Couple Cleared of Kidnapping and Murder of Teenage Girl

australia - Robert and Anne Geeves have been acquitted of the abduction and killing of a mentally disabled teenage girl, despite suspicions surrounding the disappearance of the girl.

Accused of murdering a teenager to steal her baby, Stel has been acquitted. The couple were in a relationship with the victim's son, but she became pregnant by the father. Five months after the birth of her baby, Amber (19) disappeared without a trace. Now, Robert and Anne Geeves have been cleared of the kidnapping and murder of the mentally disabled teenage girl.

On a cold winter day in 2002, 19-year-old Amber Haigh vanished from an Australian village. Despite various search efforts and a reward for information, her body was never found. Robert and Anne Geeves, then a couple, claimed to have dropped Amber at a train station 300 kilometers away so she could visit her dying father. However, she never arrived.

Robert and Anne Geeves (both 64), who spent two years in jail on suspicion of abduction and murder, have now been completely exonerated after a lengthy trial. The judge ruled that the prosecutor had relied too much on speculation, circumstantial evidence, and unreliable testimonies. 'If we are not a hundred percent sure of guilt, we cannot accuse anyone,' he stated.

The acquittal triggered strong reactions from the family of the missing girl, who remain convinced that the couple was behind the disappearance. They believe Robert and Anna may have even murdered Amber to keep her son permanently with them. Witnesses alleged that Robert gave Amber alcohol, tied her up, and had sexual intercourse with her. Amber reportedly confided this to people around her, but the witnesses changed their statements multiple times, undermining their credibility in court.

Amber refused to give up her child and, despite her mental challenges, chose to raise the baby herself. While officially living with her uncle, who neglected her due to alcohol issues, Robert did not want his newborn son under that care. Thus, he and Anne took in Amber. Witnesses claimed that Anne and Robert had been trying to conceive a second child without success. Anne had several miscarriages, so they considered Amber's child their second son.

Amber's son was with the couple at the time of her disappearance. Their son, Robbie, testified in court that his mother referred to his ex-girlfriend as a 'surrogate mother,' and both parents asked him to accept Amber's child as his 'little brother' in the middle of the night at his home after Amber went missing.

Although the relationship between the couple and the teen may have appeared 'strange' to outsiders, the Geeveses stated they got along well, and Amber viewed Anne as a mother figure she never had. However, concrete evidence supporting this theory was never found. Robert's past cast a shadow of suspicion on him, potentially blinding the authorities in the search for Amber.

Robert had been acquitted of the close-range shooting murder of his ex-partner previously, as well as cleared of complaints of sexual abuse involving two schoolgirls due to lack of substantial evidence. The couple has been acquitted of the teenage girl's disappearance but have lost contact with their son, Robbie, who severed ties with them permanently. Contact with the child Robert fathered with Amber has also been lost.