Australia Australia - Tumbulgum, NSW, Male 50-70, Tweed River in sleeping bag, Nov'12

Candaceny1

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Just wondered if anyone had clues or thoughts as to the indian cotton bag in which an unidentified man's body was found in the Tweed River near Tumbulgum in 2012. Police have just released images of the fabrice and I think there's also a faded label. I just remember all the Websleuths' discussions about the clothing in the Wynarka suitcase before poor little Khandalyce was identified. It was pretty impressive stuff as far as tracing items of clothing and types of material went. Here's one story with pix of teh bag : http://www.news.com.au/national/cri...y/news-story/e59e1a34409a7792ce103be03498be05
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:greetings: Candaceny1

Those particular WSers' work was pretty impressive. I was just a newbie then too. I'm sure one of our identification gurus will be more than happy to help in anyway they can.
 
I have some simliar coloured and patterned underpants. Bonds is an Australian brand. I've had them for a few years now.

P
b83668ec65843bdb99cb6665c799910e.jpg

(Sorry if this is oversharing)

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
 
I have some simliar coloured and patterned underpants. Bonds is an Australian brand. I've had them for a few years now.

(Sorry if this is oversharing)

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

(Respectfully snipped by me for 'brevity :D)

No, not oversharing PE, but I never thought I'd see the day when someone would post a photo of their Reg Grundies on WS, I would've said 'No.' :) It just goes to show WSers will do anything to help solve a mystery. In all seriousness, thanks for information about the Bonds' branding.

I think I'll make a thread for this poor bloke. He's been left without a name for far too long.
 
‘We just don’t know who he is’: Cold case body in bag mystery
news.com.au
August 13, 2016 6:03pm

View attachment 99825
Police are making an appeal for information in an effort to identify a man whose decomposed body was found in a cotton fibre style bag in the Tweed River in 2012.

'THE bag a body was found in is distinctive, but the identity of the man remains a mystery.

Police on the NSW-Queensland border have renewed efforts to solve the mystery of an unidentified man whose body washed up on the banks of the Tweed River on November 24, 2012.

All they have to go on is that it was found in a distinctive, custom-made, plaid-patterned sleeping bag made of Indian cotton.'

'It’s a case that has Tweed-Byron Local Area Command’s Detective Inspector Brendon Cullen flummoxed.

Police can’t work out who the man is, much less how he died.'

View attachment 99826
Police say this bag, in which the body was found, can’t be bought in a store. Source: Supplied

'Insp Cullen this week renewed calls for public information, with the sleeping bag the man was found in the focus.

“We just don’t know who this guy is,” he said.

“If we did, it would go a long way towards us finding out what actually happened to him.

“You don’t often come across deceased people where nobody knows anything about who they are. Often we don’t know how they died, but when it comes to knowing who they are we usually have a reasonable idea. Not in this case.”'

'“The fabric is very distinctive, and it’s not something you’d buy in a shop. It’s been homemade,” Insp Cullen said.

The bag is about 60cm x 165cm and is made of plaid Indian cotton. The material is blue and off white cheque.

“The bag isn’t your normal sleeping bag. It’s bag-like in its design, but there’s no down in it, just cotton. It’s stronger than a sheet, it’s not a surfboard cover. It’s just this mysterious bag which happened to have a body in it,” Insp Cullen said.'

View attachment 99823
The body was clad only in underpants when found in the bag. Source: Supplied

'“We’re hoping whoever made it or knows where the fabric from might lead us to who he is.”

The post mortem carried out immediately after the body was discovered left little to go on.

“The body was badly decomposed, and we couldn’t really get a line of how and when he had died. The best guesstimate was around the two-week mark,” Insp Cullen said.

The man was caucasian, aged between 50 and 70 years, was 163cm tall, and of thin build and had grey hair tied in a ponytail with a blue band. There were no teeth, indicating he may have worn dentures, and nixing the possibility of identifying him through dental records. The man was wearing only a pair of orange and blue underpants.

There was a small trace of alcohol in his system, which may mean he was drinking at a local pub or bought alcohol near where the body was found.

The post mortem couldn’t determine the cause of death.'

'But missing persons checks and databases have failed to identify the body — although they did locate two other missing people.

“The bag is our best lead, but facial recognition technology is an option in the future, because we are just not getting any inroads with traditional means, so we may have to look outside the square,” Insp Cullen said.'

View attachment 99824
Close-up of the distinctive weave and colour of the ‘sleeping bag’. Source: Supplied

'Anyone with information should contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.'

View attachment 99823View attachment 99824View attachment 99825View attachment 99826
 
Thanks Bohemian. I found the police Facebook post which has the (albeit very faded) label on the deceased gentleman's underpants. Not as heart-rending a case as little Khandalyce and her mother, but he definitely was murdered. Here's the link https://www.facebook.com/nswpolicef...18519706184/10151497455606185/?type=3&theater

No problem, Candy. I made a thread for the unidentified man here:

Australia- Tumbulgum, NSW, Male, 50-70, found in Tweed River in sleeping bag, 24 Nov 2012

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...eping-bag-24-Nov-2012&p=12749066#post12749066
 
Could the bag have been a couch cushion cover?

It kind of reminds me of that type of material. Couch cushion, divan or even a single doona cover?
 
A single doona cover would be more than 60cm wide.
 
A single doona cover would be more than 60cm wide.

You're right, JLZ. It's because I still think in inches rather than centimetres for small measurements (Oops! I'm showing my age ;)). I can envisage the length - between 5'4"-5'5" (only because it's my height). It would be about the length of a 3 seater couch. The width is about right for the height of a high-backed couch, from the measurements I just made of my own.

btw At 163cm, Tumbulgum man wasn't very tall, either as a result of genetics or the effects of ageing.
 
There was a sheet found in the indian cotton bag along with Tumbulgum man. So that makes me think the bag might of had something to do with sleeping at least, such as a home made sleeping bag liner. Albeit, narrow for adult use at 60cm wide but maybe made for a child.

BBM

there was also a plain sheet stuffed inside the bag.”

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/ne...dy-in-a-bag-case/story-fni0cx12-1226862684844
 
There was a sheet found in the indian cotton bag along with Tumbulgum man. So that makes me think the bag might of had something to do with sleeping at least, such as a home made sleeping bag liner. Albeit, narrow for adult use at 60cm wide but maybe made for a child.

BBM

there was also a plain sheet stuffed inside the bag.”

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/ne...dy-in-a-bag-case/story-fni0cx12-1226862684844

Thanks for the link, Symbah. It does seem like some sort of sleeping bag, and with the inclusion of a sheet inside, even more so. I know he was described as thin but a sleeping bag 60 cm wide (about the width of two standard bed pillows) wouldn't leave much room for movement. I'm approximately the same height and build as Tumbulgum man and my adult, winter-weight sleeping bag is 1m wide x 1.80m long and I find that snug, even though the fill has flattened significantly over the past 20 years. Although the width suggests a child's sleeping bag or liner, the length seems a bit too long.
 
I was wondering if it's the type of material used to cover cushions and mattresses in caravans?

That's worth thinking about. I know what you mean, Dinky. Some of the material used in the 60s and 70s in caravans was truly ugly. Green, orange, yellow and brown plaids woven into textured material. The blue and white material reminds me of the 'country cottage' trend in furnishings of the late 80s-90s.
 
Thanks for the link, Symbah. It does seem like some sort of sleeping bag, and with the inclusion of a sheet inside, even more so. I know he was described as thin but a sleeping bag 60 cm wide (about the width of two standard bed pillows) wouldn't leave much room for movement. I'm approximately the same height and build as Tumbulgum man and my adult, winter-weight sleeping bag is 1m wide x 1.80m long and I find that snug, even though the fill has flattened significantly over the past 20 years. Although the width suggests a child's sleeping bag or liner, the length seems a bit too long.

I thought the length seemed too long for a child's sleeping bag too Bo, but just dug out & measured my daughter's childhood sleeping bag & its measuring at 70x170cm.
 
Do they mean it's 60cm from side to side?
That is how it looks to me, so 120cm around it, perhaps. Maybe a sleeping bag for warmer weather or even a bag for carrying his stuff in.
 
I thought the length seemed too long for a child's sleeping bag too Bo, but just dug out & measured my daughter's childhood sleeping bag & its measuring at 70x170cm.

Thanks for the measurements, symbah. I was going to ask my daughter to measure the dimensions of my granddaughter's sleeping bag tomorrow. It saves me giving her an explanation that I don't really want to give.

My poor old sleeping bag doesn't have a liner, I just air it after each use. Then, when it gets too grotty even for camping, I drop it off at the dry cleaner's.
 
Do they mean it's 60cm from side to side?
That is how it looks to me, so 120cm around it, perhaps. Maybe a sleeping bag for warmer weather or even a bag for carrying his stuff in.

Yes, I think that's what the police mean by width. It could be some sort of swag, I suppose, but if he was on foot at times, its length would make it pretty unwieldy to carry for a man of such short stature.
 

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