The search for missing four-year-old Gus Lamont is being stepped up by police amid mounting fears of a chilling connection to another man who vanished nearby at the same time.
Gus disappeared from his grandparents’ remote South Australian property near Yunta on September 27 while playing on a mound of dirt.
Despite an exhaustive six-day search, authorities called off the operation last Friday only to resume it four days later.
Fresh concern has now been raised about a 40-year-old man named Benjamin who went missing on September 26, just one day before Gus.
Benjamin was last seen driving erratically on the Stuart Highway south of Glendambo, a two-hour drive from Gus’s home.
Few details are known about Benjamin, who was travelling in a 2006 Hyundai Getz with Western Australia registration plates 1IGG659.
Neither his surname, family situation nor the circumstances that led to him being in the area have been revealed.
His abandoned vehicle was found in dense scrub about 10km off the highway at Wirraminna on September 27, the same day Gus was reported missing.
Gus disappeared from his grandparents’ remote South Australian property near Yunta on September 27
The search for Gus has ramped up again around the remote Outback sheep station
Benjamin went missing on September, 26, just one day before Gus
Police conducted a wide-scale search with SES volunteers, drones and local trackers, yet he remains missing.
Officers have appealed for anyone who travelled the Stuart Highway between Port Augusta and Glendambo on the afternoon of September 26, particularly those with dashcam footage, to speak to them.
Several truck drivers reported being concerned by the vehicle’s erratic driving that day.
The coincidences have raised alarm bells among locals, who are asking whether there could be any connection between the two events.
On Saturday, the day after police announced they were scaling back the search for Gus, they renewed their appeal for information to help locate Benjamin – a move that angered many.
‘Where is Gus?’ one person commented under a post about Benjamin’s appeal.
‘Scaling back a search for a child but wanting more information on this guy, sorry no disrespect to his family but don’t call off a search for a little boy,’ wrote another.
Benjamin’s abandoned vehicle was discovered in the shrub
Police received reports the vehicle was being driven erratically
Police launched a wide-scale search with SES volunteers, drones and local trackers
Since then the search for Gus has been widened, with South Australia Police Commissioner Grant Stevens confirming the a specialist group, Taskforce Horizon, will focus solely on Gus’s disappearance.
But the search took a grim turn on Wednesday with a change in weather conditions.
A police spokesperson told the Daily Mail that officers – along with an 80-strong army contingent – would be forced to begin searching at dawn on Thursday, and stop by noon due to howling 50km/h winds and temperatures soaring past 34C.
Police have not confirmed whether they plan to extend the search beyond Friday.
Meanwhile the dirt track into the property is becoming almost impassable to anything smaller than a four-wheel drive.
A van carrying army personnel became bogged down in the thick bulldust that shrouds deep rivets in the road leading to Gus’s grandparents’ home.
It is also understood that searchers encountered several deadly brown snakes while scouring the saltbush-studded plains surrounding Oak Park Station.
Members of the media were warned to be vigilant about snakes, and to go straight to the ambulance stationed in front of the Murray homestead if bitten.
The Daily Mail understands no one has been injured and the search party remains healthy as of Wednesday afternoon, when the hunt was abandoned amid sweltering conditions around 3pm.
Taskforce Horizon has been set up to focus solely on Gus’s disappearance
The first day has concluded with no evidence being located
Former NSW homicide detective Gary Jubelin, who led the investigation into the disappearance of William Tyrrell, told Daily Mail Australia that officers would be looking further afield for the sake of thoroughness.
‘Police would be considering whether young Gus disappeared through misadventure, wandered off, or whether there was some form of intervention – either human or, given the nature of the land out there, possibly wildlife,’ Mr Jubelin said.
‘Things can be missed, minute things can be missed.’
Rumours have circulated online, including a viral but fake image showing Gus being bundled into a car by an unfamiliar man, adding to the sense of urgency and fear in the community.
Commissioner Stevens emphasised there is ‘nothing to suggest foul play’ but said officers are exploring every possibility.
‘Nothing is off the table. We are endeavouring to recover Gus for his family,’ he said. ‘The family are cooperating fully with the police inquiry.’
Tracker and former policeman Aaron Stuart, who has assisted in the investigation, said:
‘I honestly believe the answer is back there on the property. Go back, rethink it, reinterview everybody, but take them back not 30 minutes, take them back a week.
‘If they can keep the trackers on foot not on quad bikes or motorbikes, because a good tracker needs to stay close to the ground.’
