On the morning of Friday, June 8th, 2001, a security guard discovered a horrific scene in a shallow ditch off Crooked River Road near Gerroa, on New South Wales’ South Coast in Australia. The partially burned, semi-naked body of twenty-three-year-old Rachelle Leigh Childs lay there, doused in gasoline, particularly on her face and specific areas of her body in what appeared to be a deliberate attempt to destroy evidence.
Rachelle, affectionately known as “Chelle,” was a vibrant, bubbly young woman from Bargo who worked as a car saleswoman at Camden Holden. Described as trusting, caring, and successful in her career, she also represented NSW in cricket.
Rachelle was last seen alive on the afternoon of Thursday, June 7th, 2001, when she left work in her prized 1978 Holden Commodore VB. She had mentioned plans to meet someone at the Bargo Hotel that evening, though she did not specify who. After a brief phone call with her sister while driving, she vanished.
Her final hours remain a mystery. Witnesses reported seeing a car matching her Commodore parked off the highway near Gerroa around ten twenty p.m. on June 7th, about 200 yards from where her body was later found. Other sightings included a vehicle with its trunk open and figures nearby, and later a slumped driver. A woman saw a fire in the bush at a little past two a.m. on June 8th, followed by an older square-shaped car (similar to a Holden) making a U-turn with headlights off. Rachelle’s burning body was discovered shortly afterward.
Her car was found the next day, securely parked at the Bargo Hotel, far from the murder scene, adding to the baffling circumstances.
The murder was violent and appeared sexually motivated. Rachelle was likely killed by smothering or strangulation before being dumped and set alight. Gasoline was used strategically, suggesting the perpetrator had some knowledge of forensics or evidence destruction.
The initial police investigation faced significant criticism. It was marred by errors, including lost evidence (such as potential CCTV footage from a gas station and contaminated DNA from her car), inadequate phone record handling, and failure to promptly involve the Homicide Squad. A local senior constable reportedly delayed escalation. Vital early leads were not pursued effectively, and the case languished.
A coronial inquest in 2006–2008 ruled her death a homicide but delivered an open finding. Eight persons of interest were named, yet insufficient evidence existed to charge anyone. NSW Police offered a $100,000 reward (later doubled to $200,000), which remains active.
Rachelle’s boss at Camden Holden, Kevin Steven Correll (also known as Kevin Cornwall in earlier records), emerged as the chief person of interest. He was one of the last people to see her alive and could not be cleared by the coroner. Correll voluntarily spoke to police multiple times and always denied involvement.
His alibi—that he drove to Campbelltown, then to his partner’s home in Picton (finding her absent), and ordered fish and chips in Tahmoor—could not be fully corroborated. Notably, it bore similarities to an alibi he used in a prior case. Phone records placed him in areas inconsistent with his story. Colleagues noted he appeared disheveled the next morning and showed little concern for Rachelle’s disappearance.
Correll had a troubling past, including multiple acquittals in the 1980s for alleged violent rapes. Details from those cases involved disturbing allegations, though juries acquitted him. He died in July 2025 in Thailand at age sixty-nine, while the case was still under review. His death has left Rachelle’s family without the possibility of charges against the main suspect.
The case is solvable, according to some former detectives, with calls for anyone with information—no matter how small—to come forward. NSW Police continue to appeal for tips via Crime Stoppers.
Crime Immemorial 