savage, who still lives across the road, was once named as a person of interest when former homicide detective Gary Jubelin was leading the strike force investigating the case.

Mr Savage was cleared several years ago and isn’t accused of wrongdoing; no evidence has ever been presented to suggest he was involved.

He told news.com.au on the eve of the anniversary he felt it was “time to let William go”.

“I don’t speak for other people but I think it’s time he was let go to rest,” he said.

“It’s been a number of years, I was put through the mill, I lost someone very important to me soon after and it’s just time for me to say enough’s enough.

“I hope they do find the little fella.”

Mr Jubelin’s focus on Mr Savage led to the decorated cop’s departure from the force and a court later found he illegally recorded conversations with the elderly man.

A magistrate found Mr Savage was pursued by police “at all costs” despite a lack of evidence, and he was never charged with any offence.

“The coppers, they can’t find who did it so there’s not any chance of anyone else doing it,” Mr Savage said.

Asked if it was time to also let the community rest, he said, “I think so.”

“Much as I feel sorry and I hope they find the bastard … they can’t. So I want to be able to put it to rest.”

Mr Savage is one of few residents of Benaroon Drive who hasn’t left since William was reported missing.

Some of those who lived there at the time are long gone, tired of the intense attention on the street from police and media.

Benaroon Drive is a green, sloping, dead-end road with a handful of homes on large blocks and a peaceful hush that could almost be in reverence to the street’s past.

When no one is speaking, the only sounds to be heard are the rustle of leaves from the wind, birds croaking and the low hum of construction work on a nearby housing estate.

Kendall, located about half an hour’s drive southwest of Port Macquarie, had an official population of less than 900 people at the last census.

“He put us on the map, the little fella,” one resident in the town said when asked about William.

Rain was falling in Kendall on Thursday, as locals went about their business as usual on the anniversary.

Rupert Godwin was a young boy in Adelaide at a time when the city was rocked by the disappearance of the Beaumont children in 1966.

Now living in Kendall, he says mention of William’s case still provoked vivid memories among those in the town.

“It’s something that sits under the surface if you scratch it,” he said.

“A lot of people have close memories about it, and have very strong feelings.”

Mr Godwin has been part of a campaign to create a national memorial for lost and missing children for several years, and recently submitted a proposal to the local council.

He hoped it could provide a place for people to come and remember all children lost to time, not just William.

“It might be time to shift focus from ‘where are they?’, ‘who done it?’, to remembering them,” he said.

“People who lose a loved one, there’s never a sense of rest for them until they know what happened.

“There’s something about the lack of a resting place.”

NSW Police has revealed it is now pursuing William’s foster mother in connection with the case.

Detectives were working on the theory the boy may have died accidentally, and his death was covered up.

A police brief of evidence against the foster mother was handed to the Director of Public Prosecutions in mid-2023, recommending charges of perverting the course of justice and interfering with a corpse.

Police asked the prosecutor’s office to pause its consideration of that brief in May.

The foster mother has vehemently denied being involved in any way with William’s disappearance, and no charges have been laid against her.

Mr Jubelin released a video on Thursday criticising how the ongoing investigation had been “shrouded in controversy”, which he said created more questions than answers.

“There’s a degree of responsibility and accountability that comes with investigation a disappearance of a young child,” he said.

“I’ve been off the investigation for five years and I think I’m as confused as the public about what’s going on.

“I think it’s about time the full facts are presented, in order to give not only the public confidence but more importantly William’s foster family and biological family confidence that everything that’s being done can be done to find out what happened to William Tyrrell.”

Hearings in a long-running and extensively delayed coronial inquest into the little boy’s fate are scheduled to resume in October and be completed in December over two blocks.

Clare Collins, director of the Where’s William? campaign, said in a statement that the pending conclusion to the inquest gave William’s loved ones “hope that finally they’ll learn what has happened to their precious little boy”.

“As long as there’s no evidence to suggest William is deceased, with stories of missing children being found alive decades after their abduction, the Where’s William? campaign holds on to the hope — however small — that William could still be found alive,” she said.

“He could be anywhere.

“On the tragic 10th anniversary of William’s unsolved disappearance, Where’s William? is inviting all Australians to show their love and support for William and his loved ones by lighting a candle to help create a symbolic pathway of hope — hope that William can find his way home to all who love him.”

Ms Collins said the campaign would “never give up on William or stop shining a spotlight on the need to find him”.

A $1 million reward is on offer for anyone who can provide information to support the police investigation.