Father 'died of broken heart' after Sydney heiress vanished
The father of Sydney heiress Juanita Nielsen "died of a broken heart" after his daughter's disappearance from Kings Cross 45 years ago.
Ms Nielsen disappeared on July 4, 1975, aged 38, after visiting the Carousel Cabaret at Kings Cross, then a gritty Sydney neighbourhood linked with crime.
Today NSW Police have announced a $1 million reward, hoping it can finally solve the cold case.
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Juanita with her father Neil Smith. Supplied
The heir to the Mark Foy family fortune – one of Australia's leading retailers - Ms Nielsen ran her own newspaper, Now, in Kings Cross.
"This is a disappearance, this is a murder that happened nearly half a century ago," NSW Police Minister David Elliott said today.
Juanita's cousin Francis Foy's wife Margaret delivered a statement on his behalf.
She was remembered as a woman who "spoke well and intelligently" and was "very fashion-conscious and dressed well".
Relatives hold up photos of missing woman Juanita Nielsen at a NSW Police briefing where a reward of $1 million was announced. 9News
"The thing the family were very proud of is that she was always standing up for the rights of other people," Mrs Foy said.
"The disappearance without trace was just devastating for the whole family.
"She was very much loved by all her family and very much missed."
Mrs Foy said Juanita's father "died of a broken heart" years after the murder of his beloved daughter.
Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty Homicide Squad Commander said in 1977 three men were charged with conspiracy to kidnap Juanita and two were convicted of the crime and one was acquitted.
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Juanita Nielsen, editor and publisher of the newspaper 'Now' pictured in her office at Potts Point, in 1974. Nigel Scot McNeil / Fairfax Media
A 1983 inquest found Ms Nielsen had been killed, but how and by who has remained a mystery. Her body has never been found.
After she vanished, her handbag was found on the side of a highway leading to the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney's CBD.
As a newspaper journalist, Ms Nielsen relentlessly campaigned against developers trying to replace low-income housing in King's Cross with a $40 million development.
The Foys' department stores were beloved by Sydney shoppers A Current Affair
She was falsely lured to a meeting at the Carousel Club in 1975, where she was never seen or heard from again.
Who were the Foys?
Ms Nielsen was Mark Foy's great niece – and heiress to the Foy family fortune.
Mark Foy was like an Australian Great Gatsby, establishing a lavish shopping emporium in the heart of Sydney.
It was the most social of settings, with modelling parades and endless long lunches. It was the place to be.
Mark Foy also imported the first French automobile to Australia.
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