Police will begin searching a series of remote mine shafts in South Australia’s mid-north as the hunt for missing four-year-old Gus Lamont continues, two months after he vanished without a trace.

The latest phase of the investigation is expected to run for up to three days and will see officers use specialised equipment to examine six uncovered, unfenced mine shafts located between 5.5km and 12km from the Oak Park homestead where Gus was last seen.

SA Police Deputy Commissioner Linda Williams said the shafts were not previously identified, and are located outside the area already searched by crews on foot.

‘We are determined to explore every avenue in an effort to locate Gus Lamont and provide some closure for his family,’ she said.

‘These searches will either locate evidence or eliminate these locations from further investigation by the Task Force.’

Police say this stage is to make sure every possible location of interest around the homestead is checked thoroughly.

Just five days into the search, a local told Daily Mail that many in the community feared the little boy may have fallen into one of the region’s countless hidden shafts – raising questions about why it has taken police so long to search them.

‘I would be more worried about the unmarked wells and mines he may have fallen into,’ he said. ‘That’s the talk among locals.

Police will return to Oak Park Station to continue the search for four-year-old Gus Lamont who was last seen on September 27, 2025

The boy was last seen by his grandmother playing on a mound of dirt outside in the early evening. When she returned 30 minutes later to call him inside, he had vanished

‘Most aren’t on any maps. If Gus’ grandparents have owned that property for a while, they should know where they are – although I’m still finding new spots on my property.

‘Most have different-coloured material around them from being dug out, but some are flush with the ground and have overgrowth all around them.

‘Some are easy to see, some definitely not… but hopefully Gus is just lost… and not perished.’

The renewed search comes after police drained a large dam on the property on October 31, ruling out concerns that Gus may have drowned.

This came after extensive ground and aerial searches involving SA Police, ADF personnel, SES volunteers, Indigenous trackers and local landholders.

Earlier, on October 17, police concluded a four-day search of Oak Park Station, building on an initial 10-day operation launched immediately after Gus disappeared.

The ground search at Oak Park Station has now extended to 5.5km from the homestead.

Police said they continue to pursue multiple lines of inquiry, though investigators say nothing uncovered so far points to foul play.

Gus Lamont’s grandmothers Josie, left, and Shannon Murray, right,

Police divers searched dams in the early days of their frantic hunt for the missing boy

A local has shared an image of an abandoned well from years gone by which dot the region

Gus’ family remain fully cooperative with police and are being supported by a dedicated victim contact officer as the search for answers soon enters its third month.

Despite one of the largest search efforts in the country’s history, involving the Australian Defence Force, helicopters with thermal imaging and Aboriginal trackers – no trace of Gus has been found eight weeks after his disappearance.

The boy was last seen by his grandmother Shannon Murray playing on a mound of dirt outside in the early evening. When she returned 30 minutes later to call him inside, he had vanished.

Gus lived on the station with her, grandparent Josie Murray – a transgender woman, his mother Jessica and his younger brother Ronnie.

It has been reported that Gus’ mum Jessica was with Josie looking for lost sheep about 10km from the homestead when Gus disappeared.

A close friend of Shannon’s suggested Gus could have simply wandered off to look for his mother.

‘It is very easy to get lost on a station that size,’ said the friend.

‘Shannon grew up out there and she almost got lost a few years ago.

Yunta is a dusty dot on the South Australian map with a population of just 60

Joshua Lamont, the father of missing four-year-old Gus Lamont

‘Her and Josie were out on motorbikes sorting out the sheep one afternoon and they got separated for a while. She had to turn off her bike to listen out for Josie’s to find her way back.

‘He’s a happy little boy, happy to do his own thing. But when you address him, he gets shy and hides.’

Gus’ father Joshua Lamont was living in a farmhouse in Belalie North – a two-hour drive away from the Murray’s Outback sheep station – while still in a relationship with Jess.

It is understood Mr Lamont only found out his child was missing when police woke him up at his Belalie North home, hours after Gus had vanished.

He now appears to be living in Adelaide, more than 290km away from where his son was last seen.

Jessica has not been seen in public since Gus vanished on September 27.

It was widely understood that she remained at Oak Park Station, where she was living with her parents, Gus, and one year old Ronnie – the other son she shares with Jos.

SOURCE: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15319829/Police-drop-bombshell-search-little-Gus-Lamont-nearly-two-months-vanished-without-trace.html