The disappearances that haunted Adelaide | Forensic Files

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[Music] our episodes deal with serious and often distressing incidents if you feel at any
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please see the show notes for this episode on your app or on our website [Music]
valder thomas didn't sleep well on the night of tuesday april 25 1978. that evening her husband bill and his
brother rupert had returned from a day of foraging for mushrooms in the bush near churro
a small south australian township 90 kilometers northeast of the city of adelaide
during their hunt they had found something that vowed couldn't stop thinking about
partially buried under some light scrub was what appeared to be the leg bone of a cow
although the brothers noted it as strange they carried on mushrooming without giving it too much thought
when vowder heard about the bone she was rattled the bushland surrounding truro was dry
and brittle and definitely wasn't suitable for cattle grazing it was an inhospitable area for anything
other than rabbits and native wildlife and valder couldn't recall ever seeing cows during her previous visits out
there she went to bed thinking about the bone and when she finally drifted off into a
restless sleep a voice came to her in her dreams it beckoned her to return to truro
saying come come two days later valdo urged bill to take her to the spot where the bone was found
the husband and wife made the drive down the sturt highway past rolling acres of agricultural land
and sweeping planes until they reached churro with the population of only 800 residents the wheat farming town didn't
offer much for visitors passers-by had little reason to stop in the area unless they needed a break
between traveling to other destinations bowder and bill ventured onwards for 16 kilometers eventually pulling off the
highway and onto swamp road a dirt stretch that led to rugged floodplains scattered with mallee trees
and native scrubs they parked the car and bill attempted to retrace the steps that he and rupert
had taken during their hunt for mushrooms finally he found the spot the leg bone was still there partially
hidden under some brittle branches this time bill and valda drew closer to inspect it
they pulled it up and to their horror they discovered that on the other end of the bone was a
woman's shoe inside were the remains of her painted toenails [Music] [Music] eighteen-year-old veronica knight had
been looking forward to christmas of 1976 for months not only did she enjoy the festive
season but this year was particularly special veronica had plans to visit some close
friends in melbourne who had recently welcomed their first baby the trip was a big deal for veronica
having been raised in the foster care system and spent most of her life in institutions she didn't have any close
family her mother passed away when she was just a baby and her father was an alcoholic
who felt unable to raise her on his own it wasn't until veronica was a teenager that she really began to feel part of a
community she moved into a boarding home for girls and became involved with a local
anglican church it was there that she formed a close bond with a married couple named peter
and jeanette woods veronica spent many happy weekends with the woods staying at their house helping
with church duties and baking in the kitchen with the jeanette when the woods announced they were
relocating to melbourne to have their first child veronica was crushed but she also looked forward to being able to
visit them in the big city she spent the next few months working part-time to save enough money to
facilitate the journey by december of 1976 veronica had everything perfectly planned out
her train ticket from adelaide was booked for the evening of december 26 and the overnight journey would see her
arriving in melbourne the morning after she would spend a week with peter and jeanette before returning to adelaide on
new year's eve veronica had a few purchases she needed to make first so on the evening of
december 23 she and her friend to jenny made their way into rundle more a pedestrian shopping strip in the heart
of adelaide's cbd the city was bustling with last minute christmas shoppers and the girls browsed
happily soaking up the festive atmosphere veronica bought some new clothes and a
present for the woods's baby after a few hours jenny noticed it was getting late
the girls had recently moved into a salvation army boarding house which enforced a strict curfew of 11 30 pm
they decided they'd better head to the bus stop to avoid getting in trouble along the way they passed through the
city cross arcade and made a last minute decision to have some photos taken in a
black and white photo booth afterwards they were almost at their bus stop on king william road one of the
city's main thoroughfares when veronica stopped short she realised she'd left one of her
shopping bags in the photo booth she told jenny to go ahead without her and that she'd run back to grab her bags
then catch the next bus home when jenny arrived at the boarding house without veronica the house matron was
immediately concerned she waited up to make sure that veronica got home safely but as the minutes
ticked by there was no sign of her by 1am the matron's worries peaked [Music] she found veronica's address book and
phoned some of her friends to check if veronica had perhaps stayed at one of their homes
but nobody had seen or heard from her the next day the matron filed a missing person report
the police didn't seem overly concerned it wasn't unusual for young women to run
away or go off with friends without telling anyone before reappearing unharmed a few days later
those close to veronica knew how excited she was about her trip to melbourne and
hoped that she'd simply show up as planned [Music] on the morning of december 27 1976
peter woods stood on the platform of melbourne's spencer street station waiting for the overland train from
adelaide to arrive as he watched the passengers disembark it became clear that veronica wasn't
among them he called his wife jeanette from a pay phone and said she didn't come
by the time valder and bill thomas discovered the human leg bone in the bushland surrounding churro veronica
knight had been missing for 16 months given the opinion of police that she had run away there hadn't been any searches
for her nor had her disappearance received any publicity police descended on the truero area and
searched a 600 metre radius from where the leg bone was found they recovered the scattered remains of
a young woman along with a pair of jeans and a green cardigan it was veronica night
due to the skeletal state of veronica's remains there was nothing to indicate the cause of her death
the location near swamp road led investigators to the juice that veronica had likely wandered into the bush in the
summer heat without adequate supplies where she became disoriented and died of dehydration
however this explanation didn't entirely add up veronica had absolutely no reason to be
in such an isolated place and it seemed highly unlikely that she would have ventured so far given her
upcoming trip to melbourne she had been so looking forward to furthermore the area of adelaide where
she was last seen was over an hour's drive from churro and she had no means of transport to get herself there
when veronica went missing she had been carrying a black purse with approximately 180
cash in it a significant amount of money at the time but the purse was nowhere to be seen
if she had simply gotten lost following a bush walk had gone awry surely the purse would still have been
with her investigators admitted that veronica's death was suspicious but with no evidence to suggest an
alternative and no close family to fight for answers her case was shelved however there was one investigator who
wasn't prepared to accept that veronica's death was a tragic accident detective sergeant bob giles had been
working in the missing persons division of the south australian police and had noticed a strange pattern emerge
during the seven week time frame between christmas of 1976 and early february of
1977 three young women had gone missing from the city center after waiting for a bus
four others had gone missing from the vicinity of a bus stop or main road on the city's outskirts
no witnesses had seen anything untoward and each woman had therefore been marked
by the police as voluntarily absent partly because of this news of their disappearances had never
been made public detective giles wasn't buying it although none of the missing women were
personally connected in any way he believed there were simply too many similarities between each case for the
disappearances to be coincidental these weren't vulnerable women living on the outskirts of society
each missing woman came from good homes and had loved ones who were expecting them
they had all disappeared without making further contact or collecting any of their belongings
although some of them had run off in the past to detective giles they didn't seem
like typical runaways his theory was far more serious he believed that a serial killer was at
play [Music] south australia in the 1970s was considered a relatively safe place
the most notorious crimes related to children including the mysterious disappearance of siblings jane anna and
grant beaumont as covered in episode 100 of case file and the suspected abduction
of joanne ratcliffe and kirsty gordon as covered in episode 163 of case file serial killings were unheard of
and most murders were committed by someone known to the victim therefore detective giles's theory that
a serial killer had been operating in adelaide during the summer of 76 and 77 was extreme
nonetheless he presented his findings to the officer in charge of the major crime
squad who was flawed by the revelation he agreed that the seven disappearances were likely the cause of a serial
offender and immediately appointed an investigative team to launch a full enquiry
the investigative team knew the only way to bring attention to the pattern of missing women was for one of their loved
ones to speak out if they could raise public awareness someone might come forward with
information that could lead to their whereabouts however many parents of the missing
women were reluctant to speak publicly about their daughters some families wanted to avoid potential
criticism while others viewed their child's disappearance as a private issue detective giles approached one of the
only families he thought might be willing to help sixteen-year-old julie makita was a
trustworthy and sensible teenager so when she phoned her parents at 9 30 pm on the evening of january 21 1977
and asked if she could stay out a little later they didn't hesitate to give their
permission julie's father told her to be home by 11 and she happily agreed it was the summer holidays and she was
enjoying the youthful sense of freedom julie and her best friend camilla had spent the day selling jewelry at a small
streetside stand in the city each earning 10 for their efforts when they closed up shop for the day
camilla went home while julie and an acquaintance named max returned the unsold inventory to its owner in the
adelaide central markets julie and max then went to the majestic hotel on king william street to play a
few rounds of pool the pub was right near the bus stop that would take her home to the inner eastern
suburb of saint peter's [Music] 11 pm came and went and julie didn't return home
her parents irush and anne-marie hoped she had simply stayed at a friend's house and forgotten to call
but when she still didn't make contact the next day they became worried sick they tracked max down to see if he knew
where julie could be max said that after playing pool he walked julie to her bus stop on king
williams street at around 10 30 pm as he walked away he saw a white car pull up to the curb and call out to
julie julie approached the vehicle as though she knew the occupants a man got out of the car and a julie
climbed into the middle of the front seat the makitas reported julie's disappearance to the police who mostly
brushed it off as typical teenage antics and assured the worried parents that their daughter would likely show up
soon irush and anne-marie were convinced that julie wasn't the kind of teenager who would run off with friends without
letting them know she was a good daughter and a student who planned on becoming a doctor
maybe she had gotten into an accident or been injured and was unable to get in touch
still they had their doubts [Music] desperate for answers anne-marie turned to julie's journal and some letters she
had written to her older sister who lived interstate she discovered that perhaps she didn't
know her daughter as well as she thought julie wrote of partaking in risky behaviour such as hitchhiking
anne-marie was shocked she questioned whether julie had perhaps made the ill-informed decision to take
off on an adventure after all or perhaps join a commune in hindsight the last conversation
anne-marie had with her daughter had been a strange one julie had asked about her mother's
younger years and then said we were very happy when we were children my sister and i
thank you for my childhood mother i just wanted you to know that anne-marie wasn't sure whether to
interpret that as julie's subtle way of saying goodbye adding to her doubts was a poem she had
found that julie had written it read the day is done all that could pass past all that could live lived
all that is was all that was now is then the day is done [Music] julie had been missing for nearly two
years when detective giles approached the makita family with his theory that julie and several other young women had
fallen victim to foul play at the hands of a serial offender anne-marie didn't know what to think
she had tried her hardest not to let her mind go to a dark place and now she was
being forced to confront her worst fears head-on she and irush agreed to front the media
to raise awareness about the pattern of missing women in the hopes that would encourage someone with information to
come forward if nothing else they hoped that sharing their story might persuade other teenage
girls to be more careful when accepting rides from strangers anne-marie said that julie was a
fastidious child if someone had offered her a lift and tried to force himself on her
she would have fought back perhaps that had led the offender to kill her out of panic and then hide her
body somewhere erous said the hardest thing about julie's disappearance was not knowing
the truth he likened it to being on an emotional seesaw that was tearing the family apart
[Music] the makita's story made local headlines with reporters drawing a connection to
other young women who had gone missing around the same time but nobody came forward with information
that shed light on any of the girls whereabouts a few weeks later on april 15 1979
a police officer was patrolling the sturt highway on his motorcycle it was the easter long weekend a
notoriously dangerous time on the northern roads as motorists flocked from the city to holiday on the nearby york
peninsula and in the barossa valley wine region the officer was on the lookout for any
reckless behaviour when he was suddenly flagged down by a group of four young men
they'd been out hunting rabbits in the bush near truro and had found something disturbing
they handed the item to the police officer wrapped in a sheet of plastic it was a human skull
the youths directed police to the paddock where they had made the discovery it was down swamp road just 50 meters
from the fence line for investigators this location immediately raised red flags
the location was less than two kilometers from where veronica knight's remains had been found by bill and valde
thomas a year earlier the chances that two people had innocently lost their lives out in this
remote area seemed incredibly unlikely a full-scale search of the area was ordered and it wasn't long before
several more human bones were recovered as well as a pair of women's underwear and a small purse
when news of the discovery hit the media many anticipated that the body would be
identified as julie makeda married couple andreas and marguerita pitman were sitting down to watch the
evening news in their home in tapparu a suburb 18 kilometers northwest of adelaide
the house had felt quiet ever since their 16 year old daughter sylvia pittman had vanished just over two years
prior sylvia had dreams of becoming a model and not wanting to rely on her good looks alone she had secured a job in a
retail boutique in order to learn more about the fashion industry on sunday february 6 1977
she walked from her home in taparu to catch the bus to work on nearby military road
and was never seen again when sylvia failed to return home that night her parents were immediately
worried but weren't sure what to think not long before her disappearance sylvia had run off to melbourne where she'd
ultimately been placed in a women's detention center the whole experience had frightened her
and she vowed to her parents that she'd never run away again to avoid a recurrence andreas and
margareta had made an effort to give sylvia more freedom and they didn't think she'd betray their trust for a
second time they had filed a missing person report but remained uncertain as to whether
sylvia had gone off on her own accord or fallen victim to foul play now watching the news they saw that
skeletal remains of an unidentified female had been found in a paddock near truro for the second time in almost a
year an item of jewelry had also been recovered a 14-carat gold necklace featuring a
medallion of a guardian angel andreas and margaret's hearts sank there was no question that the necklace
belonged to sylvia it had been given to her by her austrian grandmother and she treasured it dearly
the pitmans contacted police who used the dental records to confirm that the second body found near truro was indeed
that of sylvia pittman any remaining doubts the police may have had were immediately
quashed it was now clear they were dealing with a serial killer [Music] a search party was quickly amassed and
85 police officers and cadets set up camp in the bushland surrounding truro with a designated search area of 20
square kilometers they worked around the clock sleeping in tents and to makeshift
bunks inside horse floats cadets crawled through the rugged terrain on hands and knees while
officers covered the area on horseback and motorcycle they persevered through unseasonable
heat and light rain convinced that more discoveries were imminent [Music] foraging near the base of a tree near
where veronica's body was found police came across a woman's shoe it matched the description of one that
was worn by another young woman who had gone missing around the same time as veronica and sylvia
police had their suspicions as to who the shoe belonged to but awaited the discovery of any remains before making
an announcement then on april 26 1979 a team of mounted police carefully led their horses over a barbed wire fence
bordering swamp road they foraged around and spotted something under a large branch
it was a shallow grave crudely covered by light bush was the skeleton of fifteen-year-old connie
jordanitis connie had been having some ongoing conflict at home the teenager sought a level of freedom
that her strict greek parents didn't allow and in turn they constantly butted heads
following the advice of some school friends connie reached out to the department of community welfare and
lodged a complaint against her parents she was temporarily placed in a foster home before the department negotiated
some conditions for her return to the family home connie's parents reluctantly agreed with
the department's recommendation that they should let her come and go from the house as she pleased
it pained them to do so but they were just happy to have their daughter back home
at around 6 pm on february 9 1977 connie had told her parents she was going to her boyfriend's house and then
to a drive-in movie her boyfriend lived one kilometer from her home in the western suburb of
brooklyn park and connie planned to walk there her father offered to drive her but
connie declined when she failed to return home that night her parents thought she had simply run
away [Music] they made inquiries with connie's friends and contacted the department of
community welfare to voice their concerns but four days passed before they reported connie's disappearance to the
police [Music] detective sergeant bob giles had come across connie's missing person file when
piecing together the pattern of mysterious disappearances during the summer of 1977 and was convinced that
she had fallen victim to four play investigators came to the conclusion she may have lied to her parents about going
to the drive-in and had instead headed into the city where she crossed paths with the killer
[Music] when the third body found near truro was confirmed to be connie her father jordanis partly blamed the
department of community welfare for his daughter's death had they not interfered with his family
business jordana said he never would have let connie go out on her own the night she vanished
he told reporters i strongly believe it and that's what counts at the moment [Music]
just 100 meters from where connie's body was found the same team of mounted police came across the remains of
another young woman her platform sandal still perfectly intact the victim was slightly older than the
others giving police an indication as to who it might be twenty-six-year-old vicky may hell
worked as a nurse's aide she was a divorced mother of three who lived with her boyfriend harry in the
western suburb of caralter park at around 7pm on february 9 1977 vicky was washing the dishes after
dinner when she overheard a conversation between harry and his brother she thought they were talking about her
and became upset vicky told harry she was going outside to get some clothes off the line but
instead she walked outside onto anzac highway a main thoroughfare connecting adelaide's cbd with glenelga beach
she was last seen waiting for a city-bound bus vicki had run off in the past so harry
didn't think too much of it at first and was convinced she'd come home eventually
when vicki still hadn't returned four days later harry told vicki's sister who reported her as missing
detectives hadn't identified vicky as one of the potential victims of the churro serial killer
she was older than the others and didn't quite fit the same profile however after forensic investigators
examined the fourth body found in the bush there was no doubt that it was vicki hell
[Music] in addition to julie makita there were still two more women who the task force
believed had fallen victim to the same fate [Music] fifteen-year-old tanya kenny was a
bright student who naturally excelled at school but despite her academic achievements
she often clashed with her parents tanya desired a level of freedom that her parents wouldn't allow and this led
to some ongoing problems on december 31 1976 tanya had asked her parents if she could
attend a new year's eve party at the and rock surf life saving club in habera a coastal town 80 kilometers south of
adelaide her parents said no but tanya went anyway she spent new year's day there too
before leaving to catch a bus back to adelaide on january 2 1977. nobody had seen or heard from tanya
since and her parents expressly forbid the police from seeking any publicity about her disappearance
the seventh and final woman that police believed could be a victim of the churro
serial killer was twenty-year-old deborah lamb deborah was considered a loner who could
be a little naive in mid-1976 she gave birth to a daughter she felt she was unable to care for and
had given up for adoption at six months old by february 12 1977 deborah was living in a caravan park in
the northeastern suburb of windsor gardens at around 6 pm she boarded a bus into
the city for a night out and never returned debra hadn't spoken to her family for
five months but she was noticed to be missing when she failed to claim her unemployment benefits or pick up some
items of clothing that she had waiting for her had a church drop in santa her bank account also hadn't been
touched since the night of her disappearance investigators were convinced that the
bodies of julie makeda tanya kenny and deborah lamb were amongst those dumped in the bushland surrounding truro and
the search for their remains continued for days however no further discoveries were made
and the search camp eventually disbanded with investigators instead turning their
focus on catching the killer [Music] the case quickly made national headlines with the area described as a quote
graveyard of missing girls members of the small truro community were outraged that their quiet safe town
had become associated with such a grisly murder investigation they firmly believed the killer wasn't
from the area if he was a local he would know about the nearby mine shafts and would have
dumped the bodies there instead where they'd likely never be found the community also resented the name of
their town being tied to the crimes there were other townships closer to the dumping ground but the media felt that
truro was more recognizable to the greater public while the people of churro agonised
residents of adelaide seemed oddly indifferent despite there being four confirmed
murder victims and three more missing women suspected of having fallen to the same fate there was an astonishing lack
of public outrage the only witness to any of the alleged abductions had been julie makita's
friend max who had seen a man in a white car approach julie on the night that she
vanished partly because of this people seemed to accept that the young women had likely
accepted a lift with a stranger and therefore only had themselves to blame [Music]
one journalist noted outrage and a hue and cry for the killer are noticeably absent
an article in the sydney morning herald read adelaide seems to have accepted their
deaths as if they are merely additions to the road toll an abnormal willingness to treat them as
an inevitable part of modern life there were other reasons that public fears were subdued
for one the distance between adelaide and the dumping ground created a false sense of safety for those who lived in
the city and its surrounding suburbs secondly almost two years had passed since the killer last struck so the
majority simply didn't view the serial killer as a looming threat given the skeletal state of the remains
there was also no forensic evidence to indicate how any of the young women had died
as one psychologist explained this fact also hindered emotional reaction he stated the remains were quote
just bones and rotten material not young girls we can relate to undeterred by the lackluster public
response investigators worked tirelessly to solve the case they reassessed more than 10 000 files
of people who had gone missing from south australia from 1975 onwards to see if any of them fit the same pattern as
the slaying women they re-examined reports of attempted abductions that occurred during late
1976 and early 1977 and found they had a number of reports on file anyone who had witnessed an attempted
abduction during this time was asked to come forward and a reward of thirty thousand dollars for information that
led to an arrest was announced anyone with information who wasn't directly involved with the murders was
promised a pardon but despite the reward being a significant amount of money for the era
nobody came forward at the time criminal profiling was in its infancy and this new technique was
applied to try and pinpoint the likely traits of the truro killer a criminologist deduced that the
perpetrator likely lived in the inner suburbs of adelaide and came across as a normal individual who was
indistinguishable from anyone else in the community [Music] his first murder had likely stemmed from
a sexual encounter with a woman that had gone awry and after realizing he could get away
with it with no public outcry he gained the confidence to do it again he kept returning to truro to dump the
bodies because he felt confident that they wouldn't be found he might have been a lonely individual
and interpreted his victims as troubled or unlikely to be missed [Music] one of the biggest questions was why the
killer had stopped his crime spree had taken place in a short period of time with a suspected
total of seven women abducted and murdered within just the seven week time frame
veronica knight and tanya kenny had gone missing one week apart whereas sylvia pittman connie jordanedes and vicky
howell vanished within just days of one another this meant the killer had escalated at a
rapid pace deborah lam then disappeared three days later and after that there were no more
suspected victims so why stop so suddenly criminologists believed the killer had
either died or been arrested on an unrelated charge and incarcerated they looked into criminals with a record
of violent offending hoping to identify anyone who fit the profile desperate for answers the reward for
information was increased to forty thousand dollars this time it was enough to encourage
someone to speak 32 year old james miller was exercising in the remand yard of adelaide jail when
he looked over and caught sight of a young man he had never seen before to miller the young inmate didn't look
like a typical criminal he had a clean look with no tattoos and seemed to take pride in his appearance
miller who had weathered skin and was slightly balding was instantly struck by the young man's good looks
miller himself was no stranger to institutions born melville raymond juice before later
changing his name via deepol he was raised in a poor family of six children in adelaide's west
he began stealing at a young age and by 11 he was sent to live in a reformatory in the eastern suburbs
by 15 he fled the reformatory stole a car and drove it interstate he was eventually caught and sentenced
to hard labor in new south wales long bay jail from that point on james miller was in
and out of jail for a range of non-violent offences including theft larceny and breaking and entering
he didn't have any close friends and considered himself to be a lone wolf miller was gay and when he caught sight
of the young new inmate across the remand yard he felt an immediate attraction the inmate appeared to be in his late
teens and was about five foot seven inches tall with shoulder-length shiny black hair and a warm friendly smile
the inmate introduced himself as twenty-year-old christopher robin warrell warrell had been raised by his
grandmother and left high school to serve three years in the royal australian air force
he was discharged after being deemed incompatible with service life this was his first time in jail although
he had a prior suspended sentence for armed robbery after he had robbed a hitchhiker of 1.50 cents
this time he'd been accused of rape a crime which he staunchly denied chris warrell explained to miller that
he'd been drunk driving when he picked up a female hitchhiker and the two had engaged in sex
afterwards the woman accused him of raping her but warrell was too intoxicated to remember any of the
details miller immediately believed warrell when he said he was innocent he was simply too good looking and too
charming to have to resort to rape [Music] miller and warrell began chatting and
over the next few days a friendship bloomed they were an unlikely pair warrell was
confident and arrogant whereas miller was self-conscious and submissive but their opposing personalities meshed
perfectly within a week they had requested to move into a cell together from that point on the two men spent all
their time together they decided to solidify their bond by becoming blood brothers
a ritual that involved them each slicing their own wrist and then placing their two bleeding wounds together
one night out of nowhere warrell turned to miller and said i am a psychopathic killer
miller wasn't sure what to make of the comment was warrell being serious or just trying
to scare him he brushed it off but warrell's words stayed with him warrell was eventually found guilty of
the rape and sentenced to six years in yatler prison miller was released shortly after but it
wasn't long before he was arrested again this time for stealing more than four thousand pairs of sunglasses
he was sentenced to 18 months in yatla and was relieved to be reunited with his blood brother
the pair's bond continued to strengthen and they began making plans to live together on the outside
on february 11 1976 james miller was finally released but as an ex-con he wasn't allowed to visit the
jail until he'd been free for a year to skirt around this rule he began disguising himself as a woman in order
to visit warrell seventeen months into warrell's sentence he applied for parole during his time behind bars the only
rule he had broken was owning a forbidden gold earring otherwise he'd been a model prisoner
warrell's parole officer visited his mother and stepfather to ask if they were prepared to accept warrell back
into their home they weren't saying they were worried that he'd be a bad influence on his younger brother
partly because of this his application for parole was denied in june of 1976 warrell applied for
parole for the second time and this time his application was successful after serving just two years of his
six-year sentence warrell was released at the age of 23. the two cellmates were reunited on the
outside at last they spent every day together sleeping at miller's sister's house or at the
homes of other friends while they tried to get enough money together for their own flat
they borrowed cars from friends and co-workers whenever they could while saving up to buy a car of their own
both men got a job doing outdoor work for the council and they spent their spare time cruising the streets of
adelaide frequenting the local pubs and picking up women chris warrell had an appealing charm and
confidence about him and coupled with his boyish good looks women were naturally attracted to him
he had no trouble approaching women on the street and convincing them to come for a ride with him
if they ever seemed wary about miller's presence warrell would tell them that miller was his father or uncle which put
them at ease miller acted as warl's driver eager to please the younger man in whatever way
he could when warrell would pick up girls miller would leave them alone in the car to
have sex although miller himself had a romantic interest in warrell he was never jealous
of warrell's sexual exploits with women it simply pleased him to see his friend happy
warl had an obsession with pornography and bondage and the two men began frequenting adelaide's sex shops so that
warrell could peruse the shelves for bondage magazines to buy and trade although warrell considered himself to
be heterosexual he'd had dalliances with some male inmates during his time in jail
outside he also had some sexual encounters with the drag queens miller avoided making any sexual
advances towards warrell out of fear of driving him away but their relationship soon took a turn
when warrell allowed miller to perform oral sex on him while he read bondage magazines
miller was thrilled about this development hoping it would bond the two even closer together
but for warrell it was purely about pleasure his focus remained on picking up women
for quick one-night stands women whom he referred to as rags [Music] the more time the two men spent together
the clearer it became that there was more to chris warrell than the easy-going charming person he presented
himself to be warl suffered from dark moods that would come on seemingly out of nowhere
the two mates could be having a great time and then without warning it was as though a dark cloud would descend upon
warrell his carefree persona suddenly switched and he started acting like a different
person as though he had entered a blackout and wasn't aware of how he was acting
these moods often caught miller off guard he didn't trust warrell when a mood overtook him and did whatever he could
to pacify his friend on one occasion they were at the dog races when warrell entered one of his
dark moods he walked out onto the busy main road and into oncoming traffic as though
daring cars to hit him miller left him alone out of fear that warrell would jump in front of a car if
he tried to intervene he learned to back off and just wait for the moods to dissipate
they were typically brief and warrell would usually take himself for a walk and emerge from the darkness a short
time later as if nothing had ever happened one day miller suggested to warrel that
he should see a doctor about his moods miller was concerned that his friend might have an underlying medical
condition that was causing him to act irrationally warrell refused leaving miller to worry
about him constantly and live on edge not knowing when one of the dark moods would strike
miller believed the reason warrell wouldn't seek help was because he feared he'd be forced to undergo electric shock
treatment or be given medication that would alter the good parts of his personality
but the moods continued to get worse and more frequent things started happening that miller had
no control over bad things then one night around november 1976 miller and warrell were out drinking at
a pub when they met a woman named amelia she and warrell immediately hit it off amelia had a strong belief in
reincarnation and thought that warrell had been a native american chief in a past life
the two began casually dating although warrell continued to pick up women for sex
one day at work warrell made a remark to his co-workers that sent a wave of panic
through miller warrell usually bragged about his exploits but this day he said he was
thinking of going on the straight and narrow he thought it might be time to settle
down and start a family for miller this was terrible news if warrell left him he would have no one
warrell and miller weren't the only ones going through a tense time in adelaide their close friend debbie scooce was
having troubles with her partner a man warrell and miller had spent time with in jail
so the trio thought it might do them all some good to get out of town for the weekend
they decided to take a road trip to mount gambia a small city on the limestone coast that lay halfway between
adelaide and melbourne the five-hour drive would give them awesome time to clear their heads and a
change of scenery would surely do them good by this point miller and warrell had
leased a car from a car yard but it had been playing up and was in the process of being repaired
they were able to borrow a replacement vehicle from the car dealer an old white plymouth valiant station
wagon they departed for mount gambia in the valiant late at night on friday february
18 1977 arriving in the early hours of saturday morning the trip started out decently with the
trio visiting the famous blue lake and browsing some local shops miller and warrell were looking through
a sports store when they came across a shotgun on a whim they decided to buy it so they
could stop and go rabbit hunting on the drive back to adelaide by chance they then stumbled upon a
historical aircraft display that was taking place at the mount gambier airport warrell was a huge aircraft a buff so
the trio decided to check it out as they lined up the tickets warrell was chatting jovially
when he suddenly entered one of his dark moods he demanded they returned to their motel
immediately miller was used to these moods by now and recognized it as a warning sign
not wanting debbie to be exposed to warl's dangerous side miller suggested they drive back to adelaide that
afternoon the others agreed the day was blazing hot they filled the valiant with petrol
pumped up the worn out tyres and bought a carton of beer for the journey as miller drove along the highway
warrell was sullen and began drinking they hadn't made it far out of mount gambia when they picked up a female
hitchhiker which temporarily lifted world spirits after dropping her at her destination
miller was feeling tired and asked warrell to take over driving by this point it was around 5 30 pm and
warrell had consumed several cans of beer although he didn't seem intoxicated debbie was worried that his drinking
might impair his driving miller wasn't concerned at first but as warrell sat behind the wheel
it became clear that his dark mood hadn't yet lifted warrell pressed his foot against the
accelerator and quickly picked up speed from the passenger seat debbie begged him to slow down
while miller remained silent in the back not wanting to upset warrell further debbie's fears only seemed to wag
warrell on he drove even faster telling debbie go ahead have a good cry [Music] suddenly as they sped down the highway
towards the coastal town of kingston there was a loud bang one of the tyres had blown out
warrell lost control of the vehicle swerving it across the road as another car came towards them head-on
he regained control but only for a moment the car flipped it rolled over and over
feeling like it would never stop eventually everything was still the car came to a stop standing the
right way up miller slowly crawled out his shoulder was broken but he was in too much shock to notice the pain
he looked around and a short distance from the car he saw debbie and warrell lying on the road
completely still with blood pulled around them both had been thrown from the vehicle at
high speed several other motorists had stopped and rushed over to help miller heard one of them say
they are both dead case file will be back shortly thank you for supporting us by listening to this
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you support case file james miller was utterly devastated by the loss of his best friend chris
warrell he blamed himself convinced that if he hadn't suggested the group leave mount
gambia a day early that warrell and debbie scooce would still be alive he didn't know how he was going to
function without his sidekick around the only person he'd ever been truly close to to make matters worse warrell's
family forbade him from attending the funeral he went anyway visiting the gravesite
beforehand he jumped into the hole and buried a treasured photo of warl with a note
written on the back that read chris please try and understand me i love you as a mate and always will
hope to see you soon please forgive me after the funeral a small group gathered at the home of one of warrell's friends
[Music] they stood in the kitchen chatting about warrell laurel's girlfriend amelia was still
trying to come to terms with the day's events she was deeply upset about the sudden
loss of her boyfriend and was overcome with grief [Music] in a bid to comfort her miller turned to
amelia and said [Music] there's more to it than you know he asked if he could have a word with
amelia outside she agreed and followed him into the back garden miller then asked her a strange question
did you like chris amelia was taken aback but replied that yes she did miller then said
well you wouldn't if you knew what i knew about him emilia asked what he was talking about
miller started to cry and responded ominously chris had to die [Music] the weeks and months following the car
crash dragged on for miller without his sidekick he felt completely lost and alone
describing that life without chris was an empty sea [Music] he quit his job with the council and
spent his days wandering around aimlessly doing menial tasks at homeless shelters
for a place to stay overnight or otherwise sleeping rough on the one year anniversary of the crash
miller placed a memorial for warrell in the local newspaper that read christopher robin warrell
memories of a very close friend who died 12 months ago this week your friendship and thoughtfulness and
kindness will always be remembered by me mate what comes after death i can hope as i
pray we meet again [Music] by may of 1979 chris warrell had been dead for almost two years but miller was
still struggling to come to terms with his grief accompanying his grief was an impending
sense of dread the news of the bodies found at truro was making headlines and with the reward
for information bolstered to forty thousand dollars miller felt like it was a matter of time
before the truth was revealed on wednesday may 23 the now 38 year old miller was mopping the floors at the
adelaide central mission drop-in center near whitmore square in the cbd he peered out the window and noticed a
woman sitting in a car watching him he wasn't sure if he was just being paranoid but he didn't want to take any
chances he put down the mop and left the center via a rear door walking hurriedly around the corner
towards the adelaide central markets despite being one of the largest undercover fresh produce markets in the
southern hemisphere the isles were mostly deserted traders didn't gather on wednesdays so
the fruit and vegetable stores were bare with no shoppers inside unbeknownst to miller a team of eight
officers were surveilling him at that very moment they watched as he made his way through
the deserted market isles his awareness of their presence becoming increasingly obvious as he quickly gathered pace
he turned a corner towards the market's southern entrance on gujjar street and began to run
that's when he heard a voice yell stop miller was taken to a small interview room at the police headquarters just a
few streets away the interviewing detectives said they wanted to talk to miller about something
that happened two years prior miller said he had no idea what the officer was talking about
the detective pressed on asking if miller knew christopher warrell miller replied
yeah i've heard of him the detective then said we have received information that you
and chris warrell have been picking up girls and killing them miller denied this accusation saying
chris was a good looking bloke and didn't have to do that he continued to answer questions about
his relationship with warrell but said he had no knowledge about any of the women whose bodies had been dumped out
near truro the detective pressed on for almost five hours with miller denying everything
that was presented to him that was until investigators revealed they'd spoken to warrell's old
girlfriend amelia after all this time amelia was still coming to terms with the conversation
she had had with miller following warrell's funeral miller had been overcome with emotion
when he told amelia that she didn't know the real chris he explained about warrell's dark moods
and blackouts and then made a shocking confession he and warrell had been picking up girls
and warrell had been raping and strangling them their bodies were then dumped near
blanchetown a town 45 kilometers east of churro miller told amelia quote one of them even enjoyed it
amelia had been speechless she couldn't believe what she was hearing but judging by miller's
emotional reaction he didn't seem to be lying she knew miller and warrell to be nothing but friendly and kind
individuals she knew they both had a criminal history but warrell had told her he only
served time for robbery and never mentioned anything about the rape charge miller had told amelia that if she
didn't believe him he would take her out and show her the bodies at the time amelia didn't know what to
do she had recently learned about warrell's blackouts from his mother who suspected
her son might have a brain tumor caused by a head injury that he suffered during
his time in the air force amelia believed miller's story but was at a loss about what to do with the
information miller insisted he only acted as the driver and it was warl who had killed
the girls if this was true amelia rationalized there was no point telling anyone
the killer was dead and she didn't want to see miller unfairly blamed for someone else's crimes
amelia never called in the tip-off but she confided in a friend who subsequently contacted the authorities
when the reward money was announced the detectives told miller they had since spoken to amelia and she was
incredibly distressed about the situation miller didn't believe them he said that if amelia had given them
this false information she must have been desperate for the reward money the detectives then claimed amelia had
told them she was worried that warrell's soul would never be free unless the rest
of the bodies were found upon hearing this miller knew the detectives must be telling the truth
amelia was a spiritual person who had strong beliefs about reincarnation so this seemed like a genuine concern
that she would have the thought of amelia being caught up in this mess upset miller
he asked for a minute alone to think he came to the decision that he would talk as long as amelia and warrell would
be kept out of things moving forward the detective agreed miller said i suppose i've got nothing to look
forward to whatever way it goes so i might as well get it all off my mind i guess i'm the one that got mixed up in
all this so where do you want me to start the detective asked miller if there were
more bodies out there miller replied calmly there are three more miller was given the choice of
continuing with a formal statement or showing the detectives where the final three bodies were hidden
miller replied i think i'd rather show you where they are first than to get it over with
that'll give me time to get my thoughts straight by that point the police had held miller
for six hours which was the maximum time allowed without a formal charge being made
they couldn't hold him any longer without officially charging him for an offense
so at 10 30 pm james miller was charged with the murder of 15 year old connie yodanides
the detectives found themselves in a conundrum now that miller had been charged south australian law dictated that he
either be given bail or be put before a magistrate to determine the next course of action
the fact that he'd offered to take police to the remaining bodies was uncharted territory
the detectives knew that if they made the decision to take miller offsite before being placed before the courts it
had the potential to derail any future legal proceedings but if they followed the rule book and
waited until the morning when miller could be put before a magistrate he might change his mind and refuse to
reveal where the other bodies were hidden he would likely seek legal advice by then and his lawyer would no doubt
advise him to remain silent ultimately the detectives decided the risk was worth it
if miller could lead them to the bodies not only would they have solid evidence to prove he was involved with the
murders they'd also have resolution for the victims families they had to trust that a judge would
understand their predicament and support their decision they led miller into the back of a
police car and three detectives took him through the dark cold streets of adelaide and out towards truro
a second police vehicle trailed behind with officers prepared for the possibility that miller might try to
flee they'd been given orders from the higher ups to shoot him if he attempted to
escape on the contrary miller remained relaxed and calm the entire time he chatted freely with the detectives as
though he was relieved to finally be getting this information off his chest in fact he was so cooperative that the
detectives didn't bother placing him in handcuffs they even stopped at a roadhouse and
bought miller cigarettes and baked goods when they pulled into the outskirts of truro one of the detectives asked miller
if he could lead them to julie makita's body miller asked them to drive slowly he led them down a dirt road about four
and a half kilometers from where the bodies of veronica sylvia connie and vicki were found
it was on the opposite side of the sturt highway an area that had been missed during the extensive search
miller gazed carefully outside until he finally spotted a gate that led to an old abandoned farmhouse
he directed the detectives to drive towards it they got out and miller pointed towards
a clump of trees in the middle of a paddock and said i think it's over there as they took out their torches and began
to look it was clear that miller was afraid surprised the detectives by asking them
don't leave me alone the men were soon joined by about 20 other officers but despite miller's directions they
were unable to find julie's body the conditions were against them it was pitch dark and freezing cold with
mist in the air and a layer of frost on the ground all they had to go by was their torches
and car headlights after about an hour of searching miller recognized a familiar tree
he pointed towards it and hidden amongst the salt bush scrub where the perfectly intact skeletal
remains of julie makeda she was fully clothed the money she'd earned from selling jewelry on the day
she went missing still stuffed into the back pocket of her jeans as one journalist described quote
she was at rest curled up like a cat against the cold miller told police the remaining two
bodies weren't buried in the truro area but a little closer to the city the first was in port galla an isolated
tidal beach 42 kilometers north of adelaide miller led the detectives down a dirt
track to the sand but couldn't find the location he was looking for he had only visited the area once and
wasn't familiar with the geography especially in the dark he directed them down another two dirt
tracks but the light from the torches was too dim and miller became confused after an hour of searching the
detectives decided to leave and to come back at daylight [Music] from there miller directed the
detectives back towards the city to the outer northern suburb of wingfield they drove around for a while before
miller was able to pinpoint the correct road where he said the final body was buried under some shallow earth in a
rifle shooting range they got out and poked around but miller was unable to find the burial site
at 4 00 am the detectives finally decided to call it a night [Music] they returned to both locations the
following day this time miller was able to locate the burial site in wingfield excavators were used to dig through the
sandy ground and eventually the remains of tanya kenny were uncovered the second visit to port galla was more
challenging due to miller being unfamiliar with the location and the fact that there was very little to
distinguish one area of the beach from another a team of 50 investigators dug in
multiple spots until they finally came across the seventh and final body found buried deep in a makeshift tomb of
wood and corrugated iron were the remains of twenty-year-old deborah lamb unlike the other six victims deborah's
body was the only one that showed any evidence of violence her hands and feet were bound with a
thin nylon rope while a pair of pantyhose was stretched approximately six times around her jaw
however it wasn't strangulation that had killed her traces of sand found in deborah's lungs
indicated that she was still alive at the time she was buried when investigators lifted deborah's
remains they found a small heart-shaped badge underneath it held an image of two children kissing
and was inscribed with the words god's only law is love according to miller it all started on
december 23 1976 he and warrell were cruising down king williams street when they spotted
veronica knight at a bus stop near the majestic hotel laurel approached her and asked where
she was going she told them to the salvation army hostel in the city and they offered to
give her a ride veronica got in the back seat and when they took off warrell suggested that
they go for a longer drive for miller this was nothing unusual he was used to warrell picking up women
this way and knew how it would go down they'd drive to a quiet spot he'd leave warrell and veronica alone and
afterwards they'd drop her at her destination so when veronica agreed miller knew what
to expect he drove towards the adelaide hills and eventually pulled over and got out of
the car to give warl and veronica some privacy miller then got back into the car and
the trio decided to drive even further through the hills and out towards truro when they got there it was light and
pitch dark warrell directed miller down a dirt track off the main road and told him to
go for a walk on his own miller did as he was told returning to the car about 20 minutes later
warrell told him to bugger off so he trudged off into the darkness for another 20 minutes
this time when he returned everything was silent veronica's body was lifeless in the back
seat miller panicked and asked what had happened warrell said he'd raped veronica and
then had to kill her to stop her from telling anyone given he was already on parole another
rape allegation meant he'd be given a long prison sentence [Music] miller started freaking out but warrell
told him it wasn't the first time this had happened during his days serving in the air force
he had been stationed in western australia on two separate occasions he had picked
up female hitchhikers and killed them one of them had been a messy stabbing with the blood spurting everywhere
the other he had killed by bashing her head in with a rock miller wasn't sure whether or not to
believe warrell about the hitchhikers but seeing what he had just done to veronica
he was terrified when warrell demanded he helped move veronica's body miller was too scared to
say no they struggled to lift her out of the car and into the paddock but eventually
managed to drag her over the fence and dump her body under some bushes on the drive home warrell was clearly
deep in one of his dark moods miller believed veronica's murder was a freak occurrence that would never happen
again they went about their daily lives like nothing had happened returning to work
the following morning and carrying on their usual routine of driving around at night and picking up women without any
other incidents one week later on the morning of december 31 1976 warrell asked miller to drop him
off on king williams street so he could go for a walk through rundle more it was no surprise to miller that when
they met up again shortly after warrell had a pretty teenage girl with him her name was tanya kenny
she had just returned from her new year's eve getaway down the south coast and agreed to let warrell and miller
drop her home warrell said they just needed to stop at miller's sister's vacant house in the
western suburbs to grab a few things on their way miller's sister was in the process of
moving out and needed him to gather up his old things tanya agreed and when they
arrived there warrell asked tanya to help him out inside he told miller to wait in the car
so miller parked in the driveway and waited patiently after some time warrell came out of the house alone
miller could tell something was wrong by the look on his face and quickly raced inside
in his old bedroom he found tanya lying on the floor with her hands and feet bound together
[Music] a piece of tape was stuck over her mouth and there was a thin red line around her
neck [Music] miller started screaming at warrell who threatened to kill miller too if he
didn't shut up miller was desperate to get tania's body out of the house before his sister found
out but it was broad daylight so they hid her in the bedroom cupboard and spent the next few hours driving around
looking for a suitable place to dispose of her body they eventually decided on a paddock in
the dean rifle range in wingfield and dug a hole in preparation for the burial they returned to miller's sister's house
at night loaded tanya's body into the boot of the car and then buried her in the makeshift grave
after tanya's murder miller lived in fear that warrell would strike once more he tried to deny what was happening
blaming warrell's dark moods and telling himself it wouldn't happen again weeks passed without incident until
january 21 1977 when the pair were driving down king williams street they spotted julie makeda waiting for a
bus outside the ambassador's hotel and warrell got out of the car to chat her up
he eventually convinced her to go for a drive with them and the trio headed out to the northern suburb of jepp's cross
where they parked down a side street there warrell tied to julie up telling her it would be a bit of fun
they then drove a further 80 kilometers out to truro where miller left warrell and julie alone
all he could do was hope that warrell didn't enter one of his dark moods when miller returned to the car
warrell had convinced julie to walk out into the paddock he told miller to wait in the car
but he didn't listen and followed them instead miller heard a loud noise through the
darkness and a thought warrell must have kicked julie in the stomach fearing what was about to happen miller
stepped in but warrell threatened to kill him if he tried to intervene warrell then strangled julie and miller
reluctantly helped him cover her body up with bushes a little over two weeks later on
february 6 warrell started chatting with sylvia pittman and once again used his charm to
convince her to go for a drive with them they headed out to truro where miller went on one of his usual lone walks
when he returned 45 minutes later warrell was alone miller asked where sylvia had gone
and warrell replied [Music] don't worry about it the following day warrell met vicki
howell in the city and struck up a conversation she agreed to go for a drive with him
out to the barossa valley wine region so miller came and picked them up miller liked vicki immediately
she was older than the women warrell usually picked up and he found her to be very ladylike
they went for a drive out towards truro stopping at one point so that vicky could go to the toilet
after that miller claimed he couldn't remember what happened he assumed warl had done to vicky what
he did to the others but he had no memory of the incident he told the detectives
i liked her and i wouldn't have let chris do anything to her if i had known two days later on february 9 the two men
were driving down king williams street when they pulled over on the side of the road
connie jordanitis was waiting at a bus stop and started chatting with warrell through the open window
she said she was on her way to pick up a package in the northern suburbs offered her a lift and she agreed to go
for a drive with them they headed out to truro where miller left them alone in the back seat
when he returned the three of them started driving back towards adelaide but warrell asked him to pull over again
down a side road miller left them alone and went for a walk and when he returned
warrell was alone miller said he didn't want to know about what had happened to which warrell remarked that connie
would have made a great girlfriend a couple of days later miller and warrell were driving down hindley street
in adelaide's cbd when they met deborah lam she accepted warrell's offer of a lift
and the trio drove out to port galla where warrell asked miller to go for a walk
he returned 30 minutes later and found warrell burying deborah's body in the sand
it was clear he had entered a very dark mood refusing to say a word about what had happened
miller was terrified about the frequency at which warrell was now killing his victims and was scared about what would
happen next but he didn't have to wait long one week later the fatal car accident
occurred and chris warrell was dead putting an end to the crime spree as miller confessed to one murder after
the next the interviewing detectives couldn't believe what they were hearing one asked miller why he had helped
warrell instead of trying to stop him miller replied i don't know we'd picked up girls before and nothing
happened i couldn't do much without endangering myself and i really believed that
much to his dismay james miller was charged with all seven murders while he understood that he had to face
some kind of repercussion for not stopping the killings or reporting the crimes earlier he didn't believe he
should be charged for the murders themselves he staunchly maintained that he had no
part in any of the killings and was quote just the chauffeur and the mug as 1979 drew to an end preparations were
in place for james miller's trial there were fears that the decision to interrogate miller and take him to the
burial sites before he had the chance to seek legal advice could harm the case against him
because of this decision it was possible that a judge might refuse to allow into
evidence the 16 hours of police questioning during which miller admitted to the crimes and provided his version
of advance without this due to the lack of forensic evidence to indicate where or how the
victims had died there would be very little for the prosecution to present to a jury
however the judge allowed this evidence to be admitted and miller's trial commenced in adelaide's supreme court on
february 12 1980 exactly three years to the day since the last victim debra lamb was last seen
curious members of the preston public competed for a spot in the courtroom with one reporter labeling at a quote
raffle ticket drama a security guard was on standby to keep spectators in order while james miller
sat behind a low iron fence with a bored expression on his face the prosecution set out to prove that
the murders were an equally joint enterprise between chris warrel and james miller
their case relied heavily on miller's confessions to both police and warrell's ex-girlfriend emilia who was a reluctant
witness on the stand amelia hesitantly explained that the reason she never came forward
was that she believed the state was looking for a scapegoat had she dobbed miller in he could be
blamed for not only the truro murders but potentially any other unsolved crimes she told the court
miller convinced me that he was virtually the innocent one and that chris was the guilty one
if i did go to the police then i thought i would be dubbing in an innocent man because i thought the guilty one was
dead it was only when amelia was confronted by police that she learned the truth
about warrell and miller's criminal histories and realised that miller might not be as innocent as he led her to
believe for the defense miller opted to prepare an unsworn statement for the court
it was a controversial decision an unsworn statement is where an accused presents their version of events without
having to swear under oath and it isn't subject to cross-examination [Music] no further questions can be asked by
members of the court and the accused isn't required to elaborate on any of the details
by choosing this option it meant that miller's entire case relied on his own statement
the jury were advised by the judge to scrutinize miller's version of events carefully before deciding what weight
should be attributed to it standing before the court it took miller close to an hour to deliver his 50-page
version of the seven murders in detail this description differed to the confession he provided to police after
his arrest whereas miller initially told the detectives that warrell had raped the
seven victims prior to strangling them he now said this wasn't the case he claimed the women had consensual sex
with warrell and let him tie them up before warl entered his dark moods and made the snap decision to kill them
miller also added in additional details including that after warrell killed veronica knight he threatened miller at
knifepoint forcing him to help move her body and warning him not to say a word to anyone about what had happened
it was because of this that miller feared for his life and continued to be complicit to the following murders
miller also claimed to have lied when telling police that five of the murders had happened at truro
he clarified that they had been killed closer to adelaide and he and warrell had then driven out to truro to dump the
bodies miller declared i admit that i helped dispose of the bodies and i admit that i was with the
world before the girls were murdered but i certainly did not think they were going to be killed and i certainly did
not take part or help in their killing at all i realised i have behaved very weakly
and badly in not physically stopping world and not reporting the matter to the police as soon as the first death
occurred by not telling the police about warrell i am probably guilty of some offense but
i am not guilty of murder because i did not want any of these girls to die on each occasion i was horrified and
frightened [Music] miller's defense lawyer warned the jury against using miller as a scapegoat for
chris warrell's crimes he reminded them that miller wasn't being charged with being an accessory to
murder or helping to dispose of the bodies but that he was being accused of the murders themselves
for them to find miller guilty they had to be certain he had agreed with warrell
to commit the murders or was present when warrell strangled his victims and encouraged the behavior
in defense of miller not reporting warl's crimes and continuing to help him dispose of the bodies
his lawyer explained through contact with warrell the accused stumbled into warrell's problems
none of them is the accused's own making but because of circumstances and world's
demands the accused helps dispose of the first body and from then on is involved
whether he likes it or not he is involved and he's left with little choice about the second body because
that is in his sister's house from then on he is on the tiger's back he cannot get off
[Music] in closing arguments the prosecution stated that no man would accompany a
rapist on seven expeditions unless he had at least a sexual interest in what was happening
even if it was only as an onlooker they told the jury ultimately it does not matter if that is
the one reason why miller went along or not his role as the joint picker-upper the
driver the body disposer that of course is enough to render him liable in the eyes of the law to murder
if there was this understanding in arrangement between him and warrell to that end or alternatively if he realized
the world's game and played that part in it the prosecutor continued you might think that the evidence
suggests miller was so besotted with warrell that he would stop at nothing and did stop at nothing not even
involvement in seven murders maybe warrell did have a stronger personality than the accused
maybe he was the only true friend he ever had the simple answer to that is so what
it might explain why seven girls were done to death it doesn't excuse it the judge clarified to the jury that if
they accepted miller's story that warrell was solely responsible for the killings they had to decide whether it
was reasonable to assume that miller knew that warrell was going to kill his victims and did nothing to stop him
he used a robbery committed by three men as an example if one man stays in the car one keeps a
lookout at the door and one enters the house to steal the belongings all three of them are guilty of robbery because
they were all involved in the plan and all knew what was going to happen had the man who entered the home
unexpectedly come upon the owner and killed them he would be guilty of murder while his
other two accomplices would not because they hadn't agreed with this part of the plan
on march 11 the jury deliberated for eight hours before returning their verdict for the murders of sylvia pittman julie
makeda vicky howe connie jordanedes tanya kenny and debra lamb james miller was declared guilty
however he was found not guilty for the murder of the first victim veronica knight as the jury believed it was
plausible that miller genuinely didn't know that warrell was going to kill her james miller was sentenced to serve six
consecutive life sentences with a non-parole period of 35 years he lurched forward over the
guardrail and yelled at one of the detectives quote you filthy liar you mongrel miller's sister echoed his statement
screaming you laughing swine two prison wardens grabbed hold of miller and pushed him out the side door
and into the holding cells while another woman in the public gallery turned to the judge and yelled
you are just as guilty for letting warrell out on parole miller was sent back to yatler prison
this time without his blood brother by his side very few believe that james miller was
merely a bystander to his best friend's crimes whether or not he assisted in the
killings remains a mystery but at the very least he actively facilitated them had chris warrell not been killed in the
car accident at the peak of his crime spree experts believe there would have most certainly been more victims
professor of criminology paul wilson said serial killers don't stop unless they are caught
i have never heard of therapy or anything else stopping serial killers they may be very sociopathic but they
are not insane even james miller agreed he predicted that if warrell had survived there could have been up to 70
victims and he would never have adopted him in it remains unclear whether warrell's
claims that he murdered two hitchhikers in western australia were ever investigated
james miller tried to appeal his conviction and argue for a retrial but his attempts were unsuccessful
in 1984 he went on a 43-day hunger strike in protest against his conviction but it didn't pay off
the following year with the help of writer dick wordley miller published a book titled don't call me killer which
gave his detailed first person account of his relationship with chris warrell and the truro murders
in the book miller staunchly stood by the version of events he gave in his unsworn
statement he made it sound like all seven women happily consented to sex and bondage with warrell as though they were
lucky to be chosen by him in reality the women had likely accepted a lift from the charming world feeling a
false sense of security in his lie that miller was his father or uncle once they were inside the car there was
little they could do as warrell forced himself on them and launched a brutal attack
either with or without the help of his sidekick in the final passage of the book miller
wrote if the blame for truro should be pointed at any one particular person then i feel
it should be pointed at me chris had no control over his dark moods and i knew that he must have had a
serious problem and i should have done something positive about it to help him after the first murder and i do not mean
by helping him to dispose of the body somehow i should have made sure that the person i loved more than anyone else
received medical attention but i did not thus i must accept my guilt one chris warrell was a killer
one chris warrell was a young man with a sickness he could not control that chris warrell appeared in the
courts that chris warrell could have been cured of his sickness that chris warrell was churro
another the real chris warrell was not a killer the real chris warrell was a happy-go-lucky easy-going friendly
considerate sincere and utterly appealing humane and beautiful young man who any parent would be proud to have as
a son as i was proud to have him as my dearest friend seven years after his death i find that
i still love him despite the cost miller was due for parole in 2014 but in 2007 his health took a rapid
decline he was diagnosed with lung cancer and prostate cancer and suffered from ongoing complications caused by
hepatitis c on october 21 2008 james miller passed away in hospital from liver failure at the age of 68.
[Music] in the wake of the truro murders the parole board's decision to release chris
warrell after he'd served just two years of his six-year prison sentence for rape
was strongly criticised the truth of his rape conviction was that he'd picked up a female hitchhiker
driven her out to a sports oval and attempted to rape her at knifepoint he'd been unsuccessful and eventually
let her go after she promised she wouldn't tell anyone what had happened had warl been forced to serve his entire
sentence the lives of the seven young women could have been spared the decision haunted warrell's parole
officer for years even though he had followed the rules by the book as part of warrell receiving parole he
had to undergo a psychiatric evaluation in hindsight it served as an ominous warning
declaring quote christopher warrell denied having committed rape and told a good story of
how he had been framed he came across as presenting the picture he felt would most impress and one did
not feel there was much sincerity in his protestations of future innocence however there is no history of
convictions before the age of 20 years and the circumstances of his rape offense made it inevitable that he was
caught one wonders if he was going through a temporary phase of readjustment at the
time only the future will tell chris warrel is buried in adelaide's centennial park cemetery
his gravestone reads untold love and joy he brought to war [Music] in 1997 22 year old nikki was curious to
learn more about her family history nikki had been adopted when she was six months old and felt it was finally time
to find out who her biological parents were she contacted the relevant authorities and when she walked into her
scheduled meeting the staff member said you're the baby from the picture in the papers
that's how nikki learnt that deborah lamb laurel and miller's seventh victim had been her birth mother
when debra's body had been discovered a photo of her holding baby nikki had been
used by the press it would now be the only photo nicki would ever have of her biological mother
[Music] as a teenager growing up in adelaide nikki and her friends had been warned
not to get into cars with strangers or they'd end up quote like the truro girls it was unbelievable to nikki to know
that her mother had been one of those girls she felt robbed of getting to know her
biological mother but believed that deborah would have been proud of the warm and loving upbringing nikki
received from her adoptive parents she told women's day magazine for six months she did one hell
of a job trying to raise me by herself before she gave me up so i could have a better life
in the wake of james miller's trial the advertiser published an editorial that deeply upset the loved ones of the
victims it read it is clearly the duty of the parents of the girls particularly the naive the
gullible and the misguidedly adventurous to impress upon them the dangers of walking alone in the streets at night
and accepting lifts in cars offered by people unknown to them girls who tend to be free with their
favors are committing no offence by behaving as they choose but they must realize that in doing so they are
exposing themselves to mortal danger anne-marie makita was appalled not only did the article place the blame
on the victims for what happened to them but the young women weren't free with their favors or roaming the streets
recklessly as the article suggested they were simply out living their lives several of the abductions occurred in
broad daylight while most of the women were waiting for public transport some were meeting friends going to work
or trying to make it home in time for their curfews to place the blame on them for the
atrocities they endured made in marie makita feel physically sick she detailed her experience of loss and
grief in a book titled it's a long way to truro providing an emotional insight into what
she and her family went through during julie's disappearance and the subsequent murder investigation
anne-marie's experience also inspired her to start an organization called the victims of crime services to provide
support for victims and families whose lives had been changed due to a violent crime
by the early 1980s the organization had more than 1400 members including les and
cath ratcliffe whose 11 year old daughter joanne was abducted from the adelaide oval in 1973
and never seen again anne-marie became close with the ratcliffe family visiting les on his
deathbed as he prayed fruitlessly for answers about his daughter before tragically passing away from cancer
through their shared experiences anne-marie also formed a strong bond with judith barnes the mother of
seventeen-year-old alan barnes who was a victim in a string of murders committed
by a group dubbed at the family as covered in episode 166 of case file having both endured every parent's worst
nightmare the women found comfort in one another and supported each other through
court hearings and trials in 1983 the body of fifteen-year-old richard calvin was discovered after he
was abducted from the streets of north adelaide richard was also a victim of the family
his brutal murder had such a strong impact on the community that people demanded a return on the death penalty
and called for a curfew on adolescence for their own protection [Music] despite everything anne-marie makeda had
gone through she was vocally opposed to the idea of a curfew she told reporters grief fear and anger are what produce
all this talk about curfews for children but clearly it is not the answer you can't keep adolescent children in a
cage you have to prepare them to face the world alone i don't know what the answer is but it
isn't capital punishment vigilantes and curfews it's much bigger than that it's us as a community
we have to be more caring [Music] following the arrest of james miller for the truro murders a young woman wrote a
letter to the advertiser in it she complained about the level of detail the newspaper had gone into when
julie makita's body was discovered saying it was in poor taste and showed no consideration for the feelings of
julie's family on the contrary it was this letter that upset julie's mother anne-marie didn't want julie's death to
be swept under the rug but instead wanted people to know exactly what her daughter went through in the hopes it
would raise awareness of the dangers that lurked in the shadows in response to the letter anne-marie
wrote an open message to the young women of adelaide wanting them to know that their sleepy city wasn't as safe as they
thought it read i am sorry that the report of the finding of my daughter's body and the
picture of the policeman carrying her offended you but what would you have done do you want julie to be just another
statistic hidden away in the paper or perhaps not reported at all so that nobody will be subjected to poor taste
julie was a person a girl very full of life as were veronica silvia vicky connie
tanya and deborah they were real girls just like you and they died just as you could die
not because they had hurt anyone or angered anyone but because they were on the street at the wrong time
that is what i find heartless and distressing the fact that they were killed not the fact that a humane reporter
wrote about the discovery of my daughter's body as if she were a real person i know now that girls are dragged from
the streets almost every night or they are enticed into cars and later left hurt and frightened raped maybe
maybe even dead this is not something unfortunate that happened two years ago this is something that could happen
tonight tomorrow to you every time you go out alone at night you are at risk every time you get into a stranger's car
you put your life in his hands i don't want you to be hurt or frightened for one moment
every time i hear of a girl raped or injured my daughter dies in my heart again [Music]
i've been writing about real police cases for nearly three decades now and there are few more tragic than the case
of sarah mcdermott with sarah's disappearance there's an element of patience of being
collected she was always a very good daughter if she was out someone going to be late
she would ring and let us know she was seen by several witnesses walking toward the car park
and then sarah mcdermott was gone when she's come down the bottom of the stairs and walked towards the car park she's
virtually walked into the darkness when sarah's family reported her missing police mounted an extensive search i
could see blood on the bitumen underneath the car that was parked at the driver's side of her
car the blood on the ground it sort of indicated to everybody that there'd been foul play a couple of suspects emerged
ahead of the rest and he said well when i do get out you'll be one of the first people i look for and i said why is that
and he said because i just like to kill you she said you know that murder that was
up at the cannanook station i was there with two other blokes and i'm worried because i don't know how staunch they
are who knows what he did if he killed sarah and disposed of her body maybe he thinks i can get away with this they
don't know where she is they don't know who did it just how many other women were followed from the canning railway
station we'll never know so i was walking along there and i could hear footsteps behind me and they were
getting closer and they yelled out to me don't take the shortcut take the bridge
i just think those men at the dotto saved my life the evidence is out there so pulled out a couple of the cards and
looked at the name and it said sarah mcdermott searching for sarah mcdermott out now for free only on spotify

Case 199: Truro

During the summer of 1976 and 1977, seven young women mysteriously disappeared from the streets of Adelaide. Veronica Knight, Sylvia Pittman, Julie Mykyta, Connie Iordanides, Vicki Howell, Tania Kenny, and Deborah Lamb were all last seen near main roads or waiting at bus stops...

CREDITS

Narration – Anonymous Host Research & writing – Elsha McGill Creative direction – Milly Raso Production and music – Mike Migas Music – Andrew D.B. Joslyn

SOCIAL LINKS

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RESOURCES

For all credits and sources please visit https://casefilepodcast.com/case-199-truro

Brief Summary

The episode recounts the Truro murders, detailing the abductions and murders of several young women in South Australia during the 1970s.

Key points

The Discovery of a Bone. Valder and Bill Thomas discover a human leg bone in the bushland, leading to horror.
A Serial Killer Theory. Detective Giles suspects a serial killer is behind the disappearances of several young women.
The Disappearance of Sylvia Pittman. Sylvia Pittman vanished after catching a bus, leading to a frantic search.
The Tragic Fate of Connie Jordanitis. Connie's body was discovered, revealing the grim reality of the ongoing investigation.
Public Indifference to the Murders. Despite multiple victims, public outrage was surprisingly muted.
A Shocking Confession. Miller confides in Amelia about dark secrets surrounding Warrell's death.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

Come, come.

A haunting voice in a dream urging a return.

3:53WatchDec 4, 2021

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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