General News
9 July, 2025
Memory still raw after 50 years
A crowd over 100 people gathered in Avoca on June 28 to acknowledge 50 years since the disappearance of 12-year-old Maryborough boy Terry Floyd.
The event included the unveiling of a memorial plaque opposite the Avoca Post Office which was one of the last places Terry was seen, as he walked from the Avoca Post Office in High Street to the corner of the Sunraysia and Pyrenees highways to wait for a lift to Maryborough, the state coroner later ruling Terry had been abducted and murdered.
Terry’s brother, Daryl Floyd has never given up hope of seeing the case of his brother’s disappearance solved and has worked closely with a private investigator, retired homicide detective Charlie Bezzina to piece together what happened to Terry on June 28, 1975.
Both men have been vocal across numerous media platforms to bring awareness to the case, as Mr Bezzina is steadfast in his belief there’s enough evidence for police to charge a man who is still alive today that he alleges kidnapped and murdered Terry.
Daryl Floyd believes one of the final pieces of the puzzle is to fully excavate a mine shaft at Bung Bong Hill which has long been considered the likely location of Terry’s remains, a project that has seen multiple efforts to explore the mine over the years but requires ongoing funding to continue.
Pyrenees Shire Council Mayor, Councillor Tanya Kehoe said the newly unveiled memorial is a fitting way to remember Terry five decades after he disappeared.
“Everyone in this area is aware of Terry’s tragic story and Daryl’s fight to try and find his brother,” Cr Kehoe said.
“It is only fitting that 50 years after he went missing, his family, friends and their supporters have somewhere they can go to remember Terry. I think the idea of a plaque and a forget-me-not rose is a beautiful way to honour his memory.”
The local community has never forgotten the disappearance which sent shockwaves throughout the region, and it remains a topic of conversation following recent revelations from Victoria Police, who confirmed last month there was new evidence in the case and that an updated inquest brief had been submitted to the coroner regarding the half-century old case.
A million-dollar reward was announced all the way back in 2014 for anyone who could come forward with information that would finally bring Terry’s killer to justice.
Homicide Squad officer-in-charge at the time, Detective Inspector John Potter urged anyone with information the disappearance of Terry to come forward.
“The $100,000 reward previously on offer has been increased to up to $1 million in the hope that someone can provide that key piece of information that will bring Terry’s killer to justice and provide the Floyd family with closure,” he said back in 2014.
“We believe there is someone out there that knows what happened to Terry and his family deserves to finally lay him to rest.
“If anyone in the community knows where he is then we ask them to contact police.”
Eleven years on from the introduction of the million-dollar reward, the case remains unsolved, and the reward remains on offer at the discretion of the Chief Commissioner of Police for information leading to the apprehension and subsequent conviction of the person or persons responsible for the death of Terry Floyd.
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