Who was Esther Wallace? Mother-of-five's body found after she went missing during walk with BF 11 days ago
ORANGE, NEW SOUTH WALES: The body of a mother-of-five was recovered on Sunday, December 11, almost two weeks after she mysteriously went missing during a midnight bushwalk with her boyfriend. Esther Wallace, 47, was reported missing on November 30 after she became separated from her companion at 1.30 am while walking at Federal Falls in Mount Canobolas, near Orange, in the central west of NSW.
The Police discovered her body around 4.00pm about 1.24 miles away from where she was last seen in the national park. Her boyfriend reported she was missing at 8.00 am on December 1. He revealed they went on an early morning walk to watch the sunrise, which would have taken place around 5.40 am. It was reported that Wallace was wearing an orange jacket, black pants, and sandals despite near-freezing temperatures at the time.
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Officials revealed that they were currently not investigating Wallace's death as suspicious, despite the strange circumstances surrounding her disappearance. "A body, believed to be that of a woman missing from the state's central west, has been located in the Mount Canobolas State Recreation Area," NSW police said in a statement on Sunday, December 11. Officers from the Central West Police District reportedly co-ordinated a multi-agency search to locate her. "Following an extensive land and air search of the surrounding areas, a body was located just before 4pm … approximately 2km(~1.24 miles) from where the woman was last seen," police said.
A large investigation involving local police as well as the Police Rescue and Bomb Disposal Unit, PolAir, the Dog Unit, Chifley Rural Crime Investigators, police from neighboring Districts, and Western Region staff, was launched. Officials have not revealed Wallace's boyfriend's identity. Before her body was discovered, search parties found several items of clothing, including a white crochet coat and an orange jacket.
Police sources told Daily Mail Australia on Monday, December 12, that investigators believed Wallace died as a result of a misadventure. "Misadventure has been a constant theory throughout the investigation," sources said.
However, the sudden death of the mother has left her family puzzled. Wallace’s mother Lyn told Daily Mail Australia that the situation "doesn't make sense," and she could not understand why the couple decided to go for a walk at 1.30 am while it was till dark. "Esther loved camping, but she wasn't a walker," Lyn said. Wallace was living with her mother in Tottenham before she disappeared, which is about three hours north-west of where she was last seen.
Earlier, Lyn reportedly stated that her daughter had been in a relationship with a man from Orange for three years and that he would visit on Fridays, before heading home on Sundays. However, the last weekend in November, he stayed in town before they went to Mount Canobolas together. "Had he gone home, I feel she would still be alive," she reportedly said. Detectives stressed that Wallace’s partner was never a suspect as he had been cooperating with investigators.
Wallace’s adult son, Tyrone Stewart, also spoke about the suspicious circumstances and said that his mother was not the type to go on a walk to see the sunrise. “My mum doesn’t go to watch the sunrise, she doesn’t go bushwalking, especially in sandals,” he told the Central Western Daily, according to The Guardian.