Fifty years on from the suspicious disappearance of an eight-year-old girl from her bedroom, police have offered an unprecedented $1 million reward.
Eloise Worledge was reported missing from her Beaumaris home, in Melbourne's southeast, on the morning of January 13, 1976.
Victoria Police have announced the million-dollar reward to mark the 50th anniversary of her disappearance.
The reward is the first of its kind in that it extends to information leading to the discovery of her remains, not just the identification of those responsible for her disappearance.
"While 50 years is a long time, it's not too long that someone couldn't come forward and tell us what happened," Detective Inspector Dave Dunstan told reporters on Tuesday.
"People will know what's happened.
"Allegiances change, partners change and we're hoping that this announcement today will allow people to come forward and tell us what happened."
Eloise was last seen in bed at her family home shortly before midnight on January 12, 1976.
Her parents realised she was missing the following morning when she failed to join her two younger siblings in getting ready for the day.
They soon discovered the flyscreen on her window had been cut and rolled open but nothing else appeared to have been taken from her room.
Police launched a major investigation, deploying 250 officers for one of the largest searches in the state's history over 18 days.
Officers canvassed 6000 properties and interviewed thousands of people, including family, friends and neighbours, but found no trace of Eloise.
Det Inspt Dunstan said the impact of the disappearance was "huge".
"There's been people who ... locked their windows and doors from that point forward," he said.
A police task force was set up to investigate Eloise's disappearance in 1976.
Homicide detectives reviewed the case in the early 2000s but found nothing of substance.
An inquest in 2003 returned an open finding, meaning the coroner did not think it was possible to hold anyone responsible on the available evidence.
In 2023, the Missing Persons Squad reviewed the case as part of inquiries into alleged sexual offenders at the school Eloise attended but were unable to establish a link.
Tuesday's announcement displaces an initial $10,000 reward, with police hopeful the increased bounty will uncover information that provides closure for Eloise's loved ones and the local community.
Her parents Lindsay and Patsy Worledge both died in recent years.
Surviving family members said their lives were forever changed by her disappearance.
'"(Our) memories of waking up to find her missing are still very vivid and raw and the passage of time has not eased the pain of this loss" they said in a statement.
"Ella was and remains deeply loved. She was more than a missing person or a case file - she was a daughter, a sister, a friend, someone who mattered greatly to all who knew her."
