
It was December 7, 2001, and Janine Vaughan, then 31, had been out drinking with her friends at the local nightclub, Metro Tavern, in Bathurst. She had lived in the small town, then with a population of about 27,000, for the past three years.
In the early hours of the Friday morning, she left the venue, as she strolled through Keppel Street, Bathurst.
Within minutes, Janine entered a bright red sedan. She hasn’t been seen since.
Janine Vaughan disappeared in 2001. Image: NSW Police.
Janine was reported missing by her employer when she failed to show up for work in the Bathurst shopping centre in the morning.
For 19 years, police have been investigating what happened to Janine, so far to no avail. Her body has never been found. Her alleged kidnapper has never been brought to justice. So what do we know about the suspected murder case?
Janine is described as “blond, petite, immaculately presented and always smiling,” according to a 2002 Sydney Morning Herald article. She grew up in New South Wales’ Hunter Valley, before she followed her then-boyfriend to Bathurst. The couple split, but Janine remained, with a close friendship group and a job as a menswear shop manager.
Watch: A former homicide detective on the disappearance of Janine Vaughan. Post continues below.