Fifty years after eight-year-old Eloise Worledge vanished from her bedroom in Beaumaris, Victoria Police have announced a $1 million reward in a renewed push to solve one of the state’s most haunting cold cases.
The reward, the largest ever offered in a Victorian missing persons investigation, is aimed at breaking decades of silence around what police now openly describe as the likely murder of a child. Detectives say they are appealing directly to someone who knows what happened and has lived with that knowledge for half a century.
Detective Inspector Dave Dunstan, from the Missing Persons Squad, said the decision to announce the reward on the 50th anniversary of Eloise’s disappearance was deeply emotional.
“There is no doubt that in many ways, the announcement of this reward is bittersweet for Eloise’s family.”
“While it may provide them with answers about what happened to her… what this can’t do is bring her back.”
The night Eloise disappeared
Eloise was last seen in her bed late on the night of 12 January 1976 at her family’s Scott Street home in Beaumaris. By morning, she was gone. A flyscreen had been cut and rolled open. Nothing else appeared disturbed.
She was reported missing on Tuesday, 13 January. Within hours, police fears had escalated well beyond a child wandering off. Early newspaper reports from that week described the case as a suspected abduction almost from the outset, as officers flooded the quiet bayside suburb.
More than 250 police officers were deployed over 18 days. Streets, backyards, parkland and foreshore were systematically searched. Police knocked on more than 6,000 doors. No trace of Eloise was ever found.
From the earliest days, the case drew enormous public attention. Contemporary reporting shows how quickly hope rose and fell, with police chasing leads, questioning men and publicly suggesting they were closing in, only for each line of inquiry to collapse.
By April 1976, major newspaper features were already speaking about the “special hell” faced by families of missing children, as investigators weighed multiple theories without a single breakthrough.
Decades of silence
Despite repeated reviews by specialist squads, thousands of interviews and advances in forensic and intelligence methods, no one has ever been charged. In 2003, a coroner’s inquest was unable to determine what happened to Eloise or who may have been responsible.
The case has resurfaced periodically over the decades, sometimes in disturbing ways. In the mid-1990s, a man was prosecuted over an obscene ransom letter sent to the Worledge family years after Eloise disappeared, underlining the long-term trauma that has followed the case.
More recently, the disappearance was reviewed again in 2023 by the Missing Persons Squad following scrutiny connected to historical concerns at Beaumaris Primary School, which Eloise attended. Police say no link to her disappearance was established, but the case remains active.
Detectives have also taken the unusual step of publicly reinforcing that there has never been any evidence implicating Eloise’s parents.
“I want to be very clear that police have never been able to locate any evidence to implicate either of Eloise’s parents.”
Why police believe someone still knows
The new reward is not limited to information leading to a conviction. It also covers information that leads to the discovery of Eloise’s remains, reflecting investigators’ belief that resolution may come through recovery as much as prosecution.
Police say they are specifically appealing to someone who has held onto information for years, possibly out of fear, loyalty, or a belief that it no longer matters.
“While 50 years is a long time, it is not so long that this case cannot still be solved.”
“Victoria Police remains committed to solving this case… being able to lay Eloise to rest and hold those responsible to account.”
Eloise would be 58 years old today.
Timeline: key moments in the Eloise Worledge case
12 January 1976, late evening
Eloise is last seen in her bed at her family’s Beaumaris home.
13 January 1976
She is reported missing. Police find a cut and rolled flyscreen on her bedroom window. A major search begins.
January 1976
More than 250 police take part in an 18-day search. Over 6,000 properties are canvassed. No physical trace of Eloise is located.
January–April 1976
National media coverage tracks a series of leads, suspect interviews and shifting police theories, none of which result in charges.
2003
A coroner’s inquest returns an open finding, unable to determine what happened or who was responsible.
2023
The case is reviewed again by the Missing Persons Squad amid broader historical inquiries. No link is established, but police say the investigation remains open.
January 2026
Victoria Police announce a $1 million reward for information leading to the recovery of Eloise’s remains or the conviction of those responsible.
How to provide information
Anyone with information about the disappearance of Eloise Worledge is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online.
