Just a month shy of the 21st anniversary of one of Perth's most shocking crimes, WA Police have made a breakthrough with the arrest of a man accused of being the notorious Claremont serial killer.

The Claremont serial killings is the name given by the media to a case involving the disappearance of an Australian woman, aged 18, and the killings of two others, aged 23 and 27, in 1996-1997. After attending night spots in Claremont, a wealthy western suburb of Perth, Western Australia, all three women disappeared in similar circumstances leading police to suspect that an unidentified serial killer was the offender. The case, described as the state's biggest, longest running, and most expensive investigation, remains unsolved.^[1][2] However, in 2016, a suspect, Bradley Robert Edwards, was arrested and is facing trial for the crimes in late 2019.^[3]

Background[edit]

The case began with the disappearance of Sarah Spiers (18) on 27 January 1996, after she left Club Bayview in the centre of Claremont at around 2:00 am.^[4] At 2:06 am, Spiers called Swan Taxis from a public telephone booth.^[1] Unusually, although she was living in South Perth with her older sister at the time, she had requested to be taken to the nearby suburb of Mosman Park.^[1] She was then sighted waiting alone near the corner of Stirling Road and Stirling Highway by three eyewitnesses, who also mentioned seeing an unidentified car stopping where she was waiting^[1] However, she was not at the site when the responding taxi arrived at 2:09 and, in the dark,^[2] could have been missed by the driver. Her disappearance soon attracted massive publicity^[5][6] and her fate remains unknown.^[7][8]

On 9 June 1996, Jane Rimmer (23) from Shenton Park, also disappeared from the same part of Claremont.^[9] Similar to Spiers, she had been out socialising with friends the night before. Rimmer's friends explained how they had moved from the Ocean Beach Hotel to the Continental Hotel and then Club Bayview.^[1] Noting the long line at the club, her friends then caught a taxi home, but Rimmer opted to stay, and she was last seen on security footage waiting outside the Continental at 12:04 am.^[1] Fifty-five days later, on Saturday, 3 August 1996, her naked body was found 40 km south in bush-land near Woolcoot Road, Wellard by a family picking wildflowers.^[10][11]

Nine months later, on 14 March 1997, Ciara Glennon, a 27-year-old lawyer from Mosman Park, also disappeared from the Claremont area.^[12][13] Like the others, she was with friends at the Continental and had decided to make her own way home. Three men at a bus stop saw Glennon walking south along Stirling Highway at 11:15 pm, and observed her interacting with an unidentified light coloured vehicle which had stopped by her.^[1] Nineteen days later on 3 April, her semi-clothed body was found by a worker, 40 km north, near a track in scrub off Pipidinny Road in Eglinton.^[14]

Investigation[edit]

Within 48 hours of the disappearance of Spiers, the case was taken over by the Major Crimes Squad.^[1] After the disappearance of Rimmer, the WA Police setup a special task-force called Macro to investigate the two similar cases.^[15][16] After the disappearance of Glennon, police confirmed that they were searching for a serial killer, and the WA government offered a $250,000 reward, the largest ever offered in the state at that time.^[1]

Initial suspicion centred on the unidentified vehicles seen at two of the locations, and on an unidentified man seen in the video footage.^[1] Suspicion then focused on Perth's taxi-drivers given that the women were last seen in circumstances where they may have used taxis. This included a taxi-driver who claimed to have transported Spiers the night before her disappearance.^[17] A massive fingerprint and DNA-testing exercise was then carried out on the thousands of taxi drivers licensed in Western Australia.^[18][19] Given evidence of a number of unlicenced operators, examining standards for eligibility were raised, and 78 drivers with significant criminal history were de-licensed.^[2][20] Stricter standards were also applied to verifying that decommissioned taxis were stripped of insignia and equipment.^[1] In December 2015, investigators finally revealed that fibres taken from Rimmer were identified as coming from a VS Series 1 Holden Commodore.^[2]

Macro attracted both praise and criticism for their handling of the case.^[2] At its peak, it had over 100 members across 10 teams. To avoid leaks, strict confidentiality protocols were implemented, and details of the nature of the deaths and injuries were suppressed.^[1] One of the tactics used by Macro was the controversial distribution of questionnaires to 110 'persons of interest', including various confrontational enquiries such as 'Are you the killer?'^[2] Another was its reliance on international experts and use of an imported lie detector machine.^[2] Further, one of its officers accepted an offer by David Birnie to assist the investigation.^[2][21] Criticism was also laid on its overly narrow focus on the initial prime suspect despite the lack of direct evidence (as occurred in the cases of Andrew Mallard and Lloyd Rayney).^[22] Over its lifetime, Macro was subject to 11 police reviews, including one in August 2004 led by Paul Schramm, the officer who led the Snowtown investigation.^[2] It was finally wound down in September 2005 and the investigation moved to the Special Crimes Squad.^[2]

Suspects[edit]

As with similar cases, experts suggested that the suspect was probably a single white male, aged 25–35, who had a residence in the area, who appeared trustworthy, was organised, social, and probably well educated.^[2] Local sex workers were also questioned for signs of unusual behaviour in clients.

In April 1998, a public servant from Cottesloe, Lance Williams (41), was identified by police as the prime suspect, after his behaviour attracted their attention (i.e., driving around after midnight and circling the Claremont area up to 30 times^[23]) during a decoy operation.^[24][22] Subjected to a high level of surveillance and police pressure over several years, he continued to maintain his innocence. After interviewing him six times at length, police declared in late 2008 that he was 'no longer a person of interest'^[25] and he died in 2018.^[23]

It was reported that police also investigated whether Bradley Murdoch may have been involved,^[26] although Murdoch was serving a custodial sentence from November 1995 until February 1997. In October 2006, it was also announced that Mark Dixie was a prime suspect in the killings, and that Macro had requested DNA samples.^[27] However, WA Police Deputy Commissioner Murray Lampard was later quoted as saying 'Dixie was closely investigated at the time and eventually ruled out as a suspect.'^[28][29][30]

On 22 December 2016, Bradley Robert Edwards (48) was arrested at his Kewdale house in relation to the deaths of both Rimmer and Glennon.^[31] According to ABC News, he is believed to have had no previous link to the case. The next day, Edwards was charged with both murders.^[32] He has also been charged in relation to two other alleged attacks: a house break-in and rape of an 18-year-old woman in Huntingdale on 15 February 1988, and the abduction and rape of a 17-year-old girl in Claremont on 12 February 1995,^{[note 1][32][33][34]} On 22 February 2018, Edwards was also charged with the wilful murder of the third victim, Spiers.^[35] Edwards is expected to face trial starting on 18 November 2019.^[36][37]

One of the main pieces of evidence in the trial will be a Telstra van: Edwards was working for the company as a technician at the time, and it will be claimed that he used the vehicle to execute the crimes. This is corroborated by a witness who recalled seeing a Telstra van parked on multiple occasions at the Karrakatta Cemetery 'for no apparent reason', both after that attack and before Spiers' disappearance.^[3] According to the prosecutor, Carmel Barbagallo, the state intends to present this evidence as part of a case called 'Telstra Living Witness project', where between 1995 and 1997 a man with a Telstra van stopped to look at women and offer them rides.^[3]

Possible related cases[edit]

It has been suggested by journalist Liam Bartlett that Spiers was not the first victim.^[24] He wrote that police have told the father of a fourth missing woman, 22-year-old Julie Cutler, that his daughter was probably a victim of the Claremont killer. Cutler, a university student from Fremantle, vanished after leaving a staff function at the Parmelia Hilton Hotel in Perth at 9:00 pm on 20 June 1988.^[2] Her car was found in the surf near the groyne at Cottesloe Beach two days later, and her fate remains unknown.^[24]

Other possible cases include that of Lisa Brown (19), a sex-worker who disappeared on 10 November 1998, and Sara McMahon (20), who disappeared on 8 November 2000.^[2]

Media[edit]

• The End of Innocence, Estelle Blackburn, published in 2007
• Australian Story, ABC, November 2007.
• Hunt for a Killer: The Claremont Murders, Crime Investigation Australia, 2008.
• The Claremont Serial Killer, Casefile True Crime Podcast, 20 August 2016.^[2]
• Claremont Serial killings podcast, The West Australian, 2019.^[22]

Notes[edit]

1. ^The victim was taken in Rowe Park, shortly after exiting Club Bay View. She was tied, raped, stripped, and abandoned in Karrakatta Cemetery. In 2009, DNA evidence linked these cases to the Glennon one.

References[edit]

1. ^ ^abcdefghijklReel Truth Crime - True Crime (16 December 2018), The Claremont Murders | Crime Investigation Australia | Murders Documentary | True Crime, retrieved 11 June 2019
2. ^ ^{abcdefghijklmn}'Casefile: True Crime Podcast – Case 30: The Claremont Serial Killer'. Casefile: True Crime Podcast. 20 August 2016. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
3. ^ ^abcMenagh, Joanna (25 June 2019). 'Accused 'malevolent' killer stalked Claremont to abduct women, court told'. ABC News. Retrieved 10 July 2019.
4. ^'Claremont serial killings: Sarah Spiers murder charge for Bradley Robert Edwards'. ABC News. 23 February 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
5. ^Taylor, Grant; Knowles, Gabrielle (22 December 2016). 'The night Sarah Spiers disappeared from a Claremont street corner'. The West Australian. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
6. ^Stewart, Anthony (27 January 2016). 'Unsolved serial killings still haunt West Australia'. PM. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
7. ^Flint, John (4 January 2015). 'Claremont serial killer: Taxi clue to Ciara Glennon's death'. The Sunday Times. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
8. ^Thomson, Chris; Hayward, Andrea (28 August 2008). 'New footage of Perth serial killer's victim released'. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
9. ^Buckley-Carr, Alana (29 August 2008). 'CCTV footage could solve Claremont killings'. The Australian. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
10. ^Beattie, Adrian (30 April 2016). 'WA police deny 'inaccurate' reports about Claremont serial killer 'mistake''. WAtoday. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
11. ^Claremont serial killer video releasedArchived 12 July 2009 at the Wayback Machine. The West Australian. 28 August 2008.
12. ^Taylor, Grant (22 December 2016). 'Nightmare begins for third family'. The West Australian. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
13. ^Wainwright, Robert (25 September 2004). 'Closing in on a killer'. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
14. ^Australian Broadcasting CorporationArchived 25 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine, Australian Story, He Who Waits, 9 February 2004
15. ^'Police deny talk of Claremont arrest'. The Sydney Morning Herald. Australian Associated Press. 22 January 2014. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
16. ^Pennells, Steve (31 May 2015). 'Why we didn't catch the Claremont killer'. Yahoo! News. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
17. ^'Police raid lawyer in hunt for serial killer'. The Age. Australian Associated Press. 17 September 2004. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
18. ^'The Courage of our Convictions – The Claremont Serial Killer'. Radio National. 25 June 2000. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
19. ^Kidman, John (1 October 2006). 'Murder accused linked to WA riddle'. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
20. ^Moulton, Emily (27 May 2015). 'Almost 20 years on police have yet to catch the Claremont serial killer'. Herald Sun. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
21. ^'Claremont detective turned to serial killer to help him with case'. NewsComAu. 31 May 2015. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
22. ^ ^abc'Claremont Serial Killings Podcast'. PerthNow. 27 February 2019. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
23. ^ ^abAllan-Petale, David (6 February 2018). 'Former Claremont serial killer suspect Lance Williams dies'. WAtoday. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
24. ^ ^abcChristian, Bret (1 February 2003). ''Police decoy used in killer hunt sting''. Post Newspapers. Archived from the original on 8 April 2006. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
25. ^'Claremont serial killings suspect cleared'. WAtoday. 26 November 2008. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
26. ^'Murdoch's movements probed'. The Sydney Morning Herald. Australian Associated Press. 17 December 2005. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
27. ^'Breaking Australian and World News Headlines - 9News'. Retrieved 24 December 2016.
28. ^Russell, Mark (24 February 2008). 'Did this man kill his first victims in Australia?'. The Sunday Age. p. 6. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
29. ^Perpitch, Nicolas (24 February 2008). 'WA police defend role in Dixie probe'. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
30. ^'Murder accused linked to WA riddle - National - smh.com.au'. Retrieved 24 December 2016.
31. ^'Claremont serial killings: Man arrested over women's murders still in custody 24 hours later [22 December 2016]'. ABC News. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
32. ^ ^ab'Man questioned by cold case detectives over Claremont serial killings 23 December 2016'. Perth Now Sunday Times. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
33. ^'Casefile: True Crime Podcast – Case 30: The Claremont Serial Killer (update)'. Casefile: True Crime Podcast. 20 August 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
34. ^'Experts to help prove Claremont DNA not contaminated'. The West Australian. 20 March 2019. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
35. ^'Claremont serial killings: Sarah Spiers murder charge for Bradley Robert Edwards'. ABC News. 22 February 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
36. ^Hamlyn, Charlotte (24 April 2019). 'Claremont serial killer trial of Bradley Edwards may be delayed as new evidence emerges'. ABC News.
37. ^'WA's 'trial of the century' to begin in November'. The West Australian. 6 June 2019. Retrieved 10 July 2019.

External links[edit]

• Hunt for a Killer: The Claremont Murders - Crime Investigation Australia - YouTube

Claremont Serial Killer Live Updates