When Diane Brimble boarded a cruise in 2002, no one imagined what would come next. This episode of Crime Insiders Judgements unpacks the disturbing case that shook Australia. What really happened that night at sea? And how did a mother’s death spark nationwide outrage and a call for change? Hear about the events leading up to Diane's death, the subsequent investigation, and the legal proceedings that followed. This episode contains graphic descriptions of sexual assault, violent crime and men's ...
Apr 30, 2025•26 min•Season 3Ep. 197
A 40 hour long raid. Shot 14 times in a mere 5 seconds, and bleeding out on the ground for 3 hours. This was Derrick McManus' day at work in May 1994. Derrick is a 40-year veteran of the South Australia Police. After joining the force in 1976, he moved up the ranks and was eventually selected for the exclusive STAR Group, an elite tactical special operations unit that took on some of the state's most intense cases. In this episode, Derrick tells host, Brent Sanders, how an arrest warrant turned ...
Apr 29, 2025•31 min•Season 3Ep. 196
Document examiner Neil Holland has worked on documents related to investigations into alleged Nazi war criminals, accused killers and dodgy bookies, and resurrected the writing on a document found inside a corpse’s stomach. In 1985, when Neil was the head of the Victoria Police document examination branch, the National Gallery of Victoria made history - acquiring Pablo Picasso's The Weeping Woman. At $2 million, it was the most expensive artwork ever purchased by a gallery in Australia. Less tha...
Apr 27, 2025•40 min•Season 3Ep. 195
Aussie band Men at Work's most famous song is arguably Down Under. But what if it wasn't actually their song? This was the claim made by Larrikin Music, who are the copyright holders of the nursery rhyme Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree . In this episode of Crime Insiders Judgement, go inside the plagiarism battle that remains a cautionary tale in copyright law. This episode references suicide. If you or anyone you know needs help, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14. See omnystudio.com/listener for...
Apr 23, 2025•29 min•Season 3Ep. 194
In 2014, flight MH17 was shot down, and 298 people died. A set of Australian experts were sent to investigate and assist. In the aftermath, victim identification is crucial in not only determining the identity of someone who has died, but also in the matter of a criminal investigation, the cause of death. Professor David Ranson is a forensic consultant and the former Deputy Head of the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine. In 2014, David was one of the forensic experts sent to Ukraine to ass...
Apr 22, 2025•51 min•Season 3Ep. 193
Michael Ashwood was a young detective assigned to help investigate the murder of a neo-Nazi in Sydney. What Michael and his colleagues didn't know was that federal investigators had placed a listening device in the murderer's home. What they heard would make chilling evidence at the murderer's trial. Michael was also involved in the disappearance of Tegan Lane, the child of Keli Lane, who was convicted and imprisoned for Tegan's murder, despite Tegan's body never being found. This episode refere...
Apr 20, 2025•57 min•Season 3Ep. 192
Alan Bond is an Australian businessman known for his rise to fame and subsequent fall from grace. Celebrated for his role in Australia's 1983 America's Cup victory, his involvement in significant corporate fraud mars Bond's legacy, particularly the Bell Resources case, which became a defining moment in Australia's corporate history. This episode of Crime Insiders Judgements explores Bond's audacious business dealings, legal battles, and the implications of his actions on corporate governance in ...
Apr 16, 2025•28 min•Season 3Ep. 191
Once an admired figure in NSW police, the now disgraced Roger Rogerson left a trail of corruption and death as he moved his way through the force. Former NSW Detective Deborah Locke was at the centre of Rogerson's grip on the police, and faced horrific consequences for standing up to him and his corruption. Deb sat down with host Brent Sanders, and unpacked the details of her life in the force and how she overcame both Rogerson and the police itself. This episode features references to suicide, ...
Apr 15, 2025•50 min•Season 3Ep. 190
After the 2002 Bali bombings killed 202 people, 88 of them Australian, Dr. Pamela Craig was sent into the centre of the crisis. As a forensic odontologist, her job was to help identify the victims, many burned beyond recognition. In this episode, Pam takes host Liz Porter inside the high-stakes world of disaster victim identification, from the Bali mortuary to other mass casualty scenes. Hear how dental forensics brings closure to families, and what it takes to face this kind of devastation agai...
Apr 13, 2025•30 min•Season 3Ep. 189
Daniel Miles was already serving a lengthy prison sentence for murdering his girlfriend. While in prison, he befriended and became romantically linked with another woman. While on a work release program, Miles escaped custody and hunted down his new lover, only to find her with another man. He exploded in rage and murdered her in cold blood. Daniel Miles will never be released from prison. This episode contains graphic descriptions of violent crime and men's violence against women. If you or any...
Apr 09, 2025•20 min•Season 3Ep. 188
The case of the Golden State Killer puzzled police and amateur sleuths for decades. Then, in April 2018, a Sacramento man was arrested and charged. How did police find their man, and what led them to him after years of nothing but cold clues and lack of leads? Genealogy is a complex, and often misunderstood science. But, according to Professor Dennis McNevin, an expert in the field of forensic genetics, it's a technique police are becoming more and more interested in. Join former Crime Insiders ...
Apr 08, 2025•32 min•Season 3Ep. 187
The NSW Police Tactical Operations Unit deals with the most extraordinary police operations - terror attacks, sieges, and armed confrontations. For this reason, those wishing to join the command are subject to rigorous selection and training processes, to prepare them for the life-threatening situations they could unexpectedly face. Ben Besant is best known for being the sniper who stormed the Lindt Cafe. However, he spent most of his 20-year career in the TOU, where he was regularly faced with ...
Apr 06, 2025•36 min•Season 3Ep. 186
When wheelchair-bound Helen Dansie drowned in an Adelaide pond in 2017, it looked like a tragic accident. But it wasn’t. Her husband had pushed her in - deliberately. Why did he do it? And how did the justice system unravel the truth? In this episode of Crime Insiders | Judgements, dissect the case, the trial, and the appeal. unpacking the motives, the evidence, and the chilling deception behind this disturbing crime. This episode references men's violence against women. If you or someone you kn...
Apr 02, 2025•28 min•Season 3Ep. 185
On the 9th of April 1995, a rental truck was unassumingly parked in front of a federal building in Oklahoma City. Seconds later, the truck exploded. 169 people, including children, were killed. Almost instantly. A massive investigation unfolded. Jeff Lanza, a seasoned FBI agent, was deeply involved. He immediately got to work acquiring information and starting the hunt for the person responsible. Jeff joins host Brent Sanders on this episode of Crime Insiders: Detectives to share insight from th...
Apr 01, 2025•37 min•Season 3Ep. 184
In the early 1990s, a serial predator terrorised Melbourne’s inner north, preying on women in their own homes – some elderly, some pregnant, most of them alone. No one felt safe. He crept in as they slept. And before fleeing, he made them count to 100 before they could call for help. They called him the Ascot Vale Rapist. As fear gripped the city, a small team of forensic scientists were working around the clock, developing an innovative DNA technique that could help crack the case faster than e...
Mar 30, 2025•36 min•Season 3Ep. 183
Crime Insiders Forensics has a new host - award-winning journalist and true crime author, Dr Liz Porter! With a PhD on the work of the Victoria Police forensic lab and three books to her name, Liz has spent her career uncovering how cutting-edge science solves the toughest cases. Now, she’s bringing that expertise to Crime Insiders Forensics, sitting down with the world’s top forensic minds to reveal how science convicts the guilty and frees the innocent. Tune in every Monday for new Forensics a...
Mar 27, 2025•6 min
In 2006, a couple in their young twenties, we’ll call them Gina and Joseph, met at a church dance in New Zealand. But early on, cracks began to appear in their idyllic façade. As years went on, their marriage was stained with violent altercations, drug use, infidelity, and a suicide attempt. In this episode of Crime Insiders | Judgements we take a deep dive on R v Kennedy, a murder in Sydney's western suburbs that took place after the killer Googled “The five top poisons”, “Executed in error" an...
Mar 26, 2025•23 min•Season 3Ep. 182
How do young people become radicalised? Is it nature or nurture? Or something far more complex? Dr John Kasinathan is a forensic psychiatrist who specializes in the treatment of children and adolescents. In this episode, hear about the science of the developing brain, what drives crime in young people, the realities of being an incarcerated child in Australia, and one of the most shocking acts imaginable - a child killing their entire family. If you or anyone you know needs help: Lifeline (Crisi...
Mar 25, 2025•45 min•Season 3Ep. 181
Kenneth Strange Jr served with three US federal agencies pursuing criminals and bad actors. Those agencies were the FBI, the US Agency for International Development and the Department of Justice. His service to those agencies brought him into conflict with jihadists, the cartels and international perpetrators of fraud. Ken traveled extensively around the world to more than 65 countries; he lived and worked in Saudi Arabia, Spain, Mexico, Costa Rica and El Salvador. Ken worked in the FBI for 21 y...
Mar 23, 2025•26 min•Season 3Ep. 180
A council worker, a chance encounter, and a brutal murder that horrified Australia. In 1989, four women prowled Brisbane’s streets in search of a victim. What followed was a crime so savage it blurred the line between reality and horror fiction. Who was Tracey Wigginton, the self-proclaimed vampire at the heart of it all? And what drove her to kill? In this episode of Crime Insiders | Judgements, uncover the chilling truth behind one of Australia’s most bizarre and brutal crimes. This episode re...
Mar 19, 2025•23 min•Season 3Ep. 179
After an attempted murder left a man brutally injured, one cop decided to change the way police in Queensland respond to violent crimes. Queensland Police Sergeant Dustin Osborne is one of the best examples of how proactive policing can not only prevent crime, but save lives. He designed and implemented QPol’s groundbreaking Tactical First Aid Program. An initiative which has received global acclaim for its ability to train first responding police in critical medical intervention techniques. Joi...
Mar 18, 2025•41 min•Season 3Ep. 178
A man found dead on an Adelaide beach in 1948—his identity unknown, his past a riddle, and his pocket containing a cryptic phrase: "Tamam Shud"—meaning "it is finished." But what if it wasn’t finished? In this episode, hear from Professor Derek Abbott, a man who has spent decades unraveling this enigma. And now, he claims to have the answer. Using DNA technology, Derek has identified the Somerton Man. But does this revelation truly close the case? Or does it open even deeper questions about who ...
Mar 16, 2025•50 min•Season 3Ep. 177
Two former high-profile NSW Detectives lured a drug dealer to a storage unit in Sydney's southern suburbs and murdered him in what the just called a "cold-blooded execution". Their trial took a turn when both turned on the other trying to prove they didn't kill Jamie Gao, the 20-year-old drug dealer who had taken 2.8 kilograms of the drug ice to the meeting, expecting to make millions in the deal. He was dead minutes later. In this episode of Crime Insiders | Judgements we go behind the scenes a...
Mar 12, 2025•23 min•Season 3Ep. 176
Ted Kaczynski terrorised the US for almost 20 years. But, what was it like forensically analysing the letters of a twisted genius? Max Houck is one of the world's most respected and recognised forensic scientists. During his time at the FBI, he worked on some of the world's most infamous forensic investigations, including 9/11, D.B Cooper, and The Unabomber. Understand Max's career with host Kathryn Fox, as we dive into these cases and hear the incredible stories of their forensic investigations...
Mar 11, 2025•40 min•Season 3Ep. 175
Behavioural threat assessment is a new area of policing and it's been incredibly successful in helping to solve complex crimes. Former NSW Detective Kris Illingsworth trained with the FBI in behavioural threat assessment. In this episode of Crime Insiders | Detectives, Brent Sanders discovers how behavioural threat assessment works and how it can be used to reduce the risk of domestic violence. We also delve into the case of the murder of a health care executive in New York and how profiling hel...
Mar 09, 2025•53 min•Season 3Ep. 174
Belle Gibson convinced the world she was a wellness warrior—a survivor who beat terminal brain cancer through clean eating and alternative medicine. Her story made her a star, landing deals with Apple and Penguin and amassing a global following. But there was just one problem... she never had cancer. In this episode of Crime Insiders | Judgements, we uncover what happened when the truth caught up with her—the court cases, the fines, the missing thousands, and the staggering deception that left c...
Mar 05, 2025•22 min•Season 3Ep. 173
Sandra Nicholson was at the heart of chaos. Whilst Melbourne was under siege during the Gangland Wars, and bushfires wreaked havoc across Victoria, those at the top of Vic Pol were forced to front the media and take responsibility for the intensity surrounding the city. Sandra Nicholson was Assistant Commissioner at Victoria Police for 5 years, and steered the ship with Commissioner Christine Nixon. Sandra joined the service in 1975, and rose through the ranks until her retirement almost 40 year...
Mar 04, 2025•42 min•Season 3Ep. 172
What if a prevention of domestic violence was hiding in plain sight – on four legs? Research shows that in homes where abuse happens, pets are often victims too. So, could vets be the missing link in identifying and addressing domestic violence? Should they have the same mandatory reporting requirements as doctors and teachers? Today’s guest, Dr Lydia Marwood, knows just how intertwined abuse of animals and humans is. She’s a forensic veterinary pathologist regularly tasked with performing necro...
Mar 02, 2025•44 min•Season 3Ep. 171
Australian Police have used a controversial tactic known as the 'Mr Big' technique to elicit confessions from some of the country's worst killers. Perhaps the most famous being child murderer, Brett Peter Cowan. Please visit Danielmorcombe.com.au and learn about the Daniel Morcombe Foundation. Daniel’s parents, Denise and Bruce launched the foundation to provide personal child safety education to children and young people to prevent abuse and promote lifelong health and wellbeing. They support e...
Feb 26, 2025•22 min•Season 3Ep. 170
A long standing theory, but one ballistics supports, at least in the mind of some of those who worked the case, is that Ivan Milat didn't act alone and that there were multiple shooters at several of his crime scenes. Host Kathryn Fox sits down with one of Australia's most respected forensic experts, Gerard Dutton to understand why some think there was more than one shooter, and how specific ballistic evidence supports this. If you or anyone you know needs help: Lifeline (Crisis support and suic...
Feb 25, 2025•44 min•Season 3Ep. 169
