- A nationwide search has been launched for a suspected Black Saturday conman who has been missing for three years.
Philip John Thomas is wanted for questioning over swindles which ripped off more than $40,000 from the Salvation Army in the wake of the devastating fires.
Mr Thomas’s movements have been tracked to Alice Springs, Sydney, Perth, Adelaide, Queensland and Tasmania.
The father of two signed on as a volunteer for the Salvation Army in Traralgon in April 2009, as the organisation struggled to deal with an influx of people looking for help.
“He allegedly helped himself to the cheque book,” Detective Senior Constable Jason Benbow said. Police have been unable to speak to Mr Thomas since.
The last positive indication of his whereabouts came two weeks ago when his car received a ticket in the Launceston Airport long-term car park.
Investigators say he had stayed in a homeless shelter in Burnie, on Tasmania’s north coast, at some time in 2010.
Police have been working with interstate police and other agencies to find Mr Thomas but believe the public may be able to help.
Mr Thomas, who may also use the name Philo Beddo, is 188cm tall, of medium build and has blue-grey eyes – Mark Buttler
