The father of a young Australian woman murdered in Mozambique has accused a government watchdog of ignoring his claims of an Australian Federal Police (AFP) cover-up of the case.
uncertain
father → murder → case
The keen environmentalist was on a scuba-diving trip in the area, and was just four days away from returning to Australia when she went with friends to a bar.
asserted
she → return → bar
A local fisherman found her body facedown near a toilet block around dawn the next morning.
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fisherman → find → dawn
Her murder remains unsolved despite Mr Warren's exhaustive investigation, which he claims uncovered a cover-up by authorities overseas and in Australia.
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he → remain → Australia
Mr Warren wrote to the AFP Commissioner on May 27, 2024, after State Coroner John Cain said concerns about AFP conduct 'may be a matter that you deal with directly with the AFP by way of complaint'.
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you → write → complaint
According to Mr Warren, the Commissioner's Office responded the next day, telling him the matters he raised 'will be considered and a response will be forthcoming'.
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response → accord → him
The AFP later told him his emails were not complaints.
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emails → tell → him
Paul Warren launched a private investigation into the death of his daughter Elly, 20, after she was found at Tofo Beach, Mozambique, about 5am on November 9, 2016
Mr Warren first raised his concerns with the Commonwealth Ombudsman over the probe more than two years ago.
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Warren → launch → probe
On May 14 this year, the Ombudsman backed its decision to close his case and said the AFP's position was 'reasonable in the circumstance'.
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position → back → circumstance
The Ombudsman also noted that the AFP's Professional Standards team had received no complaint from him.
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team → note → him
Mr Warren claims he has heard nothing since June when he was told his supplementary material had been referred for review.
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material → claim → review
Mr Warren has now lodged a fresh submission with the Ombudsman's Review Manager, insisting the watchdog rested too heavily on how the AFP labelled his correspondence, rather than on what it said.
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it → lodge → what
He argued the Ombudsman had not explained how section 40SA of the AFP Act, which deals with information raising AFP conduct or practices issues, was applied to his report.
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which → argue → report
'This is not simply a disagreement about whether my correspondence was formally classified as a complaint,' he said in the submission.
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he → classify → submission
Mr Warren's report raised specific concerns questioning why a blurred crime scene photograph, rather than a clear version he says showed Elly's top ripped from her right shoulder down her torso, accompanied an AFP liaison officer's statement to the coroner.
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top → raise → coroner
Paul Warren has accused a government watchdog of ignoring his claims of an Australian Federal Police cover-up over the probe into the murder of his daughter Elly (pictured together)
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Warren → accuse → daughter
A local fisherman found Elly Warren's body facedown near a toilet block around dawn
He also pointed to the late production of an AFP action sheet, which he said was handed over only after a coroner asked whether the AFP had kept notes.
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AFP → find → notes
Mr Warren further claimed a report from a Mozambique prosecutor, which he said the AFP's own summary indicated it obtained in 2016, did not appear in the coronial brief.
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it → claim → brief
He also asked why a formal government-to-government mutual assistance request was never sent to Mozambique, and why Elly's clothing, which he said was kept at Maputo Central Hospital, was not collected before it was incinerated.
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it → ask → Hospital
A Mozambique autopsy found her death was a homicide, caused by suffocation on sand.
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death → find → sand
The Australian coroner's final findings included the possibility that an unknown person or persons caused or contributed to Elly's death.
But the cause of death was changed, after about seven years, to aspiration of a large amount of sand, with the reference to homicide removed.
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reference → include → homicide
Mr Warren stressed he was not asking the Ombudsman to determine who was responsible for his daughter's death, overturn the coroner's findings or conduct a criminal investigation.
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who → stress → investigation
Instead he has called for a reasoned written outcome explaining how his report was handled.
He also cites the Ombudsman's own 2023-24 report on AFP complaint handling, which he said identified recurring problems with how complaints were identified and categorised, and which made 19 recommendations.
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which → call → recommendations
Paul Warren has published a book about his long, hard road in the pursuit of justice for his daughter
-
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Warren → publish → daughter
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you → need → Download
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Mail → launch → podcast
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Mail → gain → podcast
Elly's family should not have to experience these circumstances without meaningful answers,' Mr Warren said.
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Warren → have → answers
He said he wanted other Australian families whose loved ones died in suspicious circumstances overseas to be able to raise evidence-based concerns and have them properly considered.
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them → say → concerns
The Commonwealth Ombudsman refused to answer a series of questions due to 'privacy obligations'.
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Ombudsman → refuse → obligations
'While we aim to complete reviews within 2 months of a request being received, the nature and complexity of the review does impact timeframes, as does the level of our overall workload at the time,' a spokesman stated.
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spokesman → aim → time
'We triage and prioritise all reviews we receive and may prioritise reviews where there is an imminent risk of harm (to the complainant or others), homelessness or risk of homelessness or other significant impacts or vulnerabilities.
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we → triage → homelessness
'While we appreciate Mr Warren's concerns, his review request was triaged in accordance with our policies.'
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request → appreciate → policies
The AFP told the Daily Mail the investigation into Elly's death came under the jurisdiction of Mozambique authorities.
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investigation → tell → authorities
'The AFP’s investigative actions in Australia and via our international network in this matter were carried out in support of the Victorian State Coroner,' a spokesman said.
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spokesman → carry → Coroner
The AFP through our senior liaison officer has continued to engage Mozambique authorities regularly since Elly Warren’s death in 2016, including offering significant levels of support to Mozambique authorities via on-site meetings and regular communications.
'
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AFP → continue → meetings
This matter has been heard before the Coroner and the findings have been published – please refer to these findings for further information on this matter.'
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findings → hear → matter
Mr Warren has published a book, Hunting Elly's Killer, about his exhaustive efforts to get justice for his daughter.
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Warren → publish → daughter
The Aporia
