On the run again: Ned Kelly’s bones vanish from mass grave
‘Ned Kelly, the legendary Australian bushranger who evaded police for two years before being captured and hanged in 1880, has gone missing again. His bones have vanished from a mass prison grave in Melbourne where they were believed to be buried. [..]
Pentridge closed in 1997 and the site is being redeveloped for housing, with the state conservation body, Heritage Victoria, overseeing the work. Archaeological tests were recently carried out at the mass burial site, but no human remains were found.
Archaeologists discovered evidence that the soil had been disturbed about 50 years ago, probably during major drainage works.
Ray Tonkin, the head of Heritage Victoria, said yesterday: “We now believe these remains were probably removed in the 1950s or 1960s, as part of the installation of large service pipes that took place at the prison at the time.” The remains of about 32 criminals are believed to have been lost, possibly dumped in a quarry.’
