Australia Australia - Peter Falconio, 28, Barrow Creek, NT, 14 Jul 2001

[Jackster]

Re your second point. One of the recent articles does say that JL hid in the bush for 5 hours while BM searched for her. I don't have either of the books I read on this any more, but my recollection is that BM didn't search for anything like that length of time. She remained in hiding for a long while (hours) after he'd given up.

 

[Jackster]

Re your second point. One of the recent articles does say that JL hid in the bush for 5 hours while BM searched for her. I don't have either of the books I read on this any more, but my recollection is that BM didn't search for anything like that length of time. She remained in hiding for a long while (hours) after he'd given up.

 

[Jackster]

I do not understand why if BM was indeed there as claimed, looked for JL while she hid in bushes why a) his dog could not find her and there were no dog prints at all and b) why would he go away, this woman is a witness to a crime why would he just let her go and not wait till morning to find her … very fishy IMO

 

[crazychris]

He was very interested in life insurances before he left for the trip according to friends, but then how does that work if he started a new life how does he get any money unless JL in it with him ? I would love to know for sure if it was indeed Peter the couple at the truck stop saw that day which was after his disappearance

They do sound to be absolutely certain it was him and would swear to it in court if necessary. He was with another guy and they sped away, having realised probably that he'd been seen.

 

[JLZ]

I do not understand why if BM was indeed there as claimed, looked for JL while she hid in bushes why a) his dog could not find her and there were no dog prints at all and b) why would he go away, this woman is a witness to a crime why would he just let her go and not wait till morning to find her … very fishy IMO

He'd be there on the highway with a dead body beside the road or in his own vehicle, he's smuggling drugs, he's high and paranoid. It's . . . a challenging situation. What if someone thinks he's broken down and stops to help? Remembers him? What if it's police and they suss something and want to check out the car? Would he have thought that he'd definitely find Joanne if he waited till morning? He doesn't know she's hidden herself quite close; she appears to be gone: perhaps she's taken off across country and will get lost and perish there. If not, what kind of a witness will Joanne be? She's only had a glimpse of him and they'll never cross paths accidentally. She can't say it's him out of all the people in Australia if she never sees him again. He needs to get out of there, that's playing to his strengths, he can be back in Broome in near unbelievable time, and afterwards with luck they'll all forget what day it was.

Dogs find their own people. I think a dog that hasn't been trained to do so won't necessarily find a stranger, especially without a scent prompt.

 

[Mrs Marple]

She was probably exaggerating the length of time- if it was so dark how could she know, she would not have been able to see her watch.

If she was in on it...what has she gained, except notoriety? She could have come forward at the time of Murdoch being arrested and stopped it all. Did she get a pay out, does anyone know?

 

[JLZ]

She was probably exaggerating the length of time- if it was so dark how could she know, she would not have been able to see her watch.

If she was in on it...what has she gained, except notoriety? She could have come forward at the time of Murdoch being arrested and stopped it all. Did she get a pay out, does anyone know?

Not to link. In my opinion, yes she received payments of various kinds, and I've got nothing against that. She was treated very badly by police.

The time Joanne was picked up by the road train isn't really open to question. I'm not sure about the start time--I think they left the previous stop around sunset so perhaps it's estimated by the distance travelled.

 

[glitters]

A crime wasn't committed that day, a crime was created. FREE BRADLEY MURDOCH.

 

[Bluebear15]

A crime wasn't committed that day, a crime was created. FREE BRADLEY MURDOCH.

Bradley Murdoch is a proven murderer and a very dangerous man. I wonder how many of the people claiming his innocence would happily house him in their home...with their female family members!! None, I'd guess.

 

[OakieBoy]

Is Chris Malouf the guy Keith Allan Noble calls Atkins who made a statutory declaration? And the same guy one of the books said was pulled over seveal times by police as he had a van like Murdoch?

If so why the different names?

 

[glitters]

Is Chris Malouf the guy Keith Allan Noble calls Atkins who made a statutory declaration? And the same guy one of the books said was pulled over seveal times by police as he had a van like Murdoch?

If so why the different names?

No, the one who made the stat dec was Geoff Atkins.

 

[badgersmythe]

Fresh twist in the hunt for the body of murdered backpacker

A possible new witness has come forward to reveal he spotted a ute like killer Bradley Murdoch's parked 'in an odd place' by a culvert and a bridge 24 hours after Peter Falconio was murdered.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Jackster]

Bradley Murdoch is a proven murderer and a very dangerous man. I wonder how many of the people claiming his innocence would happily house him in their home...with their female family members!! None, I'd guess.

While I don’t actually agree Bradley murdoch should be freed as he is a dangerous man I do tend to think they fitted him up for this crime and he is innocent of this.

 

[Jackster]

For some reason I dont believe her story...the part that gets me is that the dog never found her while she was supposdely only hiding meters away from from it.....her whole story sounds shonky to me.
I think she had a hand in Peters dissappearance and Murdoch(who is a not a saint I know) has taken the fall for it..wrong place wrong time type of thing...thats my opinion anyway.....I didnt like Miss Lees from the start.
Murdoch was a known drug runner but thats a far cry from kidnapper / murderer and the man is in jail when theres really no evidence of a crime being committed at all....as you said Peters body has never been found.

Totally agree dingo

 

[Jackster]

Joanne Lees back in the spotlight as dramatic new evidence could free the man convicted of killing her boyfriend

Joanne Lees back in the spotlight as dramatic new evidence could free the man convicted of killing her boyfriend


"The case against Murdoch was based on three crucial pieces of DNA evidence linking him to the crime. These were found on the T-shirt that Joanne was wearing on the night of the attack; on the home-made shackles used to tie her hands; and on the gearstick of Joanne and Peter's Volkwagen Kombi camper van...But what happens if you take away Dr Whitaker's evidence - described by critics as "junk science" - and you are left with one single speck of DNA on a T-shirt as the single thing linking Murdoch to the crime?"

This is another strange one. I'm surprised it doesn't have its own forum here on WS. Bradley Murdoch was convicted of killing Joanne Lees' boyfriend, Peter Falconio, even though no body was ever found and numerous questions remained. Some are mentioned in this article:

"Why, for example, did Murdoch risk driving off with Falconio's body, as he must have done because no body was found at the scene?
How was it that not a single trace of blood was found in his vehicle (although Murdoch did change parts of the vehicle after Falconio disappeared)?
Why, though Joanne's footprints were discovered, was not a single footprint of Murdoch, or his dog, found at the scene? This aspect of the case continues to baffle the Aborigine trackers who searched for them. And why were there no drag marks to show a body had been moved?
Joanne says a violent struggle took place between her and Murdoch, yet the only trace he left was that speck on her Tshirt. Murdoch's vehicle had no front to rear access yet Joanne said she climbed from the front to the back of the vehicle.
And why did Joanne refuse to talk publicly at the time in any detail about the attack even though police urged her to in order to help them try to find her boyfriend?
And why, even taking into account her distress at the time, did Miss Lees manage to get her description of her attacker so wrong?
He was, she said, of medium build and with long hair; Murdoch stands 6ft 4in and had a crew cut. He has no front teeth but Joanne did not notice that. She thought the dog was red and brown coloured; Murdoch's dog is a dalmatian. The plot thickened when hundreds of miles away in Bourke, New South Wales, two petrol station employees were adamant that several days after his disappearance, Falconio came into the filling station and bought a Mars bar."

Any WSers have any theories?

I read Joanne Lees' book, and the thing I found most convincing was her apparent hatred for Murdoch. Could she hate him so much if she knew she was framing him for the crime?

I think the whole thing was made up, when Joanne being was being interviewed by Martin Bashir she acts like she’s narrating a story, no emotion involved, I don’t know whether they planned this between them but I don’t believe any of her story .. she is just not credible

 

[Jackster]

A fascinating case....even though it was 'concluded' in 2005 when Bradley John Murdoch was imprisoned, there are many things that don't sit right when scrutinised. Why would a grieving girlfriend be contacting the man she'd had a relationship with during the trip, within days of Peter's disappearance? Why would she be reluctant to meet Peter's father and brother when they arrived in Australia a few days later?

I must say I am surprised that peters family believe her story, anyone can see she is hiding something, I wonder if his family ever doubted her ?

 

[Jackster]

I don't believe a man could lift the dead weight of another man without training. I'm not convinced Peter was ever at Barrow Creek in the first place.

If you watch Joanne lees interview with Martin Bashir she goes to great lengths to mention BOTH of them in every scenario, both of them saw the man in the van, both of them watched the sunset, both of them saw the lit fire at side of road , she making sure that they were both mentioned in every bit of the story.. I like you Josephine don’t think he was ever there

 

[Jackster]

I agree with you there - nothing happened to him at Barrow Creek. Do you think it was a set up - or do you think he was abducted after a struggle? But if abducted, why would the abductors leave Lees behind?

IMHO I think Peter was not there, I think it was a set up, I often wonder if Peter said to Joanne I’m disappearing and she had to just go along with all the story whether she wanted to or not ?

 

[crazychris]

IMHO I think Peter was not there, I think it was a set up, I often wonder if Peter said to Joanne I’m disappearing and she had to just go along with all the story whether she wanted to or not ?

The people who saw him at a gas station buying a drink and chocolate bar were absolutely certain. I think he's still alive.

 

[Witness 28]

Regarding Peter Falconio, I don't think he was murdered - well, nothing happened to him at Barrow Creek anyway. There was absolutely no evidence of a crime having been committed apart from a small pool of blood near the road which was described as being approx. 250 ml, or one standard cup in capacity, and according to the black trackers the small blood pool was tainted because no flies,ants or other insects would go near it.
The only footprints found belonged to Joanne, although there were a few prints near the road which were consistent with a size 9.5 sneaker, the brand not sold in Australia. Bradley Murdoch takes a size 11.5..

I understand at the murder site, there was no evidence of a struggle ,footprints of a dog or footprints of any description, next time you play in the sand, run around Hyde with someone, have a look at the sand the dirt is everywhere , you been crime scene doesn't match up with the crime, and Joanne's actions after the crime , not talking to the police and contacting a lover to meet in Berlin not wanting to talk to anyone or balcones parents very strange