A former British government expert who consulted on the search for the remains of murdered backpacker Peter Falconio says he has identified a 'most likely' potential burial location – an abandoned racetrack only 8km from the scene of the outback attack at Barrow Creek.
Background of the Case
In July 2001, Falconio and his partner Joanne Lees, both from Yorkshire, were ambushed by Bradley John Murdoch as they drove along a remote stretch of road in Australia's Northern Territory, about 300km north of Alice Springs. Falconio was shot and killed at the roadside. Murdoch bound Lees with cable ties in an attempted abduction, but she managed to flee and hide in the scrub for hours.
Murdoch was convicted of Falconio's murder in 2005 but never admitted his guilt or revealed where he took the remains. He died in prison last year. This week, 25 years after the attack, Northern Territory police released a video of an agitated Murdoch refusing to reveal the location before his death.
Expert Analysis
Dr Mark Harrison, the UK's national police search adviser in the early 2000s and a world-leading consultant in 'no-body' homicide cases, says the chances of locating Falconio's body remain 'high'. He identified five possible burial locations using criminal profiling and physical site analysis. After working with retired FBI criminal profiler Kathy Canning-Mello, he revised the potential sites down to three, with the disused racecourse as the primary site.
'If you had a map of the area, the racecourse is the most likely crime scene near the attack site. The geography is unique to this case. The nearest place to conceal a body is the racecourse, otherwise it's just a stretch of road,' Harrison said.
Criminal Profiling Insights
In the absence of a confession, psychological criminal profiling is key. Murdoch's intent was to kidnap and rape Lees. When she escaped, the intended location likely became the burial site. Murdoch, a former drug runner on the Stuart Highway, was familiar with the terrain. Harrison noted that Murdoch chose the attack location for visibility and quick access to the racecourse, which provides cover from view.
Lees told police that after searching for her, Murdoch drove south towards Alice Springs. CCTV footage of Murdoch at a petrol station leaves about 90 minutes unaccounted for. 'He's not panicking, he's frustrated. He's drug-affected, but now he's going to dispose of Peter. There's no panicking this man, he's got time to conceal the body,' Harrison said.
Previous Searches and Recommendations
Northern Territory police searched the racecourse after the killing, but Harrison says walk-throughs and motorbike searches would not have located a well-concealed body. Last year, Guardian Australia revealed that Harrison's recommendations from two reports had never been properly followed by NT police. A spokesperson said police received the report and attended each suggested site but could not complete the entire scope due to finite resources.
Harrison says advances in technology would allow for a 'high assurance' search using drones, radar, and a dog, at a cost less than the $500,000 reward. 'What I'm saying is that the most likely site has simply not been searched to a level of confidence you'd require to say he's not there. The racecourse is a potential crime scene that was visited but never searched as you would a crime scene. And that site has been almost frozen in time. Nothing has changed, it literally is as it was. That is such an advantage for us,' he said.
