Family joins renewed calls for information into cold case of Rosemary Brown and Melissa Trussell

Australia Broadcast Center

02-07-2025

The family of an Adelaide mother and daughter who disappeared 25 years ago are calling for people with information to contact police.
Rosemary Brown and Melissa Trussell, also known as Melissa Brown, were last seen in Blair Athol, in Adelaide's north, at about 2:30am on Saturday, May 13, 2000.
Rosemary was 33 and Melissa was 15.
Rosemary's handbag was found later that day in Stirling Street, Northfield, but it was not handed into police until May 23 after a public appeal about the missing women.
On Sunday, July 2, 2000, Rosemary's body was discovered in mangroves at Garden Island, in Adelaide's north-west.
Melissa has never been found and police believe she was also murdered.
Melissa's father, Barry Trussell and her sister Kayla, joined renewed calls from police for information on the case.
Mr Trussell said 25 years was a long time to go without answers about his daughter's disappearance.
"The what if's, you know, what sort of mother would she have been? What sort of life would she have led?" he said.
"All these things are taken away from her and extra enjoyment we could've got out of life having her involved in our life.
"Any little bit of information you've got can help, no matter how small. It can be what breaks the case."
Kayla said the family just needs to know what happened to her sister.
"The damage is done, enough time has passed," she said.
Kayla said her family had experienced "decades of pain" and were asking "to get the answers and to get the justice".
"It's all that we can really ask for," she said.
She described her relationship with Melissa as "gorgeous" when the pair were young.
"She was my best friend," she said.
"We would always play Barbies together, play ponies … I could pretty much make her do anything, I was just her little brat sister.
"We were just so close."
"She was always happy to just do whatever was going to make me happy as a little kid."
SA Police released a new image of Melissa earlier this year in a bid to spark public interest in the case.
According to Crime Stoppers SA, Rosemary was evicted from the Windsor Gardens Caravan Park on May 3, and moved around in the days before her disappearance.
A reward of up to $1,000,000 has been on offer for information and assistance that leads to the conviction of those responsible for the suspected murder of Melissa, while a reward of up to $200,000 has been on offer for the same in Rosemary's case.
Today, Detective Superintendent Darren Fielke said police hoped someone with information would do the right thing and come forward.
"No one has been charged for any offences relating to the disappearance of Rosemary and Melissa at this time," he said.
He said a number of people had been identified as persons of interest over the years.
"There has been investigations conducted on those people, we haven't yet gained enough evidence or had enough information to lay any charges," he said.
"Everything points to the fact that she's [Melissa] not alive. I'd love to say that she is, but the reality is that it's highly unlikely that she is."
He said police hoped advancement in technology, particularly in DNA testing, would help find a breakthrough in the case.
He said a handbag found in the days after the pair were reported missing would be re-subjected to forensic testing.
He said "it's time" for anyone with information to come forward.
"I appeal to your conscience, I appeal to your moral fibre to come forward and tell us because after 25 years, it's time that we're able to give some comfort to the family."
Those with information are asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or online.