The disappearance of a well-known leather-hat-wearing "character" from a coastal town in Tasmania remains a mystery, a coroner has ruled.
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John Thomas Norrish, 52, was reported missing on November 26, 2018 sparking extensive land, air and sea searches around St Helens.
No trace of him has ever been found.
Mr Norrish had lived nomadically in Western Australia, the Northern Territory and Victoria in his younger life.
He always wore a leather Akubra-style hat and was a well-known character in St Helens who was often seen riding his bicycle, fishing and playing poker machines.
In findings published on Monday, coroner Simon Cooper said he was satisfied Mr Norrish, who was in poor health, had died but the circumstances could not be determined.
Mr Cooper said the last verified sighting of Mr Norrish occurred the day before he was reported missing.
He was heading away from St Helens and the small unit in which he lived.
Mr Cooper said Mr Norrish, whose case has been highlighted during National Missing Person Week, most likely headed in the wrong direction after leaving a tip shop around lunchtime on November 25.
"What happened to him after that is impossible to determine," Mr Cooper said.
"There is no evidence that points either way to homicide, suicide, misadventure or death as a result of natural causes."
Mr Cooper noted Mr Norrish's disappearance had been extensively investigated by police in the aftermath, as well as more recently.
A disability pensioner, Mr Norrish had an acquired brain injury, which caused him problems with memory and disorientation and he was known to become lost.
"I convey my sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of Mr Norrish," Mr Cooper said.
Australian Associated Press
