The Family: Adelaide’s most terrifying killers | Forensic Files

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Considering herself a bit of a psychic, Judy Barnes sensed something was wrong. Her teenage
son, Alan, had failed to return home on Sunday June 17 1979, following a night out with friends.
If he were running late or was otherwise caught up, Alan would always contact his mother to let
her know. This time, Judy hadn’t heard a thing. Her mind was plagued with visions of Alan - his
shoulder length blonde hair, deep brown eyes, and handsome face - all covered in blood.
The weekends of mid-1979 followed the same routine for friends Alan Barnes and Darko Kastelan.
Nearly every Saturday, Alan would stay the night at Darko’s house, as his family lived closer to the Adelaide CBD than he did. Just about to turn 17,
Alan spent his weekends partying with Darko and enjoying the Adelaide nightlife.
On Sunday afternoons, Alan would head back to his family's house in the suburb of Salisbury.
The weekend commencing June 16 was no different. Alan spent Saturday night with Darko and the next
morning, the pair headed into the city. By the afternoon, Alan was plotting his journey home.
Darko planned to join Alan at his place, but Salisbury was 25 kilometres northeast of the CBD,
so the pair would need a ride. They stood outside the Pennington Hotel on Grand Junction Road,
a major thoroughfare in the northern part of the city, and began hitchhiking. Cars passed, but no one stopped to pick up the young men.
Darko suggested that Alan go home alone, thinking he might have better luck flagging down a car as
a single passenger. Alan agreed and the two said their goodbyes before going their separate ways.
Fehim Hodzic knew Alan Barnes and was in the area at the time the 16-year-old was hitchhiking home.
As Fehim drove along Grand Junction Road, he saw who he thought was Alan running up
to a stationary white Holden HQ sedan. One of its passenger doors opened as Alan approached.
Fehim could make out another three or four passengers in the Holden. As he drove away, Fehim glanced up at his rearview mirror. Alan was gone.
As that Sunday came to an end with no sign of her son, Judy Barnes phoned the police to report him missing. Four days later on June 21,
Alan turned 17. It was a bleak day with no reason to celebrate - he was still missing.
Around an hour drive northeast of Adelaide is the South Para Reservoir, the second largest reservoir in South Australia. The artificial
lake is surrounded by an expansive bushland reserve, popular with outdoor enthusiasts.
On the morning of Sunday June 24 1979, two bushwalkers set out on one the many trails
lining the reserve. They neared the South Para Bridge, which spanned a section of the reservoir.
The water underneath was extremely low at the time, exposing the lake's muddy base.
Down there, laying in the brown muck, was the body of a young man. It was obvious to police that the victim had either jumped,
been pushed, or dumped from the top of the bridge. His back was broken and twisted from the impact.
As such, the Major Crime Squad were called in to assist in a possible homicide.
A search of the surrounding area failed to yield any clues. Shortly after the discovery,
Judy Barnes opened her front door to find a police officer on her doorstep. The young man found dead at the South Para Reservoir was her son, Alan. The reservoir was 50
kilometres from where Alan was last seen hitching a ride from a Holden HQ sedan. Grand Junction
Road moved west to east, providing a direct route via connecting roads to the reservoir.
Alan had suffered tremendous physical injury prior to his death. After enduring a severe beating,
a tapered blunt object such as a bottle had been forced into his rectum, tearing major
blood vessels in the area. Rapid blood loss and shock set in, killing Alan within 30 minutes.
Despite this, there was no trace of blood on Alan’s skin, as his body had been washed prior
to being dumped. He was also wearing different clothes to what he had last been seen in.
His family confirmed that the clothes were not his and they had never seen them before.
Time of death was calculated to have been within 48 hours of the discovery of Alan’s body - meaning
he was alive for the duration of the week he was missing. Trichloroethanol was found in his
system - a byproduct of the sedative hypnotic drug chloral hydrate, used to treat insomnia.
Furthermore, his blood alcohol content was 0.19%. It was likely Alan was given a ‘Mickey Finn’,
an alcoholic drink laced with a psychoactive drug. In this case, chloral hydrate.
The combination would have weakened the teenager, limiting his ability to fight off his attacker.
Whoever had dumped Alan’s body intended it to land in the water under the South Para Bridge and
sink into the mud. However, the low water level ensured Alan’s body remained visible to passersby.
A reward for information was offered to identify Alan’s killer, but failed to generate any leads.
Tuesday August 28 1979 was a warm and pleasant day. Two men set out in a dinghy in Mutton Cove, 20 kilometres northwest of Adelaide city.
The cove is situated near where the Port Adelaide River empties out into the sea.
The conditions were calm when the men took to the water, perfect for a spot of casual fishing.
As they passed a disused wharf near the Osborne Gasworks, something in the water caught their eye.
It was a partially submerged garbage bag, snagged on some rocks and bobbing with the tide.
They boated closer to get a better look. When they approached, one of the men could make out the heel of a human foot sticking out of the bag.
When Pathologist Doctor Ross James emptied the bag onto a concrete slab to commence an autopsy,
he was struck by the horror it contained. He had never come across a case like it.
Inside was the body of a young male adult. His abdominal and chest cavity had been
emptied of all internal organs, which were nowhere to be found. His arms had been cut off at the sockets and legs at the pelvis, then stripped of skin and muscle.
The limbs had then been placed into a plastic bag and inserted into the cavity in the chest.
Skin bearing identifying tattoos had not been discarded but had instead been retained and placed in the torso as well.
Also inside the cavity was a small plastic bag containing severed fingers and dissected
genital organs. One testicle was missing. Investigators theorised it might have been
eaten by the man’s killer or kept as a trophy. The victim also had injuries consistent with anal intercourse or an object being forced into the anus.
He had been decapitated, with bite marks present on the vertebra where the head had been cut away
by a sharp instrument. Bite marks were also apparent where the legs had been separated
from the torso. The young male’s head was affixed to the sternum by a yellow rope
that went through his mouth and out the neck and then wrapped around his chest.
A time of death was difficult to ascertain. But the body’s condition indicated that it hadn’t
been immersed in the water for very long. 24 hours before discovery was a rough estimate.
The mutilation was so involved it could have taken anywhere from three to six hours to complete.
The killer had at the very least, a basic medical background. The dissection, particularly of the hands and thigh bones,
had been done by someone with a definite knowledge of anatomy and surgical skill.
Extracting prints from the severed fingers, the Major Crime Squad were able to identify the victim.
25-year-old Neil Muir lived a transient life. He spent his childhood in rural South Australia before moving to Adelaide in his teens.
Known as a country boy and a bit of a loner, the friends he did make introduced him to drugs. By
August 1978, Neil was unemployed and lived alone in a boarding house in Adelaide.
Neil was trying hard to beat his heroin addiction and was enrolled in the methadone program at
Hillcrest Hospital. Neil attended his scheduled appointments on the weekend of August 25 and 26.
At his last appointment, Neil was seen leaving the clinic and getting into a car with an unknown
male driver. He was wearing a bone coloured bulky knit cardigan with black stripes, light coloured
corduroy jeans, an ebony bangle, a sleeper earring in one ear and a drop-style earring in the other.
He was also carrying a flick-knife. Two days later, his mutilated remains were found floating in the waters off Mutton Cove.
Neil Muir’s murder bore a disturbing similarity to the Alan Barnes case. Both young men had sustained extensive anal injuries prior to their deaths. It was unclear
if Neil had been drugged like Alan, as his stomach was missing - so its contents couldn’t be tested.
However, several recent injection sites were found on skin believed to have come from his right arm.
Neil also had a wound on his scalp, not a fatal blow but enough to render him incapacitated.
However, there were also numerous differences between the two murders. Most notably, the condition in which the bodies were found. Given Neil’s heroin addiction,
detectives theorised that his death was unrelated to Alan Barnes. The gruesome manner in which Neil was treated seemed to be a warning.
One drug scene contact for The Advertiser newspaper said that Neil was, quote: “A small time nobody; someone who didn’t matter. Perhaps that is why he was selected for this
type of killing - to show the druggies that no one gets away without paying.” This theory was reinforced by the fact that Neil’s fingers and tattooed skin
were intentionally stored with his body, as though the killer wanted his identity known.
Associates of Neil speculated that he had to have either been dealing drugs himself
or turning to sex work to cover the costs of his addiction. Divers scoured the Port Adelaide River to find Neil’s internal organs, but were unsuccessful.
Police speculated that like Alan Barnes, Neil had been killed elsewhere and driven to water.
A policeman present at Neil’s autopsy told The Advertiser: “Wherever he was killed and cut-up must have been like a slaughterhouse by the time it was over.”
Detective Lee Haddon was placed in charge of the Neil Muir murder investigation. Haddon turned
to criminal profiling to understand the type of person capable of committing such a sickening act.
A police psychologist concluded that the offender was either mentally ill or an extremely sadistic
psychopath. They might not openly display aggression, but instead portray themselves
as polite, gentle, and neat - while secretly harbouring strong and out of control sexual urges.
Three days after Neil Muir’s body was found, a doctor named Peter Millhouse checked himself
into a rehabilitation clinic. When speaking with the admitting nurse, Millhouse revealed that he
was an alcoholic and had been on a downward spiral since the beginning of the week when he’d gone
on a bender. He also cited the fact that he was gay, had increasing debt, and was currently being
investigated for writing illegal prescriptions as adding to his depression and drinking problem.
Two days later, while Doctor Peter Millhouse was recuperating, he was paid a visit by Detective Lee Haddon. Haddon had received anonymous
tip-offs about the 45-year-old GP, described as a non-violent, quiet man who kept to himself.
Peter Millhouse spent his weekends in hotels in central Adelaide, hoping to hook up for a night
of casual sex. Sources revealed that Millhouse was often seen in pubs and clubs with Neil Muir.
Witness accounts indicated the pair had known each other for four years. It was uncertain whether they were just friends or if Neil was getting drugs or money from the doctor
in return for sexual favours. Detectives suspected this could be a possibility, as Peter Millhouse
had previously been questioned by the drug squad for writing false prescriptions in return for sex.
When confronted by police, Millhouse denied knowing Neil and produced a pre-written letter
he had signed. It stated that he wouldn’t answer any questions unless in the company of his lawyer.
According to “Young Blood,” by Detective Bob O’Brien, sources confirmed that Neil Muir and
Dr Peter Millhouse would often drink together at the Hope Inn Sports and Social Club in Ridleyton,
north of Adelaide. Detective Lee Haddon paid both establishments a visit. Neil’s associates
at the Social Club said that they had last seen the pair drinking there on Sunday August 26,
the day Neil was thought to have disappeared. They told Detective Haddon to also visit
the Mediterranean Hotel on Hindley Street - another city-based hangout spot for the two.
Detective Lee Haddon spoke to a bouncer there who knew Neil well. He said that Neil had been at the Hotel on the Thursday and Friday nights before he disappeared.
On both occasions, he was in the company of Dr Peter Millhouse. The pair had been drinking schooners at their regular table next to the jukebox.
Neil had also visited the bar by himself at lunchtime the day before his body was discovered.
He had been wearing brown corduroy jeans with a long sleeved shirt and drank schooners of beer
well into the evening. A waitress complained to the bouncer that Neil had fallen asleep
at the table and he was escorted out of the hotel. Neil left without incident, telling the bouncer:
“I’m going mate, I’m going.” Neil staggered down Hindley Street - where Dr Peter Millhouse
would stay when visiting the city. He walked towards Morphett Street, disappearing into the night. On November 20 1979, Detective Lee Haddon
and two others drove to the small waterfront town of Whyalla, nearly 400 kilometres from Adelaide.
Peter Millhouse was out of rehabilitation and was working there as a locum GP. The
detectives found him staying at a local hotel and arrested him over the misuse of prescriptions.
On the four hour drive back to Adelaide, Detective Haddon tried to build rapport and get Millhouse to
discuss Neil Muir. He exercised his right to remain silent and was released pending trial.
By this stage, detectives had searched Millhouse’s North Adelaide residence. He lived by himself and
kept the place untidy. Initial testing came back positive for blood on the bathroom floor. However,
the area had been cleaned so thoroughly with chemicals, that further analysis was not possible.
In the kitchen were the same type of garbage bags used to dispose of Neil’s body. Outside,
a clothesline - known for having a distinctive yellow rope - had been replaced with metal twine.
The plastic bag containing Neil Muir’s limbs contained a bandaid with tiny fibres stuck to
its adhesive glue. Matching fibres were found on a rug in Dr Peter Millhouse’s house - though it couldn’t be proven the fibres on the bandaid came from that particular rug.
The abundance of circumstantial evidence was enough for detectives to arrest Millhouse for the murder of Neil Muir in Janurary 1979.
The next day, he appeared in the Adelaide Magistrates Court where he was refused bail.
The trial began the following year in September. Millhouse gave three days of sworn evidence
and agreed to be cross-examined by the prosecution in an attempt to clear his name.
He told the court that on the day of Neil’s murder, he had visited four separate hotels.
Aside from that, he spent the week indoors. He stated that he only heard of Neil’s death
when he read about it in the paper two days after his body was discovered. Millhouse claimed that even though he had degrees in medicine and surgery, he did not
have the necessary knowledge of dissection to have carried out the mutilation of Neil Muir’s body.
An earlier committal hearing had established that the dissection of Neil Muir’s body was likely
carried out by someone with surgical expertise. Millhouse countered that he was a mediocre medical
student, had done very little surgery as an intern at the Adelaide Children’s Hospital,
and that he had never performed a post mortem. The prosecution gave two possible motives for the murder of Neil Muir by Peter Millhouse.
It might have been a murder committed out of contempt. Or it was an accident and Millhouse mutilated Neil’s body to dispose of it.
In summing up, the defence argued that the prosecution had not proved its case and that it
was dangerous for a jury to accept circumstantial evidence as fact. After 24 days of testimony
and 98 witnesses, the jury deliberated for 75 minutes. They found the defendant “not guilty.”
As he walked out of the courtroom, Dr Peter Millhouse hugged his mother and said: “I am glad to see justice has been done.”
The arrest and subsequent trial had lasting ramifications for Millhouse. The media reported extensively on aspects of his sex life, including the time he asked Neil to
urinate on him in exchange for methadone. Yet, Millhouse had been cleared by a court of law
and by the end of 1980, detectives were no closer to making any further arrests.
On the morning of Thursday August 27 1981, 14-year-old Peter Stogneff was excited.
After putting on his school uniform and collecting his bag, he left home. But instead of heading to school as expected, he walked to a nearby shopping mall. When
the coast was clear he returned home, dumping his school bag in the garage before getting changed.
He was due to meet his friend, Daniel Tzaeganoff, by the silver balls sculpture in Rundle Mall,
Adelaide’s central hub for shopping. The pair had planned to wag school together and Daniel said he
might even have two girls with him. Peter was looking forward to spending the day with them.
However, Daniel never followed through with the plan and didn't show up at Rundle Mall. Despite
this, Peter committed himself to ditching school and continued his day out alone.
That same morning, Glenise Richardson was sipping coffee at a cafe in the Tea Tree Plaza,
15 kilometres northeast of Rundle Mall. At around midday, she noticed something “very odd”.
A teen fitting Peter Stogneff’s description was walking with a broad framed, tanned skinned man
wearing a bomber jacket and trendy shoes. He appeared to be around 26-years-old.
While the scene itself wasn’t out of the ordinary, the vibe between the two suggested to Glenise that
something wasn’t quite right. Tea Tree Plaza was near Peter’s family home in Hope Valley.
Peter didn’t return home that night. Police appealed for anyone who had seen the blue eyed teen with the freckled face to come forward.
Weeks passed with no sign of Peter, but something strange emerged months later.
An off-duty police officer was scanning the shelves of the Tea Tree Gully library,
when he picked up a book titled: “The Man Who Killed Boys,” about serial killer John Wayne Gacy.
Thumbing through it, he noticed two blood smeared pages towards the front of the book.
Given the library’s proximity to Peter Stogneff’s house, he turned it into the local police - though
a connection was never established between the blood-stained book and the missing teen.
Meanwhile, detectives continued to follow up leads that streamed into a tip line but were forced to concede that Peter Stogneff had just vanished without a trace.
19-year-old Mark Langley was having a fantastic time at his friend's birthday party.
Earlier that evening on Saturday February 27 1982, Mark dressed in jeans and a blue
satin shirt with a blue cardigan over the top. He finished off his look with his
beloved silver chain with crab ingot to represent his star sign - cancer. The party at Windsor Gardens, a north eastern suburb of Adelaide, had gone well into the night.
It offered a reprieve from Mark’s weekday work as a plumber and he wasn’t prepared to call it
quits too early. At 1:15am, Mark and two friends decided to move on and continue their night out
in the Adelaide CBD. They piled into a car and made the journey into the warm and dry night.
Fifteen minutes later, they pulled over on War Memorial Drive alongside the River Torrens. As
the trio sat enjoying each other’s company in the quiet and serene area, a minor argument broke
out over cigarettes. Mark left the car in a huff, deciding that he’d had enough and would walk home.
Mark’s friends drove off without him, but quickly had a change of heart and decided to go back for
him. In order to return to where they left Mark, they had to complete a circuit - continuing
down War Memorial Drive, crossing over the River Torrens near the Adelaide Zoo, and driving along
Victoria Drive before crossing the River Torrens again on King William Road Bridge. The round trip
took them four minutes. By the time they got back to their original location, Mark was gone.
That night, Robert Windsor was driving along Hackney Street when he spotted a black-haired young man with a strong physique hitchhiking by the road. It was Mark Langley,
though Robert didn’t know the 19-year-old personally. Robert drove past Mark, only to glance back at him in his rear view mirror.
He saw another car pull up and Robert assumed Mark climbed into it. The entire scenario was so
brief and unremarkable, Robert didn’t even take note of what the other vehicle looked like.
The following morning, Mark’s parents slept in. When they woke and realised their son hadn’t returned home, they became worried. By midday
they had phoned the police, explaining that this behaviour was extremely out of character.
Nine days passed. Then in Summertown, 16 kilometres east of Adelaide, a farmer was poisoning blackberry bushes encroaching on his Sprigg Road property. Within the invasive,
leafy bush, the farmer discovered the body of Mark Langley. He was clean and dressed in his jeans and blue woollen cardigan. Missing was his silk shirt and silver chain.
Mark had likely died from major internal injuries caused by being anally assaulted with a bottle.
A vertical incision ran down Mark’s lower abdomen, from underneath his belly button to the top of his pubic region - a length of 16.5 centimeters.
Like a surgical procedure, the area had been shaved and the incision had been crudely but
surgically sutured closed with thread and covered with surgical tape. Sections of bowel had been removed via the incision.
A pathologist reasoned that the bottle had been inserted deep into the rectum, to the point where it could only be retrieved surgically. It was likely the
object contained evidence that could identify the killer - so they removed it completely.
The presence of alcohol and prescription medication were found in Mark’s bloodstream.
The chemicals - methaqualone and diphenhydramine - were the active ingredients in the drug Mandrax,
a sedative and hypnotic medication used to treat insomnia. A time of death was difficult to ascertain due to the level of decomposition.
It was estimated that Mark had been murdered soon after his abduction. It was now becoming clear that there was a serial killer active in South Australia.
Although initially reluctant to draw a concrete connection between the murders of Alan Barnes and
Neil Muir over two years earlier, the discovery of Mark Langley’s body established a disturbing
pattern. An unknown assailant was abducting young men off Adelaide’s streets, violently
sexually assaulting them, before murdering them and in several cases, mutilating their remains.
The victim's body would then be dumped in a secluded spot in the city's outskirts.
Smoke wafted into the skies above Two Wells on June 23 1982. In the town, located 40 kilometres
north of Adelaide, a farmer was conducting a burn off on his property on Middle Beach Road.
Afterwards, as he walked through the burnt landscape, he came across a blackened human
skeleton in the ashes. The body had likely been dumped from the dirt road, as it came to rest along the barbed wire fence line boundary of the farmers property.
The male skeleton’s spinal cord had been severed with a saw. As had the legs above the knees.
The lower legs were missing. Although not much more could be ascertained due to the accidental
burning of the body, the dissection of the bones drew parallels to the mutilation of Neil Muir.
Using skull shape and size as well as dental records, the skeleton was confirmed to be that
of missing 14-year-old Peter Stogneff, last seen on the day he wagged school 10 months earlier.
Almost a year later on Sunday June 5 1983, Richard Kelvin absent mindedly played with
his pet dog's chrome studded collar. In his other hand was a telephone receiver. Speaking
down the line was his girlfriend, Brigitta, who Richard spoke to on the phone everyday.
Although they had only been dating a month, Richard loved Brigetta and the pair talked about getting engaged when they turned 19 in four years' time.
It was getting late in the afternoon when Richard told Brigetta that he planned to
meet up with his friend Karl to kick the footy. He said he would call her the moment he got back.
Richard and Karl visited the local park in North Adelaide, two kilometers north of
the River Torrens. Athletic, fit, and tall for his age at 180 centimeters, Richard enjoyed getting out and being active on the weekends.
He took his dog's collar with him and put it around his neck. It stood out against the rest of his outfit consisting of blue jeans,
Adidas sneakers, and navy blue t-shirt featuring the logo for television station - Channel Nine.
As 6PM drew near, Richard walked his friend Karl to the nearest bus stop on O’Connell Street.
As mentioned in the book, “Young Blood,” by Detective Bob O’Brien, Karl suggested that they
walk to the King William Road bus stop instead - near the Women and Children’s Hospital. But
Richard dissuaded him, he felt it would be unsafe to cross the darkened parkland to get there.
While they waited for the bus, Richard asked Karl what he thought of his dog collar accessory. Karl
told him it looked stupid and in response Richard took it off and tied it around his wrist instead.
Karl boarded the next bus and Richard set off along the busy street to his family townhouse,
approximately 300 metres away. 50 metres from Richard’s home lived a man who worked
as a security guard. Suffering from a bout of the flu, he went to bed early that evening - only to be woken up at around 6:15. Someone outside was crying for help.
He then heard the sound of car doors banging, followed by a loud exhaust as a car accelerated
away. The security guard didn’t think anything of it at the time and drifted back to sleep.
Days later, detectives showed up at his house. They were doorknocking the area in search of
15-year-old Richard Kelvin, who failed to return home two days earlier after visiting
the local park with a friend. The security guard told the detectives of the cries for help
and the accelerating car he heard that night. Being a car enthusiast, he was able to identify
the vehicle's exhaust as sounding like it belonged to a Holden with a faulty muffler.
Richard’s father's celebrity status ensured the teens unexplained disappearance drew a large
amount of police and media focus. Rob Kelvin was a news reader for Channel Nine. A professional with
a strong temperament, Rob continued to present the news each night, despite the overwhelming
distress he faced off-camera. He stopped short of reading out any reports regarding his missing son.
By the time Richard Kelvin vanished, South Australia’s Major Crimes Unit was overwhelmed
and their resources were stretched. They were still investigating the murders of Alan Barnes,
Neil Muir, Mark Langley, and Peter Stogneff. Other urgent investigations were also
underway - including the search for 10-year-old Louise Bell, who was abducted from her home in
Hackham West four months earlier. Louise’s story is covered in episode 105 of Casefile.
In Richards case, they immediately suspected he had met with foul play. They even collected one of his school books to compare handwriting samples against any ransom
letters they might receive from a kidnapper targeting Richard’s high-profile father.
Trevor Ford hosted a nightly talkback segment on Adelaide radio station - 5DN. In the aftermath of Richard Kelvin’s disappearance, Trevor was live on
air when a call came through from an unidentified male. He said that Richard was being held in a
caravan in the Mount Crawford area of the Adelaide Hills before promptly hanging up.
Given Mount Crawford’s proximity to the locations of where Alan Barnes and Mark
Langley’s bodies were found, detectives thought this a worthwhile lead. An aerial search did
locate a few run down and abandoned caravans amongst the bushland, but all were empty.
Soon after, the Major Crime Squad received a telephone tip-off of their own. The male caller named two men - Mark and Doug - as being responsible for Richard’s abduction.
He said that they drove a light coloured 1963 EJ Holden sedan. The vehicle was in good condition,
fitted with a tow bar and two mirrors on the front guards. This make and model of car used to be very popular. However, over the years,
the numbers on the road had dwindled, making it somewhat of a rarer vehicle. According to the book, “Young Blood,”, a full page image of the car in question
alongside a photo of Richard Kelvin was published in The Advertiser newspaper. It failed to generate any worthwhile response, leading investigators to believe the entire
story was a hoax. Seven weeks passed and police were no closer to finding Richard.
Situated 36 kilometres southeast of Adelaide city lies the small town of Kersbrook.
In the heart of the sprawling Adelaide Hills region, Kersbrook is home to only a couple of
hundred people. On Sunday July 24 1983, Kersbrook resident Trevor Holmes and his family took to the
bush around their home in search of moss covered stones to put in their garden. Wandering away from
his wife and children, Trevor came across some distinctive pale fragments on the ground. He
thought they were kangaroo bones and inched closer to have a look. Suddenly, a person caught his eye.
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It was a young male with sandy blonde hair. He was lying in the nearby scrub, on his left side and in the foetal position.
Thinking that the man was injured, Trevor called out to him - but was met with silence.
Trevor approached and saw the Channel 9 logo on the man’s shirt. A dog collar was fastened around his neck. Trevor bent down, cleared the scrub away
from the man’s face and realised he had found the body of Richard Kelvin. An autopsy showed a subdural haemorrhage from a head injury that had occurred early
on in Richard’s abduction. This blow would have been enough to kill him, but the partial resolution of the haemorrhage indicated that he had survived the attack.
Bruising down Richard’s back and buttocks were estimated to have been inflicted two weeks before his death. He also showed signs of anal trauma.
Richard’s body had been washed prior to being redressed and his captor had also
given him a haircut. Unique fibres were found on Richard’s clothing, including his underwear.
They came in a variety of colours - blue, turquoise, purple, orange, yellow, black, brown,
red, and green. Seven foreign human hairs were also found on the inside legs of Richard’s jeans.
Richard had been kept alive for up to five weeks before succumbing to blood loss.
Traces of various sedatives including Valium, Amytal, and Rohypnol, were found in his system.
As was Mandrax, the drug also used to weaken Mark Langley. Richard had also been given alcohol laced with chloral hydrate like Alan Barnes.
Kersbook was accessible via South Para Road, which also led to the South Para Reservoir,
where Alan Barnes was found. The strength required to throw Alan Barnes’s body over a metre-high bridge railing,
the extensive mutilation of Neil Muir’s body, the surgical procedure performed on Mark Langley,
and the difficulties in keeping Richard Kelvin captive for five weeks all pointed to more than
one individual being responsible for the crimes. Detectives were certain that the
young men were imprisoned and killed somewhere where large volumes of blood could be cleaned
up easily such as a factory, butcher’s shop, or somewhere with commercial cleaning facilities.
Richard Kelvin was the killer’s fifth known victim. And with the discovery of his body,
a wave of hysteria swept over Adelaide. Vigilanties patrolled the River Torrens
keeping their eyes out for suspicious activity and to protect passersby. The media did little to quell the overwhelming fear, with Criminologist Doctor Allan Perry warning
that the publicity surrounding the case would be giving the perpetrator immense satisfaction.
In an attempt to reassure the public, a detective appeared on current affairs program 60 Minutes. He
vowed that the police were taking every action to break up the “happy family” of murderers.
The remark led to the creation of the title the homicides would come to be known as - The Family Murders. Mandrax, also known as Quaaludes,
was a sedative and hypnotic medication commonly used to treat insomnia in the 70s.
Taking the drug, particularly in doses above the recommended therapeutic range,
caused the user to feel a rush of euphoria, relaxed mood, and heightened sexual arousal.
As such, the drug was known colloquially as “Randy Mandy.” Because of the potential for Mandrax to become abused and dependency to occur,
in 1978, the drug came under stricter laws governing its prescription. As a result,
the medication was prescribed much less frequently. Those that took Mandrax were not
allowed to continue on it for more than two months without approval from the Central Board of Health.
As Mark Langley and Richard Kelvin had been tranquilised with Mandrax, detectives Trevor
Kipling and Bob O’Brien visited the Adelaide offices of the State Health Commission.
The eight storey building held copies of all prescriptions for restricted drugs in South Australia. Working on a long shot, they began leafing through
the thousands of scripts for Mandrax that were housed in large drawers. About an hour later, Trevor Kipling motioned to his partner to stop looking. He had a
prescription in his hand. While the name didn’t ring any bells to Bob O’Brien, Trevor remembered
being told of an incident that had occurred 10 months prior - on Saturday September 11 1982.
Three months after Peter Stogneff’s charred remains were found, a 36-year-old man was filling up an esky with ice at an ice works on Lower Portrush Road, near to
where it crossed the River Torrens. A 16-year-old boy known as George suddenly caught his attention.
The teen was hitchhiking along the road and approaching where the man was waiting near
his car. He offered George a ride and the pair then got into the man's bronze Ford Falcon.
As mentioned in the book, “Young Blood,”, as the pair drove along, the man told George about a
party. He said there would be alcohol and girls there, adding that they would have a great time.
The man then drove George to a house. There was no wild party as he had promised, just a few women drinking. George was offered a drink,
which made him feel groggy. He was led into a bedroom by one of the women who took advantage
of his vulnerable state, while the man who picked him up watched. George then passed out.
Two days later, George entered the Holden Hill Police Station in northeast Adelaide.
His memory was hazy, though he was clearly distressed. George recalled hitchhiking home on Saturday night, the bronze Ford Falcon, the male driver,
and the gathering at the house. 24 hours after arriving at the house, George was returned home in a taxi. A check up by a doctor showed that he had suffered anal trauma.
Sam Bass from the Holden Hill Crime Investigation Bureau spoke to the taxi driver who had driven George home on the night of the 11th. He then visited
the pick up address in the metropolitan suburb of Alberton - a 20 minute drive from the city.
The occupants of the slightly shabby but ordinary low set home were questioned.
Three people lived at the address - a gay man and two transgender women, one of whom for this episode we will refer to as Miss P. She was later arrested for the rape of
George. However, the case against her was ultimately dismissed in the Port Adelaide Court
when no evidence was brought forward. However, Miss P and her housemates did name the man who had brought George to their doorstep - Bevan Spencer von Einem.
Officer Bass drove to Von Einem’s workplace, Pipeline Supplies of Australia, to discuss the allegations leveled against him. He did not
want to be spoken to at work but agreed to be interviewed at the Holden Hill Police Station.
Von Einem remembered the night in question, though maintained that George was more than
willing to go to the party. He alleged that after they arrived at approximately 1AM,
they listened to music. George drank beer and brandy while chatting to the house guests. Von
Einem denied spiking any of George’s drinks and stated that George willingly slept with Miss P.
He also denied being in the bedroom with them at any time. Von Einem said that after the sexual encounter, Miss P came out of her bedroom and fell asleep
on the lounge, while George slept in her bed. Von Einem went into the room and lay
on top of the covers next to George. The pair slept late into the next afternoon.
When they awoke, Von Einem claimed George had been too tired to shower from the night spent drinking.
Von Einem then undressed the teen and washed him, before sending him home in a taxi - handing the
driver 15 dollars and George’s home address written on a scrap of paper. Detective Trevor Kipling was later told of this incident later by a Holden Hill police officer.
Even though George ultimately declined to press charges, Kipling had remembered the unusual name
of his alleged assailant. Kipling looked down at the name on the Mandrax prescription in his hands.
Bevan Spencer von Einem. Described as softly spoken, charming, and intelligent, Bevan Spencer von Einem was the
apple of his mother’s eye. He accompanied her to tupperware parties, took her shopping, and tended
to her every need. He would even drive her to her cousin’s place every second week, where she would
spend the weekend. His mothers friends remarked that they wished they had a son like Bevan.
Von Einem was musically gifted. A member of the harp society, Von Einem played regularly when he
wasn’t working at Pipeline Supplies of Australia. Employed there for 16 years, Von Einem had started
as a bookkeeper before working his way up to the role of accountant. A valued and trusted employee,
Von Einem had keys so he could gain access to the industrial building after hours.
Von Einem was openly gay at a time when Australian society was intolerant towards
same-sex attracted people. He experienced the discrimination first hand in 1972.
At the time, the public toilets along the banks of the River Torrens were referred to
as the “Number One Beat,” a place where gay men could meet and pick up other men.
The stigma attached to gay relationships at the time meant that those looking to meet
there were subjected to not only attacks from the public but also police officers.
One such incident occurred in 1972. Roger James was standing by a bench that overlooked the river
when he was set upon by police officers patrolling the Number One Beat. They pushed Roger into the
water, causing his leg to break on impact. He was soon joined by another man, Dr George Duncan,
who the officers also shoved into the river. Roger surfaced and saw George struggling,
but his injury prevented him from being able to help the university lecturer. Roger watched George slowly sink underwater and drown.
The police jeered at Roger telling him to “save his mate.” When they tired of their fun and left
the scene, Roger crawled up the river bank and onto a nearby road. He was rescued at
11PM by a passing motorist who took him to a hospital. It was Bevan Spencer von Einem.
On July 28 1983, Detectives Trevor Kipling and Bob O’Brien drove to Von Einem’s home in Paradise,
a suburb 11 kilometers northeast of Adelaide that he shared with his mother. The ordinary
beige brick lowset was tidy with a freshly mowed lawn and sparse shrubs dotting the front yard.
Von Einem - a tall man with dark brown hair, dark eyes, and a large bulbous nose - answered
the door. The detectives asked him to accompany them to the police station so they could question
him about his use of Mandrax. Von Einem said he wouldn’t talk unless he had his solicitor present.
Later that day, he arrived at the Angas Street police building with his solicitor.
He admitted to taking a number of medications to help with his nervous condition and insomnia,
listing Serepax, Sinequan, and Rohypnol. When asked about Mandrax, Von Einem replied that he had started taking it about 5 years prior. He said the last
time he would have filled a prescription for Mandrax would have been a year ago.
He still had a few tablets left, but he now took Rohypnol to get to sleep instead.
Von Einem denied any knowledge of what happened to Alan Barnes, Neil Muir, Mark Langley, Peter Stogneff, or Richard Kelvin.
As detailed in the book “Young Blood” by Detective Bob O’Brien -- when asked if it was conceivable
that he could abduct a youth, drug him, abuse him, and then kill him, Von Einem replied: “No,
I think it would be unethical of me; I shy away from violence of any description.”
Detective O’Brien thought to himself that these were not words a normal person would use.
Bevan von Einem consented to supplying blood and hair samples, as well as providing fingernail
scrapings. He also let detectives search his silver Toyota Corona hatchback and his home. At
4:15PM, Detectives Kipling and O’Brien, along with a crime examiner, photographer and fingerprint
analyst, entered Von Einem’s house while he waited outside. The interior of the house was nothing
remarkable at first glance, with plain furniture decorating the lounge. The group moved across the
vibrant blue and purple swirled carpet and into Von Einem’s bedroom near the front of the house.
At the foot of Von Einem’s bed sat a harp, visible over his bright orange and yellow
checkered bedspread. Next to the bed was a carry bag. It contained a bottle of Sinequan, Serepax,
Rohypnol, and Valium tablets. A note inside read - “Uncle Bevan.” Detective O’Brien asked Von Einem where his Mandrax could be found.
He directed them to a cupboard in his bedroom and pulled out two bottles concealed behind a mirror.
Von Einem said that there would be about 40 tablets in the bottles. When asked if there was anything else hidden in his bedroom, Von Einem said no.
Checking the ledge behind the mirror, Detective O’Brien withdrew another bottle. It was labelled as Noctec - its active ingredient being chloral hydrate.
After fingerprinting, photographs, and tape lifts of von Einem’s car and house had been completed,
the detectives returned to the police station to complete their paperwork. They finished up around 10PM. As detailed in the book “Young Blood '' Detective O’Brien,
too wired from the day's events to sleep, decided to do a driveby of Von Einem’s house.
He saw an unfamiliar car parked in the driveway and the lounge room light was on.
O’Brien parked a distance away and waited. By 1:30 the next morning, the owner of the vehicle had still not left the premises. The weary detective called it a night.
Later that morning, a plate check of the vehicle parked in Von Einem’s driveway
came back as a match for an affluent businessman who worked in the Adelaide CBD.
With not enough evidence to arrest Bevan von Einem, on September 19, detectives organised a raid on the man who had visited him on the night his house was
searched - the affluent businessman. His name is still under a suppression order.
For the sake of clarity, Casefile will refer to him as Mr R. His name had been mentioned amongst the hundreds called into the Major Crime Squad tipline
during The Family Murders investigation. But he hadn’t raised serious red flags
until he was linked as an associate of Bevan Spencer von Einem. Mr R was at his home in one of Adelaide’s most affluent suburbs when officers arrived to carry
out their raid. Mr R admitted to knowing von Einem for years, considering him a friend.
He denied any knowledge of The Family Murders and refused to comment any further.
His home was searched but nothing incriminating was found. Following this, the detectives also searched Mr R’s business - a two storey building located
in a busy shopping district of Adelaide. Upstairs, towards the rear of the building,
Detectives O’Brien and Kipling came across a room devoid of any furniture or decoration except for a bare mattress on the ground. The mattress was seized but
there was no evidence to show that any of the murdered young men had been anywhere near it.
Despite this, authorities remained suspicious of Mr R and placed him under lengthy surveillance.
While he never did anything illegal, he did have a specific routine. As detailed in the book
“Young Blood”, every weekday Mr R would close his business at precisely 12 o’clock
for one hour. He would then drive to the Number One Beat to see what was happening there
before checking out other beats. At the end of his lunch break, he would return to work.
Although he lived very close to his business premises, the trip would be repeated at the
end of the day after he closed. Each time, he was looking for young men to pick up.
In November, a call was placed to the Major Crime Squads office. The caller, who remained anonymous, would come to be known as Mr B. He had phoned the police during
the early investigations into the murders of Alan Barnes and Neil Muir as he had a friend who knew
them both. However, because detectives were eyeing Dr Peter Millhouse as the likely perpetrator,
they focused all their attention on him. Now Mr B had more to share than just a name,
he was ready to discuss in detail Bevan Spencer von Einem. In a six hour interview, Mr B detailed how he met and befriended Von Einem at the Number One Beat,
weeks before the death of Alan Barnes. Mr B detailed how he and Von Einem would pick
up hitchhikers and supply them with alcohol that Von Einem kept in an esky in his car.
Once the men were inebriated, the pair would offer them pills, saying they would help sober them up. In reality, the pills were sedatives. From the
book “Young Blood,” Mr B detailed the aftermath of one such setup: “Bevan took the kid by the arms and I had the legs and we carried him into the bedroom,
which was Bevan’s, and we put him straight onto the bed with his head on the pillow.
We brought the second one in the same way and dropped him on the lounge room floor. Bevan
then went into his bedroom and closed the door. I did not touch the one in the lounge room. I
would have but he was not good looking and he was rolling around as though he was going to be sick.”
Mr B then walked into Von Einem’s room and saw him performing horrific acts on the young man.
Mr B asked Von Eimen to take him home and the two of them dropped the drugged boys
to the Alberton house of Miss P and her friends where they slept off the effects and went home.
On November 3, Bevan Spencer von Einem went out to get groceries with his mother.
Afterwards, as he pulled into the driveway of his home, he was arrested by Detective Trevor Kipling
for the murder of Richard Kelvin. Analysis of the brightly coloured fibres recovered on the
clothing worn by RIchard Kelvin had come back as a perfect match to those on the carpet and
bedspread in the Von Einem home. 110 fibres were a match to von Einem’s brown cardigan.
This evidence, combined with a signed statement by Mr B and Mandrax and chloral hydrate found
in Von Einem’s bedroom was enough to warrant an arrest. Von Einem’s mother was shocked and couldn’t believe what was happening. Her son showed no emotion at all.
Von Einem adamantly denied knowing what had happened to Richard Kelvin. He was held on remand and at his committal hearing in February the following year, Von
Einem’s attorney halted proceedings to read out a statement on behalf of his client. It claimed that
Von Einem did meet Richard Kelvin on the night he was abducted, however he was not involved with his
disappearance or murder. The hearing was postponed while detectives investigated these new claims.
On March 1, Von Einem was reinterviewed. This time, he claimed that on the afternoon of Richard’s disappearance he was driving
to get fish and chips for dinner when he almost struck Richard with his car. He spoke briefly to
Richard who noticed that Von Einem was drinking a beer and asked if he could have one as well.
Not wanting Richard to get in trouble for underage drinking, Von Einem said that Richard got into his car and the two had a drink while driving back to his home in Paradise.
Richard told Von Einem of his troubles at school with bullying, a fact that had been printed in
the papers following his disappearance. To help calm him, Von Einem said Richard sat on his bed
while he played the harp for him and put his arm around him in a comforting gesture.
After two hours of Von Einem consoling the distraught teen, he said that he drove Richard
back into town opposite the Royal Adelaide Hospital. Instead of dropping him at his home,
Von Einem said that he gave him 20 dollars to catch a taxi parked outside of the hospital.
Despite these assertions, Von Einem was ordered to stand trial for the murder of Richard Kelvin.
Media descended on the South Australian Supreme Court as Bevan Spencer von Einem was brought in
for the first day of his trial on October 15 1984. A 7 woman and 5 male jury listened as prosecutors
pointed to all the evidence linking von Einem to the abduction and murder of Richard Kelvin.
Aside from the fibre evidence and medications found in Richard’s system there was other incriminating evidence.
The day after Richard Kelvin disappeared, Von Einem had his hair coloured by a hairdressing friend of his.
From the age of 16, he had gone prematurely grey and had his hair dyed dark brown every month.
Von Einem did not dispute this claim, telling the jury that although he was sick with the flu,
Monday June 6 1983 was the only day that his hairdresser was free to do his hair. The alibi
worked against Von Einem when the 7 hairs found on the inside of Richard’s jeans exactly matched
the hair dye used to colour his hair. They also had a small amount of grey regrowth.
In the week after Richard was abducted, Von Einem took the week off work, telling his employer that
he had the flu. Six days after Richard’s body was dumped, Von Einem sold his car, but not
before giving the interior of the boot a new paint job. Von Einem claimed he did this to remove rust
caused by a leaking esky, detectives were certain he covered up blood staining or other evidence.
In a 12 page unsworn statement in his defence, Von Einem asked the jury to accept the version
of events regarding his meeting with Richard Kelvin and to find him not guilty. On November 5,
the jury retired to consider a verdict. 7.5 hours later they returned to announce
Bevan Spencer von Einem guilty. The public gallery erupted into cheers and applause,
an act almost unheard of in the 1980s and visibly surprising Justice Michael White.
Bevan von Einem sat passively, showing no emotion at the outcome.. Before sentencing, Justice White said the following:
“The horrendous nature of this crime, involving, as it did, a long period of imprisonment and ill treatment prior to murder, has added a
new dimension to the kinds of murder committed in the State, with which the community has to live…
You do not show remorse. You do not admit guilt. You showed yourself to be cool and violent at
the time of abduction, inventive, and resourceful during imprisonment of the youth, ready to resort
to lies and false alibis after the discovery of the body, and you are unrepentant at the moment.”
Bevan Spencer von Einem was sentenced to life imprisonment with a non parole period of 24 years.
His sentence was immediately appealed by the South Australian Attorney General and in March 1985, Von Einem’s non parole period was increased
to 36 years - the highest sentence ever imposed on a person in South Australia.
In explaining his decision, Chief Justice Michael King said: “The present crime…
indicates such a depravity of character on the part of the perpetrator that his absence of previous convictions loses its significance. The abduction,
captivity, sedation, abuse, and murder of the boy did not occur on impulse and could only have been perpetrated by a person or persons of grossly depraved character.”
In early 1988, an inquest was opened into the deaths of Alan Barnes, Neil Muir, Peter Stogneff, and Mark Langley after earlier individual inquests determined that there
was enough evidence linking these murders together. It was believed now more than ever,
that Bevan Spencer von Einem was involved in these crimes and he did not carry them out alone.
Yet, there was only enough evidence to charge and convict him of the one murder.
Even from a prison cell, Von Einem refused to name any of his associates. Alan’s mother Judy Barnes, was grateful for the inquest, telling paper The News that:
“South Australia would be rocked to its little grass roots if the names of the murderers were
released. The killers are not hoons, not down the street deviants. They are professional people.”
At the inquest, Detective Trevor Kipling spoke of a special unit set up by the Major Crime Squad to
investigate incidences where young men had been lured into passing cars and then drugged and
anally assaulted. Like George, other victims came forward to say they had been picked up and given
drinks that were laced with drugs. They spoke of passing out and waking up at a strangers house,
where there lived trangender women before being allowed to be let go. Members of the gay community
cooperated fully with the detectives as they patrolled known beats, appalled by the killings.
In presenting the findings, the coroner stated: “I have perused a number of statements from victims who survived the ordeal.
Statements by these people have been checked and rechecked and there is no doubt that their account of what happened are substantially true and certainly not fanciful.”
In early September 1988, spurred by public interest in naming other members of The Family,
the South Australian Government offered half a million dollars and immunity from prosecution
for any information leading to the conviction of anyone involved in the murders. They
hoped an increase in the reward, which had previously been set at one hundred thousand
and then a quarter of a million dollars, would be what was needed to convict the other killers.
In September 1989, Mr B told detectives that he had more information to give about
Von Einem. In order to get the information, Mr B was offered immunity from prosecution if
it was established that he was responsible for any sexual abuse towards the victims involved.
Mr B detailed meeting up with Von Einem the night Alan Barnes went missing. He recalled how they had picked up the hitchhiker, who asked if he could get a lift
to his family home in Salisbury. Von Einem offered Alan a drink. As they drove along,
Mr B said he asked Alan if he wanted to go to a party and Alan replied that he did.
Some time later, Von Einem exited the vehicle to make a phone call. He told Mr B that he had arranged to meet an associate of his at a toilet block on the River
Torrens near Jolly’s Boathouse. They drove to the location and Mr B sat in the car while Von
Einem went to speak to his friend. Alan Barnes was unconscious on the rear seat of the vehicle.
A short while later, Von Einem returned and asked Mr B: “Do you want to come with
us and do some surgery on this guy?” indicating in Alan Barnes’ direction. According to Mr B, Von Einem said that it would be worth his while to come along
because they were planning to sexually assault him with various instruments and video it before
killing him and dumping his body in the Adelaide Hills. Mr B said he declined and walked off.
A few days later, Mr B met Von Einem in the city. Von Einem told Mr B that Alan had died
and that if he said anything, he would be implicated in the murder. With this new evidence, on September 15, Von Einem was charged with the murder of Alan Barnes.
Given the similarities in the manner of death between Alan and Mark Langley on November 10,
he was charged for his murder as well. At the committal hearing, a friend of Alan’s named Garry gave evidence that he had been introduced
to Von Einem and some of his friends the week before he disappeared. Von Einem told them both
that if he and Alan provided sexual favours they could get drugs, women or anything they wanted.
This offer also stood if they provided Von Einem with young boys. Garry had failed to come forward
with this information prior because of the 200 threatening phone calls he had received,
starting on the night Alan’s body was found and continuing until the committal hearing.
The most recent one was a phone call made to his work. The muffled voice said: “Keep your mouth shut or you and your wife will get it.”
In an explosive day of allegations, Mr B gave evidence that Von Einem had confessed to him
murdering the Beaumont children in 1966 as well as Joanne Ratcliffe and Kirste Gordon in 1973.
These crimes are covered in episodes 100 and 163 of Casefile respectively. Von Eimen couldn’t be directly linked to either crime.
Mr B told the court: “I have given consideration to the relatives of these kids.
They deserve to know what really happened.” When asked during cross examination whether the reward
money for these disappearances played any part in him coming forward with these allegations,
Mr B said it did but only because he felt he needed to flee the country, fearing for his life.
Adding to his fear he said, was that one of the people he thought may have been involved
in the killing of Alan Barnes was sitting in the public gallery while he gave evidence.
Bevan von Einem was ordered to stand trial for the murders of Alan Barnes and Mark Langley.
In December 1990, the trial judge decided to allow the evidence of Mr B in the committal hearing
regarding Alan Barnes for the upcoming trial. For the Mark Langley case, the prosecution was relying
on using “similar fact evidence”. They were going to argue that the abduction and murder of Mark
Langley was so similar to that of Richard Kelvin that it meant Von Einem should be found guilty.
However, Von Einem’s council successfully argued that comparing Mark’s death against
Richard Kelvin would suggest criminal liability. Just before Christmas Day 1990,the prosecution received instructions from the South Australian Attorney General
not to proceed with the case of Mark Langley and the charges against Von Einem were dropped.
In February 1991, Von Einem appeared in the Supreme Court for a total of 30 seconds.
The prosecution said that they had been instructed by the South Australian Attorney General
to not pursue charges against Von Einem regarding the murder of Alan Barnes either.
The Attorney General had received legal advice that there was no reasonable prospect of a conviction on the available, admissible evidence.
Over the course of Bevan Spencer von Einem’s incarceration, snippets regarding the life
of privilege he led came to light. In 2006, a former prison officer known as Mary detailed
to The Sunday Mail the close friendship she had formed with Von Einem over the years.
Describing the convicted killer as polite, friendly, and gentle, Mary did not see him as the monster that others did. She supplied Von Einem with home cooked meals,
including bacon and eggs on Sunday morning and his favourite - pea and ham soup. She also
purchased art supplies for him when Von Einem mentioned that he wanted to do some painting.
Other prison officers paid for painted Von Einem greeting cards, either with cash or tobacco. He also used an officer’s mobile phone from time to time.
Mary admitted to letting Von Einem sit in the officers station, which contained
confidential prisoner information, while they enjoyed cake and a cup of coffee together.
Other officers turned a blind eye to it. Mary said that Von Einem spent most of his
prison time drawing, painting, reading, and watching soap operas and reality TV.
According to The Advertiser, in 2005, Bevan Spencer von Einem was prescribed the drug Cialis
by a prison doctor. Similar to viagra, Cialis is used to treat erectile dysfunction however is
longer lasting. In mid 2005, under the influence of the medication, Von Einem raped and assaulted
a fellow prisoner to the point where he needed extensive surgery to repair internal injuries.
In early May 2007, a subsequent rape charge against von Einem was dropped after the Director of Public Prosecutions decided there was insufficient evidence to secure
a successful condition. Bitterly disappointed, the victim’s mother stated that her son’s silence was
interpreted to have been consent when in fact Von Einem had repeatedly coerced, drugged, and
threatened him. Following this, the drug Cialis and similar medications were banned from prisons.
In February 2014, Trevor Peters’ brother was cleaning out his deceased siblings terrace house
in Kensington Park. As reported in The Advertiser, he came across a diary belonging to Trevor and
thumbed through it. He reached an entry in late June of 1979 just after Alan Barnes went missing.
It described how Trevor was getting his hair coloured at his friend's salon. The same Salon that Bevan Spencer Von Einem visited to get his hair coloured the day
after Richard Kelvin disappeared. While Trevor was waiting for the bleach to dye his hair,
he said that Bevan Spencer von Einem walked in. The diary entry read: "He was in a very happy mood and looking knowingly at the hairdresser,
smiling broadly and excited about something they both seemed to share. I could hear Bevan and the hairdresser giggling and laughing and both saying 'oooh how evil,
oooh it's evil. I found them huddled over a waist-high table directly behind the curtain (of
the salon). There was a group of photographs, polaroids, laid out on the table, maybe 4, 5,
or 6 of them, with Bevan holding more photographs in his hand. They both began to collect the photos
quickly but not before I saw them. The photographs were of a young attractive blond-haired man
lying on his side on the front seat of a car with his legs bent towards the steering wheel.
I was shocked at seeing the photos and they both hurriedly gathered them up, with Bevan putting them all into his back pocket of his trousers.
When I asked who the young man was, Bevan said 'oh, just some hitchhiker.’” The collection of photos as described by Trevor Peters were so graphic that their description has
not been publicly released. … According to The Advertiser - in the 1990s, Trevor Peters wrote in his diary that he
visited the hairdrsser at Calvary Hospital to confront him about the photographs he had seen
at his salon that day, over a decade earlier. They sat together in the hospital garden
and the hairdresser told Trevor of the many photographs he had been shown by Von Einem.
There were dozens of naked young men, more often than not with objects, including bottles, inserted deep into their anuses. Trevor wrote in his diary:
“However, he said, smiling at me, he didn't remember there being any photos at the salon ever
and 'if you know what's good for you, neither should you!' ...He died four days later.''
Despite numerous appeals throughout the years, Bevan Spencer von Einem is currently housed
in the Port Augusta high security prison in the geriatric section. A sudden change in legislation
was passed in 2007, months before von Einem was eligible for parole, allowing the South Australian
government to have non-parole periods revoked for prisoners classified as dangerous offenders.
As such, Von Einem, now 74-years-old, white haired, and suffering from type 2 diabetes,
will die in prison. In 2008, there was a change to DNA legislation in South Australia that gave police the power
to test the DNA of people that were suspects in major indictable offences. A cold case review of The Family Murders was established and in March 2008,
detectives from the Major Crime and Cold Case Units set about obtaining DNA samples from
three major suspects, and nine others associated with the crimes. The samples were compared to forensic evidence obtained in four of the five
murder crime scenes and the profiles stored on a database for future reference. Detectives
were confident that as a result of the testing, other arrests would be made. In December 2010, it
was revealed that the cold case review failed to uncover any new evidence and no charges were laid.
A reward of up to 200,000 dollars is still on offer for information leading to the conviction
of the person or persons responsible for the murders of Neil Muir and Mark Langley.
A reward of up to one million dollars is on offer for information leading to the conviction
of the person or persons responsible for the murders of Alan Barnes and Peter Stogneff.
Despite Bevan Spencer von Einem having been found guilty of the murder of Richard Kelvin,
police are convinced multiple perpetrators were involved in his death. Therefore, a one million
dollar reward is also on offer for information leading to further convictions in his case.
Detectives think that over the years, 100 or more young men were picked up, drugged, assaulted,
and then let go by members of The Family. If you have any information, please call Crimestoppers on 1800 333 000, or make a report online at crimestopperssa.com.au.
You can remain anonymous. Or if you’d prefer, contact Casefile directly via our website.
Speaking to The Advertiser, Detective Superintendent Grant Moyle appealed to those with knowledge of The Family murders: “It is never too late for them
to come forward and I don't think anyone involved in this should ever sleep easy.
No one should think these cases are forgotten. They are not. It is never too late for
someone to come forward with information regarding them. We will follow it up.”
It was a sentiment echoed by Alan Barnes’ brother Charlie, who said of those responsible:
“I would like them to shed the guilt and remorse they must be carrying around and come forward and
bring this to a conclusion. I know the police are like bulldogs and will not let go of this.
They may well tap you on the shoulder one day.”

Case 166: The Family

In 1979, young men began to go missing in and around Adelaide. It began with the disappearance of 17-year-old Alan Barnes, then 25-year-old Neil Muir, 14-year-old Peter Stogneff, 18-year-old Mark Langley and 15-year-old Richard Kelvin. All went missing under suspicious circumstances and later found, dumped in the Adelaide Hills and surrounds...

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

For all credits and sources please visit https://casefilepodcast.com/case-166-the-family

Brief Summary

The episode details the abductions and murders of young men in South Australia, focusing on Bevan Spencer von Einem's conviction for Richard Kelvin's murder.

Key points

The Disturbing Discovery. Two bushwalkers find a body in the South Para Reservoir, leading to a homicide investigation.
Neil Muir's Gruesome Murder. The body of Neil Muir is found mutilated, raising questions about his death.
Trial of Peter Millhouse. Dr. Millhouse is tried for the murder of Neil Muir but is found not guilty.
Discovery of Mark Langley. A farmer finds the body of Mark Langley, revealing a gruesome murder.
Richard Kelvin's Disappearance. Richard Kelvin goes missing after a day out with a friend, raising alarms.
The Family Murders. The discovery of Richard Kelvin's body leads to public hysteria and a media frenzy.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

“I am glad to see justice has been done.”.

Dr. Peter Millhouse after being found not guilty.

23:26WatchFeb 20, 2021

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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