It's a mystery that has plagued Homicide Squad detectives for three decades now - the body of an unidentified man dumped on a cold dirt road in Roxburgh Park in 1995.
Investigators are now hoping that the release today of a new image of the man will provide the breakthrough they have spent years searching for, in an effort to identify him and notify his family.
The man was found lying in long grass in the North Point Business Park, near the Cliffords Road side, on the morning of 1 May, 1995.
Two members of the public had been driving on the road, about 1km north of the intersection of the Hume Freeway and Somerton Road, when they saw the body about 10am.
The men subsequently contacted police and detectives from the Homicide Squad attended the scene.
The man had been severely beaten and suffered a number of stab wounds to his upper body.
He was described as approximately 25-35 years of age, caucasian, 179cm tall, with a solid build (89kg), medium length brown hair slightly receding, brown eyes, medium complexion and a scar under his right arm.
At the time he was wearing a navy blue jumper, grey Nike t-shirt and shorts.
The man had no shoes or jewellery on and wasn't carrying a wallet or phone.
A number of public appeals were subsequently conducted in an effort to identify the man.
This led to a member of the public coming forward to say they had seen a man fitting that description outside a home on Sorbonne Drive in Sunbury - 17km away - about 6.40pm on 30 April, 1995.
They told police the man had knocked on the door of the property, however the householder closed the door and called emergency services.
At the time the man had severe facial injuries and was bleeding from a head wound.
After calling police, the householder returned to the front door but the injured man had disappeared.
Over the past 30 years, an exhaustive investigation has been conducted by the Homicide Squad in an effort to identify the man and determine who was responsible for his death.
As far as police have been able to establish, he has never been reported as a missing person.
His fingerprints and dental records have also been checked over the years in Australia and internationally, to no avail.
In May 2000, police issued a reward for anyone with information that could help identify the man and this reward remains on offer.
A reward of up to $50,000 will be paid at the discretion of the Chief Commissioner of Police for information leading to the identification of the man.
In 1995 and 1999, investigators released two computer generated images of the man in the hope someone recognised him and could provide information about his identity.
A new colour image of the man has been produced in 2025, which is more detailed and provides the best possible likeness.
Detectives are hoping that the release of this image, along with the re-release of the two previous images, will provide them with new avenues of enquiry even 30 years on.
Anyone who recognises the man or has any information about his death is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au
Quotes attributable to Detective Inspector Dean Thomas, Homicide Squad:
"For the past 30 years, this man has only been known to us as 1238/95.
"We don't know his name, where he was from, who is family was, how he lived his life.
"We also don't know how he came to be lying on that dirt road in Roxburgh Park and the circumstances that led up to his death. We are reasonably confident he is the same man that knocked on the door of the house in Sunbury however the hours between then and him being found in Roxburgh Park remain a mystery.
"The case was recently reviewed and the opportunity arose to create a new digital image of the man, so we are hopeful this could be the breakthrough detectives need.
"While we previously released images of the man in 1995 and 1999, this new image really takes advantages of all the improvements in technology that we now have at our disposal in 2025.
"I do believe there could still be people out there who know who this man is and we're hopeful that someone will see these images and be in a position to come forward and speak to police.
"Our priority is to identify him and determine whether he has a family out there who have been searching for answers for the past three decades.
"It is incredibly rare to have these circumstances where we have been unable to identify someone for such a long period of time.
"It has been a genuine mystery and one that we are exceptionally keen to solve."
