Bradley John Murdoch

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Bradley Murdoch, police mugshot.

Bradley John Murdoch (born 1958) is serving life imprisonment for the July 2001 murder of English backpacker Peter Falconio in Australia. He will be 74 when eligible for parole. Murdoch is being held in Alice Springs Correctional Centre^[1] in Alice Springs. He has lodged two appeals against his conviction; both were unsuccessful. The High Court refused special leave to appeal on 21 June 2007.

Early life

Murdoch had previously lived in Broome, Western Australia and worked as a truck driver and mechanic.

Previous convictions

• In 1980, aged 21, Murdoch received a suspended sentence after being convicted of causing death by dangerous driving. [2]
• In 1995 Murdoch served 15 months imprisonment for shooting at people who were celebrating at a football match in the remote Kimberley region of Western Australia. [3]

Peter Falconio murder

Main article: Peter Falconio

In December 2005, Murdoch was convicted by the Supreme Court in Darwin for the murder of Falconio on a remote stretch of road in outback Northern Territory on 14 July 2001. He was also convicted of other assault-related charges on Falconio's girlfriend, Joanne Lees. He was sentenced to life imprisonment with a non-parole period of 28 years. Murdoch has maintained his innocence to this day. During his trial defence lawyers claimed that police procedures were not followed correctly, that Joanne Lees' testimony was inconsistent, and that it was impossible for him to have committed the crime. Lees incorrectly identified the details of the vehicle Murdoch was driving and the breed of Murdoch's dog. Lees also admitted seeing an internet photograph and article linking Murdoch to the murder before she was interviewed by police. At a pre-trial hearing the defence determined that Lees had been having an affair, even though she denied this until confronted with evidence. There are many other contradicting details given by Lees detailed in books written by three independent writers each questioning Lees's credibility. On 9 October 2006, Lees was interviewed on the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 by John Humphrys. He proceeded to attack Lees for cashing in on the tragedy. Lees has reportedly been paid $125,000 AUD for an interview with Martin Bashir and $650,000 AUD advance for a book titled 'No Turning Back". Lees admitted to use of ecstasy and marijuana, and to having sex with another man, Nick Riley, in Sydney during their trip through Australia without Peter Falconio's knowledge. On the 4th of January 2008 police in Western Australia advised that a woman was violently assaulted and raped at knife-point on an isolated highway yesterday. Detectives said a 46-year-old woman stopped near the Overlander Roadhouse on the North West Coastal Highway after hitting two birds. She was then approached by a man driving a white Toyota LandCruiser (the same description of the vehicle John Bradley Murdoch was alleged to have used during the attack on Peter Falconio and Joanne Lees) . After a brief conversation, the man attacked her from behind with a knife and forced her to the ground, where he raped her. Police said the victim suffered significant injuries. The aggressive attack took place on a stretch of highway 200km south of Carnavon between 5.30pm and 7pm. After the assault, the women drove herself to the Carnavon police station. Her attacker is described as a white male in his 40s with short, light-brown hair. Murdoch could not have commited the offence as he is in jail.

Appeal

On 12 December 2006 Murdoch appealed against his life sentence in the Supreme Court where his lawyers lodged eight grounds of appeal. Murdoch claims the evidence of Lees was tainted because she had seen a photograph of Murdoch on the internet before she was interviewed by police, and an article linking Murdoch to the murder. ^[2] The appeal was dismissed on 10 January 2007.^[3] An appeal to the High Court of Australia was unsuccessful.

Location of Peter Falconio's Body

The location of Peter Falconio's body remains a mystery. However, in mid August 2007, some sections of the Australian Media speculated that Murdoch may soon reveal the whereabouts of Falconio's remains. Specifically, the Australian press mentioned that he does not enjoy the conditions of the Berrimah Prison, on the outskirts of Darwin, Australia and may reveal the location of Falconio's body in exchange for a transfer to a prison in Western Australia, now that all avenues of appeal for Murdoch have been exhausted. Murdoch maintains his innocence and says that although he would love a transfer back to where his terminally ill mother lives, he cannot give information on something he knows nothing about.^[4]

References

• The Queen v Murdoch 2005 NTSC 80 (15 December 2005)
• The Queen v Murdoch 2005 NTSC 79 (15 December 2005)
• The Queen v Murdoch 2005 NTSC 78 (15 December 2005)
• The Queen v Murdoch 2005 NTSC 77 (15 December 2005)
• The Queen v Murdoch 2005 NTSC 76 (15 December 2005)
• The Queen v Murdoch 2005 NTSC 75 (15 December 2005)
• Did Bradley Murdoch murder Peter Falconio? December 2007
• Robin Bowles Author of Dead Centre