Cherie Westell disappearance: $1million reward for Melbourne teen after she vanished from phonebox
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New hope in a mysterious unsolved case in which a 15-year-old girl disappeared without a trace while visiting the dentist
- The 15-year-old Melbourne teenager disappeared after a last call to the family in 2000.
- Cherie Westell had intended to take a short train home from a dental appointment.
- A coroner found in 2003 that Cherie had most likely died, suspected foul play.
- Police offered the $1 million reward for any information leading to a conviction
Police believe a $1 million reward may finally solve the mysterious disappearance of a Melbourne teenager who went missing on a trip to the dentist.
Cherie Westell, who was days away from celebrating her 16th birthday when she disappeared, was dropped off at the Knox Dental Group in Wantirna South for a dental appointment at 12:00 pm on December 12, 2000.
After her dental appointment, Cherie walked around 5km to a nearby public phone booth on the corner of Selkirk Ave and Wantirna Rd in Melbourne’s east.
Cherie, who was a ward of the state at the time, called a family member shortly before 2pm and told them she would be taking a train to her home in Ringwood.
It was never again heard from her.
Victoria Police have posted a $1 million reward for information leading to a conviction in the 2000 suspicious disappearance of Melbourne teenager Cherie Westell (pictured above)
Cherie, who was 15 at the time of her disappearance, told her family that she intended to catch a train back to Ringwood.
A family photo of Cherie as a child before she went missing in December 2000.
A coroner found in 2003 that Cherie was likely dead, and police believed she was likely murdered.
On Wednesday, Victoria Police announced a reward of up to $1 million for anyone with information leading to the conviction of the person responsible.
Cherie’s disappearance was not reported for six days because she was a ward of the state.
The teen’s previous adoptive mother, Frances, tried to file a police report immediately, but was told by police that a birth family member needed to make the report.
Victoria Police Detective Acting Inspector Tony Combridge of the Missing Persons Squad called Cherie’s case “every family’s worst nightmare”.
“Twenty-two years ago, a young teenage girl called her family to let them know she was on her way home, and that was the last time they spoke to her,” Combridge said.
Acting Detective Inspector Tony Combridge of the Missing Persons Squad (pictured) vowed that police “will continue to search for the truth of what happened to Cherie.”
Those responsible for Cherie’s disappearance have had to live with this secret for more than two decades. Twenty-two years is a long time to look over her shoulder.
‘After so long, friendships fail and loyalties change. There may be people who are now in a position to come forward and speak to the police to provide answers for Cherie’s loved ones.
“No matter how insignificant you think the information is, it could be exactly what our investigators need to make a breakthrough in this case.”
Westell’s last known location was a phone booth from which he called his family (pictured Wantima South today)