A young girl vanishes amid a high-profile crime link | Forensic Files

[Music] if any bastard ever thought about going to the cops about us that we killed and
so will their [ __ ] families and if we don't get them out Natesville would be a
shame if anything happened to your sweet little Pru wouldn't it those words were
allegedly said by one of the men convicted for the Russell Street bombing the person he said those words to Paul
Edsel petja was the main arrested turned Crown witness and whose evidence was instrumental in the conviction of the
Russell Street Bombers [Music] true Birds case is related to the Russell Street case so if you haven't
yet listened to those two episodes I suggest you do so before listening to this one although it's a totally
separate investigation it's kind of a Russell Street part three crew bird was 13 years old and the oldest of three
children she lived with a mother Jenny Bird on Justin Avenue in Glenroy Victoria Glenroy is just outside of the
Melbourne City area about 13 kilometers eight miles Kruse father died when she was only 1
and her mother Jenny remarried and had two other children too her new husband Benny bird
Benny adopted Prue and became a father figure to her Jenny eventually separated from Benny and she was now in a
relationship with a woman Isabelle Prue hated the fact that Jenny and Benny had split up and Isabelle had moved in
it was causing friction in the household Prue resented Isabelle in the summer of
1992 Prue and her friend Sarah which isn't her real name we're at Cruz house a man knocked on the door who proved
didn't recognize the man said is that Daniels car prove had no idea who Daniel was or what this man was talking about
she replied no the man said are you sure Prue didn't know what was going on she said yes and then slam the door in his
face Sara didn't go to the door so she didn't see the man but Prue was really shaken up and had turned pale because
she said the man was really weird Sara left Cruz house a few hours later as she was walking down proof street a man
drove past her in a blue car and waved Sara didn't recognize him or the car so she kept walking the man turned the car
around and started driving slowly at walking pace next to Sarah he was smiling and waving and didn't take his
eyes off her Sara was freaked out and started running she ran to a nearby friend's house the man in the blue car
took off Sara called Prue and asked her to describe the men who had earlier knocked on her door asking about
Daniel's car between them they worked out that the man who knocked on the door and the man who stalks Sara in the car
were the same person not long after that incident on the 2nd of February 1992 Jenny Byrd Cruz mum
left the house early in the morning Prue was still asleep and what she didn't know was that Jenny had arranged for
Isabelle to move out that day not to end their relationship but just to make things less intrusive for Prue
Jenny returned home about 1:00 p.m. Prue was actually still in bed asleep Isabelle was waiting for friends to turn
up to help her move in the meantime Jenny asked if she could drive her down to the local pool so she could go for a
swim on what was a very hot summer's day Isabelle agreed and she was gone for only about 20 minutes when she arrived
home her two friends had arrived to help remove a while they were having a cup of
coffee before they got to work Prue woke up and walked out of her room she said hello to Isabelle and her
friends emptied a tin of creamed corn onto a plate put it in the microwave and then walked back to her room about 1:45
p.m. the phone rang Isabelle answered there was a teenage boy he asking for Prue Prue did take the call but Isabelle
didn't hear the conversation because she walked out and started loading up the trailer for her move 30 minutes later
the phone rang again Isabelle was still busy out in the garage she assumes Prue answered the call although she isn't
sure about 2:30 p.m. 15 minutes after that second phone call Isabelle had finished packing the trailer and her
friends left the house driving off with the stuff Isabelle had a few things to finish up inside as she made her way
inside she noticed the front door was wide open the television was on the plate of creamed corn was sitting on the
coffee table in the lounge room untouched and prove was gone Jenny Byrd arrived home sometime after 6:00 p.m. that night
she saw the creamed corn on the coffee table that was still untouched there was no sign of Prue at all if Prue was going
somewhere she would always leave a note but there wasn't one still Jenny assumed
Prue would be at a friend's house or with a relative and she started calling her out but no one had seen or heard
from her by 9:30 p.m. Jenny was in a panic and she called the police the first time she called she was told
teenagers go missing all the time and usually turn up soon after that was all the help she got the only thing missing
was preschool bark and a pair of pants preschool books had been emptied out of a bag and was still at home the rest of
Pru's clothes and belongings were left untouched no money had been taken and the creamed corn was the most alarming
thing crew never went anywhere before she ate Jenny didn't believe for a second that Prue had run away she called
the police again after the second call police turned up and took a report Jenny Byrd was the eldest of four children and
grew up in a flat in West Brunswick Victoria a suburb just outside of the Melbourne City area
her mother Julie had a very bad temper and was capable of extreme violence there were a lot of flights between
Julie and Jenny's father Jim and that in turn would be taken out on the kids the
household generally wasn't a very pleasant place to live Jenny planned to move out as soon as she
could she was gone when she was 17 she moved in with her boyfriend Terry Crews father
but Terry was tragically killed in a car accident later Jenny met and married Benny Bird whom she had two other
children with and Benny also adopted Prue it was around this time that Julie split up with the Jenny's father Jim
Julie hooked up with another man who was soon sent to jail for shooting Julie was
a track that the violent men and she didn't let the prison sentence stop her from seeing her new boyfriend but it was
while visiting him in jail that Julie met and fell in love with another inmate Paul Edsel Julie became infatuated with
Paul who was serving a 22-year jail sentence for armed robbery and the attempted murder of a police officer
you'll recall from the Russell Street episodes that it was while serving his jail term that Paul also became best
friends with Stan Taylor one of the men convicted of the Russell Street bombing Paul Hetzel was released from jail in
1981 and Julie was waiting for him the two were madly in love and got married soon after Paul into Julie Hetzel Jenny
Byrd was now Paul's stepdaughter her daughter Prue Byrd was now Paul's step granddaughter Julie wasn't the only
person waiting for Paul Hetzel when he was released from jail his good mate Stan Taylor who got released before Paul
was also waiting and it wasn't long before Paul was a part of Stan's crew committing a string of violent armed
robberies starting with smaller country hotels before progressing up the banks around Melbourne the robberies were
vicious a number of people were badly beaten smashed over the head with guns and keep Twila on the floor their aim
was to instill as much fear into people as possible so they would do whatever they wanted the other people in Stan's
crew you will remember but Craig Minogue his brother Rodney Minogue and Peter Reed the other men arrested for the
Russell Street bombing Jenny Byrd obviously knew her stepfather Paul Hetzel had a criminal past
her mother had met him in jail and she never really liked him she says she was actually scared of him
Prue on the other hand absolutely loved the Julianne Paul Grandma and Grandpa she always wanted to visit and would
spend weeks at a time with them Jenny was comfortable with this she felt it was important that Prue had a healthy
relationship with their grandparents and thought she would be safe with them of course that meant Prue was in regular
contact with Paul's classmates Stan Taylor Craig and ruddy Minogue and Peter 8 they met proved countless times
she was always visiting Paul never saw a problem with this he believed in the criminal code no matter what you never
hurt women or children this code is what Paul believed would keep crews safe Paul says Stan Taylor had been talking
about blowing up Russell Street since he was in jail Paul believed it was just Stan talking [ __ ]
jailhouse tough talk a criminal who hates cops nothing shocking about that Paul said he was always of the belief
that Stan would never go through with it on Thursday the 27th of March 1986 when
the bomb went off in Russell Street Paul and Julie heard the news over the radio
they looked at each other and knew straightaway who was involved the day after the bombing Stan Taylor bragged
the pall telling him all about it fully implicating himself at least that's Paul
Hetzel story Paul was a violent career criminal who was described as a very cunning he knew the system knew exactly
how to play it and was only ever interested in looking out for himself there are those that believe Paul had a
far greater role in the bombing than what he makes out to the point where some police who were guarding him while
he was under witness protection had a tough time as they felt he was just as responsible as the men who were charged
with the bombing remember too he had already served a lengthy sentence for armed robbery and for the attempted
murder of a police officer and after the bombing Paul and Julie Hetzel were actually living with Stan Taylor at
Burchett that's the small country town outside of Melbourne where Craig and Rodney Minogue were also living the
night before Stan and the minogue brothers were arrested the 29th of May 1986 is the night that Paul and Julie
Hetzel say Craig Minogue made that chilling threat about their granddaughter Prue if any bastard ever
thought about going to the cops about us they'll be killed and so will their [ __ ] families
and if we don't get them our mates will it would be a shame if anything happened
to your sweet little prude wouldn't it [Music] Prue was asleep in the next room when
this threat was made now Craig Minogue strongly denies ever making this threat and claims the Hetzel has made it up the
next day Stan Taylor and the minogue brothers were arrested for the Russell Street bombing Paul and Julie Hetzel
were also arrested although Julie was released soon after without charge the police had enough
evidence on Paul hassel to implicate him in the string of armed robberies the group had committed and they also
suspected he may have had some involvement in Russell Street as well for Paul it was very simple shut up and
say nothing and get charged with the bombing and the murder of Constable Angela Taylor
or tell the police what he knew Paul was well aware he would never see the light
of day again if he was convicted for Russell Street so Paul decided to talk he told the police everything his
evidence was described as the jewel in the prosecution's case he denied any direct involvement in the
bombing himself and the police say they couldn't prove otherwise if they could actually put him at the scene or prove
you was directly involved he would have been charged as well but they couldn't prove it
needless to say Paul's cooperation made Stan Taylor and Craig Minogue very very angry they were convicted in 1988 and
both received life sentences Rodney Minogue was acquitted for being an accessory but still served some time
for the armed robberies Peter egg was found not guilty of Russell Street but served nine years for the armed
robberies and he shootout with police when he was arrested Paul and Julie were put into witness protection they had to
change their names and cut themselves off from everybody unable to let anyone know where they were Jennie Bert was
also told to change her name and move to a safe house Jenny lived under a clay out fearful for her and her children
safety and it was four years after the conviction of the Russell Street Bombers on the 2nd of February 1992 when those
fears became a reality Prue was missing Jenny Bird was frustrated with police efforts to investigate Prue's
disappearance or they lack of effort Jenny knew Prue hadn't run away her family knew that she hadn't run away but
the police initially insisted that was most likely their case it wasn't until many weeks later they started to take a
bit more interest when they realized the significance of who proved was or who her grandparents were at the time of
Pru's disappearance Paul and Julie Hetzel were living on the other side of the country in Western Australia when
Jenny rang nom de till the news she says Paul Hetzel was strangely aggressive rather than sympathetic his words were
what the hell do you expect us to do all the way over here given how much they said they loved than
a dog crew Jenny assumed they both would have been on a plane that night to get to Melbourne but they weren't it took
them a week to make that trip and when they did arrive there were no tears no sympathy Jenny says Paul was acting
extremely odd his first words to her when he arrived were what the [ __ ] are you crying for another pretty disturbing
comment he made to the panic-stricken Jenny who's 13 year old daughter had been missing for over a week was she's
probably out getting the ass-fucked offer of course that's what Jenny alleges Paul said and Paul denies it so
make of it what you will Paul and Julie insisted that Prue had just run away Jenny was taken aback by
their behavior and a lack of concern when the runaway theory didn't quite add up Paul and Julie started to try and
shift the blame onto Isabelle Jenny's partner insisting she must be somehow involved the police did thoroughly
investigate Isabelle out of necessity she was the last person to see Prue but she was cleared there's no way she
had anything to do with it years later Jenny and Paul said that they insisted on these alternate theories because it
was easier to believe than the revenge theory if it was revenge for Paul giving evidence then that would mean they were
responsible and if they didn't want that on their conscience after seven weeks the case made its way onto the desk of
officer Chris Jones from the missing persons unit the giant elephant in the room could no longer be ignored the
Hetzel were crowned witnesses under witness protection the people Paul Hetzel testified against had allegedly
made a threat the proof would be harmed if they ever spoke to the police six years after that threat was made in four
years after their conviction prove is now missing Chris Jones tried to get the homicide squad to take over the
investigation stating that the missing persons unit simply didn't have the resources required to thoroughly
investigate that request was denied the head of the homicide squad telling Chris
to keep looking at it and to let him know if he found anything Chris never did find anything weeks turned into
months which turned into years the case went totally cold despite what seemed to
be an obvious connection to Russell Street crews case remained with the missing persons unit just another name
amongst thousands of other missing people Jenny tried to do her own investigating
she put up posters talked to people in the street tried to get media coverage of the case
but little was achieved until 2008 16 years after Cruz disappearance Jenny Byrd managed to convince the
government to offer a $500,000 reward for any information that could help solve Cruz case it was after this reward
was offered that the name Leslie Cammalleri popped up Camilleri was in jail serving a life sentence without the
possibility for parole he had been convicted for committing the murders of fourteen-year-old Lauren berry and 16
year-old Nicole Collins another well-known Australian case otherwise known as the Vegas schoolgirl murders
which happened in 1997 five years after Peru's disappearance when Prue's case and the new reward
started making headlines again in 2008 Camilleri confessed to the murder freely admitting to police that he was the one
who killed Prue Byrd his version was that he approached Crewe in the street because he believed Cruz father had
sexually abused him when he was younger pre refused to tell him anything about her father so he placed his hands around
her neck until she was unconscious he then hold tight her and put her in his car planning to ask her further
questions about her father but it was sometime after that Camilleri realized prove is that Colonel area was already
never getting out of prison and he wouldn't be the first person to admit to a murder he didn't commit
so police needed more than just his word for it his story really wasn't adding up
either proof school bag had been emptied and was missing from the house along with a pair of pants and she left a
plate of creamed corn untouched on the table something she would never do she always ate before she left the house why
would she empty her school bag take a pair of pants to just walk along the street where she just so happened to
cross paths with Camilleri who started asking her questions about her father who allegedly abused him when he was
younger no one believed camellias version this didn't make sense but that didn't mean he wasn't responsible he was
in jail for the violent murder of two girls around Cruz age he was certainly capable but his versions seem to be very
self-serving taking the blame but trying to minimize it by saying it was just an
accident and he didn't mean to kill her he just wanted to ask her further questions and she died on him after a
thorough investigation police believed he was actually involved but he was coming up with a [ __ ] story to take
the full rap so nobody else would be implicated the police strongly believed Camilleri didn't act alone proves
friends Sara became a crucial witness she says Camilleri was the men who followed her in the car that day she
left Cruz house the same man who knocked on Peru's door asking about Daniels car
although it was many years later that she made this identification by seeing Emily's picture in the paper
another witness came forward which confirmed the belief that Camilleri was enacting alone one of Cruz neighbors
seemed not her real name she came forward saying the day Prue disappeared she saw two cars parked near Cruz house
one of the cars was blue and similar in description to the car that followed Serra during the incident before Peru's
disappearance two men were standing outside the blue car smoking and a third man was sitting in the second car
watching later that day Sam says she saw proof in the backseat of the blue car crew was banging on the
back window Sam thought she was waving at first but clearly she wasn't Sam kept that information to herself for 16 years
the reason she says she never came forward was because she had no self-confidence and she did eventually
decide to come forward because she says she felt pries presence and to prove was
telling her to do something Camilleri wasn't from Victoria he was from yes a country town in New South Wales but he
had a very close friend who he regularly visited in Victoria mark McConville a well-connected violent drug dealer who
just so happened to have links to the Russell Street bombing crew as well he also owned a small blue car at the time
of Pru's disappearance so this is how it all ties together it is alleged that Prue was abducted in a planned
kidnapping as payback against Paul and Julie Hetzel for testifying in the Russell Street case the bomb is making
good on their threat to heart proof mark McConville the violin associate of the Bombers and his good friend child
murderer Lesley Cammalleri were used to carry out the kidnapping and murder of Prue in another twist
Jenny Byrd claims she saw Rodney Minogue in her street only a week before crew disappeared not only that she says some
family members have perused boyfriend at the time were later discovered to be close friends with Craig and
minogue again that's all alleged it is denied by the minogue brothers there was a witness laura not her real name who
says she was actually with McConville and Camilleri on one occasion when they drove to Glenroy looking for Prue
during the drive Camilleri and McConville mentioned they were looking for a girl that had to be bumped and if
they didn't get rid of her they were [ __ ] Laura also says that she saw Pruitt McConville's house tied up and
asking for her mum the day she disappeared now all of that is alleged that can't be proven and for that reason
it was never pressed by the prosecution in court there is a difference between knowing something or believing something
happened and being able to prove it to the required standard in a courtroom there are a lot of probables and
Possible's and maybes surrounding Prue's case unfortunately the full truth will most likely never be known mark
McConville died in jail in 2003 he was there for an unrelated charge so he was dead before his name was ever linked to
Peru's case Stan Taylor and Craig Minogue both strongly denied ever making a threat against Cru and obviously deny
having anything to do with her death Connolly RIA is sticking to his story insisting he acted alone an accident he
just wanted to question prove about her father's whereabouts the judge said he didn't believe his story and instructed
cammalleri that him what he taught to exercise his conscience but he never did so this day cammalleri has never even
said where he left bruised body he's given a couple of different stories one that he placed her inside a fridge at
Frankston tip and another that he buried her in bushland searches of those areas
revealed no trace of proof Jenny Byrd read a victim impact statement at the sentencing hearing
pleading with Camilleri to tell her where Cruz body was so she could be given a proper burial but he refused
cammalleri was sentenced to 28 years in jail for Prue Byrd's murder which of course is totally irrelevant because he
was already serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole during sentencing the judge conceded many of
the facts of the case were unclear as Connolly Rees version was unreliable however the judge was satisfied
Camilleri abducted and murdered proof with the help of two other men Kim O'Leary is unreliable Steen Taylor
has a terminal illness and a severe hatred of authority mark McConville is dead Craig Minogue is due for parole in
a couple of months and strongly denies any involvement in prove Byrd's case Rodney Minogue was questioned but there
was no evidence on him and he also strongly denies any involvement but Paul Hetzel has no doubt his cooperation with
police was the cause of Cruz death although there is not enough evidence to prove it in court to this day the case
remains open and efforts are ongoing to try and locate crews body [Music] you [Music]

Case 25: Prue Bird

“If any bastard ever thought about going to the cops about us, they’ll be killed and so will their fucking families. And if we don’t get them, our mates will. It would be a shame if anything happened to your sweet little Prue, wouldn’t it”.

Those words were allegedly said by one of the men convicted for the Russell Street Bombing that we covered the last episode.

The person he said those words to? Paul Hetzel…

CREDITS

Narration – Anonymous Host Research and writing – Anonymous Host Production, scoring – Mike Migas Additional scoring – Andrew Joslyn

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Brief Summary

Prue Byrd's disappearance is linked to threats from Russell Street bombers, with Leslie Camilleri confessing but details remain unclear.

Key points

The Threat to Prue. A chilling threat is made about Prue's safety, linking her to a dangerous past.
Paul's Odd Behavior. Paul Hetzel's strange comments raise suspicion during the investigation of Prue's disappearance.
Confession of a Killer. Leslie Camilleri confesses to killing Prue Byrd, but his story raises more questions than answers.
The Alleged Kidnapping Plot. Prue was allegedly abducted as payback against her parents for testifying in a case.
Witness Accounts. Multiple witnesses claim to have seen connections between the Minogue brothers and Prue's disappearance.
Camilleri's Conflicting Stories. Cammalleri has given different accounts of Prue's body disposal, leaving many questions unanswered.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

It would be a shame if anything happened to your sweet little Prue, wouldn't it?

A chilling threat made regarding Prue's safety.

12:56WatchNov 19, 2018

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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