Family Forum / Parenting / Parenting / July 2004

http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,10037858%255E421,00.html
Azaria secret finally revealed
By Adrian Tame, Sue Hewitt and Chris Tinkler
July 4, 2004

AZARIA Chamberlain was killed by a dingo and her body hidden by men camping
rough near Ayers Rock, one of the group has sensationally claimed.

An elderly Melbourne man says he shot the dingo that killed Azaria and then
retrieved her body from its jaws.

Frank Cole also believes Azaria's body may have been buried in a Melbourne
back yard by one of his mates.

Mr Cole, 78, told the Sunday Herald Sun he had lived with the secret of what
happened to the 9 1/2-week-old girl for almost 25 years.

The ailing Pascoe Vale pensioner, who is the last of the camping party at
the rock (now Uluru), said he wanted to unburden himself before it is too
late.

"Over the past 25 years I've had nightmares and many sleepless nights over
the whole affair," Mr Cole said.

"But I may not have long left and if anything happened to me nobody would
know the truth."

Mr Cole said he had fled the Northern Territory after the discovery, fearing
he might face jail for using a firearm in a national park.

His shock claims could solve one of Australia's most famous mysteries.

Details of his claims were passed to police yesterday.

The Sunday Herald Sun has investigated and verified many details of his
story.

Mr Cole also claimed he had informed Azaria's mother - now Lindy
Chamberlain-Creighton after remarrying - and producers of an $8 million
telemovie about the saga.

He said he had been asked not to go public until after the film was
completed.

Azaria disappeared from Uluru campsite on August 17, 1980, with Mrs
Chamberlain crying out that she had been taken by a dingo.

But the toddler's body was never discovered and, after two inquests and a
trial, her mother was jailed in 1982 for murder, only to be freed in 1986.

It was while camping rough with three mates near Uluru, on an errand to find
food for their dog, that Mr Cole said he had received the shock of his life.

Thinking he had spotted a rabbit in the bush - it was on nightfall - he had
shot at it, only to discover on closer inspection it was a male dingo.

"As I approached it, I saw that it had a baby in its mouth," Mr Cole said.

He said he had picked up the baby and driven back to his mates.

"We were shocked. We realised what had happened and we were in tears," he
said.

"The baby had four puncture holes in its head and one of its ears was
missing.

"Otherwise, it didn't seem to have been harmed, but it had obviously been
dead some time."

Mr Cole said that fearing they might face serious consequences for having
discharged a gun and having a dog in a national park - and with one of them
having served time in prison - the panic-stricken men had decided not to
tell the police straight away.

Instead, they had planned that Mr Cole would flee back to Melbourne with one
mate and the gun, and the other two would later tell police they had hit the
dingo on the road and discovered the baby.

"All these things happened on the spur of the moment," Mr Cole said.

"The last time I saw her she was wrapped in a towel and then in a tartan
blanket and put in a Duffel bag.

"We left on the understanding that the other blokes would go to the
authorities and report finding the dingo and the baby, but they never did
what they promised."

Mr Cole said that as the publicity surrounding the disappearance had become
overwhelming he had questioned one of the other two about what happened with
the baby.

"He told me he would tell me later, but he died of a heart attack and I
never found out," Mr Cole said.

"I have always suspected he brought the baby back to Melbourne and buried it
somewhere - maybe in the yard of the house where he lived at the time."

The other two members in the party had also since died, he said, leaving him
alone with their secret.

Sunday Herald Sun

--

Melissa
Wife to 1
Mum to 3
Australia somewhere
assilem2@OBVIOUSozemail.com.au <--remove the OBVIOUS