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The original was posted on /r/unresolvedmysteries by /u/data-babe on 2024-01-14 00:28:46+00:00.
Jane Furlong had a dysfunctional childhood. Born in September 1975, she spent her early childhood living with her parents in Auckland but at 9 years old she was put into foster care after her parents' separation left her mother unable to cope with the cost of raising 3 children alone; this was meant to be a temporary measure. Jane was unhappy in foster care, and in her early teens her mum agreed to let her go to boarding school in Whangārei, a city about 2 hours north of Auckland. This also didn't work out and before long she hitchhiked back to Auckland and was living with a friend.
At 15 she began 'dabbling' in sex work and left school. At the time, sex work was illegal in New Zealand - it wasn't decriminalised until 2003. Jane met her boyfriend, Dani Norsworthy, around the same time. At 16 she became pregnant by Norsworthy; at 17 her son Aidan was born. Dani and Jane were unable to look after Aidan and when he was 1 month old he went to live with his paternal grandparents. He was just 6 months old when Jane disappeared.
Jane was last seen on Auckland's notorious Karangahape Road on the night of May 26 1993. Norsworthy had dropped her off at her usual spot then gone to 'check on a car that was broken down'. He returned later but she wasn't there but he assumed she was with a client. When he returned at 1am and she still wasn't there he reported her disappearance to the police. An extensive inquiry revealed nothing and the case went cold.
On 26 May 2012, 19 years to the day since her disappearance, Jane's remains were found by a dog walker. She had been buried in the sand dunes at Sunset Beach, Port Waikato, about an hour south of central Auckland. She had been buried deep in the dunes but gradual erosion had made part of her skeleton visible. She had spent longer alone on that remote beach than she had spent alive.
Police suspicion had initially fallen on Dani Norsworthy as Jane's partner and the last person to see her alive. He eventually stopped cooperating with the police. Over time police seemed to move away from seeing Norsworthy as a suspect and he was last interviewed as a witness in 2019. He died in 2022.
Jane was also meant to give evidence at three upcoming trials. In the first, she was to testify about an assualt by gang members she had witnessed. In the second, she was to testify against Stephen Collie was accused (and later convicted) of rape and multiple sexual assaults against sex workers in the area that Jane worked. Collie was in custody at the time of Jane's disappearance so he was quickly ruled out. A third case was regarding an altercation between Jane and Norsworthy and Wayne McGrath (mentioned further down) which ended with an associate producing a crossbow.
Serial killer Hayden Poulter wrote to a newspaper after a killing spree in 1996, saying that “b.... I killed in 93 was the best”. Police say his MO didn't match the crime and they didn't take his claims much further as far as I can tell. Poulter was paroled in May 2018 but recalled to prison in August of the same year. He died by suicide less than a month later.
Also in 1996, Jane's friend Amanda Wolfe (then Amanda Watt) was abducted and raped by Hayden Taylor. He made bail and while free he raped and murdered a pregnant teenager. I can't see any information about him being considered a suspect but I'm sure police must have identified him as a POI. Taylor was paroled in November 2022 after at least 13 failed attempts.
In 2013 two men told police that an associate of theirs claimed to have been present when Jane was killed. Police said the details they gave were inconsistent with the evidence and their claims were excluded from the inquiry.
Wayne McGrath was convicted in 2015 after Amanda told police that she had been raped by him at his home in July 1991. McGrath was a friend of Dani Norsworthy who was also at the house, as were some other friends including Natacha Hogan, another young sex worker who was a later victim of Hayden Poulter. Jane's diary, which supported Amanda's claims, was used at evidence at McGrath's trial. In court he outed said he was as a suspect in Jane's murder. He claimed that Amanda made up the rape because "she can't pin the Jane thing on me". In 2019, McGrath's brother said that he had spent time at the family bach in Port Waikato while growing up. The bach, which is about 10 minutes from where Jane's remains were found, has been sold several times and those subsequent owners have all said that it hasn't been searched by police. McGrath was released after serving his entire 5 year, 4 month sentence in May 2020.
I think there's a real possibility of this crime being solved. There are almost certainly people who were witness to or otherwise have information about the murder. The case is still open and police are interested in hearing from anyone with information.
Sources:
New Zealand Herald: Who killed Jane Furlong? Murder revisited in Herald’s A Moment In Crime podcast
NZ Police Cold Case - Jan Furlong - 1993
Stuff: 'Suspect' in Jane Furlong cold case murder to be released from prison
Stuff: Jane Furlong's 'beyond the grave' testimony sends rapist to jail
Stuff: Jane Furlong's son: 'It's important they come forward and tell the truth'
Stuff: Crucial witness in Jane Furlong murder inquiry dies
Stuff: Rapist convicted by Jane Furlong's 'beyond the grave' testimony denied parole