Australia AUSTRALIA - 4YO AUGUST (GUS) Missing from rural family home in Outback, Yunta, South Australia, 27th Sept 2025

[SouthAussie]

Fair point, but one thing that stood out to me was how the presser opened by describing Gus as shy, adventurous, but someone who has never left the property any considerable distance. Then straight after that they stuck to the line that he has wandered off.

To me those two statements do not sit comfortably together. If even his family say he has never strayed far, it feels odd to keep presenting “wandered off” as the only explanation.

That is because everything they have points to Gus having wandered off. We don't know "everything they have".

Most small children don't wander off, until they do. We hear that again and again in cases of young children going missing ... whether they are later found or not.

imo

 

[SouthAussie]

I didn't see it, so maybe shouldn't comment, but a few things come to mind.

In no particular order:
- How experienced is this person in presenting press conferences?
- How much experience in general does he have in policing?
- Is this his usual role?
- He must be very tired and stressed too.
- He no doubt has to be very careful with his words, especially given how much speculation this case has had online.
- I think this case, given the secrecy around Gus' identity in the beginning, and the fact he's literally been missing so long without a trace, make it ripe for the public to run wild with every word, action, look etc.

MOO

It was Assistant Commissioner Ian Parrott speaking at the presser. Google tells me that he joined the police force back in April 1987.
There are only a few police ranks higher than his (Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner, and Chief of Police, I think).

Breaking: Police scale back search for missing 4yo boy Gus in outback SA

South Australian Police are scaling back the search for a four-year-old boy, who disappeared in the state’s mid-north almost a week ago.

www.abc.net.au

 

[MrJ]

Assistant Commissioner Parrott said an "astronomical" amount of resources, including police, SES, ADF personnel and community volunteers had been dedicated to the search.

"The search for Gus has probably been one of the largest, most intensive searches for a missing person conducted in South Australia in recent times," he said.

"We're confident we have done absolutely everything we can to locate Gus within the search area but despite our best efforts we have not been able to locate him."

He said the police presence at the property would be diminished and defence personnel would be stood down this afternoon.

But police will continue to investigate ongoing lines of inquiry.

Breaking: Police scale back search for missing 4yo boy Gus in outback SA

South Australian Police are scaling back the search for a four-year-old boy, who disappeared in the state’s mid-north almost a week ago.

www.abc.net.au

 

[packetgravy]

I really can't blame people for making wild and unlikely guesses. Apart from desperately wanting little Gus to be found safe, if we don't know what happened, how can we keep our own children safe?

Human nature and the very reason forums like WS exist.

 

[whitelilac]

This disappearance is making me think of a case, a boy (Harry, Harley? can't remember his full name) who was missing for three weeks before he was found, stuck in a chimney of an abandoned house nearby. He had climbed onto the roof, intending to enter the locked up house. There had been a massive search with helicopters, search teams and dogs. That house had been checked several times, even though there was no sign of forced entry. His death was determined to be accidental.

Sometimes a kid can squeeze into the most unlikely places.....I still wonder about all those structures on the property, and also any abandoned undiscovered wells etc.

This is so sad...

 

[TootsieFootsie]

Harley Dilly was the boy found in a chimney, he was 14.

 

[Juzlooking]

I keep thinking about what would make him wander off - especially when it’s been noted that it’s unusual for him to do so.
He appears very pale for a country kid, so perhaps they’re very strict about him wearing his hat at all times outdoors.
If it was windy, maybe he’s run off chasing his hat. Would be interesting to know in which direction that would send him.

 

[packetgravy]

This disappearance is making me think of a case, a boy (Harry, Harley? can't remember his full name) who was missing for three weeks before he was found, stuck in a chimney of an abandoned house nearby. He had climbed onto the roof, intending to enter the locked up house. There had been a massive search with helicopters, search teams and dogs. That house had been checked several times, even though there was no sign of forced entry. His death was determined to be accidental.

Sometimes a kid can squeeze into the most unlikely places.....I still wonder about all those structures on the property, and also any abandoned undiscovered wells etc.

This is so sad...

Yes, this is along the lines of my own thought process.

In these cases, unfortunately it tends to be the smell that will lead to the discovery of a body.

 

[Marg944]

The weather in Yunta on the day that little Gus disappeared:-

Past Weather in Yunta, South Australia, Australia — Yesterday or Further Back

Weather reports from the last weeks in Yunta with highs and lows

www.timeanddate.com

 

[Juzlooking]

The weather in Yunta on the day that little Gus disappeared:-

View attachment 617963

Past Weather in Yunta, South Australia, Australia — Yesterday or Further Back

Weather reports from the last weeks in Yunta with highs and lows

www.timeanddate.com

Doesn’t really seem likely then with winds that low. I thought I’d read that there were high winds on the day he disappeared.
Back to the drawing board as to considering what would’ve drawn him away.

 

[MrJ]

Here's the thing. It really could be anything and the lack of answers is something that we as humans want to be resolved. Especially when it's a missing four year old. But the truth is we don't know much and it honestly could've been anything that distracted him or he ran off or he played somewhere else. Frustrating we don't have the answers but unfortunately that is how it is at the moment

 

[MelmothTheLost]

To me those two statements do not sit comfortably together. If even his family say he has never strayed far, it feels odd to keep presenting “wandered off” as the only explanation.

Isn't it a normal stage of child development that he or she goes at some point from constantly sticking close or clinging to mummy to exploring further away from her? Is it possible that Gus has very recently gone through such a transition and there's therefore a degree of disagreement about his likely behaviour?

 

[HoneyBunOne]

This disappearance is making me think of a case, a boy (Harry, Harley? can't remember his full name) who was missing for three weeks before he was found, stuck in a chimney of an abandoned house nearby. He had climbed onto the roof, intending to enter the locked up house. There had been a massive search with helicopters, search teams and dogs. That house had been checked several times, even though there was no sign of forced entry. His death was determined to be accidental.

Sometimes a kid can squeeze into the most unlikely places.....I still wonder about all those structures on the property, and also any abandoned undiscovered wells etc.

This is so sad...

I recall seeing a show about that, how sad. There was also another case, in the US I believe, where a kid got stuck down in a rolled up gym type mat in a school gym, trying to retrieve shoes he'd hidden there. He, too, sadly passed away I believe. Truth can be stranger than any sort of fiction we try to come up with.

 

[Serononin]

There are cases where the sides of a sand pit can collapse, burying whatever is in it.

Looking at the picture of where he was playing, I do think that's a definite possibility unfortunately

 

[HoneyBunOne]

<modsnip: Quoted post was removed due to copyright violations>

Some interesting new info there, including half an hour without eyes on him. I wonder if there were any staff onsite that day, and if so, do they also live there or do they come and go? 5pm seems to be a reasonable knock off time, especially as light would be fading shortly. Could Gus have climbed into a worker's vehicle and travelled offsite, unknown to the driver? Maybe he got scared and stayed hidden, sneaking out at his destination? A stretch, but worth looking at everything.

 

[Rocket333]

It just feels like somethings not adding up. You’d expect open and seemingly bare terrain like that to give up a clue, surely. A small kid in boots, moving across bare dirt should leave something behind. But there’s nothing? No footprints, no dropped hat, no visuals, no scent trail? The one footprint they did find might not even be from the same day.. He was reportedly home with his grandmother, and playing outside for half an hour before she checked on him. That seems like a really long time to not check on a 4 year old. Was she asleep or watching tv or something? Did something slip past her? In a place that quiet, you’d think a car or person coming up the drive would be heard. It’s heartbreaking and it’s also a bit strange, but maybe that’s just because we don’t have the full story yet.

Suddenly though I’m thinking about <Admin edit: please use initials CS>, the little girl who vanished from the Blowholes in WA in 2021. I haven’t thought about her in years, but something about Gus’s case is bringing it back.

Just my thoughtsd.

 

[HoneyBunOne]

It just feels like somethings not adding up. You’d expect open and seemingly bare terrain like that to give up a clue, surely. A small kid in boots, moving across bare dirt should leave something behind. But there’s nothing? No footprints, no dropped hat, no visuals, no scent trail? The one footprint they did find might not even be from the same day.. He was reportedly home with his grandmother, and playing outside for half an hour before she checked on him. That seems like a really long time to not check on a 4 year old. Was she asleep or watching tv or something? Did something slip past her? In a place that quiet, you’d think a car or person coming up the drive would be heard. It’s heartbreaking and it’s also a bit strange, but maybe that’s just because we don’t have the full story yet.

Suddenly though I’m thinking about <Admin edit: please use initials CS>, the little girl who vanished from the Blowholes in WA in 2021. I haven’t thought about her in years, but something about Gus’s case is bringing it back.

Just my thoughtsd.

I also thought of little <Admin edit: please use initials CS>. People had written her off but she was found alive after 18 days. You would definitely think by now something would have turned up, but if there's mines (like has been mentioned) then it could just be a tragic accident. I can't help feeling like maybe he's close to home and somewhere that wasn't searched thoroughly enough.

 

[confused.mp3]

I can't help feeling like maybe he's close to home and somewhere that wasn't searched thoroughly enough.

I looked up several incidents of children wandering off or getting lost on large farming station properties in Australia. It seems like the considerable portion of them were located within 1km of the where they went missing from. But not always of course, so it truly could result in any outcome.

 

[BreakingNews]

Agreed. Which is why a solid base (that can't be dug through) sandpit with a shallow amount of sand is the safest option in my opinion. A foot of sand is more than enough to play in. I've read about too many collapses and children being buried or suffocating maybe!

Being a working station, I do not believe the sand was put there purely as a 'sandpit' for Gus. It was probably there for some other use, and it just happened that Gus thought it was a good place to play. MOO.

 

[HoneyBunOne]

I looked up several incidents of children wandering off or getting lost on large farming station properties in Australia. It seems like the considerable portion of them were located within 1km of the where they went missing from. But not always of course, so it truly could result in any outcome.

That's so tragic, given that's so close to home. I sure hope the stats indicate most children are found safe and unharmed.