Mysterious outback disappearances of four men to be probed by WA coroner

It has been a tough four years for the family of Clinton Lockyer, who disappeared in strange circumstances from the small West Australian town of Roebourne.

"Every day you wonder where he is," his aunt Annalee Lockyer says.

"You can't really move forward without knowing what happened."

Now the family has been notified that Clinton's case will be examined as part of a joint inquest, reviewing the disappearance and suspected deaths of four Aboriginal men in regional WA within two years.

"I think it'll be a good thing, because we might get some fresh information," Annalee says.

"There's these men gone missing, and maybe it's linked, maybe it's not — we just don't know."

The four men include Clinton Lockyer, last seen in the Pilbara town of Roebourne in October 2022, and his cousin Wesley Lockyer, who disappeared a week earlier from his home community near Port Hedland.

Then there is 21-year-old Zane Stevens, who went missing in April 2024 after a drive with associates in the bush near Broome, and father-of-two Brenton Shar, who was last seen in the port city of Geraldton in May that year.

Different but similar

The cases span more than a thousand kilometres, but are linked by rumours of foul play and accusations of police and public indifference.

Police have maintained their investigations have been thorough and based on the evidence available.

But the families of the missing men have welcomed the inquest and the scrutiny it will bring.

In recent years they have repeatedly flown to Perth for meetings with police and politicians and held rallies across Western Australia to try to draw attention to the cases.

This year the family of Wesley Lockyer created a foundation in his name to raise funds for searching, advocacy and counselling.

In a statement, the acting state coroner told the ABC the joint inquest would be held "in relation to the disappearance and suspected deaths of the missing men", with the date and location yet to be determined.

While there is no suggestion any of the men were using methamphetamine, the surging illicit drug trade in northern towns has fuelled concern they may have fallen foul of those involved.

A teenager vanishes

The men included in the inquest are not the only ones who have gone missing.

In January, a young Aboriginal man named Zjaequaan Sebasio vanished from his family's home in Port Hedland.

His mother, Beatrice, described him as a quietly spoken teenager who enjoyed watching movies and hanging out with friends.

She was away for work the week he disappeared, but spoke to Zjaequaan just a few hours before he went missing.

"He'd told me he wanted to go away for a while, to clear his head and get away from the drugs in town," Beatrice said.

"I was a bit worried, but he sounded normal and reassured me he was going to be OK."

At about 9pm Zjaequaan spoke to his sister as he left the house and walked off down Mindaroo Avenue.

'People are scared to speak'

Beatrice believes her son may have organised to meet someone.

"We searched everywhere nearby and there were no footprints, and with the amount of spinifex he wouldn't have gone too far on foot," she said.

"I'm worried he might have got caught up with some bad people and met with foul play.

"It's just been a rollercoaster. It's just heartbreaking, playing the waiting game, just wanting him to rock up and everything to be OK."

Beatrice knew her son used cannabis but saw no sign of harder drugs.

But she is aware methamphetamine use is rife in the area, triggering violence and debts that affect even those with minimal involvement.

"The info I got from police was that there wasn't any criminal thing going on, but I'm worried it's got something to do with people involved in drugs," Beatrice said.

"People are too scared to talk about what's going on, as it might be their life or their families next.

"But this is about the truth and about finding my son."

Police conducted land, sea and air searches in the days after Zjaequaan disappeared, and confirmed in a statement that they obtained CCTV that "assisted investigators in establishing Mr Sebasio's movements after leaving his residence".

But they have refused to make the images public or provide copies to his family.

"The WA Police Force remains committed to the investigation and to finding answers for the Sebasio family, and continues to encourage anyone with information to come forward, either directly to police or anonymously through Crime Stoppers," police said.

Man killed in mysterious explosion

In recent weeks a rumour spread through Broome that another man had gone missing after a purported drug lab exploded at a bush block near town.

When the ABC visited the site there was still police tape around the twisted and blackened wreckage.

"We were woken up by the loud bang of the explosion. It was like a bomb going off," a neighbour said.

The woman, who asked to remain anonymous to protect locals' privacy, said residents were escorted to safety by police close to midnight.

"Gas bottles were going off and throwing sheet metal 5 metres into the air," she said.

"It wasn't until the next day we realised the fella there had died, when the hospital van came with a body bag.

"It's amazing how the rumours have spread — some people saying the fella there has disappeared, or someone did something to him."

In a response to questions from the ABC, WA Police confirmed the man who lived in the caravan was not missing — the 61-year-old had been killed in the blast.

Police described the death as non-suspicious and said there was no evidence it was a "drug lab", stating that" no drug paraphernalia was located at the scene".

The families interviewed are hoping inquest hearings will be scheduled in the regional centres close to where they live.

At this point, they say, any information would be better than the ambiguity of not knowing.