Almost four years after he vanished from his grandmother's yard, police have begun a fresh search for William Tyrrell.
Detectives will scour bushland on the mid-north coast of NSW for the next four weeks, in a forensic sweep around a property where William was last seen in Kendall, near Port Macquarie on September 12, 2014.
An initial search focused only on finding William and was not carried out with a view of deliberate human intervention, NSW Police said in a statement.
However, with police now of the belief that William's disappearance was not an accident, they are looking at the area from an investigative view.
“It’s reasonable to draw the conclusion that Williams’s disappearance is a result of human intervention and not through misadventure,” Detective Chief Inspector Gary Jubelin told the media.
“I can’t go into details of persons of interest other than to confirm that we do have persons of interest,” he said.
Detective Jubelin said an active paedophile ring in the area was an avenue of inquiry years ago, but further investigation turned out to be inconclusive.
“It was a legitimate line of inquiry that we explored, but that didn’t provide any information that led to the charging of any person or the recovery of William,” he said.
William Tyrrell disappeared from his grandmother's yard in 2014. Source: AAP
William was playing in the yard of his grandmother's home, aged three, when he vanished.
Hundreds of locals and emergency services workers spent 10 days looking for him in the rural township, forests, creeks and paddocks. But they found no trace of the child.
Detectives have been investigating the circumstances of William's disappearance for the past four years, launching a special strike force led by the homicide squad.
Where are police looking?
A specific property that is three square kilometres is the main area of focus for NSW police.
The operation will be co-ordinated by approximately 50 search experts from NSW Police's public order and riot squad.
On the second anniversary of William's disappearance in 2016, the NSW government announced a $1 million reward for information leading to his recovery.
The $1 million reward is the highest reward for a missing person in NSW, and it still stands.
“I’d also like to reinforce the fact that there is a million dollar reward out,” Detective Jubelin said.
“It’s also unique in that the reward is for the recovery of William, not for the conviction of any person.”
He said detectives would not stop searching for William until they have exhausted all lines of inquiry before the matter goes to a coronial inquest.
- Additional reporting AAP
