"JUSTICE", FROM THE CRAZY TO THE DEEPLY DISTURBING
The thinking behind this blog is really simple: The guilty should be prevented from reoffending and the innocent should not be convicted -- not very complex but often not achieved.
http://stju.blogspot.ie/2006/02/more-on-corrupt-justice-of-western.html?m=1
The spotlight is also thrown on feral law enforcement
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
MORE ON THE CORRUPT JUSTICE OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Swigging a mid-strength beer and munching pizza on Monday night, Andrew Mallard quietly contemplated his freedom after almost 12 years behind bars. There were no high fives or whoops of joy, just a wander outside to look at the night sky unimpeded by prison walls. "I haven't seen the stars for so long," he mused. "Once you're locked in your cell, you can't see much." Just eight hours earlier, Mallard was spending another mundane day of musters and lock-downs, inmate number HO923173 in the maximum security Casuarina Prison. The jail had been his home since 1994, when he was charged with the murder of Perth jeweller Pamela Lawrence in a bloody case that has become infamous in the west.
At her retirement village cottage, his elderly mother Grace and his steadily loyal big sister Jacqui wept with relief. John Quigley, a prominent former police union lawyer turned Labor MP, and I swapped telephone calls with the pro bono legal team from Clayton Utz and eminent barrister Malcolm McCusker, QC, who also worked on the case for free. A documentary team, filming the final scenes for an ABC television special, captured the long-awaited first moments of freedom.
Monday's release came quickly but the road has been long: failed appeals and an exhausting struggle to find new evidence culminated in the discovery in 2002 of a police briefing that showed several key pieces of evidence were not disclosed to the defence at trial, including a forensic test that showing a wrench drawn during Mallard's long police interviews could not have caused Lawrence's injuries. The case was reopened by Attorney-General Jim McGinty but a long [Corrupt Western Australia] Supreme Court appeal was dismissed in 2003. That decision was overturned last November in a unanimous ruling by the High Court, which quashed Mallard's conviction.
Robert Cock, QC, the Director of Public Prosecutions, had been hell-bent on retrying Mallard, claiming police and prosecutors had done no wrong and had nothing to hide. That was until mid-morning on Monday, when he telephoned McCusker to inform him the murder charge would be withdrawn because there was insufficient evidence to proceed.
The dramatic end to Mallard's incarceration places him alongside Western Australia's other famous wrongful conviction cases: the Mickelberg brothers, John Button and Darryl Beamish. Most of the key players in those other mysteries were either retired or dead. In Mallard's case, the police and prosecutors have since risen to the top echelons of the state's justice system.
After being handed a life sentence in 1995, Mallard disappeared down the Supreme Court dock stairs, yelling his innocence and promising, "You have not heard the last of this." He was right. Mallard's name now evokes bitter passions in the Perth legal community, publicly pitting Quigley and the eminent McCusker against Cock, who claimed on Monday that Mallard was still the prime suspect, despite conceding he had no case.
It has divided the legal clique of Perth, where senior lawyers and judges tend to speak about each other in terms of which year they graduated from the same law school and which college sporting team they represented together. Long-held concerns in defence circles about the cosy relationship between the office of the DPP and police, and the number of ex-crown lawyers appointed to the Supreme Court bench, are the talk of Perth's legal hub at St Georges Terrace. Now that the murder charge has been dropped, all eyes are on a Corruption and Crime Commission investigation, which was launched after a stinging parliamentary speech by Quigley following the High Court decision in November.
Before entering parliament, Quigley spent 20 years defending police against allegations of corruption and illegality. The outspoken Labor MP's passionate belief in Mallard's innocence turned him from police protector to accuser. He claimed in parliament the controversy amounted to a prima facie case of perverting the course of justice and lined up two assistant commissioners: David Caporn, who runs counter-terrorism and state protection, and Mal Shervill, the boss of specialist crime. Shervill led the investigation into Lawrence's death. Caporn, who would later lead the Claremont serial killer taskforce, was a head detective.
Before the stormy afternoon of June 23, 1994, when Lawrence was bludgeoned to death in the leafy suburb of Mosman Park, Mallard was one of Perth's many homeless drifters with mental health problems and a penchant for marijuana. He was known to police for petty crimes and, on the morning of the murder, had been in the lock-up for breaking into the apartment of a friend's ex-boyfriend. Detectives arriving at the bloody scene after the mother of two's death found no jewellery or cash stolen, although they were in full view. Lawrence's husband, who had found his dying wife on the shop floor, told police a wallet from her handbag was gone.
Police decided it was a case of robbery gone wrong. Mallard was one of 136 names on their list of suspects who vaguely fitted a description given by a schoolgirl who'd seen a man in Lawrence's shop. They began checking alibis and kept returning to suspects whose stories did not check out. Mallard, who was under assessment in Graylands Psychiatric Hospital at the time, was deemed to be dishonest because his alibis kept turning out to be stories from days other than the day of the murder.
He had no history of violence and did not know Lawrence but his odd behaviour led detectives to seize Mallard's clothing, including his only pair of shoes. One drop of blood was found on a boot. It appears detectives were misled by an early laboratory report that suggested it was Lawrence's blood type. It was actually Mallard's own blood from a cut finger.
Regardless of the blood result, police believed Mallard was suspiciously lying about his alibi. On June 10, 1994, without a lawyer or family member, Mallard followed Caporn, the day he was released from Graylands, into a police interview room, where he stayed for eight hours. What happened in that room is contested by both sides. The DPP's explanation on Monday for dropping the case surrounded the detective's handwritten, unsigned confession, which was admitted at Mallard's 1995 trial but would not be permitted under today's evidence rules.
After that marathon interview, Mallard was released in the dead of night with no money or accommodation. Unknown to him, his trial lawyer or the 1995-96 appeal lawyers, Caporn had ordered an undercover detective to befriend Mallard and attempt to find evidence, particularly the murder weapon. That officer, codenamed Gary, watched Mallard smoking marijuana (Mallard says Gary supplied the marijuana) and attempted to gain a confession. The secret operation found nothing. A summary of the investigation, among the uncovered evidence found in 2002, revealed that some police believed Mallard was acting strangely but had doubts about his guilt.
A week later, after a sleepless night in which he was bashed outside a nightclub under the watch of the undercover operation, Mallard was again interviewed off-camera and he drew a Sidchrome wrench. He then went on video for about 20 minutes to clear his name and confirm that he had told the police his theory of what the killer would have done. That video, supported by Caporn's corroborating notes, was the key to a successful prosecution.
The five judges of the High Court found the conviction a miscarriage of justice because those confessions were unreliable and significant forensic evidence was withheld from the defence. They were critical of the fact that the police held back a raft of evidence (the prosecution knew of some of it) helpful to Mallard's defence.
In addition to the wrench test and undercover operation, witness statements had been changed to remove crucial facts and a forensic scientist had been asked to alter his report on how the killer could have disposed of the murder weapon. It is not known what information the police made available to the then director of public prosecutions, John McKechnie, QC, or the trial prosecutor, Ken Bates. McKechnie is now a Supreme Court judge and Bates a senior prosecutor who acted as DPP when Cock was recently on sick leave with cancer.
Cock has said he hopes any non-disclosure by the DPP's office was an oversight and not deliberate. He has also said he believes the police have done nothing wrong and could not see why the CCC investigation was necessary. Cock told the court on Monday he still considered Mallard the prime suspect in the murder despite the lack of evidence to proceed against him. He has been supportive of the police refusal to reopen the case in the face of evidence provided by McCusker relating to other suspects, including a report from an internationally renowned forensic expert.
It is almost impossible to find senior criminal counsel without some link to this case or its main players. McCusker, Mallard's lawyer, is also the parliamentary inspector of the CCC. Safely ensconced in his mother's retirement village after a fitful night's sleep on a comfortable bed, the lanky, bespectacled Mallard is still coming to terms with his release. Yesterday, as furious words were hurled from both sides, the quietly spoken Englishman vowed to make his supporters proud. His first instinct is to flee the state, wary of police and a system he has grown to mistrust, but he is determined to clear his name before going anywhere. "I need it to be proved irrefutably that I am innocent and that the murderer is still out there," he says. "I have waited a long time. The whole truth will come out in the end."
Report here
Further comment:
"State Attorney-General Jim McGinty yesterday conceded the case had revealed an "untidy and unfortunate" series of events, saying it was up to the state's corruption watchdog to continue its investigations into the handling of the police inquiries and prosecution. "Nobody can feel satisfied with the way in which the Mallard case has unfolded," Mr McGinty said. "It was an horrendous murder. Nobody has been brought to justice for it and now we have got allegations of improper or corrupt behaviour by police and DPP prosecutors. "I think there is no doubt that this particular case casts a shadow over the way in which the police conducted the investigation and perhaps the way in which the DPP prosecuted this case." Mr McGinty urged police to vigorously investigate any further information that became available.
Police Deputy Commissioner Chris Dawson was quick to defend his officers yesterday, saying it was important the case did not become a measure of police competence in homicide investigations. Contradicting his statement on Monday evening that police had no intention of re-opening the case, Mr Dawson said unsolved murder cases were never closed."
(And don't forget your ration of Wicked Thoughts for today)
"JUSTICE", FROM THE CRAZY TO THE DEEPLY DISTURBING
http://stju.blogspot.ie/2006/02/more-on-corrupt-justice-of-western.html?m=1
The thinking behind this blog is really simple: The guilty should be prevented from reoffending and the innocent should not be convicted -- not very complex but often not achieved.
The spotlight is also thrown on feral law enforcement
"JUSTICE", FROM THE CRAZY TO THE DEEPLY DISTURBING
The thinking behind this blog is really simple: The guilty should be prevented from reoffending and the innocent should not be convicted -- not very complex but often not achieved.
The spotlight is also thrown on feral law enforcement
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4066456/Police-turn-attention-finding-Claremont-victim-Sarah-Spiers-Bradley-Robert-Edwards-charged-murder-two.html
Where is Sarah? Police turn their attention to finding body of the first Claremont victim after man is charged over the murders of two women
- Police are now focusing their attention on Sarah Spiers who disappeared in 1996
- Ms Spiers was last seen leaving Club Bay View on January 27, 1996 and after hailing a taxi, was never seen again. She is still missing two decades on
- Bradley Robert Edwards was arrested and charged last week with the murders of Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon, who also disappeared from Claremont
- Police are searching the a property south of Perth owned by Edwards' parents
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4066456/Police-turn-attention-finding-Claremont-victim-Sarah-Spiers-Bradley-Robert-Edwards-charged-murder-two.html#ixzz4U3oIcjgg
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
By Ashleigh Davis and Stephen Johnson For Daily Mail Australia
PUBLISHED: 15:19, 26 December 2016 | UPDATED: 16:07, 26 December 2016
Police are now focusing their attention on finding Sarah Spiers, the first of three women to go missing from Perth in the 1990s.
Ms Spiers, who was 18 at the time, left Club Bay View in Claremont on January 27, 1996 and, after hailing a taxi, was never seen again.
Forensic police were seen with digging equipment at Bradley Robert Edwards' parent's investment property at Madora Bay, south of Perth, reported the Daily Telegraph.
Where is Sarah? Police turn their attention to finding body of the first Claremont victim after man is charged over the murders of two women
- Police are now focusing their attention on Sarah Spiers who disappeared in 1996
- Ms Spiers was last seen leaving Club Bay View on January 27, 1996 and after hailing a taxi, was never seen again. She is still missing two decades on
- Bradley Robert Edwards was arrested and charged last week with the murders of Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon, who also disappeared from Claremont
- Police are searching the a property south of Perth owned by Edwards' parents
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4066456/Police-turn-attention-finding-Claremont-victim-Sarah-Spiers-Bradley-Robert-Edwards-charged-murder-two.html#ixzz4U3oIcjgg
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
By Ashleigh Davis and Stephen Johnson For Daily Mail Australia
PUBLISHED: 15:19, 26 December 2016 | UPDATED: 16:07, 26 December 2016
Police are now focusing their attention on finding Sarah Spiers, the first of three women to go missing from Perth in the 1990s.
Ms Spiers, who was 18 at the time, left Club Bay View in Claremont on January 27, 1996 and, after hailing a taxi, was never seen again.
Forensic police were seen with digging equipment at Bradley Robert Edwards' parent's investment property at Madora Bay, south of Perth, reported the Daily Telegraph.
Where is Sarah? Police turn their attention to finding body of the first Claremont victim after man is charged over the murders of two women
- Police are now focusing their attention on Sarah Spiers who disappeared in 1996
- Ms Spiers was last seen leaving Club Bay View on January 27, 1996 and after hailing a taxi, was never seen again. She is still missing two decades on
- Bradley Robert Edwards was arrested and charged last week with the murders of Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon, who also disappeared from Claremont
- Police are searching the a property south of Perth owned by Edwards' parents
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4066456/Police-turn-attention-finding-Claremont-victim-Sarah-Spiers-Bradley-Robert-Edwards-charged-murder-two.html#ixzz4U3oIcjgg
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
By Ashleigh Davis and Stephen Johnson For Daily Mail Australia
PUBLISHED: 15:19, 26 December 2016 | UPDATED: 16:07, 26 December 2016
Police are now focusing their attention on finding Sarah Spiers, the first of three women to go missing from Perth in the 1990s.
Ms Spiers, who was 18 at the time, left Club Bay View in Claremont on January 27, 1996 and, after hailing a taxi, was never seen again.
Forensic police were seen with digging equipment at Bradley Robert Edwards' parent's investment property at Madora Bay, south of Perth, reported the Daily Telegraph.
Police are now focusing their attention on the first of three women to go missing from the Perth suburb of Claremont in the 1990s - Sarah Spiers. She remains missing to this day
Edwards, 48, was arrested and charged with the deaths of two other missing women Jane Rimmer, 23, and Ciara Glennon, 27, on Thursday last week.
The former head of the Macro taskforce assigned to investigate the cold case has also said he prays information about Sarah Spiers will finally be discovered.
David Caporn said hardly a day goes by when he doesn't think about the victims, and said: 'I hope and pray that more will come to light about Sarah.'
Bradley Robert Edwards (pictured left) was arrested and charged with the murders of two other women who disappeared from Claremont in 1996 and 1997 - Jane Rimmer, 23, and Ciara Glennon, 27
Police search a property south of Perth owned by the parents of a man charged with two murders
Police officers continued to guard the property on Challenger Road on Friday night, WA Today reported.
The accused man's parents haven't lived there for some years and rent the property out, the Fairfax Media report said.
The Telstra worker appeared in Perth Magistrates Court on Friday charged with the abduction and murder of Jane Rimmer, 23, and Ciara Glennon, 27 in 1996 and 1997.
A third woman who disappeared during that period, Sarah Spiers, remains missing, almost 21 years after leaving the Club Bay View in Claremont.
Ms Rimmer disappeared after a night out with friends in 1996.
Her body was found in bushland at Wellard in Perth's southern suburbs on August 3 that year.
Ms Glennon disappeared in March 1997, also after a night out in Claremont.
Her body was found in bushland in Eglington, north of Perth.
Jane Rimmer was 23 when she went missing in 1996 after a night out in Claremont
Ciara Glennon was 27 when she disappeared in March 1997 in upmarket Claremont in Perth
West Australian Police C ommissioner Karl O'Callaghan said the investigations were continuing.
'So there is still much work to be done, but this has already been the biggest and most complex police investigation in WA history,' he said.
'Hundreds of police officers have worked on this case over the 20 years.'
Edwards has also been charged in relation to attacks on other women, including two counts of deprivation of liberty, two counts of aggravated sexual penetration without consent, one count of breaking and entering and one count of indecent assault.
A white kimono that may provide police with vital clues in the cold case murders
Commissioner O'Callaghan told reporters last week police would allege he abducted a 17-year-old girl as she walked through a park in 1995 and took her to a nearby cemetery where he sexually assaulted her.
He is also alleged to have entered the bedroom of an 18-year-old girl in 1988, and attacked her while she slept. He fled after she struggled but left behind a white kimono, which he accidently dropped.
Police allege he acted alone.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4066456/Police-turn-attention-finding-Claremont-victim-Sarah-Spiers-Bradley-Robert-Edwards-charged-murder-two.html#ixzz4U3p4TObT
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
http://falconio.weebly.com/timeline.html
Welcome
In the evening of the 14th of July 2001 Peter Falconio vanished in the Australian outback, presumed murdered. Left behind was Peters Kombi van and his girlfriend Joanne Lees. Joanne claimed a man had shot Peter and then attacked her, bound her hands behind her back and tried to detain her.. but she escaped.
Her attacker remained on the run for almost a year, but finally a suspect was identified, his name is Bradley John Murdoch. Mr Murdoch claimed he was completely innocent and had never seen Joanne Lees or Peter Falconio. Bradley Murdoch went to trial for Peters murder, during the trial a large amount of circumstantial and substantial evidence was produced. In the end 12 members of jury came back with a unanimous verdict of guilty as charged.
Reports from the media at the time suggested that Joanne was hiding something, that she acted strangely and did not appear to be grieving the loss of her boyfriend. Her story also had some holes in and she was not cooperating with the media. Many sections of the media, particularly the British press, were annoyed that Joanne did not want to cooperate with them, did not want give interviews or provide information. But Joanne said she had her reasons to limit her exposure to the media, her story had already been twisted and she had been misquoted many times by the press. Joanne decided she only needed to cooperate with the police as they where the ones that could find Peter or his attacker. So with a lack of first hand information from the only eyewitness and just a trickle of info from the police the media started to speculate and point fingers.
As with most murder cases the facts are hard to come by and murderers rarely admit their guilt. Bradley Murdoch is no different, he denies everything, but the amount of evidence, both circumstantial and substantial clearly indicates he was involved.
Purpose of this website
1. To expose the rumours and media distortions that permeate this case.
2. To present information without a biased narrative
3. To explore the probabilities, possibilities and facts.
4. By process of elimination, make a reasonable deduction as to what happened to Peter
My Involvement in this case
I've been following this case on and off for the last 13 years. In a way its become a hobby of sorts, perhaps an obsession? Perhaps its the mystery and the unanswered questions that has lured me in and held my focus. I've spent a lot of time researching this case, in particular the rumours that surround it, discovering exactly when and where they were created. I believe its essential to explore the rumours, de-bunk them if possible and remove the false rumours from the equation.
Objectionable Content
As this website is within the public domain there is a chance the victims, the convicted, their families or friends may view the site and find some of the content objectionable or offensive. I have no desire to cause distress to anyone that was, or is involved with this highly controversial case. Therefore, if this applies to yourself and you have a problem, please contact me with your concerns. I will endeavour to remove or edit the material as soon as possible.
Copyright
Within this site there are many articles, quotes and extracts that originate from books or the internet. Where possible I will list the sources and credit the author. Where possible and or required, I have contacted the copyright owner(s) and obtained permission to display their photographs, text or artwork. If you are the author or claim ownership over any of the content within this site and take offence over the display of your material, please contact me and I will remove or edit the material as required.
TIMELINE OF EVENTS
Peter Falconio Disapearance
Regarding the disappearance of Peter Falconio and kidnapping of his girlfriend Joanne Lees who left the UK to embark on a round-the-world trip, planning to visit Nepal, Thailand, Cambodia, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and America.
2000
15th November : Peter Falconio and his girlfriend Joanne Lees left the UK to embark on a round-the-world trip, planning to visit Nepal, Thailand, Cambodia, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and America.
2001
16th January : They arrived in Sydney and initially stayed at the Springfield lodge, Kings Cross. A week or so later they rented at room in a flat at Bondi.
14th February: Joanne starts her new job at Dymocks bookstore, George st Sydney.
25th June: Mr Falconio and Ms Lees set off on their driving trip around Australia in their 30-year-old orange VW Kombi van from Sydney, travelling through Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide, Port Pirie, Coober Pedy and Alice Springs.
11th July - Wednesday: They made friends with two Canadian backpackers (Mark & Izabel) whilst visiting Uluru and gave them a lift in their camper van to King's Canyon in the Watarrka national park, and on to Alice Springs, where they continued their travels separately.
12th July - Thursday: They spent the day sightseeing before staying the night in the van in an Alice Springs lay-by.
13th July - Friday: Peter Falconio calls his parents, said everything was great and they were enjoying themselves, Joanne was heard in the background giggling
14th July - Friday: Bradley Murdoch testified that he camped that night, 125 kilometres south of Alice Springs (Finke River crossing)
14th July - Saturday: Mr Chris Malouf drives into Alice Springs on his way from SA to WA (Mr Malouf's appearance is similar to Mr Murdoch and he also drives a white Toyota 4x4 with a canvas canopy) Mr Malouf's most notable feature is his very long hair, which can be seen in his photograph to hang down over his shoulders by at least 6 inches.
14th July -Saturday -10am: Mr Falconio visited Maureen Laracy, a Deloittes accountant in Alice Springs, who told him he owed the tax office money because he had been paying tax as an Australian resident, rather than as a non-resident, while working in Sydney. Meanwhile, Ms Lees visits the library in Alice Springs, checking her emails
14th July -Saturday -10.30am : Mr Murdoch arrives in Alice Springs, he stated in his testimony "first thing in Alice, Red Rooster" Mr Murdoch testified that he then visited Red Rooster, then Kittles garage (car wash) Barbeques Galore, then the BP to refuel. Then he visited the Repco store at 1.30PM to buy some plastic fuel containers and BiLo at 2PM to purchase some provisions. Evidence was found to prove he visited BBQ's Galore and Repco but there was no evidence to support his claim he went to the BP service station. He had spent approximately 5 hours in Alice Springs. He claimed he left Alice Springs at 3 PM. Its been affirmed that whilst in Alice Springs he left his trailer in the care of an associate at his trucking business.
14th July - Saturday: Peter and Joanne meet each other to have breakfast together at the Green Frog cafe.
14th July - Saturday - 11.30 : Ms Lees rang her friend, Amanda Whelan, in Sydney to say they were going to visit the Camel Cup races, where they spent two to three hours and watched the Miss Camel Cup beauty pageant
14th July - Saturday: Joanne and Peter went to the airport to buy a return ticket for Joanne (Brisbane-Sydney)Please see the FAQ's for the reason why Joanne collected her ticket from the airport.
14th July - Saturday:: They attend the Camel Cup in Alice Springs, and watch many of the races (verified present at the races by video footage)
The camel cup race started at around 2.30 PM and stayed long enough to watch the race and look around. Estimated time leaving the cup is 3PM or thereabouts.
14th July - Saturday - 3.00-3.30 pm : Mr Murdoch claims he left Alice Springs to travel back to Broome via the Tanami track, in tow was his new camper trailer.
14th July - Saturday: - 3.30-4pm: Joanne and Peter return to Alice Springs and drop into the Red Rooster restaurant. (verified by staff, as being at the restaurant in the late afternoon)
14th July - Saturday - 4-4.15pm: Ms Lees commenced the drive north from Alice Springs while Mr Falconio reads a book before falling asleep in the back.
14th July - Saturday - 3.45-4pm: Mr Gregory Dick and Mr Michael Oatley worked at the Aileron roadhouse, they claim they he saw Joanne and Peter at their roadhouse. They ordered two toasted sandwiches, a coffee and a cola, and were looking through a series of brochures and postcards, discussing places to visit. Joanne Lees denies stopping at Aileron. According to the timeline it is possible for the pair to have stopped at Aileron, eat something and then stopped again at Ti Tree. (the Aileron roadhouse is 70 Km's south of Ti Tree) A point worthy of note..Mr Oatley was not 100% sure it was Joanne and Peter and said the man he thought was Peter could not speak English very well and thought he sounded Greek or Italian. Peter is English and speaks English. It was known there was another couple on the Stuart Hwy driving a Kombi that day and they were also from the UK. Perhaps the Aileron sighting is a case of mistaken identity?
14th July - Saturday - 6.00pm: Joanne and Peter stop at Ti Tree "shared a smoke", a joint of cannabis, as they watched the sun set. Mr Falconio then bought some lollies, purchased fuel and took over the driving as they headed north along the Stuart highway. (The receipt was time stamped, the fuel was paid for at 6.21PM)
14th July - Saturday - 6.50pm: Shortly after leaving Ti Tree Ms Lees saw a small fire at the side of the road along the way, Peter wanted to stop and to check it out, Joanne says they shouldn't stop, it looked suspicious and they kept driving
14th July - Saturday - 8.00pm: Mr Murdoch claims he was near Yuendumu some 300km's from Alice Springs, indicating an average speed of around 60kph. Mr Murdoch could not offer any proof to support this statement.
14th July - Saturday - 8-8.30pm: Around 11 km's north of Barrow Creek a man in a white four-wheel drive, drives along the Kombi and waves the Kombi over, Mr Falconio gets out and talks to the man at the rear of the Kombi. A bang is heard. Ms Lees is threatened with a small silver hand gun, punched and restrained with cable-tie handcuffs before escaping and hiding in the bushes for several hours, until she waves down a passing road train. Mr Falconio was presumed shot, his blood was on the road.
15th July - Sunday - 12.38am: A man bearing similar characteristics to Joannes attacker was caught on security footage at the Shell truck stop, Dalgety Road, Alice Springs. The man purchased a large amount of fuel, ice and an iced coffee. He paid around $130 in cash. The driver leaves the roadhouse at 12.50am. The vehicle was a 75 series Diesel Toyota Land Cruiser with a canvas tarp over the tray. It was reported to be virtually identical to the vehicle that Mr Murdoch owned at that time. Friends and family of Mr Murdoch believe the man at the truck stop was Mr Murdoch and that it was his vehicle. Mechanics that worked on his car also believe it looked like his vehicle. The upholsterer that manufactured the canvas tarp believed he recognised his design and testified that he made the tarp for Bradley Murdoch a few months before the incident. The attendant that served the man at the Shell truck stop told writer Robin Bowles that Bradley Murdoch was the man that he served that morning, he was sure of it.
15th July - Sunday - Around 1 am: Ms Lees emerges from the scrub and on to the highway and out in front of a "Bull's" road train truck being driven by Vince Millar. Vince stopped about a kilometre down the road and Joanne runs towards the road train. Vince gets out of the truck and speaks to Joanne. He started to help her look for her boyfriend but when she told him her attacker had had a gun, he decided it would be best to go for help. He drove her south to the Barrow Creek roadhouse, where they contacted police.
15th July - Sunday - 4.20am: NT Police officers from Ti Tree arrived at the Barrow Creek hotel
15th July - Sunday: 7.00am: NT police launch a search for Mr Falconio and the gunman. They find a pool of blood covered with dirt beside the Stuart Hwy. This blood was later DNA matched to Peter Falconio. The police also find the orange Kombi parker well off the road in the scrub.
15th July - Sunday : Superintendent Garry Moseley, of the Alice Springs police, organised a series of around a dozen road blocks, eventually covering the main routes from "Katherine to the South Australia border, to the Queensland border to the West Australia border". Every roadhouse and cattle station in the area was also contacted. It seems the Tanami road was not blocked.
15th July - Sunday - 8PM: Mr Murdoch claims to have refuelled at Fitzroy crossing and had a steak sandwich. This means he covered the distance between Yuendumu and Fitzroy Crossing, (1,000km's) in 24 hours. This seems quite reasonable if he stopped for a sleep, food, toilet stops. However Mr Murdoch's alibi for Fitzroy Crossing (a close friend) was said to be unreliable as his story had changed a number of times.
15 October: Police officers on an orientation visit to the site uncover more evidence - tape used to restrain Ms Lees and her lip gloss tube - apparently missed during a police search three months earlier. The lip gloss tube was found under leaf litter.
2002
April : The W.A police receive an anonymous call. James Hepi was said to be transporting drugs over the border into W.A, a description of the truck is given and a location provided. Later, Bradley Murdoch admits to friends that he was the person that reported the crime and seems upset and quite remorseful about doing so. Later it was revealed that Mr Murdoch arranged for a friend to make the actual call.
16th April: James Tahi Hepi was arrested outside the Roebuck Roadhouse near Broome W.A, with 4Kg's of marijuana found hidden in a modified gas cylinder on his 4x4. James knew it must have been Brad who reported him, they had a falling out and Brad was just one of a few people who knew where Mr Hepi stored the drugs.
May: Bradley Murdoch Moved into to a run down stone farmhouse in Port Broughton, South Australia
31st May: Detective-Sergeant David Chalker, receives a call from Broome detective Peter Jenal, he provided with the information James Hepi had regarding Brads possible involvement with the disappearance of Peter Falconio. The information was not acted upon at that stage.
29th July: James Hepi appears in Boome district court and pleas guilty to the transportation and possession of 4 Kg's of Cannabis. He receives an 18 month sentence that is suspended for 12 months.
21st August: A 12 year girl is raped and her mother sexually molested and abducted from their bush property near Swan Reach S.A. The woman and her daughter claim the rapist was Bradley Murdoch. The girl was later examined by a GP and it was confirmed she had been sexually assaulted or had sex and quite recently.
23rd August. Fred Everitt is released from Royal Adelaide hospital, he was there receiving treatment for lung cancer.
NB: Fred Everitt is the defacto partner of the woman who was abducted along with her daughter
28th August: Bradley Murdoch was arrested outside of Woolworths, Port Augusta, S.A for the alleged rape and abduction of a 13 year girl and the sexual molestation and abduction of the girls mother. He gives up freely and makes no comment regarding the charges, he seemed unsurprised by the arrest.
2003
21st October: Bradley Murdoch is on trial at Adelaide District court for the alleged rape and abduction. Little physical evidence is found to support the rape and abduction. However drugs, guns, chains and restraints are found. Metal handcuffs were found as well as cuffs made from cable ties. The cable tie handcuffs were very similar in design to the ones Joanne Lees had be restrained with.
Jan-April 2003: Some 2,500 people have been identified during the long police investigation as "persons of interest".
10th November: Bradley Murdoch is acquitted of the charges as the jurys verdict was not unanimous. Mr Murdoch was arrested as he left the court and taken to the Northern Territory to answer charges regarding the murder of Peter Falconio.
14th November: Bradley John Murdoch faces Darwin Magistrates Court over Mr Falconio's murder..
17th November: DNA samples belonging to Bradley Murdoch are analysed in the NT Police forensic lab.
2004
17th May: A committal hearing into the charges is heard in Darwin Magistrates Court over three weeks, resuming for a further two weeks in August, 2004.
18th August: Murdoch is committed to stand trial in the NT Supreme Court on the charges.
2005
May : Authorities send a portion of the cable-tie restraints to the United Kingdom for specialist DNA testing, which finds a DNA sample 100 million times more likely to have come from Murdoch than anyone else.
17th October: The Northern Territory Supreme Court trial begins into Mr Falconio's murder.
22nd November: Today, the jury heard from several men from Broome who'd worked at a firm called Tropical Upholstery that fitted two canopies on Murdoch's four-wheel drive, an HJ 75 Toyota, in 2001. Under questioning from the prosecutor Anne Barnett, Jean Louis O'Dore said he'd later recognised what he thought was Murdoch's vehicle in a photo from an Alice Springs truck stop on the night Mr Falconio disappeared. He said he'd had a conversation about it with Murdoch at the time, "I said I'd seen photos of the car," he said, "and I thought it was ours, our canopy." "And what did he say?" Ms Barnett asked. "I think he said, "It may have been", because he goes up there," he replied. "It may have been him in the truck stop."
22nd November: Another witness, Myles Sadler, worked at West Kimberley Diesel in Broome, the same auto workshop where Murdoch had worked. In 2001, he said he remembered Murdoch owned an HJ 75 Landcruiser, with a square canopy on the rear tray and a bull bar at the front He was shown the same truck stop photograph and asked about the bull bar in the photo. He replied, "That's pretty much the same."
22nd November: The jury heard evidence from a South Australian man, Ben Kotz, who's known Murdoch since childhood. He told the court he hadn't seen Murdoch for about 10 years until late 2001 or 2002, when Murdoch had dropped in a few times at his parents' home. In the course of one conversation, Mr Kotz said Murdoch was distraught and told him he'd done something wrong. "He'd dobbed in his Kiwi mate," he said.
13th December: Murdoch is found guilty of murdering Mr Falconio, assaulting Ms Lees and depriving her of her liberty. He is given a mandatory life sentence and minimum 28-year non-parole period.
2006
12th December: Lawyers for Bradley John Murdoch begin a three-day appeal against his conviction and sentence in the NT Court of Criminal Appeal in Darwin.
2007
10th January: Three judges in the NT Court of Criminal Appeal unanimously dismiss his appeal.
28 February: Human bones found about 100km southwest of the service station where Murdoch refuelled hours after killing Mr Falconio are described by police as probably belonging to a missing Aborigine.
21st June: Murdoch's application for special leave to appeal in the High Court is denied.
4th August: A prison guard reportedly tells News Limited Murdoch is doing it easy in a minimum security section of Darwin's Berrimah prison.
15th August: Media reports emerge that Murdoch's family are pushing to have him moved to a jail in Western Australia but the WA government says it has not received any such applications.
25th August: NT authorities deny reports that Murdoch had been caught trying to break out of prison in Darwin. Murdoch is transferred from Berrimah Prison to the Alice Springs Correctional Centre.
24th December: The Age newspaper reports that Murdoch's lawyers will push to have the case reopened after British police suspended their use of low copy number (LCN) DNA testing, which was used in the crown's case against Murdoch.
2008
15th February: With a second more rigorous review of LCN DNA testing underway in the UK, Perth QC Tom Percy, who specialises in the miscarriage of justice, begins examining the legitimacy of the DNA evidence used in Murdoch's trial and possible grounds for appeal.
27th May: The orange van that was obtained as evidence during police investigations is released from the NT Supreme Court basement, and Ms Lees orders that it be destroyed.
2010
5th June: News Limited reporters accompany a clairvoyant, who is adamant she can find Mr Falconio's grave, into Central Australia without success.
2011
16th July: Disgraced former lawyer Andrew Fraser, claims that Peter Falconio is alive and he has proof in the form of witnesses. When quizzed if he has spoken to the witnesses he replies I am yet to speak with them. Mr Fraser admits that he is involved in a 2 part documentary that will expose the lies and show that Bradley Murdoch is innocent.
Aug: An ex-friend of Bradley Murdoch reveals to the public through a South Australian newspaper that he did have an opening for his dog to pass from the tray to the front of his vehicle. Jennifer Wainwright said that Mr Mudoch used to stay in her shed whilst he was visiting Adelaide.
2012
29th February: A TV network has been charged for communicating with notorious Territory prisoner Bradley John Murdoch. Journalist Rahni Sadler who produced the story for Channel 7's Sunday Night program has also been charged with communicating with a prisoner along with Murdoch's confidant former lawyer Andrew Roderick Fraser, the NT News reports. The charges have been laid by Correctional Services on the advice of the Solicitor for the Northern Territory. Channel 7 recorded a phone conversation between Murdoch and Mr Fraser which aired on July 31 last year.
2013
17 December: Bradley Murdoch lodges an appeal with the NT criminal court of appeal, he is appealing his sentence because he believes there was misconduct by the crown in his original trial.
Please note: This timeline has been constructed from a range of sources that have been checked and verified to be as accurate as possible, some times have been estimated but should be accurate to within a half hour. The timeline is continually updated as new information comes forth.
http://falconio.weebly.com/photographs.html
Man claims Joanne Lees hired Bradley Murdoch to kill Peter Falconio
A Mr Geoff Gerald Atkins claims he was at the Barrow Creek hotel on the night of 14/7/2001. Geoff said he played a game of pool with Bradley Murdoch. He also spoke at length to Peter Falconio and Joanne Lee's. Geoff claims Mr Murdoch had indicated he would sometimes be hired to kill people and that Ms Lee's paid him $2600 to kill Peter. Mr Murdoch said Joanne was going to write a book about Peter's disappearance and then he would be paid the balance for the 'hit' from the proceeds of the book..
STATUTORY DECLARATION
State of South Australia – Oaths Act 1936
I Geoffrey Atkins
of (address removed for privacy reasons)
do solemnly and sincerely declare that
On Saturday 14th July 2001, approximately 7:40 am, I left Coober Pedy. I had travelled about 3-5 kms on the Stuart Hwy, when I seen an orange Kombi. I said to the kids ‘Look it’s an Abbacromby, it will be full of hippies,’ but on passing we gave a toot & a wave, the kids were a bit disappointed, there was no hippies on board, the two people in the Kombi looked extremely happy, the sort of glow you get after a win. Before we were out of the area mined for opals, I stopped and done a bit of fossicking with the kids, we were only a couple of chain off the road when I heard the Kombi purring down the road towards us. We got another wave and a friendly toot. Ten minutes later we were on the road again, more toots and waves. Then about 20 minutes later, there was a car that had broken down, and was being stripped for parts. Time for a piss and a look what was left, again the Kombi caught up, more toots and waves. 15 minutes later, we passed the Kombi again more toots and waves. Hours later, another wreck, another piss stop, another toot and wave as they pass again. I couldn’t help but think how well that Kombi sounded and looked. The next time I seen the Kombi, it was parked on the wrong side of the road facing back towards Coober Pedy. There was a white Tojo [Toyota 4-wheel drive] with green canopy parked close by. There was a man there between the Kombi and the Tojo, he looked to me like he had Maori in him. He also had a rifle in his arms. I believe it was a Bruno 22. He did not look clean. He had a dark shirt and dirty black pants with a white stripe down the side. He wore a black baseball hat with the desert eagle insignia on it. He was lean build, approximately 5’11” sporting a Zepata mow. [sic]
We tooted to the Kombi, even though we could not see anyone else there. The guy with the rifle gave me a nasty look. I stuck my finger up at him. The kids both said Did you see that dad, that bloke had a gun just like yours.’ The kids were convinced the occupants had already been killed and they wanted me to go back and check if they (Lees and Falconio) weren’t in the back of the Kombi. I told the kids he had a gun, I didn’t. Lorna [daughter of witness] asked me to report it to the police in Alice which was about 15 kms away. I didn’t go to the police in Alice, it would have been about 3:30 pm by now. I had a bit of a shop at Woolies, fuelled up and back on the road. About 2 hours later I saw the Kombi parked at Ti Tree. The occupants were also there. I gave them a toot & wave, they waved back. I knew the road fairly well and had decided to have a break at Barrow Creek. I knew that because it was a Saturday night & the Camel Cup, the odds were that I shouldn’t have much trouble getting set for a game of pool, and I might also be able to get rid of a snake I had on board. When I pulled up at Barrow Creek the kids were sleeping. I parked the car at the bowser [fuel pump] and went into the pub, within seconds of being served I asked two guys that just sat down if they played pool, they both wanted a game.
We introduced ourselves and found out quite quickly that we had a lot in common, as in racist, drugs, jails, and police. I asked him if he was related to Jibba Murdoch. He asked me where I came from, I told him Bendigo Vic. He said no relation to my rellies [relatives], they are all in the West. The reason I asked him if he was related to Jibba is because he was only the second Murdoch I had ever met. After telling Murdoch that I had done time in Queensland for dope he was not backwards in telling what seemed to be his life story. He mentioned his drug dealing with pride it seemed he told me he had been dealing most of his life. But he was right into it now and kicking goals. He told us how he belonged to some sort of club that you bought shares in and got informed of what drugs were on the market and if you put money up front, you got a far better deal. I played one game of pool with Bradley Murdoch. He won, I handed the cue to the other guy and took advantage of the time, and went to check on the kids, and got the snake out of the car, and took it into the pub. I showed it in the bar first. There was a ringer that worked on a station close by that was very interested in it, but he didn’t have enough money. I then went into the other hotel rooms, Peter Falconio and Joanne Lees were sitting at a table, we introduced ourselves and talked about touristy things. Peter had told me they were heading to Darwin, the same as me. He told me they were going to camp the night at Tennant Creek, that he expected to be there about 2:30 am. He asked me where I was going to sleep. I said I was not going to camp anywhere. Once I left the pub I was going to push on for Darwin. He said you must be fucked, you have come from Coober Pedy this morning. I informed him I’d come non stop from Vic. He said you must be on speed. I told him I wasn’t but I wouldn’t mind a bit, you haven’t got any have you? He replied I haven’t got any speed but I might be able to help you with an ecci [ecstasy tablet] if you like. I replied that I had some Endone [analgesic] if I wanted that sort of drug. It surprised me when he offered the ecci for he was wearing a blue sweater with a logo, hugs not drugs.
Joanne left the room and left Peter & I talking. I commented on the logo, I said it must be working for they seemed very happy. He informed me that that wasn’t the case, and that they would go their separate ways when they got rid of the Kombi. I told him where he could get rid of it [in Darwin], and a few places to check out. Joanne was very interested in the snake I had for sale, a territory night tiger, she said it was the first snake she had ever touched. It had only been about 25 minutes before this while talking to Bradley Murdoch, that a little bloke come over to us and said the Kombi has arrived. I said you mean the orange Kombi, he said yes. I said that I had been passing it since early this morning. Bradley Murdoch had called me aside from the other bloke to tell me something. I asked him if he had a bit of Gunja [marijuana] that I could get off him. He advised me that he couldn’t help, that he had sold the last bit to a shiela [woman] a couple of hours ago. I left Peter to go and put the snake back in the car, on returning I couldn’t help but notice Murdoch and Lees having a full on discussion, Brad had his back to me. Lees seemed to be laying down the law to him. I thought what have you got in common with this guy. I watched in awe for quite a few seconds, then went back to the other guy. Within minutes Brad showed up and said that he had just been propositioned to do a hit. He told me and the other guy that a shiela wanted her boyfriend popped. I said was it that shiela that he had been talking to when I came back in, he said yes. I said she wouldn’t be able to afford a hitman. I said they’re only driving a Kombi. He replied no she does. She just showed me a wad of $2600.00. I said that’s not enough to blow someone out. He said it’s a start. I said it is not like buying a car, you won’t get anymore out of her. He said you don’t know how much she is going to make out of this. I said how is she going to get any dough out of it he said, she planned to write a book and the media would pay plenty When Brad’s mate showed up and said the Kombi arrived, all I could think was where the fuck did you come from, a Dickens book. He looked quite evil. I seen him two more times. The second time I saw him was not long after Brad had told me he was breaking into the ecci market. He’s already had a sample $5000 worth, he said he was expecting $30,000 I asked him when did he expect them, he told me, soon. I thought no more about it. At the time Brad seemed a little uneasy. He was keeping an eye towards the door. I seen a glimpse of his little ugly mate Brad quickly disappeared for a split second, returned and said they have arrived there in the Kombi. About 20 minutes later he came up to Brad and said they’re leaving Brad said I’ve got to go, I’ll see you later. I owed Brad a beer, I said, do you want that stubby I owe you. He said don’t worry about it, I will be back soon, you can get it then.
Brad and his little mate followed Peter and Joanne out of the pub, about 8-8:30 pm. He did not return until 11:30-12. He showed me a bad scratch on his arm. He said that fucken woman is mad. She went crazy out there. I said, I told you she didn’t want him dead, he said no she did. She just went crazy, he did not tell me how. He did tell me when I asked where Peter was, he looked at his watch and said he would be 250 kms by now. [sic] He told me his little mate had the body I assumed he was probably dead. I said to Brad you did blow him didn’t you? He said why do you say that. Brad had changed his shirt and pants, but his boots still had blood all over them. I pointed this out to him. He said that he had shot a roo while he was gone. I said bullshit, with a handgun. He replied yes, come out the back and I will show you. I declined, I thought I might be next. He then offered me a smoke if I wanted to go out back with him. It seemed odd only a couple of hours ago he told me that he had none. I think he realized how much he had told me. I wasn’t sure if he wanted to shoot me too. He had told me earlier that he was a professional shooter, when I asked him if it was roos he said no, I said dingoes, he said no, I asked him if it was vermin, he said you could call it that.
If this case is not a police cover up I would like to know why I was not called as a witness. I believe I know more about this case that then rest of the crown witnesses. I made application for a copy of the first two statements I made to police. After approximately 38 phone calls to the N.T. police I received the statements, they had been changed. They would not have been changed if it wasn’t a cover up. I rang Scotland Yard when I wasn’t called as a witness. I spoke to detective Atkinson. He advised me that he couldn’t do anything but to keep on trying to be heard. I tried to get in touch with the Falconio family through the NT News, they refused to publish my advertisement. I rang Father Mac Gillicuddy at St Patricks cathedral in Huddersfield U.K. I sent a copy of my statements to Rex Wild to be passed on to the Falconio family. Everything I know about this case I have not mentioned in this statement. I would like to go on a lie detector test to prove that what I am saying is true and correct.
Yours sincerely
Geoffrey Atkins
And I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same to
be true, and by virtue of the provisions of the Oaths Act 1936.
Declared at Mount Barker in the State of South Australia, this 11th day of October 2010
signature [G. Atkins] signature [Paul Philip Haverland] JP NO 14188
Signature of person making this declaration Signature of authorized witness
(to be signed in front of an authorized witness) stamp: A justice of the Peace in and for the State of South Australia
stamp: Mount Barker Court, P.O. Box 101, Mt. Barker S.A. 5251
Are his claims true?
Mr Atkins story is plausible yet it remains uncorroborated by anyone or anything. The main issue I have is the timeline he puts forward, it does not match that facts as we know it. He claims he saw Peter and Joanne on the road from Coober Pedy to Alice Springs many times in the morning of 14/7/2001. The problem is Peter was seen many times by credible witnesses in Alice Springs on the same morning. I asked Mr Atkins to think about the timeline and if he could have got the days or times mixed up, but he was adamant, he did not make a mistake. Mr Atkins timeline contradicts statement, testimony and comments made by an accountant that met with Peter, a cafe owner, a worker at a real state agent and others that all say that saw Peter in the morning of the 14/7/2001 in Alice Springs. I believe that these credible witnesses are telling the truth and that either Mr Atkins has made a mistake or his story in in part or whole concocted. Mr Atkins was asked if he would tell his story to media, he said he would if they paid him enough.
Personal Opinion:
At this stage we only have Mr Atkins word that his story really did happen. The owner of the Barrow Creek hotel said he never saw anyone with a snake in his pub on that night and neither did he see Peter Falconio or Joanne Lees there. Patrons that were in the pub that night have never mentioned the snake or seeing Joanne Lees or Peter Falconio there either. No one reported seeing an Orange Kombi outside the Barrow Creek Hotel that night.
There are too many outlandish claims made, too many holes and not a single person can back up his claims. Mr Atkins clearly has some knowledge of the hotel and the general area and seems well read on this case. My personal opinion is Geoff's story has little credibility. The statuary declaration (above) was made only after one writer requested Geoff to make it, to help backup his claims. But it should be noted that there is no proof the statuary declaration has been given to the police or any official. Its easy to make a statuary declaration and have a JP sign it but does that mean what is written is the truth?
http://falconio.weebly.com/rumour-busters.html
Many of the rumours and stories came about through a lack of information..
We saw the photos, the vision and editorials and all of that became our knowledge base for the case.
Based on that information we speculated and created our own versions of what we thought happened, we filled in the missing pieces. There was an abundance of evidence, photos and testimony that made up the case and the jury saw much of that, but we have only seen a very small fraction and a lot of the what we saw and heard was already distorted by syndicated media. So without accurate information how can anyone construct an accurate overview of the case. Only the jury had the full gamut of information and yet many 'armchair sleuths' have criticised the jury for their determination.
RUMOUR: It was SAID Joanne's T shirt had just one tiny speck of DNA on it?
FACT: There were several blood spots on her T shirt, not just one and the largest spot was approximately 10 mm across.
RUMOUR: It was SAID Her T shirt was pretty clean, how is it possible she was tackled to the ground and not have any dirty marks on her T shirt?
FACT: These photos clear up that false rumour. Note there are also grease marks or perhaps road bitumen on her T shirt.
RUMOUR: There was no violent attack, Joanne made up the story, she only had a few tiny scratches on her.
FACT: As the photos depict, she had a lot more than a few tiny scratches
RUMOUR: The manacles made from cable ties seemed to have loops that were made so large to give the wearer a degree a comfort and allow too much movement, not really a serious device to restrain someone. Many think Joanne or Peter made it
FACT: The real manacles were rarely shown in photos, mockups were made and these are the ones most of us have seen in photos or on TV. The manacles on the right are the mock ups. Note the links around her wrists are not tightened, the central loops are larger compared to the real ones and this gave the illusion the manacles were made to give Joanne free movement. Joanne was able to bring her hands from the back to the front simply because of her slender frame. Most men would not be able to do the same.
RUMOUR: The police comfit and illustrations look nothing like Bradley Murdoch
FACT: Its hard to deny the resemblance between the actual photos and illustrations.
Deep lines in face, small mouth, large prominent ears and nose and the long oval face.
NB: The sketch on the bottom right was made by a court artist.
Mr Wijat's friend Magic Rabbit 
