GUILTY Australia - Renea Lau, 32, raped & murdered, Melbourne, 28 June 2014

Brightbird

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I've never started a thread - hope this goes right.

This is frightening. Wonder where this transient man is hiding out, and what his mental state is. This is quite local to where I work. My mum works with the homeless population around this area too.

The lady was found "in an undressed state" with her clothes nearby. Other items led police to Scott Allen Miller as a suspect.

Homeless man sought over Botanic Gardens death

Detectives are searching for a homeless West Australian man over the suspicious death of a woman whose body was found naked and battered in Melbourne's Royal Botanic Gardens on Saturday morning.

The woman, aged in her 30s, is believed to be from China and was in Australia working in the hospitality industry. But she has yet to be formally identified as police are still trying to contact relatives overseas.


http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/homeless-man-sought-over-botanic-gardens-death-20140629-zsq42.html
 
This is like a repeat of what has happened in Queensland. These poor girls
come to Australia for an adventure and should be safe. Also how come police are not moving them on if they are sleeping in the gardens?

Sleeping out in the garden? It has been freezing here in Melbourne.
 
Thanks Brightbird! - from your link - a pic of the man detectives are searching for.

14vspyb.jpg

Homeless man sought over Botanic Gardens death
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/homeless-man-sought-over-botanic-gardens-death-20140629-zsq42.html
 
Thank you Brightbird for starting this thread :seeya:

I just read about it in MSM and was hoping it would come onto WS (although I myself cannot remember how to start a thread so I had to hope someone else would :blushing:)

And yes Marg, it is unfortunately like those terrible Brisbane deaths. The poor woman :facepalm:
 
JUNE 29, 2014 : Former WA man Scott Allen Miller wanted for questioning after police discover woman’s body in Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens
http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/for...971234498?nk=36f0abe9c8ba63f78227668bbb28b2c7
Miller has been sleeping on the streets of the city for at least six weeks and is known to police in other states, although not for violence related matters.

Det Sgt Favre said Miller was originally from Western Australia and has been sleeping on the streets for several weeks.

He said Miller was known to police in Western Australia, but is not known to be violent.

Det Sgt Favre said detectives believed Miller may still be in Melbourne, and anyone who sees him should contact police and not approach him.
 
JUNE 29, 2014: Police hunt homeless man over discovery of woman’s body in Royal Botanic Gardens
Read more: http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/la...969773176?nk=36f0abe9c8ba63f78227668bbb28b2c7
The woman reportedly had injuries to her legs consistent with being dragged across the ground.

Detectives today appealed for Mr Miller, 42, to come forward and asked anyone who saw him to call 000 immediately.

“Investigators seized a number of items at the scene and believe Scott may be able to assist police with their investigation,” a Victoria Police statement said.

Forensic crime scene investigators spent most of yesterday scouring the area for clues as to how the woman died.

Line searches conducted by SES crews found a pair of scissors on a park bench about 100m away. A woman’s handbag was also sitting a few metres from the body.
 
He hasn't been in Melbourne long. So he may not have much of a network among the homeless yet. At some point he will need food at least. I can't see how he could stay out of sight for very long. It is Melbourne. Not too many places to hide around the CBD. If he stays in Melbourne I'm sure it won't be long until he is caught. In the meantime, I wouldn't be passing through the Botanic gardens, or other's like Flagstaff gardens on my own in the morning or late at night.
 
He hasn't been in Melbourne long. So he may not have much of a network among the homeless yet. At some point he will need food at least. I can't see how he could stay out of sight for very long. It is Melbourne. Not too many places to hide around the CBD. If he stays in Melbourne I'm sure it won't be long until he is caught. In the meantime, I wouldn't be passing through the Botanic gardens, or other's like Flagstaff gardens on my own in the morning or late at night.

It's pretty scary, especially as we don't know his mental state. If he's having a psychotic break he could well be extremely dangerous.......:scared:
 
I'll throw it out and say that I'll bet he is mentally ill. If he left WA six weeks ago, there's a good chance he isn't taking meds. From the small amount of info released, it doesn't like he made an effort to conceal his involvement. Though this makes it more scary that he's still around the public, it increases my confidence that he'll be caught soon.
 
I'll throw it out and say that I'll bet he is mentally ill. If he left WA six weeks ago, there's a good chance he isn't taking meds. From the small amount of info released, it doesn't like he made an effort to conceal his involvement. Thought this makes it more scary that he's still around the public, it increases my confidence that he'll be caught soon.

Totally agree with you, Brightbird.
 
When I was doing my student psychology placement in community mental health, I sat in on a meeting between a client and the psychiatrist. The client had just been released from jail on a Victorian community treatment order. The client was leaving to go interstate and the service couldn't ensure he continued treatment at the other end. They notified the area service in the next state and wrote him a limited script with the idea being he would have to make contact if he wanted his meds. But it's easy to see how people slip through the cracks like that. If he didn't make contact of his own volition, community health probably wouldn't have any contact with him unless he had a mental episode. Iirc, a patient's mental health records can't be accessed outside of the state they originated in. Not without going through a special process anyway. Of course, this may be totally irrelevant.
 
Here's a little bit more detail about the suspect:

The Salvation Army's Major Brendan Nottle said Mr Miller was "a quiet person" who has had contact with the Salvation Army's outreach workers and cafe staff in recent weeks.

"He was just quiet, kept to himself, he'd have a meal and leave," Mr Nottle said, adding that Mr Miller had shunned accomodation assistance, choosing instead to sleep in the rotunda.

He said it was important not to make assumptions about Mr Miller or homeless people in general as a result of the investigation.

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/h...rdens-death-20140629-zsq42.html#ixzz3650uHYSl
 
And a bit more detail....

Major Brendan Nottle from the Salvation Army said he first met Miller about two months ago and described him as a quiet loner.

"He was very difficult to engage with when I first came into contact with him," he said.

"I was really going to work around trying to find him some accommodation because we're heading into a really cold Melbourne winter but he was not interested."

Major Nottle said Miller chose to stay in a dark and isolated area of the gardens.

"It's actually one of the locations where we go to engage with homeless people where I personally feel uncomfortable," he said.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-06-29/man-sought-for-questioning-over-body-found-in-gardens/5558122
 

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