Michelle Coral Lewis, an Australian woman, vanished on the night of January 14, 1989.
She was last seen riding her mountain bike home after visiting a friend's house in the suburb of Kawana, in Rockhampton, Queensland.
No one has seen Michelle since that day.
Who is Michelle Coral Lewis
Born in 1967, Michelle was abandoned by her mother when she was just a few weeks old.
Her grandmother then took care of her and raised her.
Michelle went to Glenmore State High School, where she was known as a "tomboy" and "very independent."
She only had a few close friends.
When Michelle's grandmother passed away, Adeline "Dell" Salhus became her foster parent.
Michelle lived with her foster mother for about four years before her disappearance.
When Michelle disappeared, Salhus' adult children were living in Tully.
But her 19-year-old grandson, Kenny Harris, who had cerebral palsy, lived with her when Lewis disappeared.
Michelle and Harris became friends and took care of each other.
After finishing school, Michelle had various jobs, including working at a pig farm and a car repair shop.
Before her disappearance, Harris and Michelle often went to the popular Flamingo's nightclub in the city center.
Disappearance
On the night of January 14, 1989, Michelle was at her friend Kerry Bartley's house where they watched movies together.
Michelle and Bartley had been friends since they became neighbors at age 13.
Around 10:45pm, Michelle left Bartley's house riding a maroon and white Malvern Star mountain bike.
Her plan was to quickly ride back home but unfortunately, this was the last time anyone saw Michelle or her mountain bike.
Investigation
The next morning, on January 15, 1989, Salhus woke up and found her foster daughter wasn't at home
After searching but finding no signs of her, she reported Michelle as missing.
Harris was very distraught with her disappearance and searched everywhere for her.
He became fixated on finding her, even showing up at places where the police were searching just to watch them work.
When asked why he was there, he would say, "she's my mate."
Detective Ann Gumley led a significant police investigation where she conducted numerous interviews and gathered statements.
Despite their efforts, police found no clues about how Michelle had disappeared.
Speaking about the case in 2013, Gumley said: "If you find that bike, you'll find Michelle."
Possible Leads
On February 18, 1989, a man called the Rockhampton Police Station claiming to know something about Michelle's disappearance.
He hung up before detectives could talk to him.
In 2022, police urged him to call again.
In 1999, the case was reviewed during the investigation of Rockhampton serial killer Leonard John Fraser.
However, there was no concrete evidence to indicate he was connected to Michelle's disappearance.
Fraser was in prison for rape when Michelle went missing, but there were rumors he sometimes left the prison when security was low.
Ongoing Efforts
The investigation was opened in 2021 following calls from Detective Gumley for the Homicide Cold Case Investigation Unit to re-examine the Michelle Lewis case.
In 2022, Detective Senior Sergeant Tara Kentwell expressed confidence that they could solve the case.
Police now strongly believe that Michelle may have been murdered around the time she disappeared.
Her foster mother Salhus had wanted to write a book about her foster daughter but died in 2012.
During National Missing Persons Week in 2022, the Queensland Government announced a $500,000 reward for information leading to the conviction of those responsible for Michelle's suspected murder.
This huge reward garnered significant media attention.
Unfortunately, despite the reward, no one has come forward or has been arrested in connection with the case.
We hope that someone with vital information will come forward to help answer the many questions about Michelle's disappearance.
In 1987, in a similar mysterious disappearance case, 9-year-old Patrick “Paddy” Hildebrand disappeared during a family hiking trip with his family.
Even after authorities and volunteers conducted extensive searches, Paddy was never found.
Click here to see more details on that disappearance case.
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