A police mugshot of Ned Kelly
Victoria state government officials said on Thursday that Ned Kelly's remains would be given to the outlaw's descendants.
Kelly led a gang of bank robbers in Victoria in the 19th century and was hanged in 1880. The whereabouts of his corpse was unknown for decades. Last year, forensic scientists identified his skeleton after it was found in a mass grave on the site of a now-closed prison, the Old Melbourne Gaol.
Kelly's descendants wanted the remains returned to them so they could give Kelly a proper burial.
The property developer of the former Pentridge Prison site where Kelly's skeleton was buried had hoped to keep the remains on the grounds. Kelly's descendants wanted the skeleton returned to them, so they could say farewell the outlaw with a private burial, the Guardian reported on Thursday.
Source: AFP
Final burial
Ellen Hollow, great-granddaughter of Ned Kelly's sister, Kate Kelly, welcomed the decision.
"The Kelly family will now make arrangements for Ned's final burial," Hollow said in a statement. "We also appeal to the person who has the skull in their possession to return it to [forensic officials], so that when the time comes for Ned to be laid to rest his remains can be complete."
Leigh Chiavaroli, the developer of the Pentridge site, declined to comment on the government's decision, the paper reported.
The skull was later recovered and put on display at the Old Melbourne Gaol, now a historic site. But in 1978, it was stolen again.
In 2009, a farmer handed the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine a skull he claimed was Kelly's. Forensic tests last year determined it was not the outlaw's skull. – Sapa-AP