Disappearance of Louise and Charmian Faulkner

Louise Yvonne Faulkner was born on 7 April 1937 in Colac, Victoria, the youngest of three children. Her daughter, Charmian Christabel Alexis Faulkner, was born on 30 October 1977. By 1980 the pair were living at Acland Street, St Kilda, Victoria, where Louise had become friends with a neighbour, Corrine Wylde, who lived in the same block of flats.

On 25 April 1980 — Anzac Day — Louise and Charmian attended a first birthday party for Wylde's son. Louise told Wylde she intended to visit her boyfriend in Gippsland. The following day, Wylde saw Louise and Charmian get into a white utility vehicle with an older man. This was the last confirmed sighting of either mother or daughter. At the time of their disappearance, Louise was 43 and Charmian was two years old. Louise had named her lover, 60-year-old George Sutherland, as Charmian's father, and he was identified as the only suspect in the case.

Police began preliminary investigations into the disappearances on 9 June 1980, and inquiries with friends and associates of Louise continued over the following twelve months. Despite these efforts, the case remained unresolved for decades.

In August 2006, a coronial inquest was held into the disappearance and presumed death of Louise and Charmian Faulkner. The inquest found that the pair had probably been murdered. The inquest was re-convened in 2008, at which point the coroner formally ruled that the deaths were the result of foul play, but stated there was insufficient evidence to link any individual to the killings.

As of 2025, no one has been charged in connection with the disappearance of Louise and Charmian Faulkner, and neither of their bodies has been found. The case remains unsolved, with authorities continuing to treat it as a matter of ongoing public interest, including subsequent media appeals and reward offers reported by outlets such as The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.