Mystery remains of how a bright young student vanished on her way to school never to be seen again.
Siriyakorn ‘Bung’ Siriboon, 13, was usually joined by one of her year seven classmates on the 1km walk to Boronia Heights College from her home in Melbourne‘s outer-east.
But one morning on June 2, 2011, the Boronia teen waved goodbye to stepfather Fred Pattison and headed to school on her own, wearing her blue and white uniform and carrying her backpack.
She didn’t make it to school and never returned home to her older sister Pang, mum Vanidda and stepfather.
Twelve years on, Bung’s unsolved disappearance continues to baffle police, despite a $1m reward, police investigating numerous leads and a renewed public appeal two years ago.
Her family’s long quest for answers continue and recently marked another anniversary of Bung’s disappearance with prayers at Melbourne’s Wat Dhammarangsee Buddhist temple.
Siriyakorn ‘Bung’ Siriboon (pictured) vanished without a trace on June 2 2011
Bung’s mum Vanidda and stepfather Fred Pattison (pictured last month) are still fighting for answers 12 years on
Her closest friends have never forgotten their classmate and have tattoos of Bung’s name in her honour.
Police revealed they were still receiving calls ‘every week’ on the 10th anniversary of Bung’s disappearance in 2021.
‘Ten years is a long time to go without answers and I’m sure the loss of Bung feels as raw today as it did in 2011,’ Detective Leading Senior Constable Justin Tippett said at the time.
‘Despite a significant and thorough investigation, we’ve unfortunately not been able to solve this case and either provide Bung’s family with answers or hold the offender to account.’
‘We have never given up hope that one day we will be able to find out exactly what happened to Bung that day.’
Prosecutors offered to grant immunity in exchange for information identifying the person responsible for the disappearance of missing teen.
‘The Department of Public Prosecutions will also consider granting indemnification from prosecution to any person who provides information as to the identity of the principal offender or offenders,’ Victoria Police said in a statement at the time.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Victoria Police for an update on the case.
Siriyakorn ‘Bung’ Siriboon (pictured) would be 25 if she was still alive today
Police launched a week-long search of the Old Joe’s Creek basin near Bung’s home in 2013 after a man claimed he accidentally run her over and dumped her body. No trace of the teen has ever been found
Bung’s mother and stepfather have been the face of numerous public appeals and conducted several television interviews, the last being with The Project in 2021.
‘She was very mindful, she knew not to get in a car with strangers, it was only a 5-10 minute walk,’ Mr Pattison recalled.
No one realised something was wrong until hours later when her best friend Dyamai rang Bung’s home to let her know about football the next day.
Mr Pattison asked Dyamai why she didn’t tell Bung at school that day.
The friend had assumed she was at home sick as she hadn’t been at school that day. Dyamai still feels terrible about telling Bung’s parents their daughter was missing.
‘He told that she wasn’t there so I was extremely confused and after my bath she still wasn’t home,’ Dyamai recalled.
Bung’s disappearance had a harrowing toll on her friends
‘It was a really bad time. I couldn’t walk the streets alone,’ Dyamai said.
‘I couldn’t walk that road we used to walk to school together. It took me five years to walk that road again’
Best friend Dyamai (pictured) could no longer walk the road she and Bung would take when walking to school together
Were earlier abductions linked?
Just weeks prior to Bung’s disappearance, a similar unsettling incident occurred in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs.
On her way to school, an 11-year-old schoolgirl of Asian descent was walking along Bennett Street in Boronia when she encountered a older man wearing a white surgical mask. The man tried to lure her into his vehicle, but the courageous young girl quickly threatened to use her mobile phone and managed to escape.
Policehave taken note of the disturbing parallels between these cases. Additionally, there was another reported incident of an attempted abduction involving a 16-year-old girl on June 21st, although limited information is available regarding this particular crime.
A police likeness of a man over an attempted child abduction in Boronia, close to where 13-year-old schoolgirl Bung Siriboon disappeared
What do police think happened to Bung?
Police believe Bung has been abducted or possibly murdered, but 10 years after her disappearance there are still no suspects in the case.
In 2013, a Boronia man claimed he had accidentally run over Bung and dumped her body in a nearby reserve, sparking a week-long search of the Old Joe’s Creek retarding basin, located a few kilometres from where the teen was last seen.
However the large scale search failed to find any trace of her. The man was interviewed by police twice and released without charge.
Taskforce Puma, a strike force dedicated to the disappearance was shut down in October 2013 as lead dried up with the matter referred back to homicide detectives.
Three years later, police released information about a reported sighting of a heavily tattooed man driving a white Kingswood station wagon with a girl of Asian appearance sitting in the passenger seat on the day of Bung’ disappearance
The vehicle was being driven by a white man aged in 30’s or 40s with balding or light-coloured hair. The man had full sleeve tattoos on his arms and a large tattoo on the left side of his neck.
Detective Inspector Hughes who is investigating Bung Sriboon’s disappearance stated:
‘There are two specific pieces of information we are asking the public to consider, the description of the male with a large tattoo on his neck, and the description of the white-coloured station wagon.’
‘We are asking the public to think about anyone that may fit the description and had a similar vehicle or may have had access to a similar vehicle.’
‘If we can connect those two pieces of information, it will improve our ability to identify the person of interest.’
Was Bung a victim of Mr Cruel?
Child rapist Mr Cruel was believed to be responsible for at least four attacks on children, and two of his victims were 13-year-old girls in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Mr. Cruel has never been identified.
A $1m reward remain with anyone with information about what happened to Bung
Bung’s mum Vanidda (left) and stepfather Fred Pattison have been part of numerous public appeals
Last month, the Wat Dhammarangsee Buddhist temple shared photos of Bung’s mum and stepfather’s emotional visit to commemorate the 12th anniversary of her disappearance.
Born in Thailand, Bung and her family immigrated to Australia in 2007.
She was a very good student who excelled in mathematics.
‘It wasn’t like Bung to miss school. She was a diligent and intelligent student. When the school roll marked her absent for the day, her teachers and friends just assumed she was sick,’ the temple stated.
‘Her parents thoroughly searched their property before contacting all of Bung’s friends to check she wasn’t staying with them. When her parents tried to reach her on her mobile phone, they realised that Bung had left her phone at home that day.
Bung would be 25 today.
Bung was last seen by neighbours heading to school around 8.30am on June 2 2011 leaving her Elsie Street home in Boronia and heading towards Albert Avenue.
She was wearing her school uniform and carrying her school backpack, which a has never been found.
A $1m reward remains for information leading to the conviction of the person or persons responsible for Bung’s disappearance.
Siriyakorn ‘Bung’ Siriboon, 13 was last seen heading to school. But she never made it to Boronia Heights College on June 2 2011
Bung’s schoolfriends (pictured on A Current Affair in 2019) have never forgotten the teen
