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It was about 8.45pm on June 13 when a blue-eyed, brunette18-year-old girl stepped out from the ANU Bar where she'd been drinking with friends. That was 36 years ago, the night Elizabeth Herfort disappeared. All the evidence has led police to believe Lizzie, as she was affectionately known, was murdered. But her killer has never been brought to justice. Lizzie was one of four children. She was born in Malaysia, but her mother, Anne Berry, was Scottish. Ms Berry said Lizzie would find the reactions hilarious when people became confused by the light-featured girl with a Scottish accent standing before them telling them she was Malaysian. The former Narrabundah College student loved to cook and she liked being outdoors and in the garden. She was often away fruit-picking, but was in between work the day she disappeared. Her friends had assumed she caught the bus home from the ANU Bar that night, but police believe she was hitchhiking from the city to her family home in Pearce. In the early days of the investigation, a man came forward with information he had picked her up from Vernon Circle and dropped her on Commonwealth Avenue near Coronation Drive. Other sightings on Commonwealth Avenue were reported, according to Detective Acting Sergeant Tristan Thexton of the ACT Homicide Investigation Team, but all leads proved to be inconclusive. The police continued the search for clues, but no new information meant the case was rested. In 1994, before a coronial inquest into Lizzie's suspected death, another tip-off again proved inconclusive. A death certificate was issued to the family in November 1996, when a coroner found that, although her body was never discovered, it was likely she was deceased and foul play was involved. Detective Thexton said the disappearance was a constant source of pain to the family. "It probably still haunts their every waking moment," he said. Lizzie's sister Janie said, as the years dragged on, the mystery became harder to bear. "There is not a day that goes by that I don't wonder if they'll find her remains today," Janie said. She said her mind wandered to the possibilities of what had happened to her sister, her best friend, which made each day more painful than the last. Police believe there is someone out there who has a piece of the puzzle they have not yet shared. Detective Thexton said something that might seem irrelevant could be the final clue to solving the case. "As the old adage goes, it could be that tiny little piece of the puzzle that could make things fit all of a sudden," he said. If you have information on the disappearance of Elizabeth Herfort, phone Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or visit crimestoppers.com.au. Information can be provided anonymously.

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