A young German kindergarten teacher had been backpacking along Australia’s east coast when she vanished late at night on February 11, 2005.
Six days later, her unclothed body was discovered under palm fronds close to the caravan park where she was staying. But, in the more than 20 years since, her killer has yet to be identified.
Simone Strobel, 25, spent six months traveling through Australia with her boyfriend Tobias Suckfuell (who now goes by Tobias Moran), his sister, Katrin Suckfuell, and their friend, Jens Martin, leading up to her death.
The night she went missing, the group reportedly went out and drank at a local hotel before heading back to the Lismore, New South Wales, caravan park.
Later, there was allegedly an argument, and Simone walked away from the campsite at about 11:20 p.m. by herself, “alone and upset.”
It’s unclear exactly what happened next, but witnesses reported seeing her cross a nearby roundabout at approximately 11:55 p.m. Screams were also heard.
“This was the last time Simone was seen alive by someone not involved in her death,” stated New South Wales State Coroner Teresa O’Sullivan.
Simone’s then-boyfriend, Tobias, reported her missing the following morning, which sparked a multi-day search that involved authorities from various agencies. It took six days for her body to be discovered, only about 300 feet away from the caravan park.
The 25-year-old was found by a police dog handler. Simone’s remains were unclothed and hidden beneath palm fronds in the bocce court of a neighboring hotel.
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In 2007, an inquest suggested that someone she’d been traveling with was involved in her killing and that Simone had been suffocated using either a plastic bag or a pillow.
Then, in 2022, Simone’s boyfriend, Tobias, was charged with her murder before prosecutors ultimately withdrew the charges.
Tobias has always maintained that he wasn’t involved in Simone’s murder, and once the charges against him were dropped, he was awarded $190,000 for legal fees.
Now, the latest inquest into Simone’s case has rejected the theory that one of the backpackers traveling with her was responsible for her murder.
Current law restricts coroners from naming offenders, but NSW State Coroner Teresa O’Sullivan argued the alleged lies Tobias had told police did not prove guilt. Moreover, she disagreed with the prior cause of death determination.
“I am unable to determine the cause of Simone’s death,” she noted, before adding that Simone “died as a result of homicide by a person or persons unknown.”
According to O’Sullivan, Simone was likely killed by a person or persons with explicit motives, and the kindergarten teacher was likely assaulted before she was murdered.
Despite the new theory, it remains unknown who is responsible for Simone’s death more than two decades later. So, O’Sullivan called for the NSW Police’s Unsolved Homicide Team to further investigate two unmatched DNA samples.
The first is a hair recovered from the bocce court’s fence, and the second is male DNA from Simone’s black shirt. It’s hoped that modern technology may help lead to a future match.
In 2020, a $1 million reward for information in Simone’s case was announced, and the NSW government continues to offer that reward.
This past Thursday, O’Sullivan also spoke directly to Simone’s family, who were watching from Germany.
“The trauma of losing a loved one, and in these circumstances, in a foreign country, is unimaginable. I express my heartfelt condolences and wish that the Strobel family will one day know the truth of what happened to Simone,” she said.
Meanwhile, the Strobel family shared a statement following the inquest, voicing their disappointment in the lack of case progression.
“Sadly, this inquest brought us no closer to understanding the circumstances of why and how Simone died,” her sister, Christina Strobel, stated.
“We continue to hope that one day we will learn the truth about what happened to Simone.”
By Katharina Buczek
Katharina Buczek graduated from Stony Brook University with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Digital Arts. Specializing in... More about Katharina Buczek
