Police are calling for information after clothing was found in bushland that may be a crucial clue in determining the final movements of a woman who disappeared more than 30 years ago.

Police, after searching the Illawarra escarpment at Figtree, found black pants and a cream button-down blouse with white and orange stitching as part of an ongoing investigation into the disappearance of Pauline Sowry.

Sowry, also known by her married name Pauline Lawrence, was 49 years old when she was last seen by her family in the northern suburbs of Wollongong in December 1993.

Her whereabouts remain unknown, and a 2008 coronial inquest found she had died, most likely after an unconfirmed sighting in 1994.

In 2022, police established Strike Force Anthea to reopen the investigation into Sowry’s disappearance.

“I can tell you that at the time of her disappearance, Pauline had just recently gone through a divorce, and that she was hanging around a bad, bad crowd,” the NSW police assistant commissioner, Joe Cassar, told reporters.

“She did come into some money as a result of the settlement of the divorce, and we believe that may have been the catalyst to her disappearance.”

Police have not confirmed whether the clothing belonged to Sowry, but said the items include hand-stitching in coloured cotton and the mother was known for altering clothing for herself and her children.

“Those items of clothing have been examined forensically, but unfortunately, because they have been out in the elements, we are yet to identify any blood sources or DNA,” Cassar said.

“We are releasing these images to try to jog someone’s memory.”

“We are interested in anyone that may have any information as to how these items of clothing got in this location, or, in fact, whether they’d seen Pauline wearing these items of clothing.”

In March this year, the police and state government announced a $500,000 reward for information that leads to the “arrest and conviction of anyone responsible”.

Responses to that announcement led officers to search the bushland three times – in March and May 2023 and October 2024.

“We are not ruling out further searches, as we continue to investigate the circumstances of Pauline’s disappearance,” Cassar said.

Pauline’s son Jason Lawrence hopes the discovery of the clothes will lead to a breakthrough in the investigation.

“We don’t want to spend another Christmas not knowing what happened to mum. We deserve to know what happened to her and to give her a proper send-off and lay her to rest.”

“We know someone out there knows something – as you prepare to spend Christmas with your own family, we are pleading for you to come forward and give us some closure, by knowing what happened to my beloved mum,” Jason said.

In May this year, police issued an appeal for information on a white 1968-model Holden HK Kingswood sedan that Sowry may have been travelling in south of Wollongong around the time of her disappearance. The car has been described as being in pristine condition at the time.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers and can do so anonymously.