The Detective’s Story: Frank Sanvitale on the Disappearance of Cheryl Grimmer
Australian True Crime
Bravecasting
4.5 • 1K Ratings
🗓️ 8 February 2022
⏱️ 50 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The disappearance of 3-year-old Cheryl Grimmer in 1970 has gripped listeners around the world due to the extraordinary BBC Sounds Podcast Fairy Meadow and our guest for this episode Frank Sanvitale is a big part of that podcast.
Now retired from the New South Wales Police, Frank has moved the wheels of justice further for Cheryl’s shattered family more than had ever been done in the more than 50 years since her disappearance.
Frank, was teamed up in 2016 with Detective Sergeant Damian Loone and the pair set about looking into this long cold case, combing over boxes of stored evidence.
It was a confession made in 1971 by a then 17-year-old that was found in one of these dusty boxes and set in motion events that would see that person, who we can only identify as Mercury, charged with Cheryl’s murder in 2017.
But tragically, the case against mercury fell apart because the trial judge applied a retrospective law on the confession and would not allow it as evidence.
The collapse of the case against Mercury was the breaking point for Frank who left the police soon after.
The NSW Attorney General Mark Speakman can give the Grimmer family their day in court. You can contact him here.
You can also sign this petition - addressed to Attorney General Speakman - to help in the fight to find justice for Cheryl.
The BBC Sounds podcast Fairy Meadow, hosted by Jon Kay, can be found here.
There is a $1 Million dollar reward from NSW Police for information about Cheryl’s abduction and murder.
NEXT WEEK
Terror Knocks in FNQ - A young man is woken in the dead of night by a terrfied woman at his door. He barricades the two of them inside against the men from whom she’s fleeing, none of whom he knows, and frantically calls police for help. Before help arrives, he’s forced to defend himself and the 000 operator listens helplessly as the men outside lose patience and invade his home. What follows is a tragedy.
Author Robyn Bowles sheds light on how this bizarre night really unfolded.
CREDITS:
Host: Meshel Laurie. You can find her on Instagram here and get her free monthly newsletter here.
Co-Host: Emily Webb. You can find her on Instagram here and listen to her podcast Killer Content here.
Guest: Frank Sanvitale
Producer/Editor: Lachie Flannigan
Executive Producer: Jacqueline Tonks
GET IN TOUCH:
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Email the show at hello@australiantruecrimepodcast.com
Australian True Crime is a podcast by Smart Fella Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | We're bringing Australian True Crime live to Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne this July, |
| 0:04.3 | and I have to tell you that Brisbane sold out already. |
| 0:07.4 | Good for you, Brisbane, so we've quickly added a second show. |
| 0:10.3 | Now we can't keep adding more shows, so please make sure you get your tickets. Our special guests, |
| 0:15.2 | our forensic criminologist Santee Mallet in Brisbane and Sydney and the one and only Charlie Bazzina in |
| 0:19.9 | Melbourne. There'll be a Q&A of course so you can ask your own burning questions on the night but you have to book quickly. |
| 0:26.0 | The producers of this podcast recognize the traditional owners of the land on which it's recorded. |
| 0:40.0 | They pay respect to the Aboriginal elders past, present and those emerging. |
| 0:49.0 | The following podcast contains content of a graphic violent nature and is not suitable for children. |
| 0:54.6 | In 24 years of service I've never seen anything like this and I love my job I love the |
| 1:01.4 | U-S.S. I love the U-S.S.Files Force to great organization to work for. |
| 1:04.6 | But in this case, they drop the ball. |
| 1:08.5 | This guy, we know by the name of Mercury, he got away with murder twice. The haunting case of the disappearance of three-year-old Cheryl Grimmer in 1970 has |
| 1:28.1 | gripped listeners around the world due to the extraordinary BBC Sounds Podcast, Fairy Meadow, |
| 1:34.0 | and our guest for this episode is a big part of that podcast, |
| 1:38.0 | which is written and produced by John Kay. |
| 1:40.0 | Our guest is Frank Sambertale, now retired from the New South Wales police, and Frank has moved |
| 1:48.0 | the wheels of justice further for Cheryl's shattered family than had ever been done in the more than 50 years since she |
| 1:55.2 | disappeared on that fateful hot day on Fairy Meadow Beach in Wollongong. |
| 2:00.7 | And if you haven't already, listen to our episode with Ricky Nash, Cheryl's big brother, who was seven years old at the time she went missing, and heartbreakingly has never stopped blaming himself for what happened to her. |
| 2:13.4 | In 2016, Frank, then a detective, was teamed up with Detective Sergeant Damien Loon, |
| 2:20.0 | who we've also spoken to for a separate episode, |
... |
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