WEBVTT - Crime and Misconduct

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<v Speaker 1>Just before nine o'clock last night, the jury returned guilty

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<v Speaker 1>verdicts against all three defendants.

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<v Speaker 2>It was absolute shambles, to tell you the truth, just

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<v Speaker 2>absolutely really.

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<v Speaker 1>Colored blood on his clothing the day after the alleged a.

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<v Speaker 3>Top a shallow mud bank and the bits through a river.

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<v Speaker 1>Basically, I think most of the people are used to

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<v Speaker 1>me are good people.

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<v Speaker 3>I think a really important question we need to ask

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<v Speaker 3>is how many Indigenous prisoners in Australia are innocent.

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<v Speaker 2>This is Curtain, a podcast where we pull back the

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<v Speaker 2>blinds to shine a light on the darkest parts of

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<v Speaker 2>our justice system and ask who are the victims. I'm

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<v Speaker 2>Amy Maguire.

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<v Speaker 3>And I'm Martin Hodgson, a senior advocate for the Fine

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<v Speaker 3>Prisoner Support Service. And a warning, this series contains the

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<v Speaker 3>names of deceased peoples and has distressing content that might

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<v Speaker 3>upset some listeners.

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<v Speaker 4>Throughout the Curtain podcast series, we've spoken considerably about two

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<v Speaker 4>key issues, the police investigation and its flaws and what

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<v Speaker 4>it says about the way the police conducted the investigation

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<v Speaker 4>into the death and murder of Linda and how that

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<v Speaker 4>caught up Kevin Henry. And also we've spoken a lot

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<v Speaker 4>about parole. Last week we spoke about some of the

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<v Speaker 4>further flows we'd uncovered in the police investigation, and this

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<v Speaker 4>week we're going to speak about that issue a little

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<v Speaker 4>bit more broadly in relation to Rockhampton, Queensland, where sadly

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<v Speaker 4>Linda died and where Kevin still spends his life behind bars.

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<v Speaker 4>Some twenty six years later, in the year two thousand,

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<v Speaker 4>a man named Leonard Fraser was found guilty and given

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<v Speaker 4>a life sentence for the rape and murder of a

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<v Speaker 4>nine year old girl. That's despite the fact he'd spent

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<v Speaker 4>almost twenty the preceding twenty two years behind bars for

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<v Speaker 4>the rape of another woman. This was a clearly deranged individual,

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<v Speaker 4>and yet somehow he got parole. A few years later,

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<v Speaker 4>in two thousand and three, he was on trial for

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<v Speaker 4>the murder of more women. This was in the Supreme

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<v Speaker 4>Court of Queensland, just like Kevin Henry was placed on

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<v Speaker 4>trial in the Supreme Court of Queensland. It was believed

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<v Speaker 4>at the time that mister Fraser had done a deal

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<v Speaker 4>with police on some of the issues, and again it

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<v Speaker 4>largely revolved around a confession. One of the victims was

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<v Speaker 4>said to be fourteen year old Natasha Ryan but during

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<v Speaker 4>the trial. This occurred.

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<v Speaker 1>First did by ten News with Georgina Louis Jeff Mullen

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<v Speaker 1>believing I'm Jeff Mullen and I'm Georgina Lewis. There's to

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<v Speaker 1>be a crime and a misconduct commission investigation into how

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<v Speaker 1>police ignored a tip off that alleged murder victim Natasha

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<v Speaker 1>Ryan was still alive. A counseling service received a call

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<v Speaker 1>from a woman answering her description several weeks ago. Today,

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<v Speaker 1>Natasha's father told of the joy and pain of discovering

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<v Speaker 1>his long lost daughter after years of believing she had

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<v Speaker 1>been murdered. He spoke exclusively to ten News.

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<v Speaker 4>On April eleventh, two thousand and three. Literally during the

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<v Speaker 4>murder trial where Natasha was said to be one of

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<v Speaker 4>the victims. The police prosecutor stood up and announced that

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<v Speaker 4>he was pleased to inform the court that Fraser was

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<v Speaker 4>not guilty of this particular murder. Natasha Ryan's father nearly collapsed.

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<v Speaker 4>As you can imagine, his daughter had been missing for

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<v Speaker 4>five years. So how had the police charged a man

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<v Speaker 4>with murder over someone who was still clearly alive. That's

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<v Speaker 4>an issue we'll get back to in a moment. But

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<v Speaker 4>Amy was living in rock Hampton at the time when

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<v Speaker 4>Leonard Fraser went on this horrific spury, and we should

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<v Speaker 4>make it clear that he was absolutely guilty of a

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<v Speaker 4>number of these murders and rapes, and it was a

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<v Speaker 4>frightening time for the people of rock Hampton. Amy, what

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<v Speaker 4>do you remember about that time?

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, So this happened in the late nineties to the

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<v Speaker 2>early two thousands, and I remember it well because I

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<v Speaker 2>was only about twelve at the time, but I remember

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<v Speaker 2>that there was a great deal of fear amongst the community,

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<v Speaker 2>and it was a fear felt by not only adults

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<v Speaker 2>but also children. And I remember one day being down

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<v Speaker 2>at the soccer fields with my young cousin, who was

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<v Speaker 2>only a couple of years younger than me at the time,

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<v Speaker 2>and to be the soccer field right next to the

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<v Speaker 2>place that we've shown in witness statements that it's very

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<v Speaker 2>likely the two perpetrators actually put Linda's body in the river,

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<v Speaker 2>And I remember sitting there with my young cousin and

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<v Speaker 2>we were watching the flashes of orange amongst the long

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<v Speaker 2>grass to our just in front of us, just above

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<v Speaker 2>the heads of the children playing soccer, and they were

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<v Speaker 2>the sees workers looking for the body of this young

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<v Speaker 2>girl named Kira Steinhart, and she'd gone missing, and she

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<v Speaker 2>was only ten at the time. And I just remember

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<v Speaker 2>my young cousin, who'd actually been in her class at school,

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<v Speaker 2>looking up at me with this fear in his eyes

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<v Speaker 2>and asking my father and me whether they would find her.

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<v Speaker 2>And so I think it really showed not only the

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<v Speaker 2>grief within the community around the disappearance and death of

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<v Speaker 2>this young girl, Kira Steinhart, but also the real fear.

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<v Speaker 2>And it was a fear that was felt right across

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<v Speaker 2>rock Hampden because this man who had killed this young girl,

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<v Speaker 2>his name was Leonard Fraser. He'd actually gone on a

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<v Speaker 2>murdering spree. He had actually killed three other women in

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<v Speaker 2>a very short space of time. And rock Hampden only

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<v Speaker 2>has a population of sixty thousand. So the fact we

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<v Speaker 2>had a serial killer in our midst and Leonard Fraser

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<v Speaker 2>was only was also out on parole at the time

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<v Speaker 2>from a really horrendous rape that he'd committed, it really

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<v Speaker 2>gave a sense that rock Hampden wasn't just a murder

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<v Speaker 2>capital in Queensland, but a murder capital in the whole

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<v Speaker 2>of Australia. And I remember seeing something to that effect

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<v Speaker 2>on one of the national news bulletins. And the other

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<v Speaker 2>thing is this incident.

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<v Speaker 3>It really.

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<v Speaker 2>The other thing is this period of time. It really

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<v Speaker 2>showed to me and I think it really drummed home

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<v Speaker 2>that rock Hampden seems to have this dark underbelly right

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<v Speaker 2>under the surface. And I think it shows in a

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<v Speaker 2>lot of the cases that we've looked at, and particularly

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<v Speaker 2>the case of Linda, that there's something in this land,

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<v Speaker 2>there's something in this water, in this river that lends

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<v Speaker 2>himself to this really that lends itself to this really

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<v Speaker 2>horrendous things that happen along the bank of the Fitzroy River.

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<v Speaker 2>And this was just one of those really really dark

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<v Speaker 2>periods in rock Hamden's history that anyone who is living

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<v Speaker 2>in rock Hampden at the time finds it very, very

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<v Speaker 2>difficult to forget.

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<v Speaker 4>And one of the reasons we've raised about why some

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<v Speaker 4>of these murders have taken place, why some of these

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<v Speaker 4>crimes like that of Linda's murder remain unsolved and the

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<v Speaker 4>wrong man is imprisoned. Kevin Henry directly relates to the

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<v Speaker 4>police here in Leonard Fraser. We have a case where

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<v Speaker 4>absolutely he killed quite a number of women. It's believed

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<v Speaker 4>he could have killed up to seven, although he was

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<v Speaker 4>never convicted of all the murders that he'd committed. But

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<v Speaker 4>the judge in his case said this about the fact

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<v Speaker 4>that Natasha Ryan, who'd gone missing, had been found during

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<v Speaker 4>his murder trial, and Natasha Ryan was alleged to be

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<v Speaker 4>one of the victims. Even this murderer, this despicable man,

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<v Speaker 4>Leonard Fraser, how could he have committed a murder when

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<v Speaker 4>young Natasha was still alive? And the judge was quite

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<v Speaker 4>brutal on the media and the police. Here's what he

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<v Speaker 4>said about the media. Justice Brian Ambrose heavily criticized the

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<v Speaker 4>media for commenting on the value of confessions to crimes

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<v Speaker 4>made to police under duress or to other prisoners while

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<v Speaker 4>in custody when no or little corroborating evidence exists, And

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<v Speaker 4>we can quite clearly see how that's played out in

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<v Speaker 4>Kevin Henry's trial, where there is no other evidence other

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<v Speaker 4>than a confession made under duress. And not only did

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<v Speaker 4>the media come in for criticism, so too did the police,

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<v Speaker 4>who were referred over the matter to the Crime and

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<v Speaker 4>Misconduct Commission. But this would not be the first time

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<v Speaker 4>that the police in Rockhampton would face the scrutiny of

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<v Speaker 4>the Crime and Misconduct Commission.

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<v Speaker 2>So, Mardin, the case of Leonard Fraser really dominated rock

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<v Speaker 2>Hampden's thoughts, the media, even the national media at the time.

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<v Speaker 2>But around the same time, another case was being overshadowed. Martin,

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<v Speaker 2>can you tell our listeners a little bit about that case.

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<v Speaker 4>That murder case ran over three separate trials for just

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<v Speaker 4>one of the people who was alleged to be involved.

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<v Speaker 4>Her name was miss Anne Aboud. The victim was her

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<v Speaker 4>then boyfriend Ivan Michale. She said this in two thousand

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<v Speaker 4>and four. I used to read about people being charged

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<v Speaker 4>and assumed their guilt. I learned through my case the

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<v Speaker 4>importance of the word alleged. That's because she faced three

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<v Speaker 4>separate trials. She was first acquitted, then in the second

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<v Speaker 4>trial she was convicted, and in the third trial she

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<v Speaker 4>was acquitted yet again. She spent many months in prison

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<v Speaker 4>throughout this time and it destroyed her life.

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<v Speaker 2>So, Madam, this is an incredibly interesting case that not

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<v Speaker 2>many people actually know about, of the same court system.

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<v Speaker 2>It involved the same Rockhampton police. So Martin, you did

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<v Speaker 2>just say Anne Aboud was acquitted and she did serve

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<v Speaker 2>jail time during this period, But what were the rock

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<v Speaker 2>Hampden Police's involvement in this?

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<v Speaker 4>So, just as we spoke about with Leonard Fraser and

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<v Speaker 4>the police being referred to the Crime and Misconduct Commission,

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<v Speaker 4>this murder case that went for three separate trials, finally

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<v Speaker 4>acquitting miss Aboud, who was clearly innocent of any involvement

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<v Speaker 4>in the murder of her boyfriend for which other people

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<v Speaker 4>would be convicted. Once again, the police were referred to

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<v Speaker 4>the Crime and Misconduct Commission four months after a major

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<v Speaker 4>operation began into the police's involvement in such misconduct and

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<v Speaker 4>mishandling of cases quick till findings were handed down about

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<v Speaker 4>the way they treated miss Abode. A senior sergeant from

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<v Speaker 4>Rockhampton had failed to comply with police guidelines and police powers.

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<v Speaker 4>He'd unlawfully detained Miss Abode and then lied to the

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<v Speaker 4>Crime and misconduct investigators during a disciplinary interview. Another police officer,

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<v Speaker 4>this time a senior constable, was also found to have

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<v Speaker 4>failed to comply with the legislation. He had not obtained

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<v Speaker 4>the proper requirement to extend the incarceration of miss Abode

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<v Speaker 4>and had also been involved in an illegal phone tap

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<v Speaker 4>where a telephone was tapped without a warrant first being obtained.

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<v Speaker 4>So not only was Miss Abode held in prison for many,

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<v Speaker 4>many months for a crime she had no part in,

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<v Speaker 4>not only was she finally acquitted after the stress of

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<v Speaker 4>three trials. All of this going on at the same

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<v Speaker 4>time as the police of rock Hampton were under the

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<v Speaker 4>microscope for their failings in mister Fraser's case. The very

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<v Speaker 4>same police of Rockampton were breaking the law by detaining

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<v Speaker 4>mister Boode without authority, by tapping phones and lying when

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<v Speaker 4>they were under investigation. Clearly something was up with the

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<v Speaker 4>police in rock Hampton, and it's quite obvious. We've suggested

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<v Speaker 4>that throughout this podcast that it also relates to the

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<v Speaker 4>case of Kevin Henry.

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<v Speaker 2>But despite what you've already heard in this episode about

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<v Speaker 2>rock Hampden Police, there was a case around this period

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<v Speaker 2>that was even worse.

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<v Speaker 4>This involves a career criminal named Lee Henderson. In nineteen

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<v Speaker 4>eighty eight eight he went into the home of a

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<v Speaker 4>young mother, raped and killed her. Now a report would

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<v Speaker 4>later find that and I quote, if the National Crime

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<v Speaker 4>Authority and the New South Wales Police had not been

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<v Speaker 4>taken in by Lee Henderson's lies, a young Gold Coast

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<v Speaker 4>mother would still be alive to watch her two children

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<v Speaker 4>grow up. So how does this involve the Rockhampton Police.

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<v Speaker 4>Well after he was convicted, mister Henderson spent time in

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<v Speaker 4>a number of Queensland prisons, including Capricornia Correctional Center where

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<v Speaker 4>Kevin Henry is today. And it was here that the

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<v Speaker 4>Rockhampton Police became heavily involved in the life of mister Henderson.

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<v Speaker 4>They began to assist mister Henderson, a man in prison

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<v Speaker 4>for the rape and murder of a young mother. One

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<v Speaker 4>officer who'd assisted mister Henderson received this gift card that

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<v Speaker 4>it is alleged at the time by the Crime Misconduct

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<v Speaker 4>Commission also contained a cash gift. This is what mister Henderson,

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<v Speaker 4>this career criminal and murderer, said in a card to

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<v Speaker 4>a Queensland Rockhampton police officer. I've always regarded you as

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<v Speaker 4>one of my best mates and also the best partner

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<v Speaker 4>I've ever had. Here's a little gift of thanks for

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<v Speaker 4>you love always the General.

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<v Speaker 2>So Martin. That shows a very close relationship between this

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<v Speaker 2>man convicted of rape and murder and the Rockhampton Police.

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<v Speaker 2>What do you take from the fact that he gave

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<v Speaker 2>them a card signed with the General.

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<v Speaker 4>So what we were to find out as part of

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<v Speaker 4>Operation Capri This was an operation conducted by the Crime

0:16:06.240 --> 0:16:11.080
<v Speaker 4>and Misconduct Commission that took in the police actions involving

0:16:11.640 --> 0:16:17.480
<v Speaker 4>mister Fraser, the serial killer from Rockhampton, that looked at

0:16:17.520 --> 0:16:21.840
<v Speaker 4>the police investigation of miss Aboot, who was clearly innocent

0:16:22.200 --> 0:16:26.000
<v Speaker 4>and yet faced time in prison and three separate trials

0:16:26.080 --> 0:16:29.720
<v Speaker 4>over a murder she didn't commit. It also looked at

0:16:29.760 --> 0:16:36.560
<v Speaker 4>the Rockhampton police in general and inspected the Rockhampton Police station.

0:16:37.240 --> 0:16:42.760
<v Speaker 4>This is where Kevin Henry gave his supposed confession, the

0:16:42.760 --> 0:16:46.120
<v Speaker 4>one that was taken under duress, and where Kevin Henry

0:16:46.480 --> 0:16:52.120
<v Speaker 4>was held in two thousand and six, despite warnings as

0:16:52.160 --> 0:16:55.920
<v Speaker 4>far back as the eighties that the National Crime Authority

0:16:56.040 --> 0:16:59.360
<v Speaker 4>shouldn't have been dealing with this mister Henderson, that the

0:16:59.400 --> 0:17:02.520
<v Speaker 4>new south Ward Arles and Queensland Police shouldn't have been

0:17:02.840 --> 0:17:07.640
<v Speaker 4>dealing with mister Henderson in two thousand and six, twenty

0:17:07.720 --> 0:17:12.480
<v Speaker 4>years after his criminal career had begun, and while being

0:17:12.520 --> 0:17:17.439
<v Speaker 4>held in Capricornia Correctional Center near Rockhampton for the rape

0:17:17.440 --> 0:17:21.320
<v Speaker 4>and murder of a young Mather. Mister Henderson had a

0:17:21.359 --> 0:17:26.160
<v Speaker 4>locker at the police station in Rockhampton, and his nickname,

0:17:26.400 --> 0:17:31.119
<v Speaker 4>the General, was on that locker. In that locker, the

0:17:31.200 --> 0:17:36.240
<v Speaker 4>police kept for him a large variety of items. A

0:17:36.320 --> 0:17:41.000
<v Speaker 4>black leather jacket and a black swede jacket, a denim jacket,

0:17:41.560 --> 0:17:47.840
<v Speaker 4>multiple pairs of blue jeans, black long trousers, long sleeve shirts, ties,

0:17:48.840 --> 0:17:53.960
<v Speaker 4>pairs of running shoes and more fancy dress shoes, a

0:17:54.000 --> 0:18:01.000
<v Speaker 4>false police birth certificate, a fancy watch, sunglasses, a and

0:18:01.119 --> 0:18:06.080
<v Speaker 4>many other things. Now, why did Rockhampton police have a

0:18:06.160 --> 0:18:10.480
<v Speaker 4>locker for a convicted criminal, why did it have his

0:18:10.680 --> 0:18:15.959
<v Speaker 4>nickname on that locker? And what did police say about

0:18:16.000 --> 0:18:19.240
<v Speaker 4>the existence of that locker when it was discovered by

0:18:19.280 --> 0:18:26.200
<v Speaker 4>the Crime and Misconduct Commission. Despite being interviewed, the police

0:18:26.240 --> 0:18:30.720
<v Speaker 4>officers from Rockhampton Police station all claimed to be unaware

0:18:30.880 --> 0:18:33.719
<v Speaker 4>of the various items of clothing that were being kept

0:18:35.200 --> 0:18:38.920
<v Speaker 4>I quote from the report. None of the officers were

0:18:39.000 --> 0:18:42.919
<v Speaker 4>able to explain where or how the items had been acquired,

0:18:43.600 --> 0:18:46.800
<v Speaker 4>and all claimed to have no detailed knowledge of the

0:18:46.840 --> 0:18:52.400
<v Speaker 4>locker's contents. In the case of the birth certificate, there

0:18:52.480 --> 0:18:57.040
<v Speaker 4>was also there was also a simcard stored with that

0:18:57.160 --> 0:19:02.640
<v Speaker 4>birth certificate, and once again, no police officer would give

0:19:02.800 --> 0:19:06.720
<v Speaker 4>any information to the Crime and Misconduct Commission as to

0:19:06.840 --> 0:19:11.480
<v Speaker 4>how that simcard or that forged birth certificate got into

0:19:11.520 --> 0:19:16.760
<v Speaker 4>a police locker. But here's what we do know. Mister

0:19:16.840 --> 0:19:22.720
<v Speaker 4>Henderson was visited at Capricornia Correctional Center many many times

0:19:22.760 --> 0:19:28.320
<v Speaker 4>with police. Not only was he visited, he was taken

0:19:28.480 --> 0:19:33.600
<v Speaker 4>on daily outings. He was allowed to consort with known criminals.

0:19:34.720 --> 0:19:38.720
<v Speaker 4>He was allowed to collect money, two thousand dollars of

0:19:38.760 --> 0:19:43.600
<v Speaker 4>which were deposited into his prison bank account. He was

0:19:43.640 --> 0:19:48.280
<v Speaker 4>allowed to attend a bar. This is why these civilian

0:19:48.400 --> 0:19:52.520
<v Speaker 4>clothes were at the Rockhampton police station so he could

0:19:52.520 --> 0:19:56.600
<v Speaker 4>do such things. It was also disclosed in the CMC

0:19:56.760 --> 0:20:02.359
<v Speaker 4>report that the police had involved in improper disclosure of

0:20:02.480 --> 0:20:08.840
<v Speaker 4>confidential information to mister Henderson. Mister Henderson was also paid

0:20:08.920 --> 0:20:12.960
<v Speaker 4>a reward of five thousand dollars for helping solve a

0:20:13.040 --> 0:20:19.080
<v Speaker 4>crime that he didn't in fact solve. He'd suggested to

0:20:19.119 --> 0:20:21.719
<v Speaker 4>a known criminal when he was allowed to meet that

0:20:21.800 --> 0:20:27.159
<v Speaker 4>criminal having been removed from the prison by police, that

0:20:27.240 --> 0:20:31.200
<v Speaker 4>he could help that criminal get a charge dropped a

0:20:31.240 --> 0:20:38.160
<v Speaker 4>firearmor fence. That charge was dropped and The reward forgetting

0:20:38.200 --> 0:20:42.879
<v Speaker 4>that charge dropped was given to mister Henderson, a convicted

0:20:43.119 --> 0:20:49.160
<v Speaker 4>murderer and rapist, by the police. The police would have

0:20:49.400 --> 0:20:55.640
<v Speaker 4>other more personal dealings. As I read earlier, One officer

0:20:56.000 --> 0:21:01.879
<v Speaker 4>received a gift card from mister Henderson, but he wasn't alone.

0:21:02.040 --> 0:21:07.080
<v Speaker 4>Another was signed off on by Henderson Love the General.

0:21:08.359 --> 0:21:12.119
<v Speaker 4>Mister Henderson was so close to these police officers he

0:21:12.200 --> 0:21:17.119
<v Speaker 4>even sent a congratulation message when one of these officers

0:21:17.680 --> 0:21:21.440
<v Speaker 4>had had a newborn baby, and despite being held in prison,

0:21:22.040 --> 0:21:25.280
<v Speaker 4>mister Henderson knew the name of that baby and used

0:21:25.320 --> 0:21:31.679
<v Speaker 4>it in his congratulations card to that officer. This was

0:21:31.800 --> 0:21:36.320
<v Speaker 4>all going on throughout the same period of the three

0:21:36.359 --> 0:21:41.200
<v Speaker 4>trials of miss A Bird and the trial of mister Fraser,

0:21:41.640 --> 0:21:46.879
<v Speaker 4>a convicted rapist and murderer. In every case, the CMC

0:21:47.400 --> 0:21:52.480
<v Speaker 4>were called in to investigate the police of Rockhampton, and

0:21:52.680 --> 0:21:56.359
<v Speaker 4>just like in the case of mister Henry, miss A

0:21:56.480 --> 0:21:59.879
<v Speaker 4>Bird was found guilty of a crime she didn't commit,

0:22:00.760 --> 0:22:04.679
<v Speaker 4>and in the case of mister Fraser, a confession he

0:22:04.800 --> 0:22:09.280
<v Speaker 4>made to a crime was so inaccurate and under such

0:22:09.400 --> 0:22:15.919
<v Speaker 4>duress that the alleged murder victim turned up alive during

0:22:16.080 --> 0:22:20.600
<v Speaker 4>his trial, the question has to be asked, what was

0:22:20.680 --> 0:22:24.639
<v Speaker 4>going on at Rockhampton police station. What was going on

0:22:24.720 --> 0:22:28.199
<v Speaker 4>when Kevin Henry was arrested and was still going on

0:22:28.320 --> 0:22:32.800
<v Speaker 4>more than fifteen years later. These are the police who

0:22:32.800 --> 0:22:35.800
<v Speaker 4>were able to get Kevin Henry convicted of a crime

0:22:36.160 --> 0:22:40.040
<v Speaker 4>for which there is simply no evidence but a confession

0:22:40.480 --> 0:22:45.000
<v Speaker 4>taken by these police. Having heard what you've heard today,

0:22:46.480 --> 0:22:50.480
<v Speaker 4>having heard what we've mentioned throughout this podcast about the

0:22:50.520 --> 0:22:55.560
<v Speaker 4>police's investigation, the way they treated forensic material and evidence,

0:22:56.160 --> 0:23:00.320
<v Speaker 4>the way they treated witnesses, the fact they charged two

0:23:00.440 --> 0:23:05.080
<v Speaker 4>sets of people with Linda's murder supposedly occurring in two

0:23:05.160 --> 0:23:10.800
<v Speaker 4>separate situations. Can you have any confidence in the fact

0:23:10.920 --> 0:23:15.400
<v Speaker 4>that Kevin Henry is guilty based on the investigation done

0:23:15.400 --> 0:23:16.440
<v Speaker 4>by these police?

0:23:18.000 --> 0:23:19.760
<v Speaker 2>So Martin, what's coming out in this episode. I mean,

0:23:19.800 --> 0:23:22.800
<v Speaker 2>it's astonishing for me to think that the police in

0:23:23.160 --> 0:23:26.639
<v Speaker 2>my hometown could have actually acted like this, particularly in

0:23:26.680 --> 0:23:29.960
<v Speaker 2>the case of Leonard Fraser, who, although he was a murderer,

0:23:30.640 --> 0:23:32.879
<v Speaker 2>was still forced to confess to a crime that he

0:23:32.880 --> 0:23:36.439
<v Speaker 2>couldn't possibly have committed because Natasha Ryan was later found

0:23:36.920 --> 0:23:40.359
<v Speaker 2>alive and well. But also how they treated a vulnerable

0:23:40.480 --> 0:23:44.640
<v Speaker 2>woman and a boud her life was ruined because of

0:23:44.960 --> 0:23:50.040
<v Speaker 2>the police misconduct in this case. But also the other

0:23:50.080 --> 0:23:53.639
<v Speaker 2>astonishing thing is just the lengths the police went to

0:23:54.440 --> 0:23:59.359
<v Speaker 2>in supporting a convicted murderer and rapist. But it's even

0:23:59.359 --> 0:24:03.440
<v Speaker 2>more astonished thinking that all of these cases were investigated

0:24:03.480 --> 0:24:07.000
<v Speaker 2>by the Crime and Misconduct Commission, and you've quoted directly

0:24:07.040 --> 0:24:10.640
<v Speaker 2>from the report, so it was, it had all come out,

0:24:10.760 --> 0:24:14.840
<v Speaker 2>it had all been investigated quite thoroughly. Were there any

0:24:14.920 --> 0:24:19.640
<v Speaker 2>repercussions for these police officers involved in any of these

0:24:19.680 --> 0:24:20.400
<v Speaker 2>three cases?

0:24:21.680 --> 0:24:24.840
<v Speaker 4>Sadly there wasn't. Once again we see the police commit

0:24:25.040 --> 0:24:29.119
<v Speaker 4>acts that would see other members of the general public

0:24:29.920 --> 0:24:35.080
<v Speaker 4>clearly imprisoned. One of these officers had even received a

0:24:35.200 --> 0:24:39.600
<v Speaker 4>loan of some eight thousand dollars. Others had helped mister

0:24:39.680 --> 0:24:45.240
<v Speaker 4>Henderson to distribute money, while mister Henderson gave a bogus

0:24:45.320 --> 0:24:49.520
<v Speaker 4>tip off that the police followed up on. It enabled

0:24:49.560 --> 0:24:53.680
<v Speaker 4>his crime syndicate to steal back a weapon and two

0:24:53.840 --> 0:24:58.320
<v Speaker 4>hundred and fifty thousand dollars from a house nearby while

0:24:58.359 --> 0:25:03.640
<v Speaker 4>the police was supposedly distracted. Despite all that, the police

0:25:03.640 --> 0:25:09.080
<v Speaker 4>commissioner at the time accepted the responsibility for the misconduct,

0:25:09.480 --> 0:25:13.600
<v Speaker 4>but claimed it wasn't widespread. This is a claim that's

0:25:13.760 --> 0:25:18.280
<v Speaker 4>very hard to believe. He also said that these police

0:25:18.480 --> 0:25:22.520
<v Speaker 4>officers had always started out with good intentions of solving

0:25:22.640 --> 0:25:27.600
<v Speaker 4>serious crimes. Well, quite clearly they hadn't solved serious crimes,

0:25:28.240 --> 0:25:32.720
<v Speaker 4>and he simply claimed that they'd lost their way and

0:25:32.760 --> 0:25:36.480
<v Speaker 4>that perhaps there needed to be a greater effort for

0:25:36.600 --> 0:25:40.880
<v Speaker 4>supervision because and I quote he said some had made

0:25:41.440 --> 0:25:46.479
<v Speaker 4>very very poor decisions. That would be an understatement of

0:25:46.560 --> 0:25:52.400
<v Speaker 4>gigantic proportions. But as for any responsibility or punishment, there

0:25:52.480 --> 0:25:57.359
<v Speaker 4>simply wasn't any, despite the Crime and Misconduct Commission having

0:25:57.440 --> 0:26:01.200
<v Speaker 4>to be called in on seemingly every every murder trial

0:26:01.400 --> 0:26:05.240
<v Speaker 4>in Rockhampton, where there was issues raised in each and

0:26:05.520 --> 0:26:09.560
<v Speaker 4>every of those cases as to the police conduct. And

0:26:09.560 --> 0:26:13.800
<v Speaker 4>we're not talking about police conduct revolving around small issues

0:26:14.160 --> 0:26:18.879
<v Speaker 4>or small time criminals. We're talking about three separate murder

0:26:18.920 --> 0:26:24.040
<v Speaker 4>trials where one an innocent woman spent time in prison

0:26:24.119 --> 0:26:26.600
<v Speaker 4>and went through three separate trials for a crime she

0:26:26.640 --> 0:26:31.320
<v Speaker 4>didn't commit. In one case, the police could have bungled

0:26:32.480 --> 0:26:36.119
<v Speaker 4>the conviction of a serial killer, a man who was

0:26:36.280 --> 0:26:40.119
<v Speaker 4>known to rape and murder children, as young as nine,

0:26:40.680 --> 0:26:45.720
<v Speaker 4>and yet the police still committed serious and grave misconduct.

0:26:46.600 --> 0:26:50.119
<v Speaker 4>And in another case, that of mister Henderson, the Rockhampton

0:26:50.200 --> 0:26:54.840
<v Speaker 4>Police were assisting a known criminal, a rapist and murderer,

0:26:55.160 --> 0:26:59.680
<v Speaker 4>mister Henderson, and yet there would be no punishment for them.

0:27:00.640 --> 0:27:02.840
<v Speaker 4>But this won't be the first time you'll hear about

0:27:02.880 --> 0:27:07.679
<v Speaker 4>the Crime and Misconduct Commission in this podcast, because in

0:27:07.760 --> 0:27:11.439
<v Speaker 4>the case of Kevin Henry, there are serious questions to

0:27:11.520 --> 0:27:12.120
<v Speaker 4>be answered.

0:27:13.560 --> 0:27:16.760
<v Speaker 2>Now, all of the cases we've mentioned in this episode

0:27:17.000 --> 0:27:20.600
<v Speaker 2>happened to non Indigenous people. So if you've been listening

0:27:20.680 --> 0:27:23.439
<v Speaker 2>to this podcast and have had trouble believing that the

0:27:23.480 --> 0:27:27.160
<v Speaker 2>police are incapable of doing the things that we've said

0:27:27.160 --> 0:27:31.880
<v Speaker 2>they've done in relation to Kevin Henry's case, consider this

0:27:32.359 --> 0:27:35.920
<v Speaker 2>that fifteen years after the nineteen ninety one Fitzgerald inquiry

0:27:35.920 --> 0:27:39.960
<v Speaker 2>into police corruption in Queensland handed down, around the same time,

0:27:40.600 --> 0:27:43.800
<v Speaker 2>Kevin Henry was picked up for the murder of Linda,

0:27:44.000 --> 0:27:48.440
<v Speaker 2>a murder that he did not do, this was still happening.

0:27:49.800 --> 0:27:52.480
<v Speaker 2>That was episode thirty eight of Curtain