A local has relived the horrifying moment he unknowingly surfed alongside the rotting remains of a woman’s decomposed body drifting in the sea off a popular Sydney beach.
Police were called to the northern end of Bronte Beach in the city’s east around 5.45am on Wednesday after a call from a member of the public who found the body.
But local surfer Max Vemeer revealed his terrifying encounter with the remains in the water while surfing nearby around 5pm on Tuesday.
‘I went in and there was another guy out and we thought we saw a body nearby,’ he said.
‘It was hard to see, but the hair looked dark. It looked like a woman, and pieces of the skin looked like they were… gone, ‘Mr Vemeer added, pointing to his arms.
‘It was pretty shocking. It wasn’t nice to see. It was face down so I could see the back. It was weird. It was naked so we thought it must be a dummy.
A woman’s decomposed body has been found washed up on a popular Sydney beach
Police were called to the northern end of Bronte Beach in the city’s east around 5.45am on Wednesday after a call from a member of the public who found the body
‘We weren’t 100 per cent sure, so we didn’t call it in. But it was floating towards the beach so we thought whatever it would eventually wash ashore. ‘
Mr Vemeer arrived at Brontë around 9am on Wednedsay for a morning surf and realized what he had witnessed the day before when he saw the police crime scene.
Another revealed the surfers had looked on in horror and disbelief when they spotted the remains on Tuesday evening.
But he said the dark and stormy conditions had prevented them from confirming exactly what it was.
Officers at the scene covered the remains before they were carried from the beach on a stretcher and taken away in a van
Surfer Max Verneer has relived the horrifying moment he wittingly found himself alongside the rotting remains of a woman’s decomposed body drifting in the sea off a popular Sydney beach
‘We saw what we thought was a body, but no one wanted to get close to it [to check]’he said.
‘It was really close. We were like surfing with it. Its head was down, so all you could see was what looked like someone’s butt. It was really weird. ‘
The surfers had assumed it just a shop dummy until the news broke of the body’s discovery on Wednesday morning.
‘We thought it was a mannequin or a dead animal or something,’ added the surfer.
‘We were going to tell the lifeguards, but when we came back to shore they were all gone.
‘We thought about calling police, but given it was late and dark, we thought there was no way they would be able to find it.’
Another bystander, Hamish, added: ‘It’s pretty shocking. [As a local] you’d like to know what happened. ‘
Officers at the scene on Wednesday covered the remains before they were carried from the beach on a stretcher and taken away in a van.
They said the corpse appeared to have been in the water for a lengthy period of time.
A few surfers were out to catch the massive swell on Wednesday despite the rain and cloudy conditions as the body was taken away from the scene.
A local man saw the commotion and came down to the beach with a camera.
‘It’s very sad,’ said Charlie, who declined to give his surname. ‘The conditions have been really bad. Lots of downpours recently. ‘
Officers have launched an investigation with the area cordoned off and declared a crime scene.
A police tent was set up meters from the shore with the entirety of Bronte Beach closed to the public.
Officers have launched an investigation with the area cordoned off and declared a crime scene
A police tent was set up meters from the shore with the entirety of Bronte Beach closed to the public
Officers are scouring missing person’s records to determine the woman’s identity.
Police believe it is likely a woman aged in her 20s or 30s – despite social media erupting with fevered speculation it could belong to missing conwoman Melissa Caddick who was 49.
‘It’s really, really now,’ one Bronte local said.
Social media lit up with messages about the discovery on Wednesday morning.
‘Does anyone know what has happened at Bronte Beach this morn?’ one user posted on the local Facebook group Bronte Loop.
‘There is a Police Rescue tent on the beach and the promenade and the beach are cordoned off (with police there).’
Another replied: ‘Dead Body found in Bronte !!! Terrifying !! ‘
Officers later took down the police tent and confirmed the case is not being treated as suspicious.
.