“He implied something was there” – New push for Beaumont dig in Stansbury
The mystery behind the Beaumont children’s disappearance has haunted Australia for nearly six decades. But according to veteran investigative journalist Bryan Littlely, the answers may lie deep in a sinkhole in Stansbury on the Yorke Peninsula.
Littlely, a well-respected South Australian journalist and a founding member of the missing persons foundation Leave a Light On Inc., joined The Fabulous Cardi Girls for a live interview on Tuesday night. He discussed his long-term investigation into the case and why he believes a dig at Stansbury could finally uncover the truth.
A lead that wasn’t followed
During the interview, Littlely revealed that in 2009, he received a phone call from a person who claimed, “My father did it, I saw the bodies in the car.” He also had a number of conversations with Rachel Vaughan, the daughter of Allan “Max” McIntyre, a name that has surfaced in discussions surrounding the case. Rachel has made many claims about her father’s possible connection to the case, however, Littlely made it clear that Vaughan’s claims were not the basis of his investigation.
“Like me, Rachel wasn’t born at the time. That was not a lead I followed,” he said. Instead, his focus shifted to Anthony “Tony” Munro, a convicted pedophile currently serving time for historical child abuse cases dating back to 1965. One of Munro’s victims was Andrew McIntyre, the son of Max McIntyre.
A friendship that suddenly ended
Littlely noted that Max McIntyre and Tony Munro shared a close, almost “father and son-like” relationship. But that bond came to an abrupt end around the time of the Beaumont children’s disappearance.
According to Littlely, Munro fits the description of a man seen with Jane, Arnna, and Grant Beaumont at Glenelg Beach on Australia Day 1966 – the day the siblings aged nine, seven and four vanished. He was actively involved in the Scouting movement, lived in Glenelg, and had a reputation for befriending young people.
McIntyre, before his death in 2017, pointed Littlely in Munro’s direction.
The sinkhole connection
Littlely interviewed McIntyre multiple times, including at his seaside property in Stansbury and in Ashford Hospital shortly before his passing. It was in that final interview, Littlely said, that McIntyre “gave up information” that made the Stansbury sinkhole a key site of interest.
According to Littlely, McIntyre revealed that the sinkhole had been filled in around the same time as the Beaumont children’s disappearance. When asked directly whether McIntyre admitted the children were buried there, Littlely recalled McIntyre saying – “If a dig is to happen, I want it done in secret because nobody needs to see bodies pulled out of the ground at Max McIntyre’s place.”
“He implied that there was something there,” Littlely said.
Calls for a dig
Recent weeks have seen renewed efforts to locate the Beaumont children’s remains, including a privately funded dig at the former Castalloy factory in North Plympton. Despite extensive searching, no evidence was found. Following this, Channel 7’s Andrew “Cosi” Costello announced that he and his wife would personally fund a dig at Stansbury—if given permission.
“I can say that if a dig at Stansbury goes ahead on property that Simone and Danny McIntyre have control over, they’re digging in the wrong spot,” Litlely stated. He clarified that the Stansbury sinkhole is on crown land, not private property.
“There’s some government expectations that control such an excavation, but it’s not on anyone’s land. It’s on crown land—it’s public property, pretty much, or government property.”
The next steps
With a 37,500 strong petition and resurfacing public interest as 60 years of searching approaches, will the Stansbury sinkhole finally be investigated? And could this be the breakthrough needed to solve one of Australia’s most haunting mysteries?
You can sign up to video-sharing platform Rumble for free, and listen to the interview here.
