Sydney police have announced that a man has been detained in relation to the 1988 death of Scott Johnson.

The 27 year old American was found dead at the bottom of cliffs on December 10th 1988 near Manly’s Blue Fish Point. His death has long been suspected as a gay hate crime.

A 49 year old Lane Cove man was arrested at 8:30am (AEST) this morning and a search warrant was executed on a nearby home. NSW Police say they expect charges to be laid later today.

When Johnson’s body was first discovered in 1988 his death was ruled as a suicide but his family fought for further investigation and over the decades three coronial inquests have been held.

The first inquest was ruled his death was a suicide, while a second delivered an open finding, a third inquest reexamined the case a ruled that the young man’s death was due to violence or the threat of violence because of his sexuality.

At the third inquest coroner Michael Barnes highlighted that there were many reports of gangs committing gay hate assaults in the area where Johnson’s was found.

“I am of the view it is very unlikely Scott took his own life,” Barnes said. “I am persuaded to the requisite standard that Scott died as a result of a gay hate attack.”

In conjunction with the NSW government Johnson’s family offered a substantial reward for information leading to a conviction over the crime. Earlier this year the reward money was increased to $2 million.

OIP Staff, image NSW Police

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