At an inquest, the chief investigator in the cold case of Simone Strobel, a backpacker, stated his continued belief that her boyfriend was probably responsible for her death.
Six days after Ms. Strobel was reported missing, in February 2005, her nude body was discovered concealed beneath palm fronds at a sportsground in Lismore, located in the northern rivers region of New South Wales.
At Tuesday’s inquiry, Detective Sergeant David Mackie stated his belief that Tobias Moran, who had accompanied Ms. Strobel from Germany, was the most likely killer.
Along with Jens Martin, another German, and Katrin Suckfuell, who was Mr. Moran’s sister, the two had been visiting Australia’s east coast.
Prosecutors decided not to press charges against Mr. Moran, who now resides in Western Australia, and the accusations were dropped in 2022.
But Detective Mackie insisted that, in his view, it is “probable” that Mr. Moran murdered Ms. Strobel, and he mentioned that he thinks Ms. Suckfuell and Mr. Martin were involved in the disposal of her body.
“It’s your opinion that the three Germans were involved?” questioned the attorney representing Philip Strickland, SC.
“Yes,” the investigator responded.
According to Det Mackie, the likelihood of Mr. Moran killing Ms. Strobel on his own is low because to the difficulty he would have faced in concealing her body.
Nevertheless, according to Mr. Strickland, there were other elements in Mr. Martin’s testimony that gave investigators in Germany and Australia reason to believe he was being truthful.
Among these revelations was the fact that he had learnt from Ms. Suckfuell that, barring an improvement in her relationship with Mr. Moran, Ms. Strobel was contemplating taking a six-month solo trip to Sydney.
“That evidence, assuming it’s true, is really quite unhelpful to Tobias,” Mr. Strickland stated. near 2005, the body of German hiker Simone Strobel was discovered near Lismore.
If Mr. Martin was involved, he must be a “very skilled liar” to provide information that implicates Mr. Moran in the murder without also incriminating himself, he implied.
Det Mackie informed the court that, up to his role in the body’s disposal, he believed Mr. Martin was telling the truth regarding what happened that night.
“He was doing whatever he could to assist in identifying who was involved in Simone’s death without implicating himself,” stated Detective Mackie.
At around the time that Ms. Strobel vanished, multiple eyewitnesses claimed to have overheard screaming coming from a park in the area, which the court was informed was a notorious gathering place for residents to consume alcoholic beverages.
Though the specifics of the witness accounts differed greatly, they all painted a picture of a terrified woman.
“Do you think it is a reasonable hypothesis that at least some of those witnesses heard a scream coming from Simone Strobel?” “Mr. Strickland?” enquired.
On Wednesday, July 27, Tobias Moran, whose real name is Tobias Suckfuell, was extradited from Perth to Sydney.
He dated German traveler Simone Strobel before she broke up with him.
Among other things, Det Mackie acknowledged that it did not fit with the idea that the German tourists at the caravan site murdered Ms. Strobel and said it was a plausible scenario.
Mr. Strickland stated on Monday that the party that went missing with Ms. Strobel drank excessively at a hotel the night before and continued to do so when they got back to their campground.
They informed the authorities After growing increasingly irritated with Mr. Moran, Ms. Strobel departed from their campground.
“All three of them said Simone left the caravan park and they never saw her again,” he said.
The group subsequently lied to the police about their drug usage, alcohol use, and the intensity of the argument between Ms. Strobel and Mr. Moran, according to Mr. Strickland.
Wednesday will see Det Mackie continuing to provide testimony.
