Community
20 October, 2023
Family’s pain
A YARRABAH family is pleading for someone who knows what has happened to their missing teenage son, brother and grandson Markiah ‘Mackey’ Major to let police know – even anonymously.
It comes as his mum Kamaree Major and grandmother Adelaide Sands told Cairns Local News that a stolen car found dumped at Yarrabah on August 19 contained his ATM and Medicare cards and his wallet – a week after he was last seen by family members.
The 17-year-old was reported missing on September 2
Ms Major fears he has been embroiled with “bad people, drugs and stolen cars”.
“I think he is still alive. He might be hiding from everyone,” she said. ‘Someone knows something, we need answers,” she said. “Someone out there knows something, please can you let us know what happened to Markiah?
“We (family) are torn apart, just not knowing where he is, or what has happened to Markiah.
“I’m not sleeping, the family are devastated. Someone out there knows something and they need to tell police.
“We need to know what has happened. At first, we thought he might be hiding out, in fear, but the longer it goes on, with every day that passes, our fear for him grows stronger.
“Please, if you know something please report it to Crime Stoppers.”
“You can do it anonymously. As a mother I need to know,” Ms Major said
The teen was last seen in Cairns on Brophy St, Westcourt, on August 12 and disappeared with no trace, no contact with family and no access to his bank account.
Police and SES volunteers have conducted three separate searches of bushland at Yarrabah, the most recent a week ago, proving to be unsuccessful.
Ms Major said her son had not worked since leaving grade 10 and was on a Jobseeker benefit.
She said he had spent three months in the Cleveland Youth Detention Centre for stealing cars. “He got into a bad crowd, he was using heavy drugs, but not selling drugs,” Ms Major said.
She said “the boys” he was associated with were not telling her anything, nor the police.
“Some of his friends know where he is,” Ms Major said.
She said the family had been to Cairns looking for him.
“I miss him so badly. I want him home, his brothers and sister are missing him”.
His grandmother, Ms Sands, said he was “very quiet, a deep thinker”.
“I was very close to him. It’s unlike him not to be in touch,” she said.
Ms Sands said she confiscated his mobile phone so he couldn’t get in touch with his “bad” friends, but he had been using other people’s phones.
“He was really good for the first three weeks (after leaving Cleveland) but in the fourth week he was mixing with that crew again. He was in and out of Cairns,” she said. “August 12 was the last time we saw him. We haven’t seen him after that.”
His family have been printing and displaying posters throughout Cairns, appealing tomembers of the public for assistance in locating the teenager who is described as a First Nations young man, about 150cm tall, slim build with shoulder length black, curly hair.
A police spokeswoman said investigations were ongoing into Mr Major’s disappearance.
“Investigators appeal to anyone with information regarding his whereabouts to urgently come forward,” she said.
If you have any information on a missing person, or wish to report a missing person to police, call Policelink on 131 444, or call Crime Stoppers on
1800 333 000.
– Watch the video at www. cairnslocalnews.com.au
