Bradley John Murdoch, the convicted outback killer whose crimes partly inspired the horror film Wolf Creek, has died in the palliative care ward of Alice Springs Hospital.
The 67-year-old, who was serving a life sentence for the murder of British backpacker Peter Falconio, passed away from terminal throat cancer, ending one of Australia’s most notorious true crime chapters without ever revealing key details about his crime.
What happened to Peter Falconio?
In July 2001, Peter Falconio and Joanne Lees were road-tripping through the Northern Territory when their van was pulled over by Murdoch near Barrow Creek. Falconio got out to investigate after being told there was an engine problem, and a gunshot followed.
Lees was attacked, tied up, and forced into Murdoch’s vehicle. In a desperate bid for survival, she escaped into the bush and hid for hours before finding help.
Despite an enormous search, Falconio’s body was never found.
How did the police catch Bradley John Murdoch?
The hunt for answers spanned months, with police relying on forensic evidence and Lees’s identification of Murdoch. A key breakthrough came when detectives found one of Lees’s hair ties in Murdoch’s ute.
Former investigator Colleen Gwynne described the item as a “trophy” Murdoch kept from the crime, even though he “probably didn’t know how significant the hair tie was” at the time.
Murdoch was arrested, and DNA evidence linked him directly to the crime scene. On 13 December 2005, Murdoch was convicted of Falconio’s murder, as well as the assault and attempted kidnapping of Lees. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, with a non-parole period of 28 years, meaning he would not have been eligible for any form of release until at least 2033.
At his sentencing, Chief Justice Brian Martin called Murdoch’s actions “cowardly in the extreme” and noted his lack of remorse.
Murdoch spent his sentence at Darwin Correctional Centre, later being transferred to the Alice Springs Correctional Centre after being diagnosed with terminal throat cancer in 2019. Murdoch continued to claim his innocence throughout his imprisonment.
Unanswered questions of the Falconio case
The Falconio family and Joanne Lees endured years in the spotlight, but closure always remained out of reach. Northern Territory Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro recently said: “It is disappointing for the Falconio family that this case remains unresolved and they are still without the closure they deserve. We remind the public that the reward for information relating to the disappearance of Peter Falconio has been recently increased,” per the ABC.
As Murdoch’s health declined, police made several attempts to get him to reveal what happened, but he never engaged or provided any answers. A $500,000 reward is still on offer for anyone with information about Falconio’s remains.
Murdoch’s death is now the subject of a coronial inquest. With him gone, the final pieces of this grim chapter in Australia’s true crime history might never be uncovered.
Lead image: Getty
The post Outback Killer Bradley Murdoch Dies Age 67, Leaving His Victim’s Body A Mystery appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
