Revelle Balmain disappearance: Breakthrough in mysterious cold case murder of model
Groundbreaking developments in the cold case disappearance of Revelle Balmain almost three decades ago have led to the NSW coroner opening a second inquest.
Model Revelle, 22, was last seen in the Sydney suburb of Kingsford on November 5, 1994.
A make-up bag, keys and a single shoe found on nearby streets were all that remained of her life.
Ms. Balmain worked as a model and dancer, but had also just started working as a prostitute to make ends meet.
Her last known booking before she disappeared was with a client on McNair Avenue in Kingsford.
After an anonymous tip and a mysterious photo, police discovered a new person they believe is connected to the case. Later, three ‘important buildings’ were raided.
Revelle Balmain (pictured) was last seen in the Sydney suburb of Kingsford on November 5, 1994 and a make-up bag, keys and a single shoe found on nearby streets were all that remained of her life.
On Monday, NSW Deputy State Coroner Joan Baptie held a hearing to set a second inquest to begin on April 29.
The coroner heard that the outstanding material in the police letter was expected to be served within a week.
Magistrate Baptie was also told that an updated statement would be requested from the police officer responsible in addition to his primary statement.
A week has been set aside for the research.
The previous coronial inquest in 1999 found that Ms Balmain died at the hands of an unknown person or persons, with the case referred to the unsolved homicide unit.
No one has ever been charged in Ms Balmain’s disappearance.
Ms Balmain only joined the escort agency she worked for, which was run by Jane King and her then husband Zoran Stanojevic, six weeks before she disappeared.
Last year, Ms King claimed she had new information that Ms Balmain had been booked to meet Mr Stanojevic’s Serbian friends later on the night she disappeared.
There is no indication that Mr Stanojevic is being investigated by the police.
In December 2021, he was arrested on unrelated charges as police reinvestigated her disappearance.
He was one of five men arrested in Sydney in connection with an alleged Serbian crime syndicate.
The focus of the initial investigation was on Ms Balmain’s last known client, Gavin Samer, who denied any involvement and claimed he dropped her off at a nearby pub after his appointment.
In 1999, the coroner found that Mr Samer ‘certainly had the opportunity to kill Ms Balmain’, but no plausible motive ever emerged.
Mr. Samer has never been charged and there is no indication that police still consider him a suspect.
A lawyer for Mr. Samer called the court hearing on Monday.
In May 2021, a $1 million reward was announced for information regarding Revelle Balmain’s disappearance. Mrs Balmain is pictured
A make-up bag, keys and a single shoe found on nearby streets were all that remained of her life
Ms Balmain’s sister, Suellen Simpson, also joined the court hearing via video link and watched the proceedings silently Sydney Morning Herald reported.
Both her parents died without ever knowing what happened to Revelle.
“For years our family worked tirelessly to find out what happened to my sister – but sadly both our mother and Revelle’s father, Ivor, passed away without ever knowing what happened to their little girl,” Mrs Simpson said in 2021.
Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Bell and Trike Force Aramac took over Ms Balmain’s case in 2020.
The following year, a $1 million reward was announced for information about her disappearance.
“Revelle’s family have been campaigning for justice for more than 26 years and strike force detectives are determined to finally find the answers they are looking for,” said Insp. Bell at the time.
Several months later, in July 2021, the strike force revealed it had received new vital information, including a blurry photo of a man wearing sunglasses and a white T-shirt sitting at a wooden table.
Revelle Balmain’s parents died without knowing what happened to the model advertisement dancer
The photo was sent anonymously, but the man was later identified. Strike Force Aramac tried to establish where he had been the night Ms Balmain went missing.
“The new line of inquiry is that we are looking at an individual previously unknown to Revelle, who may have met her on the night of her disappearance,” Bell said at the time.
Ms King, Ms Balmain’s former employer at the escort agency, said the $1 million reward had come years too late and she feared police had missed vital clues.
She said Ms Balmain’s “troop”, which included two women from the station and a doctor, had never been questioned.