Detectives are appealing for assistance to establish the movements of Tyron Beauchamp, whose body was located in bushland north of Taree last week.
A crew from NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS), located the remains of a man at 6.10am on Thursday 27 December 2018, on Yarratt Road, Upper Landsdowne, after they had extinguished a small fire in the Yarratt State Forest.
A post mortem examination revealed the man had been seriously assaulted before his body was taken to the forest and set on fire.
The man has been formally identified as 41-year-old, Tyron Beauchamp.
Mr Beauchamp was originally from Queensland and had moved to the Taree area in mid-2018.
Detectives from the State Crime Command's Homicide Squad and Manning-Great Lakes Police District are investigating Mr Beauchamp's suspected murder under Strike Force Gretna.
As the investigation continues, detectives are seeking information from the community to establish Mr Beauchamp's movements and who he had been associating with in the weeks leading up to his death.
Manning-Great Lakes Police District Crime Manager, Detective Chief Inspector Rod Blackman, said police are particularly interested in speaking with his associates and those who saw him in the lead up to Christmas Day.
"It appears Mr Beauchamp was a fairly private man – he seemed to keep to himself and had not made many close relationships since moving to the area," Det Ch Insp Blackman said.
"We have spoken to a small number of people who knew him, but we are still trying to piece together his exact movements over the last two weeks.
"We are particularly interested in anyone who may have seen or spoken with Mr Beauchamp after that time, and we'd been keen for them to get in touch as soon as possible."
While investigators have yet to determine how Mr Beauchamp came to be in the forest area, it is believed the assault occurred at another location before he was taken to the Yarratt State Forest.
"Mr Beauchamp's body was located in a small clearing of bushland about 6.5km west of Upper Lansdowne Road, which is accessed through a small pathway off Yarratt Road," Det Ch Insp Blackman said.
"Even though Yarratt Road is the main road connecting Wingham, Upper Lansdowne and Taree, the location is a discreet parcel of land, so it's likely those who disposed of Mr Beauchamp's body would have local knowledge.
"It is also likely motorists may have driven past and not realised they had seen something which may be relevant to our investigation.
"Anyone who has a dash-cam and may have been driving through the area between Christmas Day and the early hours of the 27th is urged to provide us with copies of their footage.
"Of course, we would like to speak with anyone who has any information that may assist with our inquiries, including contact with or sightings of Mr Beauchamp over the past few weeks, as well as knowledge of his associates," Det Ch Insp Blackman said.
Anyone with information that may assist Strike Force Gretna detectives is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000 or https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au. Information is treated in strict confidence.
