After gaining access to his weatherboard home by crashing through the glass front door, three balaclava-clad men attacked Anthony Prebble, 37, in front of his young partner and baby daughter.

Mr Prebble was bludgeoned with a baseball bat about 11.45pm on March 18, 1992.

Bleeding profusely and near unconscious, he was then dragged from his Peel Street North home into a white Holden Commodore.

His abductors, who had reportedly made demands for cash and drugs, were brandishing a sawn-off shotgun.

Mr Prebble was missing for a couple of days, despite search and rescue crews scouring forested areas around Ballarat for him and the car.

His battered body was found by two people gathering firewood on a gravel track off Codes Road, in the Creswick State Forest, about 9.45pm on March 20.

In articles published in this newspaper at the time, police determined the motive for the crime was most likely drug-related but did not give a specific reason for the attack.

It was also reported that Prebble had been known to local police for drug activities.

The car he had been transported in was found dumped in Brunswick days after his body was discovered - thoroughly cleaned of bloodstains.

At the time, police told The Courier they believed the murderers were from the Ballarat area and that the car had been dumped in Melbourne to throw police off their trail.

A post-mortem revealed Mr Prebble died of the extensive injuries he had sustained, with almost every bone in his body broken.

A 33-year-old man, Grant Wilson, pleaded guilty to being an accessory to murder at a trial in the Supreme Court in Ballarat in 1993.

In court documents seen by The Courier, Wilson was said to have supplied the Commodore, provided false information to police investigators and refused to inform them of the identity of the three principal offenders.

Nobody has ever been convicted of Mr Prebble's murder.

Mr Prebble's eldest son, Bryan, said the family were still searching for answers.

"He had a family and it changed everything," Bryan said. "The family hasn't forgotten this and we still want answers.

"We just have to deal with the pain and you feel helpless."

Aged 16 at the time, Bryan had been asleep in a bungalow behind the main house at the time of the abduction.

He remembers being woken up by the police around 4am and being told his dad had been bashed and abducted.

"I couldn't believe what was going on," he said, recalling that the police took him around to the two respective houses his brothers were staying at, where he had to inform them of what had occurred. "I was just bewildered."

His father's partner and baby Nikita were already at the police station.

It was a trying period as police searched for his father, who they believed could still be alive. Bryan was woken by police again early on Saturday morning when his father was found. It was all extremely traumatic for the teenager.

He and his siblings' - Kevin and half-siblings Dayle and Nikita - lives have all been affected by their dad's murder in some way and they have all dealt with the grief differently.

For years Bryan was wracked by guilt at having left the door unlocked when he went to bed.

"There are little things that never leave you. You're stuck with them and I've learnt to deal with it a bit better but I still get upset at times."

He personally started living in a youth housing flat by himself after his father's death, while he continued attending school.

"I went from having a family to living on my own. It changed everything."

Bryan said that while his father had substance abuse issues with drugs and alcohol, nobody deserved to die in the brutal way he had.

Every time his family reads about another murder or sees another reward offered, it "gets [Bryan] down a bit".

Mr Prebble was one of numerous people murdered in Ballarat in the 1990s, with many still unsolved. The Courier is not suggesting they are linked, though Mr Prebble's is the only one for which a reward for information hasn't been put on the table.

"It's been 29 years and they've still never offered a reward. Why not? It gets you down a bit," Bryan said. "It's like his life meant nothing. Just because he wasn't perfect doesn't mean people should stop looking. Noone else seems to care bar us, or about how we feel either."

He remembers his dad as being 'like a big kid'.

"He loved a beer and pool. He was funny and always tried to help his mates out," Bryan said.

Each year the anniversary rolls around, and they still don't have answers, is challenging for the family.

Bryan said he had accepted his dad was gone and was at peace with it but he wanted to know the truth.

He truly believes that due to the scene his father was mixed up in, that if a cash reward - even if small - was offered then information would be put on the table that leads to a conviction.

"If anyone knows anything, please come forward. We just want to know the truth."

A Victoria Police spokesperson said the investigation was ongoing. Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or file a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au