the disappearance of the Tromp family <\/a>has remained one of Australia\u2019s most unsettling mysteries. <\/p>\nThe fleeing of the Tromps eventually leading to their separation and recovery amid a shared psychotic episode. <\/p>\n
The mysterious event captured global attention, becoming a frequent subject of international media, true crime podcasts, and psychological case studies.<\/p>\n
Theories gripped the nation, one of which is folie en famille \u2014 a historical term for shared, fixed delusional beliefs within a family \u2014 which a psychiatrist suggests may offer an explanation. <\/p>\n
While the Yarra Ranges family eventually returned to ordinary life, the events of the six days they were on the \u201crun\u201d remain shrouded in silence.<\/p>\n
Attempts to revisit the story in Silvan have often been met with resistance.<\/p>\n
During this reporter\u2019s recent trip to Silvan, neighbours made it clear that we \u2014 and any questions regarding that fateful week \u2014 were not welcome.<\/p>\n
The frantic journey north<\/p>\n
By all accounts, the Tromps \u2014 Mark, 51, his wife Jacoba (Coby), 53, and their adult children Mitchell, 25, Riana, 29, and Ella, 22 \u2014 were a normal, hardworking family running a successful berry farm that they had operated since 2006.<\/p>\n
Coby, a former teacher, had taken a leading role in running the farm while her husband, Mark, focused on his earthmoving business.<\/p>\n
Redcurrants have been grown at Parkview Farm, nestled on the corner of Chapman and Parker roads in the picturesque town of Silvan, 60km east of the city, for more than 20 years.<\/p>\n
On August 29, 2016, the Tromp family\u2019s lives changed forever, embarking on a paranoia-fuelled road trip believed to have originated from Mark who believed they were being followed and in danger. <\/p>\n
Sergeant Mark Knight said at the time, there was no one standing over the family, and the Tromps did not have crime links or know of anyone out to harm them. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe can categorically say there was no one following any of them,\u201d Sergeant Knight said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere has been no physical threat to this family at all. It was in their minds.\u201d<\/p>\n
Without warning, they fled their Chapman Rd home in Ella\u2019s grey Peugeot station wagon, leaving behind all other cars with keys still in the ignitions.<\/p>\n
They took a large amount of cash but left behind essential items like bank cards, passports, and all but one of their mobile phones.<\/p>\n
This masthead had reported Mark and Coby had insisted all phones and tablets be left in their unlocked house.<\/p>\n
The family\u2019s erratic journey began with a drive north toward NSW. <\/p>\n
Approximately 32km into the trip, near Warburton, Mitchel threw his mobile phone \u2014 the only one the family had brought \u2014 from the car window. <\/p>\n
This act was widely interpreted by investigators as a sign that the family believed they were being tracked.<\/p>\n
Professor Suresh Sundram, Chair of Psychiatry at Monash University said it could be said the family suffered from \u201cfolie en famille.\u201d<\/p>\n
Translated to family madness, Professor Sundram said, \u201cthis is a psychosis that has affected a number of members of a particular family that share a set of beliefs which are false.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are fixed in the sense that people really truly believe them, and they\u2019re not really shakable. <\/p>\n
\u201cEven when you present people with evidence to the contrary in a psychosis, they won\u2019t incorporate that new evidence to change or shake their preformed beliefs.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was against this backdrop of escalating, unshakeable fear that the family\u2019s frantic journey continued, driving them further away from the life they knew.<\/p>\n
Eight hours later on August 30, the family unit of five reached Bathurst, NSW, the last destination they would be at together.<\/p>\n
The slow return<\/p>\n
Alarmed by his family\u2019s rapidly deteriorating state of mind, Mitchell separated from the family about 7am from Kelso, embarking on his journey back to Victoria.<\/p>\n
Mitchell later told the media he didn\u2019t feel in danger despite his parents\u2019 erratic behaviour.<\/p>\n
With this information, Professor Sundram suspects Mitchell did not share the same delusions the other family members were.<\/p>\n
\u201cClearly, he was somebody who was questioning whether this was true or not true, and that\u2019s the reason why he took the phone,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt sounds like that maybe he was coerced into throwing the phone out, or that that was done against his will.\u201d<\/p>\n
Shifting the focus to the potential source of this shared psychosis, Professor Sundram further hypothesised that Mark and Coby were the originators of the belief.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s unclear which parent it was because they were a relatively isolated couple living in a relatively isolated setting,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey start to consolidate and assume their own reality and so I suspect that potentially may have happened with this family.\u201d<\/p>\n
Following the abandonment of Mitchell, the remaining members continued towards the Blue Mountains, where more family members split.<\/p>\n
Near Jenolan Caves, Riana and Ella left their parents, allegedly stealing a ute, which Ella drove towards Goulburn.<\/p>\n
The girls were both charged with theft of a motor vehicle but later the charges were dismissed under the NSW Mental Health Act.<\/p>\n
It was in this regional NSW town where both sisters separated from each other and Riana\u2019s journey took a distressing turn of events.<\/p>\n
While Ella drove the stolen vehicle back towards Silvan, Riana was found hiding out in the back of a stranger\u2019s ute.<\/p>\n
Keith Whittaker drove several kilometres when he felt a kick behind his seat, turning around to find Riana in a terrifying state.<\/p>\n
He told the Goulburn Post she was in a \u201ccatatonic state\u201d and unable to identify herself and where she was.<\/p>\n
Professor Sundram suggested that Riana\u2019s state of mind could have stemmed from a deep conflict of beliefs.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s possible that maybe that individual was so conflicted between what they, on the one hand, assumed to be the true reality versus, on the other hand, what their family members were telling them to be true,\u201d said Prof Sundram.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat level of internal conflict caused them to not be able to respond appropriately.<\/p>\n
After calling the police, Riana was taken to the Goulburn Hospital where she was treated for stress related issues.<\/p>\n
It was this afternoon Mark and Jacoba were both reported missing, sparking police to attend the abandoned family home in Silvan, where Ella arrived that night.<\/p>\n
Ella said she and her family \u201cweren\u2019t thinking clearly\u201d when they set off. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe general stress of life just got a bit too much,\u201d she told this masthead.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur minds weren\u2019t in the best place. I still feel confused. There is no one reason for it. It\u2019s bizarre.\u201d<\/p>\n
When authorities arrived, the scene was bizarre and appeared to be a snapshot of a life interrupted.<\/p>\n
It was not the scene of an orderly departure, but more of a panicked escape.<\/p>\n
On the morning of Wednesday August 31, Mitchell returned home catching the train from Sydney.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile Mark and Jacoba had driven back over the Victorian border to the town of Wangaratta where Mark remained while Jacoba travelled north to Yass where she was found in an agitated state.<\/p>\n
She was taken to hospital and assessed by doctors who deemed her mental health as \u201cpoor\u201d.<\/p>\n
A local couple later reported a disturbing encounter with a man believed to be Mark, who tailgated them in a silver Peugeot station wagon before fleeing into a park.<\/p>\n
On September 1, Mitchell appeared on Channel 9 alongside police in an effort to locate his father, telling the media his parents were \u201cfearing for their lives,\u201d though he could not explain why or who was behind the paranoia.<\/p>\n
Two days later, on September 3, Mark was found running along the streets on the outskirts of Wangaratta.<\/p>\n
While being driven away by police, he gave the waiting media his middle finger.<\/p>\n
The father of three issued an apology for the \u201churt and concern\u201d caused by the week-long journey which gripped the nation and the globe.<\/p>\n
He said he hoped he and his family can \u201cbegin to make sense\u201d of the ordeal, and will be receiving help from mental health professionals.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn recent days, my family has been through a difficult period,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will soon be reunited and together. I hope that we will begin to make sense of our ordeal and return to a normal life.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am conscious of the burden these events have placed upon our extended family, friends and the community resources devoted to our aid.<\/p>\n
\u201cWithout reservation, I apologise for the hurt and concern caused by these events.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark underwent a mental health assessment in hospital with the support of Coby and his parents George and Wilma, who said their son\u2019s behaviour was totally out of character.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not like him at all,\u201d Mrs Tromp said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe really don\u2019t know what has triggered all of this. We are just really overjoyed that Mark is safe.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said he didn\u2019t believe they were under financial strain or aware of any mental health concerns.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no sinister, no cult, no one else involved, that\u2019s why this is such a puzzle,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can understand why everyone is so intrigued. One day we\u2019ll know.\u201d<\/p>\n
But more than 10 years on, the mystery remains. <\/p>\n
Mystery remains<\/p>\n
A decade later, the Tromp family remains silent.<\/p>\n
Ella told this reporter it was \u201cprivate and confidential\u201d, while Mitchell suggested we \u201cget a new story\u201d and Mark declined to speak with us.<\/p>\n
One woman staying with her cousins on a neighbouring property on Chapman Rd said the \u201cclose-knit community\u201d would not discuss the past.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhatever happened has been and gone and that is their business.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another neighbour who wished to remain anonymous said in the few brief conversations they have had with Mark, he was deeply embarrassed by the events which transpired a decade ago.<\/p>\n
The family never provided the eagerly waiting media with any explanation for the events of the week and appeared keen to get back to the life waiting for them on their berry farm.<\/p>\n
Theories continue to circulate but the definitive truth of what happened on that farm in Silvan remains just out of reach. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Keys were left in the ignition. Doors were wide open. 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