Dark mystery over the grim discovery of woman's shattered remains by the side of a notorious highway - as cops investigate if her death was suspicious
Police are probing whether a woman's body found at the side of a rural highway was the victim of a heartless hit and run, a tragic accident or something even darker.The gruesome discovery was made on the Western Highway in Kiata, in Victoria's west, with cops yet to identify the badly-injured body, which they believe is a woman.Investigators said sge may have been hit by a truck or heavy-vehicle and killed sometime between 9pm Thursday April 3 and 2am Friday April 4.The shattered remains were discovered by a passer-by on the side of the highway between the former Little Desert Hotel and Kiata Hall about 8am on Friday.The hotel was the shrinking town's only pub until it closed down several years and is now a residential property which last sold in May 2022 for $195,000. It's understood investigators have obtained dashcam footage which shows the deceased woman's body at the side of the road at 2am.Major Crime Unit Investigation detectives fear the death was a fatal hit and run, but are looking into all possible causes.Detectives are also considering the possibility that if the woman was hit by a truck then the driver may not be aware of the incident. The woman's boy was found on the side of the Western Hwy in Kiata near the Little Desert Hotel The notorious stretch of highway which runs between Kiata, a small Victorian Wimmera town with a population of 62, and Dimboola, is known by locals to be highly dangerous.Residents shared their grief over the incident on social media and warned others of the infamously dangerous stretch of highway.'That spot is notorious for speeding trucks despite being an 80km/h zone,' a Facebook user said. 'My dad was a baby when he survived a truck coming through the fence at the family home next to the pub. 'My uncle's horse was hit by a train at the same place a century ago. Hoping this isn't a local who I might know but it's not exactly a place for tourists. A terribly sad day.'Another local posted: 'Too many deaths in this stretch of highway. TAKE CARE PEOPLE! RIP to the deceased' Others who witnessed the grim scene before investigators could close down the section of highway recalled their horror on the social media. The notorious stretch of highway which runs between Kiata and Dimboola, is known by locals to be highly dangerous'I’m fine, glad my son was sitting on the drivers side of the car and couldn’t see. Hope everyone that saw is going ok,' a Facebook user posted.'(We) were the second car to go past after the first police officer got there. Nothing covered over, was quite horrific,' another poster wrote.Locals from Kiata, 359km northwest of Melbourne, and other nearby towns including Dimboola and Horsham feared the deceased person may have been a child crossing to the nearby bus stop on their way to school.These fears exploded on social media until police updated the public with details about the deceased, and their bleief it was an adult woman. 'Honestly I'd be crying if this is a kid that's died from crossing the road to the bus,' a Facebook user posted.Major Crime Investigation Unit detective Inspector Craig McEvoy told local media he believed the deceased woman was a local.However, it's a mystery to police and locals as why the woman was on that particular stretch of road at that time.'The party that has struck her, be it known or not known, hasn't stopped,' Det Insp McEvoy said.'We don't know at this point in time but we believe she may have been impacted by a truck, only from the evidence that's been located at the scene, but we don't know if that truck driver may even be aware.'We're looking for dashcam footage from anybody who was in that area from 9pm through until 2.30am.'It doesn't get reported though until around 8.15am, so police don't attend for some six hours following, obviously because we are unaware, so potentially she’s been on the roadway for a long period of time.' Major Crime Investigation Unit detective Inspector Craig McEvoy said he believed the deceased woman was a localThe top investigator said police believe they know who the deceased woman is but are awaiting DNA confirmation. 'We need to have 100 percent confirmation from the coroner who will utilise several methods, be it DNA, dental, any of those options they have available to them,' he said.Barely a month ago, two people died after a fatal car crash on the Western Hwy near Dimboola on March 3. A Toyota Hilux towing a hay bailer and a Mazda sedan allegedly collided on the Western Highway about 5pm The driver of the Mazda, an 80-year-old Nhill woman, died at the scene.Her passenger, an 85-year-old Nhill man, was airlifted to hospital with serious injuries and died on March 10.The Toyota driver, a 58-year-old man, was taken to hospital with minor injuries.He later charged with dangerous driving causing death, careless driving and other traffic related offences.
