How Treasa Steinhardt survived her daughter Keyra being murdered by a serial ...

'She's the hero': Mother whose daughter was snatched and murdered by a serial killer two decades ago breaks her silence and reveals how the nine-year-old's death ensured no one else was hurt Keyra Steinhardt, 9, was taken and murdered in Rockhampton on April 22, 1999 Serial killer Leonard John Fraser was eventually caught and jailed for life Her mother Treasa went off the rails for a decade before learning to live with it She survived by thinking of her daughter as the girl who got a killer caught 

By Nic White For Daily Mail Australia

Published: 05:02 BST, 22 April 2019 | Updated: 05:02 BST, 22 April 2019

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Two decades after her nine-year-old daughter was abducted and murdered by a serial killer, Treasa Steinhardt still can't believe she's gone.

The still-grieving mother never saw Keyra's naked, lifeless body propped up against a tree in a creek bed with her throat cut and her school jumper draped over her.

Neither did she peek inside the tiny coffin the funeral home in Rockhampton, Queensland, prepared - only lifting it to prove she was inside.

Keyra Steinhardt, 9, was abducted and murdered in Rockhampton on April 22, 1999

Keyra Steinhardt, 9, was abducted and murdered in Rockhampton on April 22, 1999

The last time Ms Steinhardt saw her daughter was the morning of April 22, 1999, when she dropped her at school, 20 years ago today.

Later that day, a couple witnessed the moment a man knocked her out after following her home before loading her into a car boot. 

They waited a crucial 20 minutes to call police.

Hundreds of police and local volunteers scoured the town and bush for her body, but it was only found when her killer led them to it.

Eight years

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