We're taking a little break over Summer and using this time to spotlight some of our favourite true-crime podcasts. This week we're showcasing Michael Adam's Forgotten Australia, with his three part Cairns Grenade Murders series. On a hot night in January 1946, two women were cold-bloodedly murdered with a grenade in the centre of Cairns. In this three-part special episode - based on the original police murder file - we take a deep dive into this callous crime, whose solution was frustrated not ...
Dec 04, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 288
In 2017, 21 year old Zac Jones was drunk, on drugs, and driving recklessly in a car with four other passengers. Unable to control the vehicle, they horrifically crashed, but all remarkably survived. This is part two of a two part series hosted by our dear friend, Narelle Fraser about the lives of Zac and his mother Jane. We will hear a side-by-side account from both Zac and Jane about how an educated, intelligent teenager from a loving family ended up falling so badly, and the astonishing ways i...
Nov 27, 2022•54 min•Season 1Ep. 287
In 2017, 21 year old Zac Jones was drunk, on drugs, and driving recklessly in a car with four other passengers. Unable to control the vehicle, they horrifically crashed, but all remarkably survived. This is part one of a two part series hosted by our dear friend, Narelle Fraser about the lives of Zac and his mother Jane. We will hear a side-by-side account from both Zac and Jane about how an educated, intelligent teenager from a loving family ended up falling so badly, and the astonishing ways i...
Nov 27, 2022•59 min•Season 1Ep. 286
Marjorie Norval was a mould breaker. In the 1930s, she was a single, gregarious career woman, living in a hotel in the Brisbane CBD. She worked for the Premiere William Forgan Smith and his wife, which afforded her to live a lifestyle that was out of reach for most women in conservative Brisbane at the time. That lifestyle came to an abrupt end when she disappeared without a trace, one sunny day in 1938. In the days and months to come, four heroic rescuers would die, one of her rumoured lovers w...
Nov 20, 2022•33 min•Season 1Ep. 285
The word most commonly used to describe Rolf Harris at the conclusion of his trial and his spectacular fall from grace was remorseless. He still seemed utterly shameless as revelation after revelation rolled out in front of the world and his real character was exposed. We all got an inkling of the sheer entitlement felt by the man and of his expectation that he should be allowed to go on separating his private and public personas with the complete complicity of everyone around him because he was...
Nov 13, 2022•48 min•Season 1Ep. 284
In 1990, social worker Wendy Davis had her dream job at what was then known as Hollywood Private Hospital in Perth. She was the senior grief counsellor in the palliative care unit. It was intense but rewarding work, and at 40 years of age, life was right on track for Wendy Davis. But It was cruelly taken away from her on her youngest daughter's 11th birthday, when she was violently assaulted by a Telecom technician who was working at the hospital. The technician was charged with common assault, ...
Nov 06, 2022•35 min•Season 1Ep. 283
"Shotgun" Shannon O'Connell is Australia's pre-eminent female boxer. One thing that is absolutely true, is that her toughest opponent is her childhood. She fights it everyday, as do her two brothers, with varying degrees of success. We were introduced to Shannon by a previous guest, Russell Manser from The Voice of a Survivor. He likes to say that boxing has saved more lives than church, and Shannon is definitely one of them. You can keep up to date with all things "Shotgun" Shannon by following...
Oct 30, 2022•33 min•Season 1Ep. 282
Our guest this week, Russell Manser, has an incredible podcast of his own called The Stick Up. Please enjoy this rare interview with Mick Gatto, and check out other episodes of The Stick Up wherever you get your podcasts. Show notes: In this rare interview with ex-underworld figure Mick Gatto, you'll hear about his love for his family, passion for charity and the life altering moments that saw him lose two sons, and end up in jail. Russell talks with a man who speaks his truth. Founder of&...
Oct 24, 2022•59 min
Russell Manser is an extraordinary man. He's been in and out of prison since we was literally a child, and when he wasn't inside, he was robbing banks to support a raging heroin habit. As we know, lifestyle habits like that don't come out of nowhere. When Russell decided to face the truth of what had happened to him, it changed his life. Since then, he's changed many lives too. This is a very upsetting story involving serious sexual assault. We've talked around these issues before with other gue...
Oct 23, 2022•49 min•Season 1Ep. 281
In 1993, Paul Denyer murdered Natalie Russell, Elizabeth Stevens and Deborah Fream in the Frankston area. Denyer had also stalked and terrified women - that’s one of the lesser known aspects of his horrendous offending. Now 50, Denyer was sentenced to life in prison without parole, but the sentence was later appealed and reduced to a non-parole period of 30 years, meaning Denyer is eligible for release in 2023. There’s a genuine fear from many that Denyer will be released - from the families of ...
Oct 15, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 280
Our guests for this episode are Therese Fox and Megan Norris. In 2002 friends Therese Fox and Bronwyn Cartwright travelled to Bali – it was a dream trip that the two Geelong nurses had saved hard for. It was Therese’s first trip overseas and away from her young children. On October 12th Therese and Bronwyn decided to go out to Paddy’s Irish Bar for their last night in Bali. Deadly terrorist attacks on Paddy’s Bar and the Sari Club in Kuta’s party precinct killed 202 people - 88 from Austral...
Oct 09, 2022•36 min•Season 1Ep. 279
Our guest for this episode is Michael Adams, host of the fascinating podcast Forgotten Australia. Michael is a master of deep diving into the archives to tell incredible stories most people have never heard of - many of them about crime and society. From historic news articles - even the smallest of briefs and the mere mention of a name, Michael brings old stories, scandals, oddities and the lives of intriguing people back to life. Michael’s book is HANGING NED KELLY and his po...
Oct 02, 2022•45 min•Season 1Ep. 278
In celebration of the release of the brand new season of The Handmaid's Tale, we've invited a couple of friends over to chat about the series with. We're joined today by mega fan Joanna Fleming from Adore Beauty, and from the brilliant Eyes On Gilead podcast, Fiona Williams. So, why a special episode about The Handmaid's Tale on our true crime podcast feed? Well, Margaret Atwood, the author of The Handmaid's Tale famously said that there's no crime against women in the book, that hasn't actually...
Sep 28, 2022•53 min
Lucy Wessell contacted Australian True Crime to tell her family’s story about the unforeseeable and tragic loss of her brother Andrew - who is remembered by them as a kind and gentle man who loved his family, animals, and nature. He was a seasoned traveller who had friends all over the world. Andrew Drake was stabbed to death in 2019. Andrew, 29, died on the lawn of a house in Batemans Bay on the NSW South Coast, as his sister Penny desperately tried to save his life. The property where h...
Sep 25, 2022•59 min•Season 1Ep. 277
This is a re-issue of episode 76 from November 2018 In November of 2016, a decade after his death, Michael Atkins finally agreed to tell police where he'd buried the remains of his young lover Matthew Leveson. Matt's tormented parents tell us the twisted tale as to why Atkins will never be convicted in connection with their son's death. Show notes: Your hosts are Meshel Laurie and Emily Webb With thanks to Mark and Faye Leveson. Like us on the Facebook Follow us on Instagram or Twitter Support...
Sep 25, 2022•55 min
This is a re-issue of episode 216 of Australian True Crime. Some of Australia’s most dangerous offenders aren’t housed in prisons because they were judged mentally unfit to stand trial. Dr Danny Sullivan is the Executive Director of Clinical Services at Thomas Embling hospital. It’s been home to some of Victoria's most dangerous people, including Masa Vuktotic’s killer Sean Price, Henry Hammond who murdered Courtney Herron and Bourke Street rampage driver James Gargasoulas. Dr Sullivan joins us ...
Sep 18, 2022•53 min
David Cammarata’s childhood best friend is currently a forensic patient in a secure psychiatric facility. He was found not guilty of the machete murder of his own brother at a suburban shopping centre and of stalking and attempting to murder David, because the judge believed he was suffering from severe mental illness when he committed the offences. David and his family were terrorised for years before his former friend Jonathan was apprehended. Now he lives in fear that he’ll one day be re...
Sep 18, 2022•52 min•Season 1Ep. 276
A repost of episode #103 In loving memory of Uncle Jack Charles. We send our deepest condolences to the people of the Boon Wurrung, Dja Dja Wurrung, Woiwurrung and Yorta Yorta nations on the loss of Uncle Jack Charles. Stolen from his loving family as a child, he embraced all with love and kindness and was a vital artist until the end. --- Jack Charles, known respectfully and affectionately as Uncle Jack Charles is a survivor who has much to tell about life, starting from the impact of being one...
Sep 13, 2022•58 min
Geoff Plunkett's book "Death Row At Truro" investigates the mythology around a case that is often bizarrely overlooking in Australian crime reporting. Geoff joins us today to discuss the seven week serial killing spree committed by Christopher Worrell and James Miller in 1970s Adelaide. For ad-free listening, early access and exclusive content, join Australian True Crime Plus on Apple Podcasts here: http://apple.co/australiantruecrime CREDITS: Host: Meshel Laurie. You can find her on Insta...
Sep 11, 2022•51 min•Season 1Ep. 275
This is part 2 of our exploration into Marea Yann’s case and our guests are Esther Yann and close family friend of Marea and her family, lawyer Frank Chen. You know when someone says they’ll do anything they can to right a wrong…Frank Chen really meant it. And you’ll hear the extraordinary lengths he’s gone to so he can fulfil the promise he made to Marea at her funeral that he would do all he could to bring her killer to justice. Esther was in primary school when her b...
Sep 04, 2022•48 min•Season 1Ep. 274
As we know, behind every cold case is a family, and 19 years after her shocking murder, Marea Yann’s family remains divided. Tensions that were developing in the lead up to her death, were cast in stone during the murder trial in 2008 that resulted in an acquittal. Some family members still believe the acquittal was appropriate and police never fully investigated alternative theories, while other family members believe it was a terrible miscarriage of justice and continue to pursue a second...
Aug 28, 2022•51 min•Season 1Ep. 273
If you haven't listened to the first part of this story, you might want to go back and listen before diving into this episode. It contains a lot of background you need to know about Vanessa's own story, but it's also a unique insight into how one human being's life can be completely derailed by the intervention of another, particularly during childhood. Vanessa's story provides a perfect case study of what's known as the victim-offender overlap; which is to say most offenders of crime have been ...
Aug 21, 2022•33 min•Season 1Ep. 272
This is the first of a two part Australian True Crime special because Vanessa’s story just refused to be contained in a single episode. I’m sure you’ll agree it’s a story that shouldn’t be rushed. It’s not every day you have the opportunity to hear first hand how a well-behaved, studious, happy child, from a loving home found herself estranged from her family and living on the streets before her twentieth birthday. But that’s Vanessa’s story. For ad-free listening, early access and exclusive con...
Aug 14, 2022•44 min•Season 1Ep. 271
Roger Eichler is a former country copper who served in NSW police from the 1990's. Like so many others, too many others, Roger eventually left the service on a medical discharge with debilitating PTSD. Roger Eichler has written a book on his experience as a country copper, it's called "The Price Of Protecting Others", and he joins us today to talk about it. You can buy Roger's book here: https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-price-of-protecting-others-roger-eichler/book/9780228863038.html For ad-free...
Aug 07, 2022•36 min•Season 1Ep. 270
As Jeffrey Lindsell’s family and friends gathered around his hospital bed in the days after his house caught on fire, attention turned to his volatile on-off relationship with Amanda Zukowski. It seemed as though Jeffrey had been living in an abusive relationship and had been a victim of coercive control and intimate partner violence. They realised that although he’d been increasingly withdrawn during the two year relationship and was particularly reluctant to talk about her, he’d shared differe...
Jul 31, 2022•50 min•Season 1Ep. 269
Jason Roberts, 41 years old, was recently freed for the first time in twenty two years by the Supreme Court of Victoria. He was seventeen years old when two police officers, Sergeant Gary Silk and Senior Constable Rodney Miller were shot and murdered on Cochranes Road, Moorabbin, Victoria. Roberts was one of two who were convicted of the murders all those years ago. It's a very infamous case in Australia, and a very complicated one. We are joined today by Adam Cooper, journalist at The Age and T...
Jul 24, 2022•36 min•Season 1Ep. 268
The Magistrates’ Court is the workhorse of the legal system, hearing both criminal and civil matters. Magistrates’ Courts around Australia hear the vast majority of sentenced court cases - more than 90 per cent in fact. Michael Challinger is a criminal barrister based in Melbourne and has been working in Victorian courts since 1975 – representing clients, mostly in the Victorian Magistrates’ Court and Children’s Court. Michael’s written a book called Mostly Guilty – which is funny...
Jul 14, 2022•43 min•Season 1Ep. 267
We've spoken a great deal on this show over the years about the work of our state coroners, and today we finally got to meet one. Leveaaque Peterson was appointed a coroner by the Victorian state government in February 2020, and throughout her career in the legal system has chosen to take on some big and uncomfortable challenges. We'll find out why she finds that kind of law interesting, and also, what being a coroner actually entails. CREDITS: Host: Meshel Laurie. You can find her on Instagram&...
Jul 10, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 266
Many offenders who remain incarcerated can use their superannuation upon release to return to their lives luxuriating in their super, whilst their survivors generally are unemployed due to the longstanding impact these horrendous crimes have had on them. Our guests today, Andrew Carpenter and Adam Washbourne, are some of the front runners calling on the government to reform the Bankruptcy Act, so that child sex offenders’ superannuation can be used to help victim-survivors rebuild their liv...
Jul 03, 2022•50 min•Season 1Ep. 265
Dr Ahona Guha is a Melbourne-based Forensic and Clinical Psychologist. Ahona works at pointy end of mental health and treatment - with people who have clinical presentations of harmful behaviours, trauma histories, and those who have offended against others - sexual offences (including against children) violence, stalking, arson… Dr Ahona Guha, DPsych works in the field of forensic psychology to understand offending behaviours such as stalking, sex offending and intimate partn...
Jun 26, 2022•49 min•Season 1Ep. 264
