The devastated family of William Wall who was found dead in dense Victoria bush land on Wednesday have broken down after approaching the scene of his death.
The 14-year-old’s body was discovered just one kilometre from his family home after going missing on Tuesday at 6:45 am in Launching Place – a town just 54km east from Melbourne’s CBD.
He told his family he would be back in 15 minutes, which wasn’t unusual; the “fitness fanatic” would usually run 25 kilometres.
“There was nothing out of the ordinary, he’s left money at home, doesn’t have a myki or use public transport, his push bike is still at home,” Williams, dad, Shane Wall said earlier.
“It’s absolutely the first time he’s got lost. He’s a kid that sticks to himself, does all his school work, so this is really out of the ordinary.”
However more than 24 hours later, the Wall family had to make the heartbreaking walk of their own in wet and muddy conditions.
William’s body was found just before 5 pm on Wednesday at the end of a residential street at Yarra Junction.
The discovery follows after a huge air and ground search mission that had close to 100 personnel from Victoria Police and dozens of State Emergency Service units combine forces with locals.
William’s body was found by a member of the local boxing club.
Police say they are not treating the death as suspicious and will prepare a report for the coroner.
Family friend Tyson Truscott told The Herald Sun: “He was a great kid. There is nothing bad about him. He loved going for runs, he went flat out,” Mr Truscott said.
His family were sadly pictured breaking down as they visited the scene of his death.
Just hours before his discovery, William’s father had fronted the media in tears.
He had asked locals to put out protein bars and fruit for his son, claiming his disappearance was out of character.
William’s older brother Harrison, told Seven News he and his other brother Jake were turned away after spending Tuesday night scanning the area on dirt bikes.
“We’ve been told by all the police, saying we’re not allowed to help because we’re past the five kilometre radius, which is going to put a bit more of a delay in finding him,” his older brother, Harrison.
William suffered from high functioning autism.
It was feared he may have become disorientated without food due to the length of time he had been missing.
Mr Wall described his son as a dog-loving, energetic and athletic teen who could run for 20-30 km before getting too exhausted.
“It wouldn’t be that much of a stretch for him,” he said.
He said he had been overwhelmed by support from the community.
“This has just blown me away, the support from local people, Facebook, community noticeboards, it’s fantastic, it’s really top notch and the police and SES have been great.”
He said their family – including William’s two brothers, Harrison, 18, and Jake, 21, and sister Sophie, 10 – missed him
“Just come home, we want you home,” Mr Wall said.
“There’s heap of people around, I thank the police, his brother’s mates, they’ve all been out all night, and I just want everyone to be safe.”
