Family's heartache as they discover missing daughter was killed in a car crash more than 30 years ago - but her death was recorded under a different name
- A missing teenager from 1987 was revealed to have died under a different name
- Ursula Barwick called herself Jessica Pearce when she moved to Sydney aged 17
- Ms Barwick made the move in Sept 1987 and died in a car crash a month later
- Her family are 'distressed' but hope the news will allow them to finally move on
A family have discovered their daughter missing for more than 30 years was killed in a car crash - but her death was recorded under a different name.
Ursula Barwick, 17, disappeared in September 1987, but an inquest into her death has confirmed she died under the alias of Jessica Pearce.
Her father, Peter, stepmother, Elizabeth, and brother, Andrew, embraced and cried after the findings were delivered at Glebe Coroners Court on Friday.
Ursula Barwick (pictured)'s family thought the 17-year-old had disappeared in September 1987, but an inquest into her death has confirmed the teenager died in a car crash, under the alias of Jessica Pearce
Ms Barwick died in a head-on collision on the Hume Highway near Tarcutta in October 1987 but was buried under the name Jessica Pearce - a name she adopted after moving to Sydney from the Central Coast.
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The confusion was partly due to an acquaintance identifying the body as 'Jessica Pearce' in the morgue.
'To have this confirmed we're very, very sad - it is quite final,' cousin Melissa Pouliot told AAP outside court on Friday.
'Hearing those words is quite distressing but we are very happy we are able to move forward from this point.
'It is quite final': Her family embraced and cried after the findings were delivered at Glebe Coroners Court on Friday
Ms Barwick died in a head-on collision near Tarcutta in October 1987 but was buried under the name Jessica Pearce - an alias she adopted after moving to Sydney from the Central Coast
'We have been on such a rollercoaster for over 30 years but particularly in these last four years because the investigation did move quite rapidly in a lot of different directions.'
This year is the 32nd Christmas the family have had since Ms Barwick went missing and the 14th since they lost Ursula's mother Cheree.
'We wish Aunty Cheree was here with us today ... that was part of the drive to not give up and to keep pushing for this,' Ms Pouliot said.
NSW Deputy State Coroner Derek Lee said families usually gathered together at this time of year.
'Therefore, it is most distressing to know that Ursula's family have, undoubtedly for so many years, been left with an absence that cannot be filled, and a sense of uncertainty that would not be eased,' he said.
The confusion was partly due to an acquaintance identifying the body as 'Jessica Pearce' in the morgue, the inquiry found
'It is even more painful to know that for Cheree, that devastating sense of uncertainty about what happened to her daughter was never able to be lessened.'
Missing persons Senior Constable Adam Marsh in 2010 was provided with records on the death of 'Jessica Pearce' and identified a number of similarities with the circumstances surrounding Ms Barwick's disappearance.
After seeing a photo of Ms Barwick in 2015 he emailed his findings to a sergeant who passed on the information.
Two police officers took on the case and using information from those who survived the car crash, post-mortem photographs and other records it was established they were the same person.
Three years ago her family fronted the media to renew calls for information into her disappearance during Missing Persons Week.
An inquest into the death of 'Jessica Pearce' was held in 1998 in Wagga Wagga but was suspended due to doubts over her true identity.
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