Kellie Ann Carmichael. Photo: NSW Police / supplied
The remains of missing woman Kellie Ann Carmichael have been found 23 years after she went missing in the Blue Mountains.
The Victorian woman, who was 24 years old at the time of her disappearance, went missing after leaving a hostel at Katoomba on 29 April 2001.
NSW Police said human remains were found in bushland near Katoomba in an unrelated police operation on 30 April, with further remains found at the same location on 27 May.
Police said Carmichael's remains were formally identified and her family has been notified.
An investigation is underway, and evidence will be prepared for the coroner.
Carmichael had travelled from Geelong to seek help from friends for her schizophrenia.
NSW Police said she was last seen alive when Carmichael left the hostel and told staff she would be back later that day to collect her belongings.
Days later, Carmichael's parents contacted the hostel staff and discovered that her belongings - including her personal ID, wallet, phone, camera, toiletries and cards - were still unclaimed at reception.
They reported their daughter missing to Katoomba Police Station on 5 May.
NSW Police initially suggested she took her own life, but her parents said they never believed it.
Years later, officers got a tip off that Carmichael had been murdered.
In 2011, police offered a $200,000 reward to try to solve her disappearance.
At the time, Margaret Carmichael pleaded for new information on the disappearance of her daughter, with police unable to arrest any person they believed responsible for the crime.
"Anything at all, you know, we will be thankful because our life is never going to be the same," Carmichael said at the time.
- ABC News
