The former lead detective on the William Tyrrell case, Gary Jubelin, has called for a public inquiry into how police handled the 2014 disappearance of the three-year-old.

William vanished from his foster grandmother’s house in New South Wales (NSW) on September 12, 2014. He had been playing in the front yard of the property in Kendall, and was wearing a Spider-Man suit at the time of his disappearance. Despite extensive investigations and renewed search efforts by hundreds of volunteers and emergency service workers in 2021, the three-year-old has never been found.

Jubelin became a key figure in the investigation of William’s disappearance for more than four years from early 2015 until 2019. He was stood down as the head of Strike Force Rosann due to misconduct allegations, he left the NSW Police force not long after.

Jubelin recently chose to address public claims that he “messed up the case” and the decision by police to focus the investigation on William’s foster mother.

“I’ve worked many homicides and been accused of playing hardball when working those cases, but I understand actions have consequences and there is no way I would have singled out a person with a strategy like that. If you get it wrong, you destroy lives,” he told The Daily Telegraph.

Despite claiming he would “rather not be talking about the William Tyrrell investigation”, he feels a duty to do so in order to “ensure more lives are not ruined by misinformation, speculation and rumours that have surrounded the investigation over the past 12 months”.

“It appears I am the only person who has had to justify their actions. Perhaps it is time for a public inquiry into the handling of the investigation, from the moment William disappeared, including how certain information has been leaked to the media,” he said.

Jubelin has never been one to shy away from voicing his opinions on the William Tyrrell investigation after he was stood down as lead investigator.

In November 2021, Jubelin hit out at former NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller after he criticised Jubelin’s handling of the investigation calling it “a bit of mess” that current investigators “have cleaned up”.

Jubelin staunchly defended the way the case was handled on 2GB Radio, on November 18, 2021, while addressing the criticism.

“I‘ve been watching and I give respect to the police. I know they’re in there. They’re trying hard,” he said.

“I sit here very confidently and that’s why I take issue when I hear comments that the investigation was in a shambles when it was taken over.

“I rely on my experience along with my gut but I always defer to the facts.”