We want the truth & justice for Cheryl

Family's plea as man is named 50 years after girl disappeared

- BY ANDY LINES

THE man suspected of snatching a British girl on an Australian beach more than 50 years ago has been publicly named for the first time.

A member of New South Wales Legislative Council used parliamentary privilege to name him. Until now, he has been known only by the codename “Mercury”.

The man, who was then a teenager, is believed to have abducted and murdered three-year-old Cheryl Grimmer in 1970.

He later confessed to the crime, but nothing came of it.

In the Australian parliament, Jeremy Buckingham read out Mercury's real name - still legally protected as he was a minor at the time.

He also called for a new probe into Cheryl's murder. Buckingham said: “The family of Cheryl Grimmer have been through so much anguish over such a long period of time.