The last time Kim Brassington saw her cousin, it was her birthday and it seemed like he “didn’t want to get out of the car”. “Jake is a beautiful young man, he was 20-years-old when we last saw him,” she said. “He deserves for us to find him somehow.
” Ms Brassington braved news cameras on Sunday as Victoria Police issued a renewed appeal for information into the disappearance of Jake Lyons a decade ago. The then 20-year-old was last seen at his Dandenong home on Scullin St on August 25, 2014. His father Rick left for work about 9am and initially wasn’t concerned when he returned home to an empty house and noticed his car was missing.
But three days later after numerous efforts to get in contact were unsuccessful, Jake was reported missing to police. Another three days would pass before investigators found Rick’s silver Holden Astra station wagon at Warner Reserve in Springvale, around the corner from where Jake previously went to school. The car was locked with the keys under the vehicle, but police were unable to establish if he had driven himself to the reserve.
Since then there has been no trace of the missing man, with police now believing it’s “less likely” Jake remains alive. “While his disappearance remains extremely out of character, police have never been able to establish if it is suspicious,” Missing Persons Squad Detective Acting Inspector Tony Combridge said. “We’re hopeful that today’s appeal will provide us with further avenues.