Dear Rashie Rochelle.
Rochelle, Dear Rachelle inside the new true crime podcast.
Now her case is being brought back into the spot captivating audiences already. Rachelle Child Chellechelle Child a beautiful and vibrant young woman. Her killer has never been brought to justice. The new podcast by True Crime Australia. Come a podcast, Catch a Killer.
Welcome to the first update episode of Dear Rochelle. You're behind the scenes access to this live podcast investigation. I'm your host, Ashley Hanson. In this episode, you'll hear Christy, Rachelle's sister rean to the incredible response from listeners and share why she was inspired to do this podcast thanks to the encouragement of her best friend Mindy.
Both will be joining us soon.
Plus you'll hear a breakthrough moment just hours after launch, when we are received promising news from New South Wales Police about Rochelle's case. But first, let's take you back to Friday, the twenty first of March twenty twenty five, the day Dear Rochelle went live after a year long investigation.
Everything had been leading up to this moment.
This is the first time Christy and I saw each other since the podcast launched.
Hello, how are you?
How are you?
How you feeling?
It's so beautiful.
He's stunning, isn't she here?
We listened to her. There are two episodes on the way in. Yeah, they're amazing. Okay, it's really really well done.
She's everywhere.
That's what she deserves.
Absolutely, go hard or go home.
She used to say that to you.
I love it.
I love it. I mean, you can't get bigger than this. Hey, it's unbelievable.
After feeling forgotten for so many years, How do you feel now?
I was saying this to my family the other day.
I used to walk past her car in the shed and I just had this not here. It just didn't sit right that nothing was happening and that I wasn't doing anything. And I just always felt kind of powless, like I couldn't do anything. And that's gone. Now I feel like we're finally doing something for her, and I'm just humped, and this is we couldn't have done anything else, Like this is the biggest we could possibly have made it, and we've done it. I hope that this turns into
eventually a criminal charge and a conviction. And yeah, and to know what happened to her, that's we want to know that too. But I just want that person taken out of the community.
You deserve the answers.
She deserves this too.
She deserves.
She deserves this. Yeah, this is just.
Unbelievable. We're very lucky, very grateful to you. Thanks for popping into my dams anytime.
I'm so proud of you.
Yeah I did. Oh.
Within just hours of launching Dear Rochelle, we received a case update from New South Wales Police about the latest status of Rochelle's cold case. Here's Christie and her Mum's reaction as I broke the news to them.
Big day, very big.
So I put some questions to the New South Wales Police Force about Rochelle's case and we ask them, where does her case currently sit?
What is the status? Are you ready for the answer? I think so the matter has.
Been assessed and he's now in reinvestigation under strike force to LAP.
Oh shit, they've reopened it. Wow, well done. That's unbelievable. Shit, So what does that mean? Then?
They said it's been reinvestigated since January this year and the reason they didn't tell you is for operational reasons and that is sometimes part of their protocol.
So they're investigating right now. That's what they said far out. How much difference do you think that will make? Well, I mean it doesn't matter what we do.
They have to act and they're on board so early, they're already before we even launched.
Holy shit.
Is huge.
The reinvestigation commenced in January twenty twenty five, and in New South Wales Police Force standard operating procedures, the family are not always immediately notified for operational reasons. To date, police are in regular contact with Rochelle's family that have not formally been told of the reinvestigation, just that the matter was under a current assessment. There will be ongoing and future contact with Rochelle's family.
Don't take a while for that to sink in properly.
Do you want to call your mom?
I do?
Yeah, let's call your mom.
So Ashley got an email from the police today, Yeah, smiling what they've reopened Rochelle's case. Oh yeah yeah, Strikeforce Tea Lappy's back in operation. Wow, oh my gosh.
Yeah that's so good.
Wow yeah, unbelievable.
Hoh yes, it's bloody fantastic. Honestly, holy someone's listen.
Yeah, look a bit.
To make them do that.
That's good, deem share done so well, big team. Everything's sort of come together because of all of your old important.
Yeah, yeah you too, Mum, oh lot, you did lots and you let me do it. Let me rip open all the let us rip open all of the old wounds and.
Let us do it. Yeah, thanks, ma'am. Here we go again, eh, yep?
Take two?
Yeah, Take eight hundred and forty three. See how we go with the team that we've got and the reach that we've got. I reckon, we'll get somewhere this time.
Something has, something will come out of it. Much of what level, but something.
I'm really proud of the police for seeing this as an opportunity and not seeing it as a criticism.
Yeah.
I'm joined now by Christy, Rochelle's sister and her best friend, Mindy. After twelve months, the Dear Rochelle podcast is finally live.
How are you both feeling pretty pumped about it?
Pretty excited. Yeah.
What's the reaction been from your friends and family? I think most people have left me alone.
I think they probably think that we're really busy and they don't want to bother me, But yeah, just overwhelming support. Honestly, everyone's been Yeah, behind one hundred percent. What about your mum? How's Anne doing? Yeah, she's good. She's looking after my little one at home while I'm down here. So yeah, I think she's tired, but she's I think both of
our emotions are sort of going up and down. I think she's still not really sure what to expect from so every time I call her, she's gets a bit anxious at me.
Guess what she's going to say this time.
But yeah, we're just happy that there's things happening for her and we just couldn't be proud of you and the team and thankful.
Well that's a privilege. We've got a couple of tips through.
Does that make you feel more confident that this could be what the case needs for a breakthrough?
I'm really confident, actually, I mean I always say that I'm careful about being hopeful, but I'm confident that we are going to find out a lot of things that we didn't already know, and we already have.
What would you say to anyone out there that is holding back information and why should they come forward?
You know we're not going to be angry that you haven't come forward before. I understand that. You know, certain relationships can prevent you from coming forward, but now is the time to do it. And even if you think it's insignificant, a potential isn't. So yeah, come and tell the people who can figure out whether it is significant or not. Every little piece of the puzzle is really important because there's still so many holes in the picture we're trying to build.
How much does your best friend Minny's support mean to you, especially through this process.
Oh, it's awesome. She's been driving me around everywhere. We've spent more time together in the last week than we ever have. And I was just saying that on the way here today. It's been really cool having a break from our actual real life and getting to hang out with her all day every day.
Yeah, her support is Yeah.
I'm not a very touchy feely emotional person, but I did say it. That's her, So you know, I couldn't have done this without you.
And she goes, yes, you could have, but yeah.
It wouldn't have been this fun though. No, we got a snow.
Yeah, and she'll try to I'm not going to cry.
Mindy, what does this podcast mean to you Now it's live, I cry.
Yeah, I've seen a difference in Christie, so she is.
Definitely lighter. I think watching.
Christie this week has been probably the worst part for me, because she's empowered. She's not quiet about it. We hardly spoke about Rachelle for years. I avoided it, didn't want to bring up that time. Now it's it's everywhere, you know, I can't escape it, and I like it. I like watching Christie in that, which is sounds silly, but it's nice to see her empowered.
That's really nice.
How proud are you to be a part of something like this that could potentially lead to a breakthrough in the case.
Yes to big one, I'm proud of you. That'll do to sh cry.
Yeah, there's moments in life that you not so proud of and those that you are, and this is probably right up there.
Said you're an incredible support to Christy and we're so grateful to have you both key characters in the podcast and following this live and we just hope that it leads to what Rachelle deserves and your family deserves, and that's justice.
Yeah.
New episodes of Deer Rochelle drop on Fridays, visit Dearrochelle dot com.
A year for more