Latest news with #NorthernTerritory
News.com.au
10 minutes ago
- News.com.au
NT Police, family hold concerns for welfare over missing 31-year-old Ralph Amital
Northern Territory Police hold concerns for the welfare of 31-year-old Ralph Amital, who was last seen more than 48 hours ago and about 40 kms inland from the Wadeye community. Mr Amital was last seen about 10am Monday walking away from Nama Outstation, NT Police said. He was last seen wearing dark jeans and a green sleeveless top, NT Police said. A search operation is currently being coordinated by the NT Police Search and Rescue Section with the assistance of local police, NT Emergency Services and rangers. His family and police hold concerns for his welfare, and if anybody has sighted Mr Amital or has any further information, please contact 131 444 or visit your local station.
SBS Australia
3 hours ago
- SBS Australia
Peter Falconio killer dead at 67, police say victim's family ‘denied closure'
Peter Falconio killer dead at 67, police say victim's family 'denied closure' Published 16 July 2025, 9:14 am Bradley John Murdoch - the man convicted of the murder of British backpacker Peter Falconio in the early 2000s - has died of throat cancer. He had been serving a life sentence. Murdoch never revealed the location of Falconio's body and always maintained his innocence.
The Sun
5 hours ago
- The Sun
Outback killer commits evil last act before his death as Brit victim Peter Falconio's grieving dad reveals his heartache
OUTBACK killer John Bradley Murdoch who was convicted of murdering Brit Peter Falconio committed an evil final act before dying of cancer. Tragic Falconio's grieving dad has now expressed his heartbreak after Murdoch, who died at the age of 67, did not reveal where his victim's remains are. 7 7 7 Murdoch in 2005 was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole for murdering Falconio in the remote area of Australia's Northern Territory. But the killer was diagnosed with terminal throat cancer in 2019. Falconio's death shocked the world after grisly details emerged revealing how Murdoch pulled off the fatal attack. His body was never found. Northern Territory Police Force said Murdoch did not provide any fresh information about the location of Falconio's remains before his death. Dad Luciano Falconio revealed his heartbreak as he said he wished that Murdoch had "left something" to help him recover his son's body. He added: "I don't wish anybody dead because you have only got one life and I think if you've been given that gift of life... I don't even know what to say. "I tell you what I think, I wish he [Murdoch] left something for me to find him." The Northern Territory Police Force said in a statement: "It is deeply regrettable that Murdoch has died without, as far as we are aware, ever disclosing the location of Peter Falconio's remains. "His silence has denied the Falconio family the closure they have so long deserved." Manhunt for missing 'killer' dad Travis Decker underway following fresh 'sighting' – weeks after 'murdering his 3 kids' Murdoch is said to have flagged down a van driven by the young Brit before shooting him in the head in front of his girlfriend Joanne Lees. Murdoch would then tie up the terrified woman with cable ties and try to abduct her. Ms Lees miraculously managed to escape and hid in a bush for five hours in the boiling Outback. She was later able to help convict Murdoch by identifying him as the murderer. During the trial, prosecutors argued that Murdoch was likely to have disposed of the backpacker's body somewhere in the vast, remote expanse of desert between Alice Springs and Broome, covering more than 1,200 miles. 7 7 7 7 Despite repeated searches, Mr Falconio's body has never been found. Ms Lees, who returned to the UK, told Australian current affairs programme 60 Minutes in 2017 that she still wanted to "bring him home". "Pete lost his life on that night, but I lost mine too," she said at the time. "I'll never be fully at peace if Pete's not found, but I accept that that is a possibility." News surfaced on February 17, 2023, that police had found some bones near Alice Springs that were being tested to see if they were the remains of Peter Falconio. The reports were rubbished with authorities stating: 'No human remains have been located by Northern Territory Police, and a search is not currently being conducted. 'Current media reports are factually incorrect.' Peter Falconio case timeline PETER Falconio was shot dead in the Australian outback while travelling with girlfriend Joanne Lees in July 2001. He was 28 years old when he was tragically shot by a man who flagged down the van he was driving. The man was 43-year-old drug smuggler Bradley John Murdoch. Murdoch shot Falconio in the head before bundling Lees into his car and binding her with cable ties. She managed to escape and hide in bushes for five hours, before she ran into the road and waved down a passing truck. Lees soon became a prime suspect in her boyfriend's murder after claims she appeared "emotionless" after the incident. But it was later revealed she had taken the sedative Valium to help her handle her horror ordeal. Police were never able to locate Falconio's remains. Reports in February 2023 detailed that police had found some bones near Alice Springs that were being tested to see if they were the remains of Peter Falconio. The reports were later rubbished with authorities stating: 'No human remains have been located by Northern Territory Police, and a search is not currently being conducted." Murdoch had launched several appeals against his conviction, but he remained in prison in the Northern Territory until his death.
SBS Australia
5 hours ago
- SBS Australia
Death of outback killer leaves victim's family without answers
Listen to Australian and world news, and follow trending topics with SBS News Podcasts . Peter Falconio wasn't Australian - like many young people from Britain, he came to Australia on a backpacking holiday. He and his girlfriend, Joanne Lees, were driving down the Stuart Highway, near Barrow Creek in the Northern Territory in July 2001, when Bradley John Murdoch, in a ute, signalled for them to pull over. When the 28-year-old Mr Falconio went over to talk to him, Murdoch shot him dead. The lead investigator for Northern Territory Police was Colleen Gwynne, who says Murdoch shared the qualities of many killers. "I guess he's got a lot of narcissistic tendencies. He's a very controlling individual. He's very entitled. And I guess he's got a very chequered background." Joanne Lees was assaulted and bound, but eventually managed to escape, hiding in a bush for five hours whilst Murdoch hunted for her with his dog. After a manhunt, Murdoch was arrested in 2003 and sentenced to life in prison in 2005, the judge describing his crime as remorseless and cowardly. The crime inspired the famous Australian film, Wolf Creek - although Murdoch's trial delayed its release in the Northern Territory. Despite repeated efforts, Murdoch never divulged what he did with Peter's body, a secret he has now taken to the grave after dying from throat cancer in an Alice Springs hospital, under the watch of corrections officers, at the age of 67. His death came just a day after the anniversary of the crime. In a statement, Northern Territory Police condemned Murdoch's silence. "His silence has denied the Falconio family the closure they have so long deserved, Our thoughts are with the Falconio family, whose grief continues." But his intransigence was no surprise to Ms Gwynne. "I never thought that Bradley would disclose the whereabouts, or give any further information that may assist us. It doesn't really change a great deal. I guess, symbolically, it's probably significant for the family." It's believed Murdoch dumped the body somewhere between Alice Springs and Broome. Ms Gwynne says investigators still hope Murdoch told someone - a fellow inmate, or perhaps someone else he trusted - the body's location, and perhaps, that person can now speak to give the family some sort of closure. Police have renewed their appeal for anyone who has any information about the location of the body to come forward- no matter how small their information might seem. There remains a 500,000 dollar reward. Meanwhile, Murdoch's family say they will remember him as a gentle giant, with a heart of gold, and quick wit. Ms Gwynne says Murdoch's death makes her think again, first and foremost, of Mr Falconio's loved ones. "My reaction is for the family who've lost Peter... really for Joanne, who has been through a terrible ordeal and has had to live through that. And I think, yeah, my emotions are very much with the family." She says their pain persists to this day. "They continue to go through pretty prolonged agony over losing their son, their you can imagine that causes, I guess, a lot of anxiety and grief."
ABC News
5 hours ago
- ABC News
The police officer who took the Falconio call
The killer of British backpacker Peter Falconio has died. Bradley John Murdoch died in palliative care, serving a life sentence for the 2001 murder. It was an event that changed the town of Alice Springs forever. Erica Gibson was a shift sergeant working at the local police station 24 years ago when the call came in from Peter's partner, Joanne Lees. Gibson says while she understood the seriousness of the call, she could never have foreseen the gravity of the event over the next two and a half decades. She spoke to ABC Darwin's Lillian Rangiah about that fateful night.
