Looking for Lily Irene EDMUNDS (nee ROFE)

[jorose]

Not 100% this is her and the circumstances are unpleasant, but there was a woman who went by the name of Lillian Irene Edmunds or Edmund-Walls, who was murdered in 1978.  Her date of birth, according to the police article offering a reward, was 14 December 1908.

Reward offered:
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/219955800?searchTerm=%22Lillian%20Irene%20Edmunds%22

The death is indexed under "Irene Edmund-Walls" (no parental information from the looks of the index).

[rofe2028]

Whoa, now that's an interesting find, and I see that NSW BDM have a corresponding death record for an "Irene EDMUND-WALLS".

Thanks jorose, I'll definitely have to look into that.

[cupoflife]

WARNING: graphic 

The Age March 27, 1978 page 5 https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/123265362/

Woman raped, murdered .... - , SYDNEY. - A 68-year-old woman was raped and bashed to death on a vacant allotment at Alexandria early yesterday. A post mortem examination showed the killer had tried to strangle her before he attacked her with a flat piece of wood or metal.
The victim, Mrs. Irene Edmund-Walls, lived with her husband in Lyne Street, Alexandria. - Detectives were told Mrs. Edmund-Walls, “a regular small punter, had backed the winners of the Donoaster and a couple of other races on Saturday.
Loaf of bread They found no money on the dead woman and think the killer robbed his victim after the attack. Mr. Phillip Edmund-Walls said yesterday his wife had left home to buy a loaf of bread at a nearby shop. "When she did not return I thought she must have run into friends so I went to bed," he said. "Everyone in the street liked her and as far as I know she hadn't an enemy in the world. . '.. "I couldn't believe it when I found out she was dead." A man going to the newsagent found her body at 6.30 a.m. on an overgrown allotment about 100 metres from her home. She was lying in blood-soaked grass a few metres from a well-worn track through the allotment. Police yesterday were trying to trace her movements after she left home. They searched the allotment and surrounding streets but found no trace of the murder weapon.


October 8, 2017 Daily Telegraph (Sydney) Page 34
CLUELESS
Missing evidence cripples cold case murder hunts.
....
Irene Edmund-Walls, 1978 Irene Edmund-Walls, 70, was bashed to death with a metal pole or piece of wood in Allen Lane, Alexandria, in March, 1978. Her empty purse was found near her body.

[rofe2028]

Thanks cupoflife, I hadn't seen those but I came across an article in the Sydney Morning Herald on the same day as your article from The Age.  I also found another gazette entry almost identical to the one identified by jorose, but 13 months later.

I've since found 1977 electoral roll entries for the couple in Sydney:  he appears as Phillip Thomas WALLS and she appears as (wait for it)... Lily Irene EDMUND.  Soooo close to my great-aunt's married name, and with the day and month of birth the same to boot.  And turns out it's within walking distance of where Charles EDMUNDS was living with Mrs Neta ABBOTT in Redfern in 1968 when he died.

I can't say for sure that this is my Lily Irene EDMUNDS (nee ROFE).  Part of me hopes that it's not, but I think I'm really gonna have to purchase that death certificate from NSW BDM and see what's what.  I note that the parents' names aren't listed on the death register search...

[rofe2028]

Can anyone with access to NSW State Library e-resources help me out me with a transcript of the "Clueless" article in the Daily Telegraph (Sydney) on 8 October 2017, page 34?

[majm]

Can anyone with access to NSW State Library e-resources help me out me with a transcript of the "Clueless" article in the Daily Telegraph (Sydney) on 8 October 2017, page 34?

Cup of Life has already given you that part of the article that refers to Irene Edmund-Walls. 

.....

October 8, 2017 Daily Telegraph (Sydney) Page 34
CLUELESS
Missing evidence cripples cold case murder hunts.
....
Irene Edmund-Walls, 1978 Irene Edmund-Walls, 70, was bashed to death with a metal pole or piece of wood in Allen Lane, Alexandria, in March, 1978. Her empty purse was found near her body.

The article refers to a number of old, outstanding Unsolved Homicides.

 'The Sunday Telegraph can reveal nine of those cases - ranging from the rape and murder of a schoolgirl to the botched robbery of a 68 year old - where crucial evidence, which could have been a key piece of the puzzle in solving a crime, has vanished.   Poor record keeping, a lack of foresight and various relocations over many decades have all been blamed for today's absence of valuable historical evidence. ...." “We’ve also found that exhibits weren’t returned from trials or inquests, or when sent to other agencies for analysis and examination.” ....

JM notes, many paragraphs later in the article "Now NSW Police has a centralised system for electronically logging exhibits and an archive."   

So of the approximately one thousand words, only thirty three words refer to your person of interest. 

JM

[majm]

deleted, duplicated

sorry

JM

[rofe2028]

Thanks JM, much appreciated.  I was just looking for some context as to how that fitted into the article as a whole.  It's not entirely clear, but the article seems to imply that the purse located next to Mrs Edmund-Walls' body subsequently went missing.

I'll wait and see what the death certificate reveals, although presumably it doesn't contain her parents' details so I'm not sure how helpful it will be.  Perhaps there was an inquest?  I'll touch base with NSW State Archives to see if they have any further information.  Although, if the case is still open, any records are probably still sealed...

[majm]

Thanks JM, much appreciated.  I was just looking for some context as to how that fitted into the article as a whole.  It's not entirely clear, but the article seems to imply that the purse located next to Mrs Edmund-Walls' body subsequently went missing.

I'll wait and see what the death certificate reveals, although presumably it doesn't contain her parents' details so I'm not sure how helpful it will be.  Perhaps there was an inquest?  I'll touch base with NSW State Archives to see if they have any further information.  Although, if the case is still open, any records are probably still sealed...

I would not read that into the article.  To me it is indicating that the journalist writing the article in 2017 about the 1978 crime was simply noting that 'her empty purse was found near her body' .... so the journalist was reminding the readers of the likely motive for the crime.

ADD ... you will find the same info on an official transcription of the NSW BDM death cert, same info, not as expensive as a real deal certificate.   Likely there will be special offers available during August, as it is family history month...
 https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,300394.0.html


JM