POLICE have received new information suggesting a person in the Melbourne Hungarian community has information about the “savage murder” of Irma Palasics 21 years ago. 

Detective Senior Constable Emma Beere made the announcement in a press conference this morning (November 6), where she urged the person who holds information to come forward and to speak to police.

The new piece of information comes 21 years after the incident, where at least two men forced their way into Gregor and Irma Palasics’ McKellar home on Grover Crescent, at about 9.30pm on Saturday, November 6, 1999. 

Mr and Mrs Palasics, both in their 70s, were bound and savagely beaten before the offenders ransacked the home stealing cash and jewellery.

“After the offenders left, Mr Palasics was able to free himself and contact police, however, his wife Irma, her injuries were too severe, and she died at the scene,” said Constable Beere.

“I urge this person who holds information on the death of Irma Palasics to come forward and to speak to police. If you are a member of the Melbourne Hungarian community and have even the smallest piece of information that could assist in the ongoing investigation into the death of Irma, I encourage you to come forward and to speak to police.

“By sharing information, it could assist in bringing a person before court and this will provide the Palasics’ family the answers that they’ve been searching for for over two decades. As previously announced, a $500,000 reward remains in place for any piece of information that leads to a successful prosecution. 

“If there are people out there that are concerned for their safety, there are provisions available that protect their identity.”  

Constable Beere has not ruled out if the murder was a targeted attack and says: “We don’t know at this time how that person, in that community has that information and that’s why it’s so imperative to us that they come forward and speak to us about why they know this information about Irma’s death.” 

At the announcement, Irma’s grandson John Mikita also urged anyone who holds information to come forward.

He then used the opportunity to describe the incident, saying: “Twenty-one years ago, at around 9pm my grandfather was coming to after being bashed unconscious and was untying himself from a phone cord that had been ripped from the wall and used to bound his hands together after at least one, maybe two thugs sat on him, smashing his face over and over.

“He eventually managed to call 000 and told the operator with a bitten off tongue and mouth filled of blood that someone had killed my wife. My grandmother’s lifeless body, on the floor, metres away from him.

“I’m told the thugs also did incredible harm to her, trying to get information from where she had valuables in their home. I don’t know much more about what she looked like, how they left her and how she suffered.

“I was never given the opportunity to call her up and say goodbye, to give her a big hug or to say ‘I love you’. I like to think that she passed away quickly and that she was not left on the floor for the hour or so before struggling terribly to draw her last breath.

“Their house was turned upside down. Contents of every drawer, every nook and cranny, every cupboard, emptied across the floor by hunters, who expected to find, obviously, more than they did. They even emptied the fridge. What could have they possible been looking for?

“This is all in stark contrast to the tip-top shape my grandma kept the house in. Ever since I can ever remember, [there was] never a thing out of place, everything was sparkling clean.

“The murderers that night not only robbed my grandparent’s home and stole their lives, they robbed me of my innocence, they robbed me of my future, they tore a hole in my life that will never, ever heal.

“Now, 21 years on we still seek answers from the community as to who would have done this to two innocent pensioners. I ask you from my heart, if you know anything, no matter how small, how insignificant, please call police or Crime Stoppers and report it.

“The people who did this need to be brought to justice. They do not deserve to live freely in our community.” 

People can contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333000. 

Grandson looks for the killers in the shadows