SA Police say human remains found in Adelaide's northern suburbs earlier this week belong to a man who went missing in August.
They say DNA testing confirmed last night that a torso found in a wheelie bin in a field on Cheviot Road in Salisbury South on Monday is that of Geoffrey McLean, a 55-year-old man from Andrews Farm who was last seen on August 18.
Detective Inspector Brett Featherby said police were focused on finding the rest of Mr McLean's body.
They believe he was murdered.
"When Geoffrey's body was located, it had been dismembered," Inspector Featherby said.
"It was located in a wheelie bin at that location in a vacant park. And at this time we've only recovered his torso.
"Our efforts are now firmly focused on recovering the rest of Geoffrey's remains and identifying those persons responsible for his brutal murder."
Mr McLean's family has been notified of the discovery.
A gardener found the remains when clearing grass on the vacant block on Monday afternoon but police could not immediately identify the sex or age because they were so decomposed.
Police believe more than one person involved in murder
Inspector Featherby said police believed more than one person was involved in Mr McLean's murder.
He said evidence in the Cheviot Road paddock suggested whoever was burying his remains may have been disturbed while doing it.
"We believe they were going to bury his remains at that location and they may have been disturbed, or they were just lazy and left his remains at that location," he said.
He said police searched a home in relation to the murder, but would not say where it was or how it was connected to Mr McLean's death.
Mr McLean had a 10-year-old child, previously played senior football for South Whyalla and was a regular golfer.
Mr McLean's partner reported him missing on August 29.
Police searched for Mr McLean's body in wetlands near his house last month.
At the time, police were not sure he had been murdered.
Attacks ahead of murder
Inspector Featherby today detailed a series of "brutal attacks" Mr McLean had been subject to at his home on Leicester Grove in Andrews Farm, some of which have already resulted in arrests.
On April 10 and May 10, he was allegedly attacked with acid, on April 13 he was allegedly struck with a log splitter, suffering serious injuries, and on May 9 his vehicle was allegedly set on fire.
It is understood police are investigating the possibility of the previous attacks and the murder being linked.
Police urged anyone with information about Mr McLean's disappearance to come forward, including anyone near the vacant block on Cheviot Road between August 19 and October 24.
“The gruesome nature of Geoffrey’s murder will have a profound effect on his family, his friends and his loved ones," Inspector Featherby said.
"I ask anyone that has knowledge of where his remains may be that we haven’t located to date to contact police, no matter how small that information is, to assist us and support his family.”
