Bombshell in ‘Vote Yes’ death mystery: Reason man, 60, fell to his death from Piano Rock in Queensland

EXCLUSIVE

A man who fell to his death from a famous rock was there to remove a ‘Yes’ mural painted ahead of the Voice referendum, Daily Mail Australia understands. 

The 60-year-old slipped while climbing the steep rock face at Piano Rock, in Mount Tamborine, in the Gold Coast hinterland, at 4.05pm on Thursday.

Queensland ambulance crews were called to the Tamborine Mountain Road landmark where the man was found with critical head injuries. He was later confirmed dead at the scene.

Now, Daily Mail Australia can reveal the man was at the site to get rid of a heart-shaped Aboriginal flag alongside the word ‘Yes’ which had been painted on the rock two days earlier.

The Yes campaign love heart sparked outrage in the local community, with some locals condemning the artwork online and calling for the artist to return and remove it on Facebook. 

After the man’s death, social media users speculated that he was the Yes supporter who defaced the monument. 

Emergency services are pictured at the site after the man, 60, died on Thursday

However, a longtime friend of the man has refuted those claims – revealing his mate was just a member of the community who wanted the artwork gone. 

‘He was just there to clean,’ the friend said. ‘[He] died because he didn’t want to see it [there].

‘Hopefully someone will remove it.’ 

The rock, which is shaped like a piano, was painted to resemble a musical instrument in 1966 by a member of the local community.

It has been maintained over the years by relatives within the artist’s family and has become a local icon. 

Last week, just days before Australians hit polling booths to weigh in on the Indigenous Voice to Parliament, furious residents flocked online to complain after the site was vandalised on Tuesday.

While every state in Australia returned a No result on Saturday night, Queensland gave the strongest rejection to the Voice out of any state or territory, with 68 per cent voting No. 

‘Piano rock… Mt Tamborine… an icon… defaced with vote yes… no need for defacing things… people doing this sort of thing are just idiots,’ one person wrote. 

The mural has since been painted over with white paint, sparking further fury among locals

Another said: ‘Council should have removed it days ago. It was causing problems with motorists slowing to look at it.’  

‘Seems the idea of vandalising the constitution isn’t enough that vandals have attacked the piano rock on Tamborine mountain,’ a third said.

The mural has been painted over in the days since the man’s death.

However, the painting has continued to cause issues with locals complaining the cover up looks ‘fugly’ and ‘utterly horrendous!’ 

Local Councillor Jeff McConnell said the road is not governed by the council and the painting was removed by the Department of Main Roads and the Tamborine District Citizens Association.

He is currently in discussions with the community about permanent solutions to mask the mural.