Man reveals where he allegedly buried his wife. / 9 News
Police have dug up the remains of an Adelaide mum who went missing 45 years ago, after her husband showed detectives where he allegedly buried her body.
Police arrested Geoffrey Adams, 70, at his home on Wednesday afternoon over the murder of Colleen Adams.
Officers travelled with Adams to a property at Maitland, on the Yorke Peninsula, where the couple had lived with their children.
A detective marked the spot where investigators will focus their dig. Photo / Channel 9
Video from the scene shows Adams appearing to point out a particular area to police. It is understood this is where excavators focused their search.
The discovery of Mrs Adams' remains today came a short time before the couple's youngest daughter, Kay, gave reporters a statement via police.
"Today I have finally found my mother," it read. "After 45 years of hoping, we have found her. It's hard to say in a few words what I am feeling, but I am so grateful to the South Australian police and everyone who has worked to help find her."
The couple's former home was cordoned off as a crime scene and covered with a tent overnight, before detailed excavation work took place this morning.
Adams appeared by video-link in Kadina Magistrates Court, after being charged with murder and spending the night in custody at Port Pirie.
He did not apply for bail and was remanded in custody, to reappear before the court in October.
Mrs Adams disappeared in late 1973 when she was just 24, last seen alive at the property she shared with her husband and their two young children.
Colleen Adams with her husband Geoffrey. Photo / Supplied
During the original investigation, Adams told police he woke at about 7am on November 22 to find Mrs Adams fully dressed with two packed suitcases.
She said she was leaving and never wanted to see him or the children again, before she got into a car with a middle-aged woman he did not know, he told police.
It was several weeks before she was reported missing by her worried mother.
In 1979, police declared Mrs Adams' disappearance a major crime, with no contact made and none of her bank accounts accessed.
Earlier this week, Head of Major Crime Des Bray announced police would search the property using ground-penetrating radar and specialist camera equipment.
"It is important that we provide answers to family members in cases such as these," he said.
