Remains found in bushland confirmed to be missing man Corey O’Connell
Human remains found in remote bushland near Nannup two weeks ago have been confirmed to belong to missing 26-year-old Corey O’Connell.
O’Connell’s sister Hayley posted on social media on Thursday that “with a profound and complex sadness, we can confirm that the remains found on May 16 were in fact those of our dear Corey”.
Remains found in South West bushland belong to missing man Corey O’Connell.
Hayley had spearheaded a massive search for her brother spanning almost two years, enlisting the help of thousands of volunteers.
It was one of those volunteers that found O’Connell’s body last month after a Canberra-based drone company took over 35,000 photos of the bush land surrounding his last known location.
The bakery worker from Bunbury was believed to have been driving to Manjimup when his car was found abandoned on a remote stretch of the Brockman Highway just outside Nannup in 2021.
In December, Haylee told WAtoday she didn’t think anything suspicious had happened to her brother and that he likely ran out of fuel and attempted to walk to the nearest town before he got lost in the dense bush.
“The longer it goes on, the longer it confirms that he’s died on his own and his body’s laying there in the bush waiting for us to find him,” she said.
“That’s what makes it hard and I just want to find him because I’m sick of having that image.”
On Thursday, she said the news that the remains were her brothers was “extremely raw” and that her grief was “palpable”.
“We recognise that we are fortunate to have had resolution,” she said.
“Many families of long-term missing people are still awaiting theirs – please continue to give your love and support to them. When all you have is hope, kindness from strangers means more than you know.
“On behalf of Corey and everyone who loves him, thank you. He may now rest in peace.”
Emergency workers and police returned to the location on Thursday and the search expanded an effort to locate further remains.