Her car was later found submerged off Cottesloe Beach, but Julie was never seen again.
Many years later, her disappearance still remains one of Western Australia’s most baffling cold cases.
Despite extensive investigations, no one knows if Julie met with foul play or chose to end her life.
Let's get into the details
 |
| Julie Cutler |
Background of The Case: Who Was Julie Cutler?
Julie Cutler was born on July 27, 1965, and she was the first of two children born to Roger and Robyn Cutler.
When she was only 10, her mother died of cancer, and this loss reportedly had a lasting impact on her.
Her father later remarried after her mother’s death, but she reportedly did not live with him and his new family, but instead she stayed with other relatives.
She attended Brigidine Catholic Primary School in Floreat and later Iona Presentation College in Mosman Park, where she graduated in 1982.
Julie went on to study at the Western Australian Institute of Technology (now Curtin University), majoring in English Literature with minors in Theatre Arts and Psychology.
After completing her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1986, Julie traveled extensively through Greece, France, and the United Kingdom, working as an au pair during part of her time abroad.
She later returned to Perth in late 1987, where she took on two casual jobs.
She worked as a room attendant at the Parmelia Hilton Hotel and in a dress shop at the Fremantle Markets.
Those who knew Julie described her as intelligent, creative, and thoughtful, with a gift for writing.
She kept diaries throughout her life, showing both her talent for literature, and her emotional challenges.
Friends remembered her as having two personalities—at times quiet and private, but at other times lively and dramatic.
She also loved socializing, especially in Claremont’s nightlife, and had a close group of friends from university and work.
Julie had experienced personal difficulties in the past, including a suicide attempt in Greece after a troubled relationship.
Her mental state fluctuated, and in the months before her disappearance, she had withdrawn from an intensive English course due to financial and emotional stress.
Julies friends also said she sometimes took risks, including engaging in impulsive sexual encounters with strangers.
Despite these struggles, she stayed in touch with her family, including her father, sister Nicole, and maternal aunt Annette Marwick.
This made her sudden disappearance and silence even more puzzling to her loved ones.
 |
| Julie Cutler |
The Day Julie Cutler Disappeared
On the evening of Sunday, June 19, 1988, Julie Cutler worked her regular shift as a room attendant at the Parmelia Hilton Hotel in Perth's central business district.
After finishing work around 10:00 PM, she attended a staff awards function at Juliana's nightclub, which is located within the hotel complex.
Julie changed out of her work clothes in the staff locker room and was dressed in a black evening dress with a high collar and gold buttons on the shoulder.
She also wore black stockings and black patent leather shoes.
Approximately 180 hotel employees and their guests attended the event, which featured award presentations, food, drinks, and dancing to music played by a DJ.
Also, several people said she drank several glasses of champagne at the event and may have been tipsy.
Around midnight, she was seen dancing and talking with two male coworkers, Tadeusz Maciejewski and Gregory Swiatek, who invited her and another colleague, Concetta "Connie" Harper, back to their apartment.
Harper declined the invitation and advised Julie to go home because she appeared intoxicated.
The two women left the nightclub together around 12:30 a.m. on Monday, June 20, 1988.
They picked up their belongings from the staff area, and walked to the nearby Wilson parking lot where their cars were parked.
Harper last saw Julie standing by the open passenger door of her grey and black Fiat sedan, before she left Julie.
Another coworker, Geoffrey Pearce, saw Julie driving out of the parking lot between 12:30 AM and 1:00 AM.
She stopped at the exit, rolled down her window, and asked if he needed help as he waited for his girlfriend.
Pearce confirmed he was fine, and Julie turned left onto Mounts Bay Road. This was the last confirmed sighting of Julie Cutler.
She failed to return home to her Fremantle apartment or show up for her next scheduled shift at the hotel later that day.
Her flatmate reported her missing to Fremantle Police Station at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, June 21.
Physically, Julie was 160 cm (5'3") tall with a medium build, green eyes, and dark brown shoulder-length hair.
On the night she disappeared, she was last seen wearing a black evening dress with gold buttons on the shoulder and black patent leather shoes.
She was also carrying a leather shoulder bag and a white plastic bag containing her hotel uniform.
 |
| Julie Cutler |
The Car In The Ocean
About 59 hours after Julie was last seen, at 11:45 a.m. on Wednesday, June 22, a swimmer named John Mickle found her car submerged in the ocean off Cottesloe Beach.
The grey and black Fiat 124 sedan, with registration 6CW749, was found upside down about 50 meters from shore, between the Cottesloe Surf Life Saving Club and the groyne.
The car was partially buried in sand in about two meters of water.
Additionally, the car's rear seat was detached but it later washed up near the groyne.
The local Police department were notified at 12:40 PM, and multiple units responded, including officers from the Water Police.
Police divers Senior Sergeant Christopher Ruck and Constable Wayne Pettit examined the submerged vehicle.
They observed the Fiat resting on its roof on a small reef, with substantial damage to the body panels.
The roof had collapsed into the cabin, and the bonnet had separated from the chassis.
A tow truck first tried to recover the car, but poor visibility from the murky water made it difficult, so a larger four-wheel-drive vehicle was used to pull it out.
Forensic examination at the Maylands Police Complex later revealed specific details about the vehicle's condition.
The ignition key was in the "on" position, and the headlights were still activated.
The gear shift was in neutral, and the handbrake was disengaged.
The driver's door was slightly ajar with its window fully lowered, while the passenger door window remained closed.
Both rear doors were locked, and investigators found Julie's house key on the keyring in the ignition.
Inside the vehicle, police recovered several items from the glove compartment: two champagne glasses wrapped in a green and white striped tea towel, an Easybank card, RAC membership documents, the vehicle registration papers with handwritten notes, and a BP service record.
The also found an ashtray which contained two cigarette butts and three burnt paper matches.
Forensic officers collected hair samples from the driver's seat cover but found no blood or other biological evidence.
Tidal analysis showed that the car could have entered the water during the high tide between 12:30 AM and 5:00 AM on June 20, when storm conditions caused unusually high surf that washed over the limestone retaining wall.
This timing aligned with witness accounts of Julie's last known movements.
Despite extensive searches of the surrounding area, no personal belongings or clothing matching what Julie was last seen wearing were recovered from the vehicle or nearby shoreline.
 |
| Julie's car after it was recovered |
Possible Theories Of What Police Think Happened To Julie Cutler
Police investigators developed two primary theories to explain Julie Cutler's disappearance based on the available evidence.
1) Murder: The first theory proposed that Julie was murdered between June 20 and June 22, 1988, with her killer subsequently disposing of her vehicle in the ocean at Cottesloe Beach to conceal the crime.
Investigators pointed out that if Julie had been in the car when it went into the water, there would likely have been some trace of her remains or belongings, just as the rear seat which broke out but later washed ashore.
This theory was supported by witness reports that Julie might have planned to meet someone after the staff function.
Also two champagne glasses were found in the glove compartment, suggesting she may have had company after leaving the hotel.
2) Suicide: The second theory posited that Julie took her own life by deliberately driving her vehicle into the ocean at Cottesloe Beach between the early hours of June 20 and when the car was discovered on June 22.
Julie had a documented history of mental health struggles, including a previous suicide attempt in Greece.
Investigators also considered the possibility that Julie’s suicide may have been influenced by a student film called Nocturnes.
The film was made in 1986 by people from her university circle, and it showed a character driving off the Cottesloe groyne, just the same way Julie’s car was found.
The police investigation remained divided between these two possibilities throughout multiple reviews of the case.
Forensic analysis of the car’s damage showed patterns that could match either a deliberate high-speed drive into the water or the vehicle being pushed or rolled in from the shoreline.
The 2017-2019 Operation Malvae cold case review by WA Police's Homicide Squad concluded that both scenarios remained equally plausible based on the available evidence.
Investigators noted that while Julie's family and friends universally rejected the suicide theory, citing her personality and lack of a farewell note, the physical evidence did not definitively rule it out.
Also, while the murder theory explained several anomalies in the case, investigators could not identify a clear suspect or motive.
The coroner's 2023 inquest ultimately declared an open finding, unable to determine which theory was more likely based on the evidence presented.
 |
| Julie's car after it was recovered |
Major Suspects Investigated By The Police
Several individuals emerged as persons of interest during the investigation into Julie Cutler's disappearance.
1) Tadeusz Maciejewski and Gregory Swiatek, two coworkers from the Parmelia Hilton, became initial suspects after witnesses reported they were the last people seen interacting with Julie at the staff function.
Maciejewski, a Polish immigrant, had reportedly invited Julie to his apartment after the party.
Both men were interviewed by police on June 23, 1988, and their Glendalough residence was thoroughly searched, but no evidence linking them to Julie's disappearance was found.
Maciejewski later developed mental health issues and returned to Poland in January 1994.
Between December 1993 and January 1994, Julie’s family received several anonymous calls from a man with a European accent who made vague claims about knowing what happened to her.
Investigators later suspected the caller might have been Maciejewski.
2) Mokhtar Khir, the then general manager of the Merlin Hotel, was investigated after police learned Julie may have been in a relationship with him.
In a June 24, 1988 interview, Khir denied having any romantic involvement with Julie.
However, during cold case interviews in 2018–2019, he admitted that they had been sexually involved.
He also revealed for the first time that he attended the Parmelia Hilton staff function at Julie’s invitation but left after two hours.
But nobody confirmed seeing him there, and his account could not be verified.
Police found his changing statements suspicious but did not have enough evidence to link him to Julie’s disappearance.
3) Bradley Edwards, the convicted Claremont serial killer, was examined as a potential suspect during later case reviews.
Edwards studied at the same university as Julie during overlapping periods and frequented areas near where she disappeared.
However, police found no direct evidence linking Edwards to Julie's case.
When he was interviewed in prison, Edwards denied knowing Julie.
The 2019 coronial inquest concluded there was no compelling evidence connecting Edwards to the disappearance, though investigators acknowledged they couldn't completely rule him out.
The investigation also looked into several other people who had contact with Julie in the weeks before she disappeared, including former romantic partners, old university acquaintances, and coworkers.
During the cold case review, police identified 48 persons of interest, with 44 still not ruled out by the end of the investigation.
Five of them had died before the 2018 review began.
Despite decades of background checks and interviews, investigators never found enough evidence to charge anyone in connection with Julie Cutler’s disappearance.
In 2018, the WA Government announced a $250,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.
Police also conducted fresh searches of Cottesloe Beach, hoping to find new clues, but despite these efforts, Julie’s case remains unsolved.
Julie’s father, Roger Cutler, has spent decades searching for answers.
"Somebody knows something," he told reporters. "I just hope one day, they come forward."
If you have any information—no matter how small—contact Crime Stoppers at 1800 333 000.
Source
Comments
Post a Comment