A former Echuca man who went missing almost six years ago died on the day he was last seen or shortly after, a coroner says.
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The 44-year-old Aboriginal man was living in Swan Hill on September 4, 2014, when his cousin spoke to him in the early afternoon outside the Swan Hill Club.
The man's cousin recalled he was wearing a hospital wristband but said he was "alright".
The man told his cousin he was heading to the nearby Wamba Wamba Aboriginal housing community and walked in that direction.
Coroner Simon McGregor said it was the last time a reliable witness saw the man alive, although his body has never been found.
The man had a number of health issues, and in the two days before his disappearance saw medical practitioners and was admitted to hospital.
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This month, Mr McGregor said he was satisfied the man had died on or shortly after September 4, 2014.
Mr McGregor said he came to this conclusion for a number of reasons, among them the fact the missing man had made no contact with family members, despite their close ties.
He last made a withdrawal from his bank account the day before his disappearance and had not touched it since, but did not have another source of funds.
Mr McGregor said it was unlikely the man could survive without access to these funds.
The coroner said the missing man also made no contact with Medicare or Centrelink, and comprehensive, nationwide proof-of-life checks had established no record he was alive.
But Mr McGregor made no findings as to how the man died.
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