Jake Bradford: Victoria Police find human remains believed to be missing Rosebud man in remote Dollar bushland

Human remains believed to be those of a missing young man have been discovered in remote bushland in Victoria’s South Gippsland region, on what police say would have been his 23rd birthday.

Jake Bradford, from the seaside suburb of Rosebud on the Mornington Peninsula, was reported missing by his mother on January 29, 2023. Investigators believe the then-21-year-old was involved in a confrontation in the Dollar area before he disappeared.

News of Bradford’s remains potentially being found comes 18 months after he vanished, with Victoria Police hoping the discovery will offer closure to the family, whose grief remains, “as raw as ever”.

The remains, yet to be formally identified, were found about 10.30am in remote bushland off Dollar-Woorarra West Road in Dollar on Tuesday.

“Detectives from the Missing Persons Squad, Major Crime Scene Unit and Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine specialists travelled to the site this morning,” Victoria Police said in a statement.

“The coroner has been advised and a postmortem will occur in due course.”

Detective Acting Superintendent Mark Burnett, from the Serious Crime Division, said the investigative efforts by the Missing Persons Squad had been tireless and officers had pursued every avenue of enquiry to provide answers to Jake’s family.

“Our heartfelt thoughts are with Jake’s family and friends today, on what would have been Jake’s 23rd birthday,” he said.

“We know this has been an incredibly traumatic time for them. We hope that this will bring the closure they need and Jake can finally be laid to rest. The past eighteen months have been an incredibly difficult time for them and their grief remains as raw as ever.”

In March 2023, a 25-year-old Korumburra man was charged with murder over the 21-year-old’s death. He was remanded to appear at the Supreme Court of Victoria on 24 February 2025.