Matthew John Leveson (12 December 1986 – 23 September 2007) was an Australian man who was last seen leaving a

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

nightclub on 23 September 2007. He was reported missing by his family after he failed to show up to work. On 27 September, his car was found dumped at Waratah Park Reserve in

Sutherland Sutherland ( gd, Cataibh) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in the Highlands of Scotland. Its county town is Dornoch. Sutherland borders Caithness and Moray Firth to the east, Ross-shire and Cromartyshire (later ...

; evidence suggested he did not park it there and police believed he had "met with foul play". In August 2008, Leveson's boyfriend, Michael Atkins, was arrested and charged with murder. In October 2009, Atkins was acquitted of murder and an alternative charge of

manslaughter Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th cen ...

, following a four-week trial. In November 2016, the New South Wales Attorney General agreed to an immunity deal with Atkins, which protected him from perjury in exchange for leading police to Leveson's remains. The search began on 10 November, but was called off on 17 November, after no leads were found. Police resumed searching on 25 May 2017 and discovered Leveson's remains on 31 May. An inquest into his death delivered an open finding on 5 December, with the deputy state coroner stating there was insufficient evidence to determine how or why Leveson died.

Disappearance

Leveson was at Arq nightclub in

Darlinghurst, New South Wales Darlinghurst is an inner-city, eastern suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Darlinghurst is located immediately east of the Sydney central business district (CBD) and Hyde Park, within the local government area of the City of Sydney. I ...

, in the early morning of 23 September 2007, with close friends and his boyfriend, 45-year-old Michael Peter Atkins. He was last seen on

CCTV Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly t ...

leaving the club at around 2 am with Atkins. Atkins returned to Arq about an hour later without Leveson. At 3:20 am, Leveson sent a text message to a friend saying, "Mike's having a fucking cry, he is taking me home and won't let me stay! Fucking cunt!" A minute later, he sent another message: "He needs to fucking get over himself". Later that day, at 12:20 pm, CCTV cameras captured Atkins buying a mattock and duct tape at

Bunnings Warehouse Bunnings Group Limited, trading as Bunnings Warehouse or Bunnings, is an Australian household hardware chain. The chain has been owned by Wesfarmers since 1994, and has stores in Australia and New Zealand. Bunnings was founded in Perth, Wester ...

Taren Point Taren Point is a small suburb, in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia 20 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the Sutherland Shire. Surrounded by the suburbs of S ...

. On 25 September, Leveson's parents, Mark and Faye, reported their son missing after he failed to show up to work. On 27 September, Leveson's car, a green 1999

Toyota Corolla The is a series of compact cars (formerly subcompact) manufactured and marketed globally by the Toyota Motor Corporation. Introduced in 1966, the Corolla was the best-selling car worldwide by 1974 and has been one of the best-selling cars in ...

hatchback, was found abandoned outside of a public toilet at Waratah Park Reserve in

, a known "

gay beat In Australia, the term beat is used to refer to an area frequented by gay men, where sexual acts occur. This use of the word parodies the beat walked by a police officer or a prostitute. Most commonly, public toilets, parks, and nightclubs are ...

". A Bunnings receipt with Atkins's fingerprints on it was found in the boot. A speaker system had also been removed from the boot; it was later found in the garage area of the unit Atkins shared with Leveson. Police did not believe Leveson parked his car there, based on evidence found, and suspected foul play.

Investigation

Arrest and trial

On 5 August 2008, Atkins was arrested at his apartment in

Cronulla Cronulla is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Boasting numerous surf beaches and swimming spots, the suburb attracts both tourists and Greater Sydney residents. Cronulla is located 26 kilometres south of the Sydney ...

and charged with murder. On 3 September 2009, Atkins's trial began in the

Supreme Court of New South Wales The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court of the Australian State of New South Wales. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil matters, and hears the most serious criminal matters. Whilst the Supreme Court i ...

. On 20 October, the jury found Atkins not guilty of murder and an alternative charge of manslaughter.

Search for and discovery of remains

On most weekends since 2008, Mark and Faye searched the

Royal National Park The Royal National Park is a protected national park that is located in Sutherland Shire in the Australian state of New South Wales, just south of Sydney. The national park is about south of the Sydney central business district near the local ...

with picks and shovels in search of their son's remains. Their starting point was where Leveson's car was found. They searched at around 2 am looking for suitable places and would return in the daytime to "search properly". In November 2016,

Gabrielle Upton Gabrielle Cecelia Upton (born 16 December 1964), an Australian politician, is the member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, representing the seat of Vaucluse for the Liberal Party since 2011. Upton is currently serving as the Parlia ...

, the

Attorney General of New South Wales The Attorney General of New South Wales, in formal contexts also Attorney-General or Attorney General for New South Wales and usually known simply as the Attorney General, is a minister in the Government of New South Wales who has responsibil ...

, agreed to an immunity deal with Atkins, which protected him from "being charged with perjury if he showed police where the body was". The specific terms of the deal were "no body, no deal". On 10 November, police began a large-scale search of the Royal National Park using information provided by Atkins, but no remains were found and the search was called off on 17 November. Another search was undertaken in January 2017, but no remains were found. On 25 May 2017, police resumed the search and on 31 May, skeletal remains were uncovered beneath a cabbage-tree palm. DNA testing confirmed that they belonged to Leveson. The Levesons took the tree and planted it in their backyard.

Inquest

On 5 December 2017, the deputy state coroner, Elaine Truscott, delivered an open finding at the inquest of Leveson's death. There was insufficient evidence to "positively determine — to the requisite standard — how or why Matt died". Leveson's father Mark said, "There's some relief, there's some frustration, there's some anger, so there's lots of emotions going through us but relief's one of the ones right now".

Disappearance

Investigation

Arrest and trial

Search for and discovery of remains

Inquest

References

Further reading