Grim theory on outback trip disappearance

WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are warned this article contains mentions and images of deceased persons.
A man who disappeared during a pig hunting trip with a large group of people likely met with foul play, but a coroner has stopped short of ruling it as a homicide or recommending charges be laid.

Jeremiah “Jayo” Harold Rivers was last seen on October 18, 2021 at a campsite at Wippo Creek, near the remote outback town of Noccundra in southwestern Queensland.

He was 27 when he disappeared.

Almost three years since he vanished, Queensland state coroner Donald McKenzie handed down his findings into Mr Rivers’ suspected death.

Mr Rivers’ family have been critical of the adequacy of the police investigation into the 27-year-old’s disappearance.

But they have now been left with more questions than answers after Mr McKenzie concluded the Western Australian man was dead “on the balance of probability”.

In his findings, handed down at the Coroners Court on Thursday, he said it was “possible” Mr Rivers’ death resulted from foul play.

Mr McKenzie noted there was a “lack of direct evidence” from the members of the group Mr Rivers was travelling with at the time which may have resulted in harm to Mr Rivers.

“I also cannot rule out completely that Jayo simply died through misadventure,” he said in his findings.

“While the search was suspended the investigation into Jayo’s suspicious disappearance remained (and remains) ongoing. The (search) was formally terminated on November 5, 2021 with the approval by the Queensland Police Service (QPS) Regional Assistant Commissioner”.

During a coronial inquest last year, the court was told Mr Rivers and his kinship brother Joe Joe Kantilla-Gaden made plans to travel to the Northern Territory with a group of men from NSW and Victoria.

The group illegally crossed the border from NSW into Queensland to get to Wippo Creek during strict Covid-19 restrictions.

Members of the group say they last saw Mr Rivers leaving camp on October 18, 2021, saying he was looking for water to swim in.

“The evidence of the members of the travelling group was that they were not initially concerned that Jayo appeared to have wandered off from the Wippo Creek campsite,” Mr McKenzie said.

The court was told the group decided to move their campsite, thinking Mr Rivers would follow the road back to the new location, but he never arrived.

Police were not notified of his disappearance until a day later.

Mr McKenzie said the group was worried about reporting him to police because they had illegally crossed the border during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

An eight-day search yielded no results.

Mr McKenzie said foul play was a possibility with Mr Rivers’ likely death due to the “circumstantial” evidence of the travelling group’s “suspicious” behaviour.

He singled out their delay in filing a missing person’s report.

“I did not find them to be credible witnesses and suspect they may know more than they have told police and this court,” Mr McKenzie said.

The court was told members of the group lied to police – claiming Mr Rivers “walked off into the bush” the night before or vanished while chasing a pig or dogs let out from the truck.

Up to seven different versions of his disappearance were given.

Members of the group, including Mr Rivers, were also consuming drugs on the trip and Mr McKenzie noted there was evidence some were trafficking drugs into the Northern Territory.

One witness gave evidence he heard gunshots near the Wippo Creek campsite on the afternoon of Mr Rivers’ disappearance.

However, Mr McKenzie said he could not conclude if Mr Rivers’ death was a homicide “in accordance with the reasonable suspicion test” and did not recommend charges being laid.

It was noted there were reasons for the group’s behaviour, including the alleged drug trafficking and their breach of Covid-19 restrictions by illegally entering Queensland.

“Moreover, I have difficulty identifying any particular person or persons who might have committed that crime beyond speculation,” he said.

“It would be pure speculation that all the group were involved.”

Mr McKenzie said Mr Rivers could also have died of natural causes, including sun exposure or an accidental fall.

“The search area was immense but wild pigs… (and) lizards and eagles… are well-known to consume animal carcasses in their entirety which would explain the absence of a body,” he said.

Mr McKenzie also made recommendations on police reviewing their training and communication with First Nations Peoples, after Mr Rivers’ family complained on the lack of communication during the investigation.