The former Northern Territory police officer who led the investigation into Peter Falconio’s murder says she is “not surprised, but disappointed” Bradley John Murdoch never revealed the location of his body, following the convicted killer’s death overnight.
Murdoch was diagnosed in 2019 with terminal throat cancer and spent his final days in the palliative care unit of Alice Springs Hospital.
Despite repeated attempts by NT police over the years, including as recently as June, Murdoch has never provided any information about what happened that night in 2001 after he signalled for Mr Falconio and his girlfriend Joanne Lees to pull over their Kombi as they travelled along the Stuart Highway.
Convicted killer Bradley Murdoch dies
The lead investigator of the case, former police officer Colleen Gwynne, told ABC News Breakfast: “You mourn Peter today”.
“Bradley’s prolonged refusal to cooperate with police and provide the information that we needed to locate Peter’s remains [resulted] in … prolonged family agony by the Falconio family,” she said.
“It’s a sad day for those reasons.”
Ms Gwynne said Murdoch’s refusal to provide closure to the Falconio family aligned with his “narcissistic” personality and desire for control.
Colleen Gwynne was the lead investigator on the Peter Falconio case. (Supplied)
“I’ve pretty much always said that I don’t think that he will ever speak to police,” she said.
“The night that Joanne escaped and we lost Peter, he lost control. And as a result of that, he felt wronged, and he felt angry.
“[His way] to gain some control was to never cooperate, and to have that power over the Falconio family by not disclosing any details of what he did with Peter to allow us to narrow that search.”
Ms Gwynne said despite Murdoch’s death, for the Falconio family the pain of losing their loved one lived on.
“It’s something that’s with them every day … And you can hear it in their voice,” she said.
“I talk about the circle of justice. And that circle is commenced, and we got a conviction for the person responsible. But we still haven’t found one of the victims, which is Peter.
“So we haven’t closed that loop. And the chances of doing that is remote.”
Colleen Gwynne says for Peter Falconio’s loved ones, not knowing his final resting place has brought “prolonged family agony”. (Getty Images)
In a statement to the ABC, Peter’s parents Luciano and Joan Falconio said they felt relief upon hearing of Murdoch’s death.
“It’s like a weight that’s been lifted,” the parents said.
“We are only forced to think about [Murdoch] now that he’s died, we don’t want to let him to ruin our lives more than he already has.”
Luciano Falconio, pictured with his son Paul Falconio, speaking to media in Alice Springs in July 2001. (AAP: Dave Hunt)
The grieving parents said “our family’s future with Peter was cruelly taken away”.
“Today we instead focus on the three children we have left and our grandchildren,” they said.
“We didn’t have much faith, but we were hoping Bradley John Murdoch would reveal where Peter was before he died.
“But even now we still hold out hope that his remains will be found.”
In a statement, the NT Police Force said: “It is deeply regrettable that Murdoch has died without, as far as we are aware, ever disclosing the location of Peter Falconio’s remains”.
“Our thoughts are with the Falconio family in the United Kingdom, whose grief continues,” the statement said.
The force renewed its call for anyone who may have information about Mr Falconio’s remains to come forward, “no matter how small the detail may seem”.
It comes after a police announcement in June offering a $500,000 reward for information that could lead to the discovery of his remains.
Members of Mr Falconio’s family and Joanne Lees standing outside court after Bradley Murdoch was convicted. (Getty Images: Ian Waldie)
South Australia Police Commissioner Grant Stevens described Murdoch’s offending as “horrific”.
“There’s an element of evil there and malevolence that he just had no compassion and he took this to the grave with him”, Commissioner Grant said.
Federal Health Minister Mark Butler said the public would grieve for Mr Falconio’s family, who still did not have closure.
“There’s not much reason to mourn the loss of Bradley Murdoch, but it’s another opportunity to mourn the loss of a young life, Peter Falconio,” he said.
Journalists reflect on case
ABC journalist Michael Coggan, who reported on Mr Falconio’s disappearance in 2001 as well as the later arrest and trial of Murdoch, said the convicted murderer was “a nasty piece of work”.
Mr Coggan said Murdoch had a “long” criminal history prior to his murder conviction.
“[He] was a self-confessed drug runner and frequented the area on a regular basis between South Australia and Western Australia, travelling on back roads like the Tanami tracks,” he said.
“He spent 15 months in jail for taking pot shots at Indigenous people who were celebrating a football grand final at Fitzroy Crossing. And prior to this case going to court in 2005, he actually was in court facing allegations of abduction and rape of a woman that he knew and her 12-year-old daughter.”
Murdoch was acquitted of those allegations in South Australia in 2003, immediately before police arrested and charged him over the Falconio case.
Bradley John Murdoch was found guilty of Peter Falconio’s murder and of the assault and deprivation of liberty of Joanne Lees. (ABC TV)
Former ABC journalist Liv Casben, who covered the Murdoch case 20 years ago, recalled it as “a particularly intense period of reporting” due to the “huge amount of media interest” the case attracted in both Australia and the UK.
Murdoch’s trial ran for about nine weeks, following a committal hearing, adding up to what Ms Casben described as “a particularly long judicial process”.
Bradley John Murdoch died without revealing the location of Peter Falconio’s body. (Northern Territory Police/Getty Images)
“After he was unanimously found guilty in the Northern Territory Supreme Court, he then took that conviction all the way to the High Court and was unsuccessful,” she said.
“The family of Peter Falconio were also in court for some of the trial; [like Ms Lees] they were also intensely private.
“I remember at the time the chief prosecutor suggested a possible motive for the murder might have been because Bradley Murdoch was running drugs and he was concerned he was being followed by this young couple who he subsequently pulled over.”
Ms Casben said it was a “very sad day for the Falconio family” still not knowing the whereabouts of their loved one.
“We have never known where Peter Falconio’s body is, to this day — this story is still not quite over,”
she said.Murdoch’s family says they will ‘deeply miss’ him
In a statement provided to the media, Murdoch’s family said the 67-year-old was “deeply loved” and would be “deeply missed” by his family.
The family said Murdoch had “always denied responsibility” for Mr Falconio’s murder, “from his arrest until his death” and that he was liked and respected by fellow inmates and correctional officers.
“We understand that the public perception of Bradley will always be shaped by his conviction, but our intention is simply to share the man we knew, the version of him that was rarely, if ever, seen beyond our family and close friends,” the statement said.
The family said after the broadcast of TV series Murder in the Outback in 2020, “which questioned key aspects of the case that led to his conviction”, Murdoch “believed there was one final avenue of hope: a Petition for Mercy”, but that was never realised.
Murdoch appealed to overturn his convictions twice in the past two decades, but was unsuccessful both times.
Murdoch’s death in custody will be subject to a mandatory coronial inquest.