A relative of a mother of five
who vanished in Queensland believed the woman's disappearance might have been
linked to the Russian mafia, a bag of ecstasy and $80,000, an inquest has
heard.
Kathleen O'Shea, 44, who was
living in Melbourne at the time, had been staying in the Atherton Tablelands,
inland from Cairns, for the birth of her grandchild when she disappeared on
December 29, 2005.
On Tuesday, Ms O'Shea's former
partner John Parmenter told a coronial inquest in Cairns a relative believed a
bag of ecstasy, $80,000 and the Russian mafia might be linked to Ms O'Shea's
disappearance.
"But I didn't know if it
was truth or fiction," he told the court, adding he didn't tell police
about the possible link at the time.
He wasn't told what happened to
the drugs or cash, or why Ms O'Shea might have been linked to Russian
gangsters.
Mr Parmenter said the relative
had spotted two vehicles near their property in the Atherton Tablelands about
the time Ms O'Shea vanished.
He told the inquest he had
heard rumours that a person known to Ms O'Shea was involved in her
disappearance.
Another witness, Ms O'Shea's
longtime friend John McKenzie, said he was disappointed the search for Ms
O'Shea had been "hijacked" by a family dispute soon after her
disappearance.
Searching for answers, Mr
McKenzie, who lives in Melbourne, visited the Atherton Tablelands and spoke to
Ms O'Shea's friends and family about a year after she went missing.
He told the inquest he felt
everyone told him the truth and it was unlikely any of them had anything to do
with her disappearance.
"I can't see her giving
anyone a reason to kill her," he said.
"She's a bloody beautiful
person and I'd be really happy to find out what happened to her."
Mr McKenzie said it was
unlikely Ms O'Shea had just taken off because she loved her children too much
not to make contact with them.
Although Ms O'Shea was a bit
eccentric and regularly hitchhiked, she wouldn't have gone home with someone
who had given her a lift, he said.
Ms O'Shea's son Daniel, who was
16 when his mother vanished, said it appeared his mother "disappeared into
thin air" and there were no clues as to what happened to her.
On Monday, an arrest warrant
was issued by Northern Coroner Jane Bentley for a person of interest in the
case.
The warrant, which requires the
person to give evidence at the inquest, was reportedly issued after a detective
told the inquest the person displayed "strange" behaviour and refused
to give a statement after Ms O'Shea's disappearance.
The person, who can't be named
for legal reasons, will give evidence via video link on Wednesday morning.
The inquest continues.