Man questioned over campers identified

Gregory Lynn was arrested in a dramatic confrontation at a remote campsite in Victorian high country on Monday.The 55-year-old’s vehicle was also seized.Mr Lynn, who works as a Jetstar captain, was tracked leaving his Caroline Springs home on Monday.Heavily armed police on helicopters later intercepted him at Licola, more than 230km away.Mr Lynn has not been charged.Jetstar said that Mr Lynn had been removed from duty as a result of their arrest.“Jetstar has been advised by Victoria Police that one of its employees is under investigation for a serious crime and will work to assist in this due process any way we can,” a spokesman said.The dramatic police operation came 20 months after the couple’s disappearance in Victoria’s high country following an intense investigation by police.It is believed the case escalated unexpectedly in recent days and that Victoria Police’s special operations group was called in at short notice, flying to the area in two helicopters to make the arrest.Police revealed late on Tuesday they had seized a four-wheel-drive belonging to Mr Lynn, which could become a vital piece of evidence in the investigation.The car closely resembles the dark blue Nissan Patrol police had been searching for in recent months, following an appeal to the public for the owner of the car to come forward.Mr Hill, 74, and Ms Clay, 73, were last known to be alive in the state’s remote Wonnangatta Valley, 350km northeast of Melbourne, on March 20, 2020.The elderly friends, from Melbourne’s outer southeast, are believed to have been murdered.Police have revealed several possible narratives over the course of the investigation, including that a fight potentially erupted between the couple and another person at the campsite before their disappearance.Ms Clay’s sister Jill said Carol’s disappearance had been tough and hoped the arrest of the man would bring answers.“Emotionally it’s brought up everything during that time – a lot of grief and pain. We haven’t known how, we haven’t know why, they just vanished,” she told Nine News.“Now all of a sudden there's a glimmer and we might get some answers.“It would be such a relief, to have those answers, to have a memorial for Carol and Russell.”Investigators ramped up an intense campaign in recent weeks and officers drip-fed information to the public, including CCTV images of a vehicle suspected to be linked to the case.It’s believed detectives had the suspect under heavy surveillance for some time, warning in October the person involved should feel “very uncomfortable”.There is now speculation they had listening devices in both his vehicle and home over weeks and months.The man is being questioned by police.Police revealed earlier this month they believed an argument may have broken out between the couple and a third party.Detective Inspector Andrew Stamper said the “best theory” police had so far involved the vehicle earlier caught on CCTV and released to the public.“Maybe someone in that blue four-wheel drive was parked and camped in the same area and that could have prompted some contact which may have been confrontational or aggressive contact,” he told reporters.“We know Russell was a very peaceful and law-abiding man and he worked in the wilderness and some very tough jobs, so he wasn't someone who would necessarily take a backwards step either.“So if there’s been some sort of argument, maybe it’s escalated from there.”NED-4900 Missing Campers mapMr Hill and Ms Clay were last heard from in March 2020 when they travelled via Licola, spending one night at Howitt High Plains before heading into Wonnangatta Valley on March 20.Mr Hill – who did not tell his wife he was with Ms Clay – was last heard from the next day via HF radio, stating he was at Wonnangatta Valley in the Victorian Alps.Campers later found Mr Hill’s vehicle with signs of minor fire damage at their campsite, which was completely burned out, near the Dry River Creek Track in the Wonnangatta Valley on March 21. Inspector Andrew Stamper last week said the “strongest theory” investigators had was that there was third party intervention.“There were other people involved,” he told 3AW radio.“That was, in the likelihood, a violent act and there’s been a concealment of Russell and Carol after that violent act.”

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November 24, 2021 at 12:38AM
Gregory Lynn was arrested in a dramatic confrontation at a remote campsite in Victorian high country on Monday.The 55-year-old’s vehicle was also seized.Mr Lynn, who works as a Jetstar captain, was tracked leaving his Caroline Springs home on Monday.Heavily armed police on helicopters later intercepted him at Licola, more than 230km away.Mr Lynn has not been charged.Jetstar said that Mr Lynn had been removed from duty as a result of their arrest.“Jetstar has been advised by Victoria Police that one of its employees is under investigation for a serious crime and will work to assist in this due process any way we can,” a spokesman said.The dramatic police operation came 20 months after the couple’s disappearance in Victoria’s high country following an intense investigation by police.It is believed the case escalated unexpectedly in recent days and that Victoria Police’s special operations group was called in at short notice, flying to the area in two helicopters to make the arrest.Police revealed late on Tuesday they had seized a four-wheel-drive belonging to Mr Lynn, which could become a vital piece of evidence in the investigation.The car closely resembles the dark blue Nissan Patrol police had been searching for in recent months, following an appeal to the public for the owner of the car to come forward.Mr Hill, 74, and Ms Clay, 73, were last known to be alive in the state’s remote Wonnangatta Valley, 350km northeast of Melbourne, on March 20, 2020.The elderly friends, from Melbourne’s outer southeast, are believed to have been murdered.Police have revealed several possible narratives over the course of the investigation, including that a fight potentially erupted between the couple and another person at the campsite before their disappearance.Ms Clay’s sister Jill said Carol’s disappearance had been tough and hoped the arrest of the man would bring answers.“Emotionally it’s brought up everything during that time – a lot of grief and pain. We haven’t known how, we haven’t know why, they just vanished,” she told Nine News.“Now all of a sudden there's a glimmer and we might get some answers.“It would be such a relief, to have those answers, to have a memorial for Carol and Russell.”Investigators ramped up an intense campaign in recent weeks and officers drip-fed information to the public, including CCTV images of a vehicle suspected to be linked to the case.It’s believed detectives had the suspect under heavy surveillance for some time, warning in October the person involved should feel “very uncomfortable”.There is now speculation they had listening devices in both his vehicle and home over weeks and months.The man is being questioned by police.Police revealed earlier this month they believed an argument may have broken out between the couple and a third party.Detective Inspector Andrew Stamper said the “best theory” police had so far involved the vehicle earlier caught on CCTV and released to the public.“Maybe someone in that blue four-wheel drive was parked and camped in the same area and that could have prompted some contact which may have been confrontational or aggressive contact,” he told reporters.“We know Russell was a very peaceful and law-abiding man and he worked in the wilderness and some very tough jobs, so he wasn't someone who would necessarily take a backwards step either.“So if there’s been some sort of argument, maybe it’s escalated from there.”NED-4900 Missing Campers mapMr Hill and Ms Clay were last heard from in March 2020 when they travelled via Licola, spending one night at Howitt High Plains before heading into Wonnangatta Valley on March 20.Mr Hill – who did not tell his wife he was with Ms Clay – was last heard from the next day via HF radio, stating he was at Wonnangatta Valley in the Victorian Alps.Campers later found Mr Hill’s vehicle with signs of minor fire damage at their campsite, which was completely burned out, near the Dry River Creek Track in the Wonnangatta Valley on March 21. Inspector Andrew Stamper last week said the “strongest theory” investigators had was that there was third party intervention.“There were other people involved,” he told 3AW radio.“That was, in the likelihood, a violent act and there’s been a concealment of Russell and Carol after that violent act.”