Australia Claremont Serial Killer, 1996-1997, Perth, Western Australia - #7 *ARREST*

[potr]

 

[PersonX]

In those days phone lines came to a junction point typically under the footpath not too far from the property. Telstra could access them by pulling up a small concrete or metal slab with a special tool. From here they then ran in trunk lines to the exchange. This is becoming less common today due to the NBN and fibre, but you'll still see this in many suburbs around Australia.

Yes I can attest to there at least being easy access... as a child I used to walk up footpaths and look for the slabs with the Telstra symbols on them (I must have been a strange child lol) and it intrigued me.. I remember asking about them!

It would be trivial for a Telstra employee to listen to the phone conversations coming from that public phone without being at the exchange, although he could also do it from the exchange itself (much more risky if they're manned at night and require signing in). The junction point may, for example, have been in Chatswood Tce - very dark and rarely used at that time of night, and nobody would think much of a Telstra guy messing around in a hole. It would not have taken much for him to hear the call, then get in his station wagon and proceed to the corner. From memory I believe the time the real taxi arrived either 6 or 8 minutes after she made the call, he could have easily been there within 2 minutes. If he was listening at the exchange it wouldn't have been much more than a couple of minutes to to drive there, either.

Yeah this is along the lines of what I think may have happened.
Hard to prove though I guess? :/


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[curious one]

A WOMAN'S silk dressing gown stolen off a washing line 28 years ago is believed to have been the vital clue that helped lead police to finally make an arrest in the Claremont serial killer case.

The Weekend West reported that in 1988 — eight years before Sarah Spiers was abducted off a Claremont street — the white kimono was dropped by an intruder who broke into the home of an 18-year-old Huntingdale woman and tried to rape her.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/ne...e/news-story/d5498c5d0593771d7f526f90646d52f0

 

[YoureNicked]

In those days phone lines came to a junction point typically under the footpath not too far from the property. Telstra could access them by pulling up a small concrete or metal slab with a special tool. From here they then ran in trunk lines to the exchange. This is becoming less common today due to the NBN and fibre, but you'll still see this in many suburbs around Australia.

It would be trivial for a Telstra employee to listen to the phone conversations coming from that public phone without being at the exchange, although he could also do it from the exchange itself (much more risky if they're manned at night and require signing in). The junction point may, for example, have been in Chatswood Tce - very dark and rarely used at that time of night, and nobody would think much of a Telstra guy messing around in a hole. It would not have taken much for him to hear the call, then get in his station wagon and proceed to the corner. From memory I believe the time the real taxi arrived either 6 or 8 minutes after she made the call, he could have easily been there within 2 minutes. If he was listening at the exchange it wouldn't have been much more than a couple of minutes to to drive there, either.

Thanks for that info. I'll ask Dad (an ex-Telstra electronics technician (he still restores old telephonic equipment today and has a historic knowledge of telecommunications in W.A) what he thinks when I see him tomorrow.

Who knows, he may even have have met Bradley Edwards but Dad would have been senior personnel whilst Edwards was still a junior techy at that stage. Edit: I should have added, "so it's probably not likely that Dad met him".

All very fascinating though.

 

[meticulously]

These are good but without a source its not as valid . Great sleuthing just checking

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[OneSmallStepAtATime]

Reading back through previous threads there is mention of a fire poker??? If this is the "type" of weapon/tool that could have been used in one (if not more) of the attacks IMO it is possible that the special tool thing that is used to lift the lids of the Telstra junction points could be the weapon that was used to immobilise the girls.

 

[curious one]

Thanks for that info. I'll ask Dad (an ex-Telstra electronics technician (he still restores old telephonic equipment today and has a historic knowledge of telecommunications in W.A) what he thinks when I see him tomorrow.

I wonder if the technology changed after 1998 - and it was no longer easy to tap lines, or switch calls to another line, hence why he stopped? (if he stopped at all?)

 

[PersonX]

Ive been pondering this stolen kimono thing for a bit now, why steal it? It just dawned on me. He took something from every one of the girls didnt he? Im presuming as a trophy. I think thats a reasonable conclusion to reach anyway.

The kimono wasn't from the girl in the 1988 incident, but it's assumed he stole it, had it on him while committing the crime, but when he fled the crime he accidentally dropped it.

Makes you wonder if he knew the woman whose kimono it was. Having read up a little bit on this type of "fetish", it could be that he knew of and found kimono lady attractive, but for whatever reason she wasn't available, and this was the "next best thing" to satisfy the urge.

Given this I would say the clothes thing was a precursor to sexual assault ... and tbh I assume that pattern of behaviour remained throughout the whole time he was committing crimes. It's a trigger.
The pattern will remain but what he does afterwards is what escalated over (ie eventually murder).

There's a lot of people out there who do this which is so creepy to think about. But I think one would have to be particularly "special" to escalate it further than just the fetish itself and become a serial killer.

I found an IAmA reddit post about a guy who does this and although he hasn't admitted to assaulting anyone, in fact says he would never do that, just with the fetish itself you can see the escalation from the time he was 13-14 to the time he posted at 29 years old.






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[meticulously]

Before everyone says how this looks nothing like the recent photos, remember how court sketches (at least in Perth from my memory) for some reason never seem to look like the person at all! Weirdly this does look a bit more like the '' photo out there which appears to be of a younger bloke, so I'm not sure whether it's BE or just one of his mates.

The face does seem to alter throughout the different pictures I've seen but one things consistent .

Dark Eyebrows
Thoughts ?

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[meticulously]

Source cia doco seen regularly in thread #6 ws

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[meticulously]

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B.E. & id kit
Source csk documentary YouTube

 

[dilettante]

I really don't think he tapped phones. Why would he need to do that when he could just be watching a payphone and drive buy a few mins later saying 'taxi?' and be 1) right most of the time, 2) not suspicious because anyone would think 'not for me but for somebody else'?

 

[dilettante]

The face does seem to alter throughout the different pictures I've seen but one things consistent .

Dark Eyebrows
Thoughts ?

.

Yep I went back and edited that post to say I'm 99% sure it's not him and why. If anyone posts the picture please warn them that it's probably an innocent guy.

 

[JBA512]

Question for people more knowledgeable in this area but if he did listen in on the line how long would it take him to get everything back to normal before leaving the exchange/junction?

I feel he must of listened to SS call. Put magnetic taxi signs over the telstra/telcom. Approached SS with window down yelled out "taxi for spiers?" She wouldn't of second guessed seeing he knew her name.


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[PersonX]

The face does seem to alter throughout the different pictures I've seen but one things consistent .

Dark Eyebrows
Thoughts ?

.

My opinion is that often the same person can look different in different photos, even if taken around the same time or on the same night even.
I am one of those people! I don't know why that happens.

I think there is striking similarity in the dark features - eyes, hair. Even with MM!
BE is tall with dark features.



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[Cici_Cyclone]

I just want to say good work to the people in this thread who did a boatload of research on the Telstra vehicles and matching car models with fabric types. You were definitely on the right track and got things narrowed down quite well.

That's a really helpful tip, thanks


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[meticulously]

Before everyone says how this looks nothing like the recent photos, remember how court sketches (at least in Perth from my memory) for some reason never seem to look like the person at all! Weirdly this does look a bit more like the '' photo out there which appears to be of a younger bloke, so I'm not sure whether it's BE or just one of his mates. IMPORTANT EDIT: the bradcat photo out there is 99% most likely not our suspect because 1) school photo below shows dark hair, 2) suspect had an aversion to having his own photo out there but has history of manipulating photos of friends.

What pictures wrong ?
I deleted the face match until you clarify this please
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[escapehere]

Thanks for that info. I'll ask Dad (an ex-Telstra electronics technician (he still restores old telephonic equipment today and has a historic knowledge of telecommunications in W.A) what he thinks when I see him tomorrow.

Who knows, he may even have have met Bradley Edwards but Dad would have been senior personnel whilst Edwards was still a junior techy at that stage. Edit: I should have added, "so it's probably not likely that Dad met him".

All very fascinating though.

Please ask your Dad whether it was common for smaller suburban exchanges to be manned at night. If not, could any Telstra technician rock up during the night and let themselves in? Were there any specific security procedures? Would they have kept records of technicians entering and leaving?

 

[perthartist]

What pictures wrong ?

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If you google "" there will be an animation of a man morphing into a panda.


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[dilettante]

What pictures wrong ?

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. Wrote bradcat by mistake. Need coffee.