Forensic Files

The Wanda Beach Mystery That Still Haunts Australia

Casefile

  • Jan 9, 2026
  • 1:16:15
  • Full Episode

On January 11, 1965, 15-year-old Christine Sharrock and Marianne Schmidt spent the day at Cronulla Beach with Marianne's four younger siblings. After lunch, the two teenagers went for a walk into the nearby sandhills at Wanda Beach, but never returned.

The following day, their bodies were found in the sand dunes. The murders shocked the nation, triggering one of the largest homicide investigations in Australian history. Despite an exhaustive inquiry, police were unable to identify the killer. Decades on, the mystery remains.

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Casefile Archives is a series of special bonus releases revisiting the earliest years of the show. The re-run episodes have been completely edited, polished, re-recorded and freshly produced from start to finish to match our current production standards. They are not complete rewrites - our goal wasn’t to alter the cases or reshape the writing, but to preserve the original storytelling while giving the production the refinement it didn’t have when we started the show back in 2016.

Where appropriate, updates have been added, but the core structure and storytelling remain faithful to the originals. Because of this, these re-releases may sound a little different to our recent episodes, but they allow us to bring some of the earliest episodes up to the technical quality listeners expect today.

CREDITS Narration – Anonymous Host Research & writing – Anonymous Host Production & music – Mike Migas Audio editing – Anthony Telfer

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RESOURCES

For all credits and sources, please visit https://casefilepodcast.com/casefile-archives-1-the-wanda-beach-murders

Brief Summary

The episode revisits the Wonder Beach murders, detailing the investigation and suspects in the case of Maryanne Schmidt and Christine Sherik.

Key points

  • 10 Years of Case File. Celebrating a decade of storytelling with a loyal audience and new content.
  • Introducing Case File Archives. A special series revisiting early episodes as a 10-year anniversary treat.
  • The W Beach Murders. A chilling case of two missing girls that led to a horrific discovery.
  • Discovery of the Bodies. The shocking moment when the bodies of the two girls were found in the sand.
  • The Mysterious Food in Christine's Stomach. Investigators discover undigested food in Christine's stomach, raising questions about her last meal.
  • The Hunt for the Surfy Teenager. Police begin searching for a teenager seen with the girls before their disappearance.

Tension

70/ 100High tension

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