A Tasmanian man has revealed he was one of the last people to see missing girl Shyanne-Lee Tatnell alive, days after a reclusive farmer was arrested for her murder.
Shyanne-Lee, 14, was last seen in Launceston almost three months ago.
A massive police search took a turn last week when remains — later confirmed to be the teenager’s — were discovered on a remote bush track near Nabowla in Tasmania’s northeast.
Yochanan Gordon, a Launceston-based rabbi, says he saw the young girl the day she disappeared on April 30 while he was heading back from delivering supplies to a homeless family staying in his friend’s yard.
He drove across the Henry St Bridge and back at about 8:30pm — roughly the same time Shyanne-Lee is believed to have left a youth hostel to visit a friend.
“Shyanne-Lee was walking down the hill from Ravenswood, and it turned out to be the last time she was seen alive,” Mr Gordon shared in a post online.
“This made me one of the last people to have seen her alive.”
“This heartbreaking story deeply affected me,” he added.
The last confirmed sighting of the teenager was as she walked near the North Esk River the night she disappeared.
CCTV of Shyanne-Lee taken from the bridge was released by police as they sought information about her whereabouts. Mr Gordon immediately contacted police. There is no suggestion of wrongdoing on his part.
“I don’t think anything I can say about my drive that evening can help the family of Shyanne-Lee in the difficult time they are going through,” he told Channel 7.
Last week, Christopher Mark Jordan, a reclusive farmer and dad-of-one, was arrested and charged with Shyanne-Lee’s murder.
The 36-year-old man was friendly and well-liked, according to his neighbours, who said they couldn’t believe he was at the centre of such serious allegations.
One neighbour told the Daily Mail he had been on friendly terms with Mr Jordan and had “never had a problem with him”.
Police will allege Mr Jordan came across Shyanne-Lee sometime after she was last spotted by the river.
He then allegedly took the teenager back to his property in Scottsdale, a 64.5km drive northeast from the city, along a poorly lit country road winding through farmland and forest.
Later that night, Mr Jordan allegedly killed Shyanne-Lee at his home before dumping her body along a remote bushland track in Nabowla.
Mr Jordan did not make an application for bail when his matter was mentioned in court on Friday. He is due to reappear in court on August 16 over video link.