Police investigating the disappearance of four-year-old Gus Lamont in Australia say they have identified a suspect.
Officers have described the person in question as someone who lives on the remote property where the boy vanished, but stressed it is not one of his parents.
Gus was last seen playing outside his family home on a sheep station near Yunta in South Australia, around 186 miles (300km) north-east of Adelaide, on September 27.
His grandmother had left him alone for about half an hour before returning to find him gone, triggering one of the largest land and air searches ever launched in the state.
Officers and volunteers scoured around 470 square kilometers – an area roughly twice the size of Edinburgh – near his grandparents’ home at Oak Park station. But no trace of the young boy was found.
In late October, police wound down the search operation and instead formed a dedicated 12-member taskforce to continue the investigation.
That taskforce has since reviewed statements previously given by members of Gus’s family, with police saying they ‘identified a number of inconsistencies and discrepancies’ in the timeline surrounding his disappearance.
Detective Superintendent Darren Fielke said those inconsistencies had led investigators to identify a suspect who lives at Oak Park station.
‘As a result of these inconsistencies, and investigations into them, a person who resides at Oak Park station has withdrawn their support for the police and is no longer cooperating with us,’ he said.
‘The person who has withdrawn their cooperation is now considered a suspect in the disappearance of Gus.’
It is understood Gus’ grandmother, grandparent, mother and younger brother were on the property at the time of his disappearance.
Fielke confirmed the boy’s grandmother, mother and younger brother had been on the property at the time Gus disappeared.
‘I do want to stress, however, that Gus’s parents are not suspects in his disappearance,’ he said.
‘You appreciate at this time I cannot make any further comment about the suspect, given that this is now a criminal investigation and a declared major crime.
‘What I can say, however, is that we’ll continue to thoroughly and meticulously investigate the disappearance of Gus until we get an outcome.’
Police conducted a search of the property in January and seized a number of items, including a vehicle, motorcycle and some electronic devices.
Investigators said they had initially considered three possible scenarios – the boy walked off, he was abducted, or someone known to Gus was involved in his disappearance and suspected death.
Given the remote location of the property, police ruled out abduction saying and said there was no evidence to suggest Gus had ‘merely wandered off’.
