A man’s confession to the murder of three-year-old Cheryl Grimmer was read in the New South Wales Parliament, drawing attention to a case that has haunted the community for over five decades. Cheryl disappeared from Fairy Meadow Beach near Wollongong in 1970. A year later, a 17-year-old boy confessed to killing her, but police dismissed his claims at the time.

In 2011, a coronial inquest concluded that Cheryl was likely dead. A renewed police investigation in 2016 identified the teenager's confession as significant, leading to his designation as a person of interest. He was charged with murder, but the case fell apart in 2019 when the confession was deemed inadmissible due to retrospective application of child interview protection laws.

Ricki Nash, Cheryl's brother, had previously set a midnight deadline for the man, known only as "Mercury," to come forward, but no response was received. During a parliamentary session, Upper House MP Jeremy Buckingham used parliamentary privilege to name the man and read the long-suppressed confession aloud. Buckingham became emotional while recounting the details, which included graphic descriptions of the alleged crime.

In the confession, the man described how he approached Cheryl, stating, "I come around from the back of the shower block and grabbed the little girl, I took her by the hand and put one hand around her mouth and carried her around to the sand hills." He recounted taking her to a secluded area, where he claimed to have strangled her after she began to scream.

Buckingham also read a conversation between the teenager and police, where the boy admitted he did not know Cheryl personally but recognized her from the beach. He described her attire, noting she was wearing a blue swimsuit. The confession included disturbing details about his intentions, stating he had planned to assault her but did not proceed due to her screams.

He mentioned burning the swimsuit in an incinerator, fearing his mother would find it. Buckingham's reading lasted approximately 17 minutes, during which he was reminded by Legislative Council president Ben Franklin to use his privilege responsibly.

Cheryl Grimmer's family has been advocating for a new inquiry into her disappearance since the failed trial of the man known as Mercury. Recently, they received assistance from a volunteer organization that utilized cadaver dogs to search the area mentioned in the confession. Last week, Buckingham gained support for a parliamentary inquiry into missing persons, including Cheryl's case.

NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley expressed sympathy for the Grimmer family, stating, "My thoughts are with Cheryl Grimmer's family, who have endured more than five decades of pain and uncertainty." He emphasized that it would be inappropriate to comment on individuals who have not been charged or convicted, noting that parliamentary privilege is a matter for individual MPs to navigate.