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Episode 6 - Recommendations

Here are the recommendations from Episode 6. Let us know what you think! 

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Episode 5 - Recommendations

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EPISODE 6: FEMALE HANNIBAL LECTER

Inside Twisted Podcast · Female Hannibal Lecter

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EPISODE 5: PORT ARTHUR

Inside Twisted Podcast · Port Arthur

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Episode 4 - Recommendations

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EPISODE 4: MONSTER NEIGHBOUR

Inside Twisted Podcast · Monster Neighbour

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FOURTH EPISODE

MONSTER NEIGHBOUR 

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Episode 3 - Recommendations

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EPISODE 3: WOLF CREEK (THE TRUE STORIES) - PART 2

Inside Twisted Podcast · Wolf Creek (The True Stories) - Part 2

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Spear Creek Murders

The case that we will be discussing is one that has been dubbed the real life wolf creek murders more commonly known as the spear creek murders involves three young travellers that set out on a road trip of a lifetime commencing from Alice springs to Melbourne that would ultimately end in a nightmare.

23-year-old Karen Edwards, her boyfriend 31-year-old Tim Thomson and 21-year-old Gordon Twaddle left Alice Springs on October 2nd of 1978 with their dog, ‘Tristie.’ 

They had their sights set on arriving at Cairns and then ultimately arriving in Melbourne around Christmas time. 

Karen, Tim and their dog Tristie were riding in their unique red 1977 BMW 100S motorcycle with a home-made side car. 

Whilst Gordon was riding a blue 1977 Suzuki GS750 motorcycle. 

After travelling 2 hours the group decided to stop and camp in Ti Tree which is located in Northern Territory overnight.

The next day the 3rd of October – The young travellers had a mammoth day planned filled with driving and sight-seeing, having stopped at Wauchope (war-cup), Devils Marbles, The Three Ways and Frewena before eventually concluding their big day by camping overnight at the Barry Caves located in the Northern Territory just off the Barkly Highway. 

The trio met with another male cyclist between The Three ways and Frewena, this individual camped with them overnight at the Barry Caves. Based off the articles I sourced for research on the case – the identity of this man has not yet been documented however there will be more on this later.

Wednesday, October 4th the following day– the group continue to travel with the man that they met between the Three Ways and Frewena.  The group spend the rest of their day traveling to Mount Isa. 

Karen, Tim and Gordon checked into the Moondarra Caravan Park in the afternoon, paying for a total of two nights and began to set up their tents and campsite. 

That same evening, the group were joined by another man in a brown and white Toyota Landcruiser. Like previously mentioned, the identity of both men at this point has not yet been identified.

5th of October the following day, Karen, Tim and Gordan are seen leaving the caravan park with the man in the Toyota Landcruiser, leaving the motorcycles. Karen tied her dog Tristie up before leaving – indicating that she expected to return soon. This is the last time the trio are seen alive again.

Witnesses have stated that the same vehicle returned to the park with a man seen alone looking for the dog Tristie, camping equipment and all other personal belongings and packed them into the car. Some witnesses being residents of the caravan park noted that the number plates on the vehicle were green on white that has been said to have had a profound impact on the investigation.

Tristie along with the trio’s belongings were all found at the Mount Isa dump by staff members however the trio were nowhere to be seen.

Until, 6.55pm on Tuesday, October 24, 1978, two Mt Isa locals were walking their dogs when they encountered a man’s decomposed body at the riverbed of Spear Creek. After alerting the authorities and investigating the area immediately furthermore badly decomposed bodies were discovered.

After forensic examination it was disclosed that the trio had each been shot with a single .22 calibre bullet to the head, execution style.

The victims were still fully clothed, but their pockets had been turned inside out and all ID was removed. This made it quite difficult to identify the badly decomposed bodies however one discovery at the crime scene assisted in discovering the identity of the individuals. The discovery being a women’s watch that had fallen into thick grass.

The individuals being Timothy Thomson, Gordon Twaddle and Karen Edwards.

On the 13 of November in 1978 – a 23-year-old local man Bruce John Preston was arrested after being found in possession of Tim’s very unique and distinctive red BMW motorcycle.

40 years went by and the case continued to stay cold and their story almost forgotten until the local newspaper decided to run an anniversary feature of the tragedy.  

There were some old newspaper clippings found in the back room of the newspapers office which contained the last image of the group alive. It was hoped a feature story in the weekend edition of the local newspaper would help jog the memories of some locals.

What they had hoped for came into fruition. The anniversary feature brought in a new witness to police and a review of the case was ordered.

Bruce John Preston, 63, was charged with three counts of murder more than 40 years after his alleged victims' bodies were found at Spear Creek.

The Prestons were a widely known family in Mount Isa in the late 1970s. A large amount of the town knew who Bruce was because of his father. Because of this the town was shocked 40 years ago, when the motorcycle of one of the alleged victims, Tim Thomson, was found in the back shed of the Preston family home. The closeness of the town might have prevented witnesses from coming forward sooner.

Police believe that Preston met his three victims at Frewena rest stop on Barkly Highway and joined them before eventually killing and robbing them.

Bruce was stating that he would rather harm himself than go to prison, after psychologist report found there was no indication, he would self-harm he was granted bail and is now subject to a curfew is ordered to report to the local police station three times a week.

There is a $250,000 reward for further information that leads to a conviction.

Sources

Australia's 1000K Killer, 2015. Spear Creek – discovery of the bodies. [Online] Available at: https://1000kkiller.wordpress.com [Accessed 24 August 2020].

Brisbane Times, 2019. What led police to lay charges in the 40-year-old Spear Creek cold case. [Online] Available at: https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/what-led-police-to-lay-charges-in-the-40-year-old-spear-creek-cold-case-20190412-p51dpn.html [Accessed 24 August 2020].

Brisbane Times, 2020. Former prison guard accused of three murders granted bail. [Online] Available at: https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/former-prison-guard-accused-of-three-murders-granted-bail-20200131-p53wi2.html [Accessed 24 August 2020].

Generation Why Podcast, 2019. The unsolved case of a 1978 triple homicide in the Australian outback. [Online] Available at: https://genwhypod.com/blogs/the-generation-why-podcast-blog/the-unsolved-case-of-a-1978-triple-homicide-in-the-australian-outback [Accessed 24 August 2020].

myPolice Queensland Police News , 2019. Police launch new appeal for 1978 triple homicide in Mount Isa. [Online] Available at: https://mypolice.qld.gov.au/news/2019/03/23/police-launch-new-appeal-for-1978-triple-homicide-in-mount-isa/ [Accessed 24 August 2020].

news.com.au, 2015. Could the 1978 Spear Creek slayings be linked to other outback murders. [Online] Available at: https://www.news.com.au/national/crime/could-the-1978-spear-creek-slayings-be-linked-to-other-outback-murders/news-story/56c24fca2e97663eb1ac7eefca5e2332?utm_source=SEM&utm_medium=PPC_SEM&utm_campaign=%7Bcampaign%7D&gclid=CjwKCAjwyo36BRAXEiwA24CwGXMMB3W6O [Accessed 24 August 2020].

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THIRD EPISODE 

WOLF CREEK (THE TRUE STORIES) PART TWO 

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Episode 2 - Recommendations

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Episode 1 - Recommendations

Here are the recommendations from Episode 1. Let us know what you think! 

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Inside Twisted is a true crime and mystery podcast hosted by Bridget Eadie. 

Inside Twisted is a podcast dedicated to delving deep into Australia’s most notorious cases. Not only will there be a range of true crime cases discussed each episode but there will be interviews and recommendations like no other! So strap yourselves in for this new podcast. 

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EPISODE 2: ONE OF AUSTRALIA’S OLDEST COLD CASES

Inside Twisted Podcast · One of Australia's Oldest Cold Cases

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SECOND EPISODE

ONE OF AUSTRALIA’S OLDEST COLD CASES

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McCulkin Case

The McCulkin case is of the triple murder of Barbara McCulkin and her 2 daughters Vicky and Leanne McCulkin. Driven to an unknown bush clearing where they are assaulted and killed their bodies are never found. For 46 years it has been Queensland most hunting unsolved crimes. We know now 2 of the most callous criminals Australia’s ever seen committed the act.

Over 45 years ago Brisbane had a dark side of organised crime and police corruption. Brisbane has now changed and moved on but not at a small home in the Brisbane suburb of Highgate Hill. The home of the McCulkin Family.

Barbara aged 34 and her estranged criminal husband billy and their 2 young daughters, Leanne 11 and Vicki 13.

Through her husband Billy, Barbara met and became familiar with Vince O’Dempsey another violent criminal who was involved in Brisbane’s dark criminal side.  He was a regular guest at the McCulkin home. It was believed that Barbara knew a lot about the criminal activity that went on including 2 fire bombings that occurred 11 days apart from one another the first on the 25th of February 1973 Torino’s nightclub in Fortitude Valley goes up in flames. 

Almost 2 weeks later on the 8th of March 1973 the Whisky Au Go-Go nightclub experiences an attack in a similar nature and the nightclub goes up flames however this arson attack claimed the lives of 15 innocent people who were inside at the time of the bombing.  At the time this became Australia’s worst Mass Murder.

9 months later on the 16th of January 1974 the McCulkin’s neighbour Janine Guyton is waiting outside in anticipation of Vicki and Leanne McCulkin to come over and have some cake for her 10th birthday. 6:10pm She witnesses 2 men arriving outside of the McCulkin residence in an orange vehicle and enter the McCulkin home.

A few minutes later Janine and her sister Janet cross the road and collect the McCulkin sisters. Janet was able to identify one of the men as Vince who has previously been at the address. She was also able to identify the other man as “Shorty”. Vicki and Leanne spend the afternoon at their Janine’s birthday party and arrive home at around 10 pm.

On the 18th of January 1974 at 6pm, two days after Barbara McCulkin and her daughters Vicki and Leanne were last seen. Billy arrived to find their house empty this is the first anyone time someone has noticed Barbara and the girls are missing. 

There were indications that they were going to leave for a short period of time as their pet cats were found locked inside of the house. 

Barbara’s sewing machine was still on and her wallet was found inside of the house with money still in it.

It was clear that she thought that they would be back. Billy immediately suspects that something happened to his family and that it was O’Dempsey and Shorty who were to blame. He asked one of the girls on the street if she knew anything and she stated that she saw Shorty and Vince the day the McCulkin’s disappeared 2 days prior.  

Billy spent hours searching for his family before contacting the police to file a missing person’s report.

Billy decided to confront Vince O’Dempsey and Shorty face to face and accused them of foul play. The pair immediately skip town and go into hiding. They become the prime suspects of the disappearance and presumed murder of the McCulkin’s.

Six years later on the 2nd of April 1980 there was a breakthrough. Vince O’Dempsey and Gary Shorty Dubois are charged with 3 counts of murder. A year later on the 5th of May 1981 with insufficient evidence to proceed both men walk free.

For the next 34 years there was nothing and these men were able to live their lives. In 2014 a tip off to the Queensland cold-case unit suggested that O’Dempsey and Dubois may have admitted their participation in the murders to trusted criminal allies.  Peter Hall lived by a criminal code that was that you were never to give anyone up to the police. He lived by that code for more than 40 years but in 2014 he broke the code. Peter explains that days after the McCulkin’s disappeared Dubois made a shocking confession. Peter stated that Dubois basically told him in detail the events that took place days prior.

Tricked into taking a late-night drive with O’Dempsey and Dubois, Barbara and her daughters were tied up and taken into Bushland close to Warwick west of Brisbane. The girls were separated from their mother, O’Dempsey took Barbara into the darkness to murder her. O’Dempsey then ordered Dubois to assault one of the McCulkin girls then murder her. Dubois was unable to murder one of the girls so O’Dempsey then murdered both of the daughters.  With Peter Hall’s help the evidence the detectives had solid evidence towards Dubois however without the remains of Barbara and her daughters’ detectives needed more evidence to charge O’Dempsey.

For over 20 years Warren McDonald had been Vince O’Dempsey protégé involved in growing cannabis on a property west of Brisbane. Warren was pressured by detectives to also break the code to help solve the case. He stated that he recalled a disturbing conversation with O’Dempsey. Warren stated that him and O’Dempsey were having a conversation about security for the cannabis crop and the conversation about the McCulkin murders came to light. Warren stated that O’Dempsey came out and said that Warren needed a notch on his gun which meant Warren needed to kill someone in order to gain respect. He stated that O’Dempsey told him that when he was Warren’s age, he had several notches on his gun. This is when O’Dempsey blatantly confessed to killing the McCulkin’s to Warren.

This was exactly what detectives needed to charge Dubois and O’Dempsey with the murders of Barbara McCulkin, Vicki McCulkin and Leanne McCulkin. On the 18th of October 2014 Dubois and O’Dempsey were charged with three counts of murder, two counts of rape and deprivation of liberty. Despite Dubois pleading not guilty on the 28th of November 2016 the Jury convicts Dubois of raping and murdering the McCulkin girls and deprivation of liberty and finds him guilty of Mrs McCulkin’s manslaughter.

On the 2nd May 2017 O’Dempsey stands trial in the Brisbane Supreme Court after pleading not guilty to three counts of murder and deprivation of liberty. On the 26th of May 2017 the Jury finds O’Dempsey guilty of all charges.

The bodies of Barbara McCulkin, Vicki McCulkin and Leanne McCulkin have never been found.

Sources

60 Minutes Australia , 2019. Solving One of Australia's Oldest Cold Case Murders | 60 Minutes Australia. [Online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVVZK-RdZgc&has_verified=1 [Accessed 03 June 2020].

MamaMia, 2017. How the haunting mystery of the McCulkin murders unfolded.. [Online] Available at: https://www.mamamia.com.au/mcculkin-murders-timeline/