Fifteen years after British backpacker Peter Falconio disappeared in the Australian Outback, the detective who led the investigation has shared her memories of a case that 'changed her life'. Det Supt Colleen Gwynne took over the murder inquiry six months after Falconio vanished near Barrow Creek in the Northern Territory in July 2001.
Gwynne recalled the moment she hid under a saltbush at the crime scene to understand what Falconio's girlfriend, Joanne Lees, experienced that night. 'I felt extremely vulnerable out there,' she said. 'I could hear my own heartbeat. That's when it felt really real for me.' Lees had been attacked, bound, and forced into a ute before escaping into the darkness.
When Gwynne was promoted to superintendent in February 2002, she knew she would take on the case. She assembled a small team of detectives, including an intelligence officer with 'unrivalled attention to detail'. The key breakthrough came when DNA from Lees's T-shirt and the gearstick of their Kombi van was matched to a suspect.
The case resulted in the conviction of Bradley John Murdoch, who was sentenced to life in prison for Falconio's murder. Gwynne said the investigation was the most challenging of her career, one she would 'never equal'. Her team's rigorous focus on forensic evidence was crucial to securing justice for the British backpacker.
