Jessica ZRINSKI
Jessica ZRINSKI
Jessica Zrinski, aged 30, was last seen in the Bossley Park Sydney NSW area about 10pm on Sunday 27 November 2022.
Officers from Fairfield City Police Area Command made wide-ranging inquiries at the time before Detectives from the State Crime Command’s Homicide Squad took carriage of the matter under Strike Force Keder.
Investigations revealed Jessica was in the carpark of a hotel on Mimosa Road at Greenfield Park about 10pm on Monday 28 November 2022, before leaving in a blue Holden Commodore station wagon about 10 minutes later.
That same vehicle is believed to have travelled west on the M4 motorway and Great Western Highway towards the Blue Mountains.
Despite extensive inquiries, Jessica has not been seen or heard from since.
Anyone with information which may assist in locating Jessica is urged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Click here for video of Jessica
The NSW homicide squad is leading a search of the Hampton State Forest in the state's central-west in a bid to find missing Sydney woman Jessica Zrinski.
Homicide Squad Commander Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said information from the investigation had led police to the forest near Jenolan.
"From the information and evidence we've gleaned so far from the investigation, and that's come to hand, there was sufficient information to commence a search," Superintendent Doherty said.
"We've committed to a large number of resources with the view of finding some trace of Jessica.
"We're hoping through the search we may be able to find some answers for the family."
Ms Zrinski disappeared on November 28, 2022.
She was last seen at a hotel carpark in the Sydney suburb of Greenfield Park. CCTV footage showed the 30-year-old getting into a blue Holden Commodore station wagon about 10 minutes later.
That same vehicle is believed to have travelled west on the M4 Motorway and Great Western Highway towards the Blue Mountains.
Police were alerted to Ms Zrinski's disappearance on December 3 when family members could not locate or contact her.
Superintendent Doherty said her disappearance was being treated as suspicious and the homicide squad was leading the search effort.
Police, PolAir and the dog squad, along with State Emergency Service and Rural Fire Service volunteers, were all assisting with the large-scale search effort.
"It's been six months since she's been seen alive and she was very close to her family," Superintendent Doherty said.
"She's missed many important dates.
"We're treating this as a suspicious disappearance and we have concerns for her welfare."
The search is expected to continue until Sunday.
Anyone with information should contact police or crime stoppers on 1800 333 000.
The family of Sydney woman Jessica Zrinski are in a tense wait for answers as police spend a second day scouring a forest near the Jenolan Caves for the missing 30-year-old.
On Saturday afternoon Jessica’s father, Dark Zrinski, told this masthead he had given up hope of seeing his daughter alive again as search crews raced to use the last remaining hours of daylight to continue their search through the Hampton State Forest in the state’s Central Tablelands.
“It would be so emotionally satisfying to find my daughter remains,” he said. “I want so much to give Jessy a proper burial.”
Search crews were briefed at 8am at a picnic area and campsite known as the Millionth Acre and it is understood the search is concentrated in and around that area.
“As a single father it’s so heartbreaking for myself and for my family,” Zrinski said.
“Jessica was so full of life and it was such a joy to see her smile always.
“It’s the waiting and not knowing what happened to my beautiful daughter Jessica.”
Saturday’s search includes officers from PolAir, the dog
unit, the rescue and bomb disposal unit, as well as
volunteers from the State Emergency Service and NSW
Rural Fire Service.
“It’s so overwhelming to see how many people who took time out with their families to be there for me and my family,” Zrinski said.
Homicide squad detectives have taken carriage of the investigation into Jessica’s suspicious disappearance, after she accepted a lift from a stranger in the car park of a pub at Greenfield Park in Sydney’s south-west just after 10pm on November 28 last year.
Jessica entered the driver’s blue Holden Commodore, which was later seen travelling west along the M4 motorway.
Police have established that Jessica was alive and still with the vehicle in the Blue Mountains region in mid-morning on November 29.
In January, detectives seized the vehicle for forensic examination and located the driver, but he did not assist in identifying Jessica’s whereabouts.
The search began on Friday and is expected to continue into Sunday.
An inquest into the disappearance and suspected death of a Sydney woman has heard fresh details about the man believed to be the last to see her alive.
Jessica Zrinski had been living with her grandmother in Bossley Park in Western Sydney when she went missing on November 29, 2022.
The 31-year-old's disappearance was reported to police in the days that followed, with homicide detectives taking charge of the investigation in January 2023.
A $500,000 reward for information to assist the investigation was later announced, but Ms Zrinski has never been found.
No charges have ever been laid over her disappearance.
An inquest into her suspected death is now underway, with the NSW Coroner's Court on Monday shown images and footage of Ms Zrinski's last known movements.
Wearing an orange crop top and black leggings, Ms Zrinski was seen entering the Greenfield Tavern car park at 10:02pm on November 28.
The inquest heard it was here she encountered Paul Jones for the first time, with the man believed to be in his early 40s spotted inside the pub's pokies area earlier in the evening.
The pair were not known to each other.
Counsel assisting Chris McGorey told the inquest it was not unheard of for Ms Zrinski to approach people she did not know in the hopes of acquiring cigarettes or a lift.
The pair were seen leaving the pub in Mr Jones's blue Holden Commodore, before arriving at a service station in Horsley Park where the man purchased fuel, cigarettes and two bottles of soft drink.
Hours later just before 9am on November 29, the same vehicle was spotted at another service station on Great Western Highway in Mount Victoria.
A person wearing an orange top could be seen in the front passenger seat — the inquest heard the footage was the last known sighting of Ms Zrinski.
The blue vehicle was spotted on traffic cameras travelling westbound on Great Western Highway at 10:15am, with no one present in the passenger seat.
The counsel assisting told the court two days later on December 1, security cameras captured Mr Jones attending a car wash with the blue station wagon, with staff confirming the man paid $90 for a car polish and detail.
Staff did not report finding blood or any other items of concern in the vehicle, the inquest heard.
Mr McGorey told the court the vehicle was seized as part of a search warrant conducted at the Sydney caravan park where Mr Jones was residing, but the inquest heard no evidence of interest was discovered.
Some time later, Mr Jones made a cash withdrawal of $9,000.
The inquest heard he subsequently travelled to Bunbury, Western Australia in late January.
Payphone records suggest he may have travelled to Queensland, but his current whereabouts is unknown.
A subpoena was issued for Mr Jones's attendance, but the notice has not been served in person.
Ms Zrinski's mother and father were present in court for the hearing, with the inquest told the woman's grandmother was unable to attend due to an injury.
Mr McGorey said Ms Zrinski was "dearly loved", and her disappearance had a "profound impact" on her family.
The inquest has been set down for three days this week, with further hearings to be scheduled for a later date.