Nearly 12 years after Jill Brookes was brutally assaulted inside her bookstore in Altona, police have released images of a man they hope can lead them to a breakthrough.
Jill never recovered from the devastating injuries she sustained on July 20, 2012, and died in hospital nine years later.
Nobody has been charged over the assault but police hope images of a man can “provide new lines of enquiry”.
Brookes was located inside her Harrington Square second-hand bookshop around 5pm on July 20, 2012.
Her skull had been smashed in and she had sustained severe brain damage.
She never fully recovered from her injuries and passed away in March 2021.
The man in the newly released images was seen in the area on the day that Brookes was assaulted.
He was seen walking into the Altona Railway Station around 3.25pm and caught a train to Westona, getting off five minutes later.
A witness said a man with the same description was seen on Maidstone Street in Altona around 3.30pm.
Police said nothing indicated the man was involved in Jill’s death but police had not been able to identify him and wished to speak to him.
Since the attack, police have made several public appeals, including posting a $100,000 reward for information about the attack in 2014.
In 2013, a man left a letter in the Altona North Police Station mailbox with a newspaper clipping about the attack, and a note.
The note had been written with letters cut out of the same newspaper.
The letter’s writer has never been identified but police believe it could still hold the key to the case.
Victoria Police Detective Senior Constable Mathew Noonan investigated the assault for 12 years and said the case stayed with him.
“Jill’s family have never understood why this happened to her and sadly, we have never been in a position to give them the answers despite a significant investigation”, he said.
Noonan said police have not given up trying to get to the bottom of who was responsible for the assault.
“I understand that a significant amount of time has passed however we are still hopeful that this case can be solved.
“All we need is the right piece of information from the right person.”
