the family murders adelaide victims
This website was built on publicly available information contributed by many people who have an interest in this case. It was at around this time - the end of August - that Investigator Rod Hunter finally got around to interviewing Bevan Spencer von Einem, the man implicated by an anonymous caller in the murder of Alan Barnes. (What a lovely country, Australia!) Only one suspect has been charged and convicted for the crimes: Bevan Spencer von Einem was sentenced in 1984 to a minimum of 24 years (later extended to a minimum 36-year term) for the murder of 15-year-old Richard Kelvin. [3], Von Einem was convicted in 1984 of the murder of Kelvin and sentenced to life imprisonment. How, why, or where they had seen this tape escaped the caller, but it was enough to send detectives through the paces of investigating every lead related to this: known deviants, underground porn shops, etc. Of only one victim. See what they say here. Young Blood refers to the age of the victims who were brutally murdered. Gambier, a city roughly five hours south of Adelaide. As the 1970s entered their homestretch, Alan was beginning to enter the phase of his life where he experimented with drug and alcohol usage. This site is constantly being updated as more is learned. Four of the five murders remain unsolved. It was this rapport that caused Peter to skip school on Thursday, August 27th, 1981. The Family Murders is the name given to a series of five murders speculated to have been committed by a loosely connected group of individuals who came to be known as "The Family".This group was believed to be involved in the kidnapping and sexual abuse of a number of teenage boys and young men, as well as the torture and murder of five young men aged between 14 and 25, in Adelaide, South . It wasn't until the next day, Sunday (February 28th), that Mark's parents began to grow concerned. They organized a helicopter search of the area, which O'Brien was present for, but unfortunately, the police were unable to find anything definitive. Shockingly, police found an insane combination of sedatives in his system, which included the drugs Noctec, Mandrax, valium, Rohypnol, and amytal. by enjin | Feb 12, 2021 | victim. This was as good of a tip as police were going to get, and since the most recent victim of this strange killing spree had been found in the Foothills, police decided to follow through on the tip. Australia's murder capital: Why can't Adelaide bury the myth? The ongoing investigation featured in an episode of Crime Stoppers which went to air on 2 March 2009. Alan Barnes was a teenager growing up in this environment, who seemed to live on the bubble between childhood and adulthood in the winter of 1979. The next day was a Sunday, they both planned to hitchhike to Alan's home in Salisbury. Over time Trevor kept diary records of his conversations with that suspect as well as another suspect. He is 50 metres from his beautiful family home. Over the next year or so, the case would stagnate. Unfortunately, Richard Kelvin would never make it home. The father of boat crash victim Mallory Beach refused to shake hands with Alex Murdaugh 's family in court after the legal scion was sentenced to life in prison for the murders of his wife and son . But only one recalled seeing where Alan might have gone. The bodies were found from 24th June 1979 and the fifth and last body on 24th July 1983. Following the supposed abduction of Richard Kelvin, the police unit known as Major Crimes was tasked with overseeing the investigation. He was seventeen years old, with a youthful, handsome appearance, and a carefree, fun-loving attitude. A couple of black trash bags were floating on the low tide of the river's coast. This is an analysis of the information provided by Wendy Roles and Greg McInerney in the book The Family Murders: Dissected The Timeline 25 Aug (Sat) Michael B sees band-aid on Neil's leg at the methadone clinic during the day. However, that was very circumstantial evidence at best, and anything but definitive. And Marshall is no novice at delving into the minds of evil men. Meanwhile, the mutilation of Neil Muir's body seemed to be identical to that perpetrated upon Peter Stogneff's remains, whose limbs had been similarly severed with a saw-like device. Police got the number one offender. But now, they needed to find a suspect. Police had still not linked the two cases - Barnes and Neil Muir - but while being questioned about the first murder, von Einem inquired about the second without any provocation. Bevan Spencer von Einem is serving a life sentence for one of those murders. Other times he would just pick up a hitch hiker. Unsolved - The Family Murders | Page 148 | BigFooty Forum He was last seen while hitchhiking being picked up by a white HQ Holden sedan carrying three or four people. The "Family Murders" *Warning: graphic content and mentions of sexual abuse ahead. Peter Leslie Millhouse was a doctor from Mt. They phoned police that evening, hoping that their son's whereabouts could be chalked up to a simple miscommunication. The male and female drove off but returned At about 6pm on a Sunday afternoon, Richard walked his friend to the bus stop on O'Connell St, North Adelaide. Suspect 3, an Eastern Suburbs doctor. The information is easy to navigate and easy reference. Family Murders Are Adelaide's Most Horrific Unsolved Crime - PEDESTRIAN.TV The son was fifteen when he was snatched from the street . The Family Murders is the name given to the murders of five young men and boys between 1979 and 1983, with all abducted from the streets of Adelaide before being taken to another location,. Neil's remains were brought in and carefully examined by the area's medical examiners, who quickly discovered an alarming red flag, which harkened back to the discovery of Alan Barnes' corpse. It is estimated that over 150 youths and young men were abducted, drugged, and then raped. But he decided to instead head to a local mall, named Tea Tree Plaza, where Peter and his friends often hung out on the weekends. Criminologist Alan Perry of the University of Adelaide, has argued that the murders were part of widespread series of kidnappings and sexual assaults of boys that might number several hundred victims in South Australia from about 1973 to 1983.[11]. Alan's friend made it back to his house within minutes, but unfortunately, Alan was not so lucky. The convicted killer and notorious head of "The Family" ring who picked up hitchhikers and schoolboys to drug and offer to South Australia's elite to sexually abuse has broken his 20-year silence, to blame his victim, and to claim innocence over other murders. [5][9] The cold case review was completed in November 2010 with no charges being laid against any of the three key suspects. The victims were all young men, who had gone missing in or near the northern section of town. This is made apparent when we look at a story from 1972, which ultimately led to drastic overhauls in Southern Australian law and cemented its place in the nation's history. These individuals have come to be known as the "The Family" and are believed to have kidnapped and sexually abused over 150 boys and are believed to have tortured and murdered at least five teenage boys during a crime spree in Adelaide, South Australia. While the men in the river struggled to make it back to the shore, the group that had thrown them into the water made their escape before camera crews or onlookers could begin to gather. Some of the employees that worked at the area's bars recalled seeing the two together multiple times that weekend, and other character witnesses described Dr. Millhouse and Neil as being very close friends (intimate, even). Peter Stogneff, aged 14,[17] murdered in August 1981. This caller alleged that the two older men had been driving around a 1963 EJ Holden sedan. It was broad daylight, and both were assured that Alan would easily be able to find a ride to take him the few miles home. Neil Fredrick Muir, aged 25,[12][13] murdered two months after Barnes in August 1979. The Family Murders (Part One: The Murders) - Spreaker In addition to the driver, there appeared to be a couple of other occupants inside of the car that they, unfortunately, could not recall many details of. Victims - The Family Murders Victims Alan Barnes Feb 12, 2021 The night before he went missing he stayed at Darko Kastelan's house in Cheltenham. He had seemingly disappeared, and a brief search of the area failed to come up with him. But he didn't commit these crimes on his own. The victims were found in random locations throughout the state, their bodies neatly cut into pieces. His remains had been dissected and neatly cut into many pieces, placed in a garbage bag and thrown into the Port River at Port Adelaide. Regardless, this information was incredibly helpful to police, who began to expand their interests to finding people in the area that drove similar vehicles. However, they were able to learn from a witness that a young man matching Peter's description had been spotted at Tea Tree Plaza the morning of his disappearance, and had been in the company of an adult male. Richard was found wearing the same clothing that he had been wearing on the day of his disappearance, but in an unusual twist, was found to be wearing his family dog's collar. Only one suspect has been charged and convicted for a crime. Millhouse would have. How did he manipulate large numbers of people to get involved to various degrees even if that involvement was merely remaining silent? He likely did this to hide it from his parents, in case they made it home before he did. Case 166: The Family - Casefile: True Crime Podcast Neil's numerous tattoos had also been cut away from his flesh, and those patches of inked skin had been placed into his chest cavity along with his severed limbs. But he then set off again, likely headed towards the distant Rundle Mall, where he was due to meet up with his friend, Daniel, that day. When Boris had last seen Richard, walking away from the bus stop down the street from his home, he had still been wearing the collar, and it is has been theorized that the collar itself might have been a trigger for the deviant (or deviants) that ultimately decided to abduct Richard. Unlike other drugs, Mandrax was heavily-regulated, meaning that police could search through government records to find out who had a prescription, and whether or not they appeared on their suspect lists. True Crime Conversations: The Family Murders Of Adelaide on - Apple The two were hiking through the area near the South Para Reservoir when they noticed something on the ground. The Family werent an official club or group, rather a loose collection of people with Bevan von Einem at the centre. For many, that meant gay-specific bars and clubs, where these individuals were allowed to socially express themselves honestly for the first time in their lives. The Family Murders is one of Australia's most captivating true crime stories. Gino Gambardella regularly scouted Rundle Mall and video game arcades for runaways, homeless teenagers, and youths who he was able to exploit. Major Crimes was primarily responsible for serial killings, mass killings, and any other high-profile crimes that the local government wanted to be handled by a specialized task force. This theory is that whatever item had been used to sexually assault Mark with - which ultimately led to his death - had gotten caught up in his intestines, and required surgery to retrieve. This group was believed to be involved in the kidnapping and sexual abuse of a number of teenage boys and young men, as well as the torture and murder of five young men aged between 14 and 25, in Adelaide, South Australia, in the 1970s and 1980s. Millhouse would have Peter intended to skip school and meet his uncle (similar age) in Rundle Mall. Police were called out to the scene, and an extensive search of the area commenced. He had multiple channels to procuring young men. The Adelaide Festival of Arts (also known as just Adelaide Festival) started in 1960 and led to something of a "cultural revival" in the area. When a warrant was eventually served on Dr. Millhouse's cottage in northern Adelaide, police found the same type of trash bags and rope that had been found with Neil Muir's remains. These were connections that were hard to overlook, as police began to theorize that a single offender (or, rather, a group of offenders) had been behind all of these crimes. Show True Crime Conversations, Ep The Family Murders Of Adelaide - 10 Nov 2021. Eventually, Peter's parents discovered the plot among Peter and his friend to skip school, and conveyed this information to the police - who were just as alarmed as they were. Little is known about the unidentified man, but Roger James had his ankle broken when he was plunged into the river that May, and was only able to escape with the help of a friendly onlooker. Bevan von Einems life revolved around sexual sadism. His body had been severely mutilated and dumped in the South Para Reservoir, northeast of Adelaide. He was seen in the presence of individuals who would become relevant later on, but - at the time - were simply believed to have been his friends. Mark Andrew Langley RICHARD KELVIN Richard Kelvin, aged 15 years, was abducted at about 6.15 p.m. on Sunday 5 June 1983 from a laneway off Ward Street, North Adelaide. In August of 1979, Neil was living alone in an apartment on Carrington Street, right in the middle of Adelaide itself. George gave police a description of the older man that had picked him up and driven him to the house in question, but he could not remember his name, nor the name of the two women at the house they had traveled to. The victims ranged in age from 14 to 25, and most were found to have suffered brutal violence, sexual assaults, and/or body mutilation before their death. He was last seen stumbling down the street, supposedly wandering off to parts unknown. So they tried to safely guard the parts of the investigation that they could. March 3, 2023 - 7:08PM. [15] A post-mortem examination revealed that Muir had died of massive blood loss from an anal injury, likely caused by the insertion of a large blunt object[16] and Noctec was found in his blood. Several eyewitnesses remembered seeing Alan and his long, blond hair standing along Grand Junction Road that Sunday. Needing to get away from his friends and clear his head, Mark decided to get out and walk away. Trace evidence, including hair and fibres from von Einem's home, was found on Kelvin's body and clothing. George Duncan, one of the three men thrown into the Torrens, would drown that evening. However, when Neil Muir's body was discovered, his internal organs had been removed and were gone entirely, leading to police being unable to test his blood levels. Despite there being an overwhelming lack of physical evidence, police decided to pursue charges against Dr. Millhouse anyways, using the rope and trash bags recovered from his home as their primary building block. He then explained to the investigator that he was a former lover of Neil's, from roughly four years beforehand, and had run into the man just days before his eventual murder. Add onto that abductions, drug-lacing, mutilations, victims held in captivity for weeks, and death by sado-masochism. Hence, the odd scar that seemed to serve no other purpose. He had struggled to wean himself off of heroin, using methadone to do so, only to have methadone become his next addiction. While working for Major Crimes, Investigator O'Brien received an anonymous tip that Richard Kelvin was being held against his will in a caravan in the Adelaide Foothills. On this night, in particular, that included these three men. Alan lived with his parents, both English immigrants, in Salisbury: a northern suburb of Adelaide. One victim was killed and dumped within 24 hours, another was kept alive for five weeks, and the rest were in between. Mark Langley This reported sighting led police to the notion that a group of people might have been acting in-tandem to abduct Richard, for reasons that appeared nefarious. The following morning, however, is a different story. He loved music - both playing it and listening to it - and had a good rapport with his friends, whom he hung around constantly. Both witnesses - who were friends with Neil and drug users themselves - were prepared to testify should this man be tried for the murder. For a week, his loved ones had been bracing themselves for the worst, but this was a confirmation of everything they had been fearing for the past several days: Alan had been violently murdered, and had spent his final hours in agony. The other two men thrown into the river with him managed to escape with their lives, but they did not escape unscathed. When they finally got around to doing this, after the discovery of Richard Kelvin's body, one name popped out at them. Witnesses would later recall having seen the two at some of the area's gay bars and clubs (which I referenced just a moment ago). It's 1983, and a 15-year-old boy named Richard Kelvin is in a laneway in North Adelaide. Due to changes in the Forensic Procedures Act, which later allowed DNA samples to be taken from suspects in major indictable offences, all the suspects voluntarily submitted to DNA testing. [8] The reward carried an offer of immunity to accomplices, dependent on their level of involvement. He had good grades at school, was well-liked by just about everyone, had a stable of trusted friends, and played soccer for a local Lockley club on the weekends. The man that had driven George there offered him a couple of pills called "No-Doz," which - he promised - would help him stay awake to enjoy the party. [16][22] The sedative-hypnotic drug Mandrax, popular in the 1970s disco scene, was found in Langley's blood. They kicked the footy around. An ear witness said they heard some shouting, 2020 familymurders.com All Rights Reserved. While investigators had been keeping information closely guarded in this case, they decided to publicize this information to the media in the hopes that it would attract follow-up tips. Australia's most notorious unsolved serial killings. Unfortunately, this lead ultimately led nowhere, so police began investigating people more tentatively linked to Neil through his social circle. This group was believed to be involved in the kidnapping and sexual abuse of approximately 150 teenage boys and young men, as well as the torture and murder of 5 young men aged between 14 and 25, in the city of Adelaide, South Australia, in the 1970s and 1980s. Darko's brother dropped them at a bus stop near the corner of on Grand Junction Rd and Addison Neil Muir was last seen in Hindley St, Adelaide in the company of Dr Peter Leslie Millhouse at 3pm on the day he was murdered. When Dr. Millhouse's trial eventually commenced in the latter half of 1980 - more than a year after Neil Muir's murder - the prosecution continued to rely heavily upon their circumstantial evidence and witness statements, failing to establish any motive for the crime or provide any definitive evidence. Apart from von Einem, three other core members are thought to be directly involved in the murders; while DNA testing re-commenced in 2008, no further charges have been laid. By the time they managed to look outside, whoever had been outside had already sped off. The area around the scar had even been shaved away, implying that this a methodical decision by someone with surgical experience perhaps someone trying to rectify a mistake. Unfortunately, by the time they returned, Mark was nowhere to be found. It was the body of Neil Muir or, rather, what remained of him. The jury visits spot where Richard Kelvin's body was found, northeast of Adelaide. It wasn't until the following year, 1983, that police finally rediscovered George's story. Neil Muir was last seen in Hindley St, Adelaide in the company of Dr Peter Leslie Millhouse at 3pm on the day he was murdered. He vividly remembered hearing a young voice shout out (which we can assume was Richard) and a group of voices screaming in protest, almost in unison. After being arrested, Dr. Millhouse had denied ever knowing Neil, and continued stating so over the next year, openly defying the dozens of witness statements that claimed they were acquaintances at the least, intimate friends at the most. Interview with a monster: The City of Corpses murders - news The Family Murders - 5 Teen Boys Raped, Tortured, And Killed Police were now back, right where they had started. His mother, Judy, would later describe him as being incredibly witty; "cheeky," as she describes in a 2006 documentary, going on to say that Alan was always quick on his feet, and would respond to any type of comment with something sarcastic and bitterly funny. That was believed to have been Neil's cause-of-death, same as Alan Barnes. A day or two prior, at least. These people have no such bond, only an association that with time probably no longer exists". When using other people (sometimes transgenders, sometimes cross-dressers, and sometimes Mr B), a common ploy was to ask a lone youth if he want to go to a party where there was plenty of booze and women. On Saturday, February 27th, 1982, Mark attended a friend's 18th birthday party in Windsor Gardens, a neighborhood in northeastern Adelaide. His family knew this but accepted that there was little they could do to curtail this behavior; letting Alan grow and develop at his own pace as his adolescence came to an end. Peter Stogneff was a fourteen-year-old that lived with his family in a middle-class home, in a northeastern suburb of Adelaide. But his teachers recalled him being absent, and hours would pass that afternoon (heading into the evening) and Peter would fail to return home. After doing away with his old, dried-up crops, the farmer was looking over his land when he came upon the now-charred remains of young Peter Stogneff. The Family Murders are a series of violent and depraved sex crimes committed against five young men and boys in South Australia throughout the 1970's and 1980's. In 1988 Detective Trevor Kipling described a group of people whom he suspected as being responsible as "one big happy family" and vowed to do all that he could to bring them to justice.
