Homicide detectives urge anyone with information to come forward as candlelit vigil is held for victim
Homicide detectives have obtained CCTV footage that could prove crucial in their investigation into the killing of Melbourne woman Tracy Connelly, who was remembered in a candlelit vigil in St Kilda on Thursday night.
Connelly, 40, was found dead in the van she lived in with her partner, Tony Melissovas, on Greeves Street, St Kilda on 21 July. Police said she had received upper body and facial injuries.
Detectives said they had reviewed CCTV footage from the area and determined that Connelly, who was a sex worker, returned to her van between 1.30am and 2.30am on the morning of 21 July.
The footage captured two people, one of whom is believed to be Connelly. The footage is to be forensically examined to identify the other person.
Police have urged anyone with information on Connelly's final movements to contact them. Results of a DNA examination of the van have yet to be returned.
Several hundred people gathered for a candlelit vigil on Greeves Street on Thursday night, with the event featuring hymns and speeches from Connelly's friends and family, as well as state and council politicians.
Les Toft, Connelly's brother, travelled from Queensland to speak at the vigil, revealing that his mother had suffered a heart attack upon hearing the news of her daughter's death.
Toft says the family worried about Connelly's safety as a sex worker and feared she might be killed.
"Our biggest fear was that we'd get 'that' call, that it would take the shape of Tracy found in a dumpster or Tracy found in an abandoned home," he said.
"Yes, we did get that call, but we learned that she was loved and cherished and had a life partner in Tony for 11 years. We are grateful she meant something to you. She meant a lot to us."
The gathering of the St Kilda community also included a fiery speech from White Ribbon ambassador Phil Cleary, who said that Connelly's death was part of a wider problem of violence against women.
"We have a cultural landscape that isn't friendly to women who express their rights and women who say 'no'," he said. "We have to address the politics of violence against women, because it is chronic.
"I was at the gathering of Jill Meagher. It was easy for society to embrace Jill Meagher because she was saintly and she was killed by a stranger.
"Would society have embraced Tracy Connelly if you people hadn't stood tall, gathered and raised the candles tonight? It is possible Tracy Connelly would be forgotten, like so many other women are forgotten." Reported by guardian.co.uk 5 hours ago.
Homicide detectives have obtained CCTV footage that could prove crucial in their investigation into the killing of Melbourne woman Tracy Connelly, who was remembered in a candlelit vigil in St Kilda on Thursday night.
Connelly, 40, was found dead in the van she lived in with her partner, Tony Melissovas, on Greeves Street, St Kilda on 21 July. Police said she had received upper body and facial injuries.
Detectives said they had reviewed CCTV footage from the area and determined that Connelly, who was a sex worker, returned to her van between 1.30am and 2.30am on the morning of 21 July.
The footage captured two people, one of whom is believed to be Connelly. The footage is to be forensically examined to identify the other person.
Police have urged anyone with information on Connelly's final movements to contact them. Results of a DNA examination of the van have yet to be returned.
Several hundred people gathered for a candlelit vigil on Greeves Street on Thursday night, with the event featuring hymns and speeches from Connelly's friends and family, as well as state and council politicians.
Les Toft, Connelly's brother, travelled from Queensland to speak at the vigil, revealing that his mother had suffered a heart attack upon hearing the news of her daughter's death.
Toft says the family worried about Connelly's safety as a sex worker and feared she might be killed.
"Our biggest fear was that we'd get 'that' call, that it would take the shape of Tracy found in a dumpster or Tracy found in an abandoned home," he said.
"Yes, we did get that call, but we learned that she was loved and cherished and had a life partner in Tony for 11 years. We are grateful she meant something to you. She meant a lot to us."
The gathering of the St Kilda community also included a fiery speech from White Ribbon ambassador Phil Cleary, who said that Connelly's death was part of a wider problem of violence against women.
"We have a cultural landscape that isn't friendly to women who express their rights and women who say 'no'," he said. "We have to address the politics of violence against women, because it is chronic.
"I was at the gathering of Jill Meagher. It was easy for society to embrace Jill Meagher because she was saintly and she was killed by a stranger.
"Would society have embraced Tracy Connelly if you people hadn't stood tall, gathered and raised the candles tonight? It is possible Tracy Connelly would be forgotten, like so many other women are forgotten." Reported by guardian.co.uk 5 hours ago.