Was this killing an organised crime hit or something far more sinister? | Forensic Files

[Music] our episodes deal with serious and often distressing incidents if you feel at any
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website on Friday February 6th 1981 married couple Brian and Beverly Barry left their home in the woolongong suburb
of Mount Pleasant they were headed north on a 6 and 1/2 hour drive to their holiday home
in the coastal New South Wales town of sortel they weren't planning to stay away for long Brian and Beverly had
received a letter from the local Council in sortel informing them that their property's lawn was overgrown and they
risked receiving a fine so the couple had decided to go up for a quick overnight visit to tidy the
yard usually Brian and Beverly's children would accompany them on trips to the holiday house but not this time
their son Wayne who was 15 Was preparing for an Athletics competition and had a training session to attend
the couple's eldest child 19-year-old Kim worked at a local supermarket and had a shift she couldn't get out
of while Brian and Beverly were away Kim would be in charge and responsible for looking after her little
brother after arriving at the sortel property later that day Brian and Beverly Barry set about gardening and
mowing the long grass the physical labor left the couple tired and when they went to bed that
night Brian fell asleep quickly initially Beverly slept well too but in the middle of the night she was
suddenly woken by the sound of someone calling out to her Beverly recognized the voice right
away it belonged to her daughter Kim half asleep Beverly sat up and looked towards the bedroom
door she expected to see Kim standing there only to realize as a split second later that wasn't
possible Beverly wasn't at home she was more than 600 km away and Kim was back in Mount
Pleasant telling herself that she must have been dreaming Beverly lay down again to go back to sleep the sound of
her daughter's voice fading from her [Music] mind [Music] the Barry's quick visit to sortel had
paid off they left the property early the following morning arriving back in Mount Pleasant at around 300
p.m. as Brian and Beverly walked through the door they were surprised to find their son Wayne at home by
himself Wayne said he didn't know where his sister was he'd returned after Athletics training the previous
afternoon to find Kim making dinner for them both she'd explained that she was meeting a friend that night but Wayne
couldn't remember who after the siblings finished eating Kim tidied up the dishes then went
outside to call a taxi from a pay phone in the street the barries didn't have a landline at
home and were reliant on the public pay phone that set about 150 M from their house after Kim left that evening Wayne
hadn't seen her again Kim had been in trouble once before for staying out all night without
warning ever since then she'd always left a note explaining if she planned to stay with a
friend but this time she hadn't left anything for her parents to surmise where she might
be Brian Barry wasn't concerned he suspected Kim had gotten caught up having fun with friends and would be
home soon enough Beverly felt a hint of worry she couldn't help but feel that something
must be wrong she headed out to the pay phone and started calling Kim's friends asking if they'd seen her daughter
nobody she spoke to had seen Kim or had any idea where she might be the barries expected Kim to reappear
later that afternoon or into the evening but she didn't Brian remained confident that
19-year-old Kim would be home by the time the weekend ended but Beverly's concern was
growing she tossed and turned that night unable to sleep Sunday February 8 passed with no
word from Kim on Monday Brian and Beverly Barry headed off to their respective jobs later that morning A call came
through at the manufacturing firm where Beverly worked as a clerk it was a friend of her daughters
named Donna Holland despite Kim and Donna only having known each other for a few months
the two were already close Beverly had wanted to get in touch with Donna over the weekend to ask if
she knew where Kim was but she didn't have her number now Donna was able to provide
Beverly with key information regarding the Friday night Kim left home and didn't
return that evening 17-year-old Donna Holland had felt like she was coming down with the flu she wasn't up for a
big night but she'd already made plans to see a movie with Kim Barry and felt she couldn't
cancel Kim who was 2 years older than Donna had called the day before eager to catch up
Donna caught a bus to the crown Central shopping complex in Woolen gong where the girls had arranged to meet Kim was
traveling there by taxi after meeting up at around 7:30 p.m. the friends grabbed a quick drink
then caught a 7:45 screening of the comedy film flying high it was just after 10: when the
movie ended and Donna was Keen to go home as well as feeling slightly unwell she had an early start the following
morning at a babysitting job but Kim persuaded Donna to accompany her to a local nightclub for a
dance Kim loved dancing and even took lessons the pair walked to the nearby Crown Gardens disco stopping at a
pharmacy to buy Band-Aids along the way Kim said her shoes were hurting her feet
and put one Band-Aid on each hill before continuing on when they arrived at the Disco one of
the bouncers asked Kim to save a dance for him later she agreed inside the venue was packed the
girls had to navigate through a big crowd in order to find seats Kim bought drinks for herself and
Donna the underage Donna had a lemonade while Kim chose the Coffey lurea TI Maria Kim proposed that they toast to
something then held up her glass and stated may I soon get a steady boyfriend the girls clinked glasses then
sat drinking and chatting for a little while suddenly Kim asked Donna if she would like to stay over at her place
that night Kim's parents were away and she said she was scared as they'd been a Prowler lurking around her
neighborhood Donna said she couldn't she had to get up at 5:00 a.m. for her babysitting job and needed to leave
soon she planned to catch a train home and had already arranged for her mother to pick her up from the
station Kim continued to beg Donna to stay she seemed desperate not to be left alone she suggested Donna stay until the
nightclub closed at 3:00 a.m. and even offered to pay for Donna's taxi home but Donna stood firm it was nearly midnight
and she had to go besides she was certain that there was no Prowler and Kim was just making
up excuses so Donna would stay before leaving Donna lent Kim some money so she could buy a bottle of wine
and checked that her friend had enough cash to get home as she left Donna said to Kim be
careful and catch a taxi home give me a ring tomorrow afternoon but Saturday had passed with
no call from Kim Donna thought this was a little odd as the two spoke regularly and had
talked about maybe catching up again over the weekend 2 days later on Monday morning
Donna Holland was listening to the radio when a news broadcast CAU her attention a woman's body had been found
at jamboroo Lookout a scenic Mountain spot about 40 km Southwest of wenong what stood out to Donna was the
description of the woman's feet she had a Band-Aid plastered to each heel Donna hadn't heard from Kim Barry
all weekend which was strange but not necessarily concerning upon hearing the radio
broadcast donor immediately started to worry she remembered how Kim had stopped to put Band-Aid on her heels on Friday
night Donna decided to call Kim's mother Beverly to make sure that Kim was all right upon learning that no one knew
where Kim was Donna quickly shared what she knew she mentioned the Band-Aids and
told Beverly about the woman's body found in jamboroo but Beverly reassured Donna
that the deceased woman couldn't be Kim Beverly had read a local news article about the same Discovery and it reported
that the deceased woman found was visibly pregnant Kim wasn't pregnant Scott Davies was a 19-year-old
Apprentice Plummer who had driven out to visit friend on Sunday February 8th 1981 as he wound his way around Jambu
Mountain he decided to make an impromptu turnoff in search of car parts near nearby the jamboroo lookout
was a spot where thieves often dumped cars they had stolen the vehicles were typically taken
by teenage Joy Riders who stripped to them for parts before leaving them in what was known as the car
graveyard Scott Davies was aware of The Dumping Ground and decided to see if he could recover anything he might be able
to use to upgrade his old hold and sedan Scott made his way to the lookout on foot and peered over the Cliff Edge
he could see a few rusted cars about 50 M below as he debated the best route to get to the vehicles Scott's eyes were
drawn to a nearby tree beneath was what looked like a naked mannequin realizing that the mannequin
was actually a woman's corpse Scott went looking for help and flagged down a park
ranger soon police officers arrived at the scene a sling was set up so they could
be lowered down from the cliff Edge to the spot where the body lay upon closer inspection officers made
the shocking discovery that the woman's head was missing it had been cleanly cut off from
her neck with a sharp instrument the cut wasn't surgical or expert but it had been made carefully
postmortem the woman's fingers were also missing having been cut off at the first
knuckle likely with a hacksaw and also after her death a thin white nylon cord was tied
around her right wrists and both ankles her blouse and bra were wrapped around both her
[Music] arms the woman appeared to be pregnant a key detail that was printed in one early
article published in the ilaa Mercury [Music] newspaper by Monday February 9 Kim Barry had been
missing for 3 Days Beverly Barry arrived home that evening to find the place empty she switched on the television to
watch the 6:00 news a bulletin was broadcast about the body found at jamboroo Lookout the day
before footage showed police combing through the thick brush of the mountain pausing on a detective standing by some
soiled garments that had belonged to the woman one of the items was a torn bone colored blouse the other was a bra with
a green floral emblem in the middle Beverly felt Frozen with shock as a news reader described the
clothing they perfectly matched items that Kim owned Beverly raced to Kim's room and
turned it upside down looking for the clothing then she checked the laundry there was no sign of either the blouse
or the bra that matched the one shown on the television Beverly struggled to breathe
and began to cry as she felt a sense of total certainty that the woman found at jamaru Lookout was her
daughter when Brian arrived home Beverly explained the situation and the couple rushed to wenong police
station there they sat down with detectives and held hands as they described their missing
daughter Kim had a small birth mark just beneath her right breast and some scarring on her thighs from some bad
Sandfly bites she'd received 5 years earlier the detectives listened carefully the woman they had found had
Band-Aids on both her heels like Kim beneath her right breast was a small birthmark that resembled a
mole there was also faint scarring on both with her inner thighs taking particular note of these
identifying features that the barries had described one of the detectives asked if the couple could look at some
clothing found with the body he pulled out an Evidence envelope and carefully removed the blouse and bra from
inside both were immediately recognizable to Brian and Beverly who'd seen them hanging on the washing line
many times after checking the size and brand of the blouse all Beverly could say
was yes that's [Music] Kims exposure and decomposition had caused Kim's body to bloat giving her
the appearance of being pregnant but testing would confirm that she wasn't somehow the mistaken assumption was
printed in initial press reports photographs of the scene were taken along with swabs of blood and
other bodily fluids Kim's body was wrapped in a blanket then placed on a stretcher and hoisted from the
area on closer examination it appeared that Kim had been moved several times after she died as her remains showed no
lividity her right forearm was fractured which had likely occurred when her body
was thrown off the cliff there was bruising on Kim's left shoulder and chest no evidence was found
of a sexual assault nor could a cause of death be established the removal of Kim's head
and fingers led to worldly speculation that the murder was related to organized crime gang members were known to remove
these body parts to prevent a victim being identified by their face dental records or
fingerprints until Kim was identified the leading theory was that the unknown woman was an Informer who'd gotten into
trouble with the drug dealers but this Theory fell apart after the barries came forward there was no
evidence at all that their daughter Kim had any involvement or history with illicit
drugs after positively identifying the blouse and bra that had been found with Kim's body Brian Barry was asked to
identify her remains he did so by checking the birth mark on her abdomen this identification was also
confirmed by matching Kim's palm print to one found in her bedroom the Barry family were devastated
by their loss kind and nurturing Kim had dreamt of helping others by becoming a nurse she'd studied to work as a nursing
assistant and had received High marks but failed the entrance exam due to nerves Kim had resolved to try again but
took a break by working at a supermarket in the meantime she also volunteered at a
residence for disabled children so she could spend time caring for others in some
capacity Brian Barry tried to remain stoic to support his wife and son but he struggled with rage in the wake of his
daughter's murder Beverly and Wayne cried together over the loss of Kim another family member Kim had been
especially close to was her grandfather known as Pop he lived in a small unit at the back
of the family home and the two loved each other's company they would sit and talk together for
hours as detailed in the book The Stranger you know by John Sut Linton pop often worried about Kim encountering
dangerous men when she was out with friends she would reassure him that she wasn't scared
stating nothing is going to happen to me the day after Kim's body was found police officers returned to the scene to
search for Kim's missing remains but nothing was recovered detectives took a detailed
statement from Donna Holland the friend Kim had been with on the night she was murdered Donna hadn't noticed any
suspicious individuals paying attention to Kim when they parted ways nor could she remember seeing seeing anyone who
she recognized as an acquaintance of Kim's before she left Donna gave Kim some money to buy a bottle of a lib fra
Vine a kind of sweet German white wine Donna told investigators that Kim said she'd been scared of a Prowler in
her neighborhood but she'd dismissed Kim's claims as a ploy to have Donna stay with
her detectives looked into the matter but found nothing suggesting there had been a Prowler in the
area they turned their attention to the crown Gardens disco where Kim had last been seen
alive Friday February 6 had been a busy night at the club with an estimated 300 patrons in
attendance but bar staff at the venue remembered Kim and confirmed that she'd bought a bottle of leap fra Vine they
kept records of every beverage sold and that was the only bottle of a leap Vine purchased that that
night the staff weren't able to provide any further information as to who Kim might have met while at the
bar a $50,000 reward was offered for information leading to the arrest of Kim Barry's
killer exactly 1 week after Kim was murdered investigators dressed up a mannequin in the same blouse and pants
she had been wearing and displayed it outside the crown Garden's disco a wig similar to Kim wavy dark
hair was put on its head and a photograph of her face was stuck to the mannequin's
face pinned up next to the mannequin was a sign that read did you see this girl Last Friday
Night a caravan that had been converted into a Mobile police station was parked in a laneway by the nightclub and
detectives milled about inside the club where patrons could see them one by one nightclubbers started AO
ing the investigators with possible leads about Kim the detectives would direct them to
the Mobile station to provide a formal statement two sisters came forward to say they'd been at the Disco on the
night in question they had had a few drinks with a friend named Glenn Potter who was celebrating his
birthday Glenn's older brother Graham was also there that night for his bucks night as he was getting married one week
later on Valentine day the two brothers had combined their respective special occasions into one
Celebration The Sisters had noticed Graham sitting on a couch with a girl at about 12:30 a.m. Graham walked
up to the table where they were seated and said he was leaving but would be back
soon he handed over his cardigan for safe keeping and set a near empty bottle of wine on the table as he did
so when the detectives asked the sisters if they knew what kind of wine it was they both
replied lib fra [Music] vine when detectives checked to see if gr and Potter had a criminal record they
discovered two previous convictions of break enter and steel dating back to 1976 Potter had been 18 at the time and
was fined $250 he also received a 3-year good behavior Bond now aged 23 years old Potter was
employed as a coal miner sifting through other witness statements collected from Crown Gardens
patrons detectives found further evidence that Kim Barry had been seen in gr and Potter's company one person saw
them sitting on a lounge talking together another spotted them dancing and holding
hands sometime after midnight the pair was seen walking hand inand towards the [Music]
exit it turned out that Kim had been somewhat acquainted with Potter prior to that night the pair had taken dance
lessons together at the same school some years earlier Kim had confided in her mother
Beverly that she had a bit of a crush on Potter who was 4 years older than her but when Beverly asked Kim about the
crush again a few years later Kim said she no longer liked Potter he thought he was too much of a quote Ladies
Man detectives needed to follow up with gr and Potter in person but there was a problem a week earlier on Tuesday
February 10 20-year-old Sheree Jones had been excited about her upcoming wedding
Sheree was set to marry her fiance gr and Potter in several days time on Valentine's Day
that evening Sheree and Graham were attending a dance class together to go over the bridal
Walts Sheree was surprised when Graham unexpectedly cancelled he'd called her work that
afternoon and left a message saying he couldn't see her but would talk to her later soon Sheree learned that Potter
had also called his younger brother Glenn to say he was going away for a little while Glenn suspected that his
brother had gotten cold feet and canceled the wedding he knew it was Graham's dream to travel around
Australia before starting a family upon hearing Glenn's news Sheree was distraught the truth was Graham had been
acting strangely for days he'd celebrated his bux night a few days prior on Friday February 6
combining it with Glenn's birthday at around 1 that night Graham had called Sheree's parents home where
she lived he told Sheree he was having fun and had been dancing with a friend he would come over to her place
that night to sleep and asked if she could leave the back door unlocked Sheree did so and left a
sleeping bag in the lounge room for grahe but when she woke the next morning the bag was still rolled up and hadn't
been slept in Sheree called Graham's unit he answered right away explaining that
he' decided to go back there with his brother instead they'd gotten home at about 2:30
a.m. the couple met up later that day and Sheree noticed that Graham was wearing a readyy old t-shirt and
shorts he typically made an effort to dress well he was also quieter than usual but discussed their wedding plans
happily enough Graham spent most of of the weekend with shereé at her home on Monday Graham visited Sheree at
home and suddenly blurted out an idea what if they went traveling together around the country instead of
getting married Shere told him she wanted to marry and settled down first which led
to an argument Sheree ultimately told Graham that there was no way she would go traveling with
him the couple made up and later ran some errands together they stopped at a bank and Graham withdrew his entire
savings $2,950 he told Sheree that he would use the funds to open a joint bank account
for them with some of the money going towards their honeymoon then he called his employer
and said he was taking the rest of the week off sick the last time Sheree had seen her
fiance was at lunchtime on Tuesday he stopped by her work briefly before later calling to cancel their dance lesson
that night after asking if they could talk privately Graham told Sheree don't do anything stupid if
anything happens to me we will get back together again later that day Graham left in his
1970 white Holden sedan for an unknown destination none of his family or friends had seen
him since the day he departed just happened to be the same day that Kim Barry was
publicly identified as the Headless victim found at jamboroo Mountain Lookout by the time detectives began to
consider grah and Potter a possible suspect on Saturday February 14 they were already aware that he'd skipped
town an early tip they'd received in their investigation had been about a groom who' abruptly disappeared after
celebrating his bucks night at the crown Gardens disco the same night that Kim Barry was
there at the time they had nothing else linking Potter to Kim but they added his
name to their list of potential suspects now unable to interview grah Potter detectives instead began to
question those closest to him Potter's parents seemed confused as to why police would want to speak to their son his
fiance Sheree was in a State of Shock the most valuable witness was Potter's younger brother Glenn who had
been with Potter at the crown Gardens disco Glenn was hostile towards the detectives telling them he had no idea
where his brother was and hadn't spoken to him in days Glenn said that they'd arrived at
the crown Gardens disco at around midnight he'd seen a girl with dark hair approaching his brother and the pair had
struck up a conversation although the girl's features were similar to Kim Barry's
Glenn claimed he couldn't be certain if it was her at around 12:30 a.m. Graham approached Glenn at the bar and said I'm
going out for a little while then he left with the girl he'd been chatting to a little over an hour later Graham
returned and Glenn asked him how did you go he was referring to the girl Graham left
with assuming his brother had wanted one last fling before getting married Potter explained that he'd taken
her back to his place but she'd gotten cold feet at the front door and left Potter had immediately caught a
taxi back to the nightclub and even asked the cab driver to pick up a sailor he'd seen hitchhiking along the
way he didn't seem in any way anxious or concerned at about 2:45 a.m. the two brothers had
left the Disco and gone to Graham Potter's home with the Potter family's permission
investigators paid a visit to the unit there were few possessions there as Potter's family had taken them for
safekeeping worried the unit might have been burgled in his absence the residents was totally
Immaculate there was nothing visible to the naked eye that indicated any anything un Ward had happened
there weeks later on Saturday February 28th 1981 a man named Adan Smith went for a scenic drive with his girlfriend
and the couple's two dogs it was around 6 on a warm summer evening as Dean's car drove the twists
and turns around to jamboroo Mountain Road Dean decided to pull over at a clearing
located at a part of the road where the bitchman was replaced by dirt he and his
girlfriend got out of the car for some fresh air and Dean let the dogs jump out for a
run the animals raced off into some nearby scrub roughly 15 minutes passed and the
dogs hadn't returned Dean called them one of the dogs reappeared and ran back to Dean but
there was no no sign of the other confused as his dogs were both typically obedient Dean headed into the
scrub to find his missing pet the vegetation was thick and Dean struggled through it before arriving at
a creek bed his dog stood nearby stock still with one of its front paws lifted and
its eyes fixated on a round object about 5 m away it was a human skull two officers responded to the scene
because the skull was located in the same area where Kim Barry's body had been found it seemed likely it belonged
to her but it was missing all of its flesh and hair which seemed like extremely rapid
decomposition when investigators discovered sceletal remains of small animals nearby they realized that a
larger Predator such as a fox likely fed in the area the skull had also been scavenged
by a wild animal and dental records confirmed that it belonged to Kim Barry there were significant wounds to
the left side of the skull indicating that Kim had been hit with a blunt heavy object forensic investigators suspected
the killer had used a spanner extensive Searchers of the area recovered toughs of dark brown human
hair and small bones which looked to be from fing fingers these remains seemed to create a
trail that led to a Lanana Bush police found two plastic bags under a bush they looked to have been ripped
open by animals inside were two Blood Stained bed sheets one striped and the other
with a floral pattern there was also a filthy dressing gown the Gown had a depression in it
that perfectly matched the recovered skull inside of the depression were more clumps of hair as well as human tissue
bones and several fingers they all belonged to Kim Barry the dressing gown and sheets were
shown to gr Potter's fiance Sheree Jones she said the Gown looked like one he owned but she couldn't be sure as it
was so dirty she didn't recognize the floral sheet however the striped sheet was one she had previously seen in
Potter's unit investigators had enough evidence to obtain a search warrant for GR
Potter's unit on the surface the residence was sparkling clean there was no furniture inside the
walls were free from marks and the flooring was spotless with one exception in the second bedroom the
carpet had a stain in the middle which was a slightly darker color than the rest there was another smaller stain in
a corner of the room both of these stains tested positive for blood after taking photos investigators
pulled up the carpet blood had seeped through the fabric and onto the floorboards beneath
leaving obvious stains a nearby skirting board also had a small glob of dried blood on
it on closer inspection investigators found that a Fresh coat of paint on one bedroom wall concealed some blood
smears two dark hairs were stuck in the paint more matching hairs were later found in the carpet on a bottle of
disinfectant and in the lint filter of the clothes dryer a tap in the barroom Basin had a
tiny red spot on it about the size of a match head the stain tested positive for
blood more traces of blood were found in the plug hole that led to the basin's drain there was several long fairly
straight scratches in the bathtub Potter's parents also gave police permission to take some of his
possessions they were holding for him in some bags they found a blue dressing gown cord that matched the Gown
found in the bush a striped sheet and two Blood Stained blankets although DNA testing wasn't available to
investigators at the time they had Kim's blood group some of the blood found on items belonging to gr and Potter was too
degraded to be compared but a number of the stains proved to be a match on the same day that Kim Barry's
skull was found police in the New South Wales city of GN got in touch with their
colleagues in wenong a car had been left abandoned outside of that police station almost 3
weeks earlier on Tuesday February 10 the white hold and sedan hadn't garnered any attention at first as it
was parked close to the train station and people often left their cars there for days at a
time but a check had revealed the car was registered to 20-year-old Sheree Jones who lived more than 150 km
Northeast of Goldin in w on inside the car's glove box was a wallet and a bank card belonging to gr
Potter and a small knife strewn throughout the rest of the vehicle were some items of clothing
including a Blood Stained shirt and several other miscellaneous items on the dashboard was a notebook
and inside was a handwritten letter it read in part oh my sweet Sheree you don't know
how much I regret my leaving you whatever is said as to why I'm leaving please believe me but if I stay my life
may be in danger please express to everybody my sorrow that I messed everyone's lives up but if you only knew
why I think things would change you're [Music] Graham gbin sits near the Hume Highway
which eventually leads to Melbourne the woolongong detectives wondered if perhaps gr and Potter had planned to
flee into state to Victoria Police in Victoria were asked to make inquiries as to Potter's
possible whereabouts while the New South Wales homicide Squad finally went public
with their investigation they requested that Graham Potter come forward they didn't say he was a suspect
merely stating they were Keen to question him they also asked anyone with information as to Potter's whereabouts
to contact them photos of gr and Potter were broadcast on the news and published in
papers showing a clean shaven young man with short wavy dark hair Kim Barry's family and grah and Potter's loved ones
also issued public please for him to come forward detectives spoke to pot's friends and acquaintances to build up a
clearer picture of who he was one friend said that when he and poter were at school he had once gone
over to Potter's House while his parents were out the friend claimed that Potter
had inserted suppositories into one of his family's pet border Coles for entertainment the dog had later
died police tried to verify this incident believing the act of animal cruelty might indicate a predilection
for violence but they couldn't confirm it other friends of grand poters thought it was impossible for him to be involved
ing Kim Barry's murder the Graham they knew was an upstanding young man who loved his
family and his fiance they couldn't imagine him doing anything that brutal Potter's parents were devastated
by their son's abrupt disappearance and were desperate for him to come forward and clear his
name they undertook their own searches for their son but found no trace of him a number of tip offs trickled in but
as week passed with no sign of Potter investigators began to wonder if he had taken his own
life then on Friday April 10 A call came in from an acquaintance of Potters who had been driving earlier that morning on
the F6 Expressway the motorist claimed to have seen Potter hitchhiking he was 38 km north of Wong
in the outskirts of Sydney Potter had been trying to catch a ride back in the direction of wol
gong it appeared that he was heading home police descended on the area but Potter was long
gone the following day investigators received phone calls from Potter's fiance Sheree and father Sunny Graham
had called them both he'd insisted he was innocent but kept the calls short for fear his loved ones phones were
being tapped neither Sheree or sunny were able to provide any more information about where Potter had been
or where he was now on the evening of Monday April 13 Sunny Potter was at home when he heard
someone open the back door of his residence The Potters kept the rear door unlocked for friends and family who
would visit Sunny rushed to the door and saw a figure with red hair and a full beard
standing there despite how different he looked Sunny recognized the man right away as
his son Graham with his parents and siblings gathered around Graham Potter shared his
story for the first time according to Potter on the night he was at the crown Gardens disco
celebrating his buck night Kim Barry had approached him Potter was somewhat familiar with
Kim from their time attending the same dance school but he had no interest in her because he was was boted with his
fiance Sheree Jones Potter said he wasn't that Keen on talking with Kim but she quote latched
on to him and he didn't want to be rude so he sat down with her for a chat when Potter asked Kim how she'd
been she immediately blurted out I've got to get out of here and I can't leave by
myself Kim told Potter that two men had been in the Disco looking for her earlier and she was afraid they might be
waiting outside she asked Potter if he would escort her out for safety Potter agreed and left his
cardigan and Kim's bottle of wine on his brother's table saying he'd be back soon when Potter and Kim went outside
Potter glanced around but saw no sign of the two men Kim appeared to be very nervous Potter suggested she catch a
taxi home and offered to walk her to a nearby cab rank while the two waited for a taxi Kim asked if they could go back
to Potter's unit so she could talk to him about the situation with the two men Potter agreed and they caught a cab
back to his place Kim sat down on a couch while Potter made them some coffee suddenly there was a knock at the
door Potter answered it and two men shoved past him closing the door behind them who are you what do you want Potter
asked the men told him they wanted to speak with Kim alone then added so go upstairs and
behave Kim told Potter it was fine so he headed upstairs leaving the three to talk in the living
room Potter could only hear vague Snippets of the Trio's conversation it seemed that Kim was in
some kind of trouble for ripping the two men off poter got the impression the men
were drug dealers their voices became raised and Potter heard some other strange
noises after a while it grew quiet unsure whether he should return downstairs Potter waited a little
longer finally he headed back down Kim was lying on the floor one of the men was kneeling beside her while
the other was rifling through her handbag a bloody rolling pin taken from his kitchen lay
nearby oh no no Potter cried out one of the men grabbed him and pushed him up against the wall stating shut up and you
won't be hurt Potter began to cry as he felt certain the men would kill him too he
pleaded for them to let him live saying he would do anything one of the men replied you can e either end up as she
is or keep your mouth shut and say nothing if we're caught we'll say you were in on it from there you'll go to
prison with us and you won't be safe in there either we'll get at you there too Potter promised he wouldn't say
anything and the men ordered him to leave while they took care of the situation Potter left the unit and
caught a taxi back to the crown Garden's Disco for some reason he asked the taxi
driver to pick up a sailor who was hitchhiking along the way when Potter arrived back at the
venue he wasn't allowed in Potter pleaded with the bouncers explaining that his brother was inside and
eventually they relented Potter tried to act natural around his brother and Friends chatting
until it was time to leave finally Potter caught another taxi home with his brother Glenn
it was about 4:00 a.m. by the time they got there there was no sign of the two men or Kim's body Glenn fell asleep
quickly Potter crawled into his bed under the blankets and [Music] sobbed the next morning Glenn headed
back to his parents place at around 7 not long after there was a knock at gr Potter's front door the two men from the
previous night were back they ordered Potter to walk upstairs and followed closely behind him they then shoved
Potter into the upstairs bathroom before heading towards the spare bedroom when they reappeared at the
bathroom door they were carrying Kim's body apparently they had stashed it in the spare room instead of taking it with
them the men placed Kim on the bathroom floor using a knife and a meat saw they had taken from Potter's kitchen the two
men cut off Kim's head and removed her fingers while Potter wept when the men were done they ordered
Potter to get rid of Kim's remains they threatened him once more before leaving the
property Potter wrapped Kim's head and fingers in an old dressing gown and her body in some
sheets then he borrowed his fiance's car and placed Kim's remains in the boot he also stuffed Kim's purse clothing and
the Bloody rolling pin which looked to be the murder weapon into a bag but for some reason he washed the
knife the man had used and placed it back in his kitchen drawer Potter drove out to Jambu
Mountain Lookout and dumped Kim there as he drove back down the mountain he suddenly remembered he still had the
bag containing Kim's belongings and the murder weapon he tossed it into the bush
as well over the next few days Potter's Panic grew he felt like his knowledge of
the man's crime was putting everyone he loved at risk after Kim Barry's body was found he
decided to flee Potter used Sheree's car to drive to gulin and from there he traveled to
Melbourne then the Island state of Tasmania he said he eventually made his way to New
Zealand in 1981 a passport wasn't needed to travel between Australia and New Zealand almost 2 months went by Potter
was tormented by being so far away from his family and Sheree in the second week of April
Potter met a girl who was from wenong she brought up the topic of Kim Barry's murder with Potter saying a
friend back home had told her about it Potter asked if the police knew who'd committed the crime when the girl
answered no Potter figured maybe it was safe to go home gray and Potter's family were
Overjoyed to have him home but heartbroken to hear what he'd suffered when Potter's father asked if
he was willing to assist police Potter readily agreed he decided to have a bath to
freshen up while his parents called investigators as he was lathering up the bathroom door suddenly opened and two
detectives marched inside telling Potter that he was under arrest The Potters were devastated by
the abrupt Interruption they had believed that their son was only wanted as a witness
and felt that the nature of his arrest was a betrayal they would subsequently say
that at least 10 officers had surrounded their home and entered with pistols drawn New South Wales police insisted
only two detectives attended and they hadn't drawn their weapons gram Potter was driven to the
police station for questioning he refused to say anything other than confirm his name address and a date of
birth the interview concluded within 15 minutes and Potter was then charged with
the murder of Kim Barry 3 months later in July 1981 grah and Potter's pre-trial hearing
began detectives and prosecutors had their own Theory as to why Potter had killed Kim
Barry they believed he had been looking to have one last fling before his wedding and invited Kim back to his
home Kim who' previously had a crush on Potter and was eager to find a boyfriend
accepted his invitation but once the pair arrived at pot's unit detectives believed Kim had
changed her mind perhaps she'd seen something that made her realize Potter had a fiance and wasn't
single angry at being rejected Potter lashed out at Kim and struck her in the head with a blunt object killing her he
then left her body in his unit while he returned to the crown gardens's disco the next day he dismembered Kim
and dumped her remains perhaps he'd never expected them to be found due to the dense nature of
the rainforest where he'd left them but when Kim was discovered and the investigation began poto grew scared he
must have known it was only a matter of time until police found out he'd been seen with Kim that night so he went on
the Run disguised his appearance and hid until he felt he couldn't any longer at the pre-trial hearing the
police and prosecutors heard Graham Potter's defense for the first time potter's attorney explained to the
court that while Kim Barry had been murdered in his client's home Potter wasn't the culprit two drug dealers had
done it he wanted his client to be given bail so he could work on his defense and
help track down the true Killers his request was denied Potter would remain on remant
while awaiting his trial grahan Potter's trial didn't begin until March the following year of
1982 investigators had spent the previous 8 months scrutinizing his claims in preparation for their
case first of all it appeared that small details in Potter's story changed depending on who he was talking
to the story he told his family differed slightly from the one he shared with his
fiance Sheree a lengthier statement he provided to his legal team had even further
discrepancies detectives tried to find out whether Kim Barry had any history of illicit drug use or connections to
individuals in the drug trade they hadn't been able to come up with anything no one who knew Kim had ever
known her to have any interest in recreational drugs or criminal activity she enjoyed going out with
friends and having a drink on occasion but that was all she was also focused on her job at the supermarket her volunteer
work at a children's home and her long-term goal of becoming a nurse Potter had said he wasn't
interested in talking to Kim and didn't like her much but those who had seen Kim
talking with Potter noted that the two looked friendly one person was certain that
when they left the Disco together they had been holding hands gray and Potter had provided
description of the two men he claimed killed Kim which were used to create suspect
sketches one man had a long thin face with dark hair styled in a quiff the other had a slightly wider face big ears
and close cropped hair no one else who'd been at the crown Gardens that night could recall seeing
anyone who matched the sketches Witnesses who saw Kim at the Disco said that she hadn't looked
worried or fearful however the defense claimed that two women had seen Kim crying in the
nightclub's bathroom and that she told them she was quote marked they weren't able to present
these women at trial one of the barast staff recalled she'd seen a woman crying in the
bathroom but didn't know if that woman was Kim it had appeared that the woman was
crying about a man as she repeated the words oh the bastard other issues that were addressed at
trial included the blood evidence found at Potter's unit Potter said that Kim was murdered
in his living room yet the amount of blood found in the spare bedroom led to the prosecution arguing she'd most
likely been murdered there linear scratches in the bathtub and blood found in the drain pointed to
that as the location of Kim's dismemberment a lot of attention was paid to the mutilation of Kim's hands
Potter had claimed the culprits used a meat saw to sever Kim's fingers extensive testing by
investigators LED them to believe that a hacka and pliers were the tools used the defense argued that if two
different methods were used that meant it was more likely that two different people were
responsible they also pointed out that the way Kim's head and fingers had been removed appeared consistent with the way
organized criminals might dispose of a victim to prevent their identification the defense claimed
Potter had no motive to kill kimberry and said police hadn't been able to come up with one
either Gran Potter didn't take the stand instead he provided a statement detailing his version of events this
meant he was able to avoid cross-examination by the prosecution when the tri wrapped up
roughly a month after it began the jury left to consider their verdict after deliberating for an hour
and 10 minutes they found Graham Potter guilty gram Potter was sentenced to life
in prison his supporters were destroyed believing he was wrongly paying for other men's crimes Potter's fiance
Sheree Jones remained loyal to him and married him in a prison ceremony almost 6 months
later Potter was not entitled to conjugal visits and was unable to spend any time alone with
Sheree grah and Potter continued to maintain his innocence and repeatedly appealed his
conviction by the mid 1980s he'd exhausted all avenues for appeal but he continued to find new
Advocates who believed his story they kept looking for evidence that Potter had been wrongly
convicted a document from a real estate agent was uncovered revealing that the scratchers in Potter's bathtub had been
there before he rented the property his supporters felt this was important while police had pointed to
the bathtub scratchers as evidence Potter had dismembered Kim there Potter had always maintained the two men had
mutilated Kim on the bathroom floor Potter's supporters also tracked down a woman involved in woing gong's drug
trade who claimed she'd over her two male acquaintances talking about how they'd dealt with a
girl they said another man had been present for the crime but was really quote good about
it when the woman asked who the men were talking about they replied have a guess armed with this new information
Graham Potter applied for a Judicial inquiry into his conviction he had access to a computer
and used this to put his case together until it was confiscated during a Crackdown on inmates
privileges Potter felt that the only way he could finish his application was if he was on the
outside at 520 p.m. on Saturday June 30 1990 gr and Potter and another inmate crawled through the roof of their
prison's Visitors Center they ran to the wall of the prison and managed to jump it then caught a
taxi when the taxi driver later heard a news report about the prison break he phoned police and told them where he'd
dropped the men off they were both captured within 22 hours of their escape and returned to
their cells Potter was charged with escape from lawful custody and intent to use a
weapon to avoid arrest 3 years later however Potter's luck would turn new sentencing legislation led to
his sentence being reviewed and ultimately reduced with a minimum term of 12 Years 8
months in 1996 after he'd served 14 years for killing Kim Barry Gran Potter was released on
parole he told the media that his plan now was to quote clear my [Music] name instead of clearing his name gr and
Potter moved to Tasmania with his wife Sheree and became involved in the illicit drug trade in 2008 he was
arrested as part of a sting operation by the Australian federal police for his involvement in helping import $440
Million worth of ecstasy and cocaine Potter was extradited to Victor Warrior for court proceedings and
subsequently granted bail able to freely roam the streets of Melbourne Potter was drawn into the
city's notorious underworld after meeting a local Mafia member Behind Bars Potter's new friend allegedly hired
him to kill two men one of the targets was an associate of Infamous Gangland figure Mick GTO and
the murder was set to take place at G's son's wedding before before Potter carried out
the hit he was rearrested and charged with conspiracy to commit murder once again he was released on
bail in February 2010 Gran Potter failed to appear at the Melbourne magistrates court for a
hearing detectives were unable to find him Potter had gone on the Run just as he did almost 30 years earlier after
killing Kim Barry in 1981 but this time he didn't reemerge 6 months later on Saturday
August 28 2010 police at the other end of the country in Tully Queensland were conducting a routine vehicle
intercept it turned out that the person behind the wheel was gram Potter he bolted during the traffic stop
and ran towards an area of rainforest he disappeared amongst the trees and police were unable to find him
but they did discover a campsite where Potter had been living at the Tully Caravan
Park Potter had been staying there for about 6 weeks amongst his belongings were knives
fishing lines stockpiles of food newspapers with the job listings highlighted a set of binoculars and
multiple pairs of eyeglasses investigators also found handwritten notes which detailed how
Potter could disguise himself Potter wrote that if anybody recognized him he would kill
them now that they had seized his equipment and survival supplies police were confident that it wouldn't be long
before Potter was forced to surface again however months then years went by with Potter remaining on the
Run unconfirmed sightings came in from all over the country Potter was spotted back in Victoria in Regional New South
Wales and even across the bass straight in Tasmania on one occasion he befriended
an elderly Widow who unknowingly took him in as a lodger when one of the woman's friends
recognized Potter she confronted him he threatened to kill her if she called the
police Potter was skilled at manual labor which allowed him to find cash inhand work from unsuspecting
employers investigators knew he tended to lie Low by sticking to rural areas or country
towns sometimes he stayed at rental properties but he was also comfortable camping and roughing it for months at a
time sometimes detectives obtained grainy CCTV footage of Potter at a general store or a pub but it seemed
like he was always several steps ahead of them by 2014 he was definitely known to
be back in Far North Queensland a Publican in Ravens HHO a town approximately 2 hours south of can's
realized that a customer who just bought a bottle of Jim Beam Bourbon was Graham
Potter the Publican phoned the police but by the time they arrived Potter was long
gone a $100,000 reward was offered for information leading to Potter's capture but police warned the public they were
not under any circumstances to approach the Fugi Potter's elusiveness led to the media
dubbing him Australia's most Wanted Man on Monday February 21 2022 police in Far North Queensland headed to a
dilapidated house in Raven HHO they were acting on a tip off random pieces of Timber and Sheet
Metal were strewn outside and leaning up against the building numerous cats and kittens roamed around the
property inside the old house was dark and filthy with mattresses cardboard boxes and chicken copes piled to the
ceiling the officers found a man by the name of Josh Lawson hiding in a room attempting to clamber across some of the
chicken coops to evade capture they demanded he place his hands where they could see them and placed him
under arrest Josh Lawson was Graham Potter now 64 years old it was one of many aliases he'd been
using over the past 12 years other names Potter went by included John Page Peter
Adams and to Jim Henderson he had used various costumes to disguise himself including fat suits
wigs and glasses the house where he was arrested was less than a kilometer from the pub
where he'd purchased the Jim Beam 8 years earlier the same Publican had served Potter since then but had never
recognized him again due to his elaborate disguises police believed Potter had likely spent the last decade in the same
area Graham Potter was extradited back to Victoria to finally face his charges as of late 2023 his case is
still before the courts [Music] in the early 1990s journalist John Sut Linton was working on a book about the
kimberry case his research into the crime was meticulous and he even managed to uncover some information that the
police had never found one Gap in the original investigation involved how gr and Potter
and Kim Barry had traveled back to his unit Potter said they' caught a taxi but no taxi driver had ever come forward
despite appeals from investigators 12 years later in 1993 an article about Potter's sentencing being
reduced ran in the aawara Mercury a local man who read the story came forward and told John Sut Linton
something that he'd never spoken about before he claimed that he was the taxi driver who'd picked up Potter and Kim
that night he'd given Kim Li's before and though he didn't know her name he remembered her home
address according to the driver a second man had gotten into the taxi with Kim and Potter he sat up the front and
chatted cheerfully to the driver while Kim and Potter sat quietly in the back the driver didn't think Kim seemed
scared but she was a little quiet he suspected she might have recognized him too and been embarrassed
about going home with a man instead of to her usual address the driver went on holiday
immediately after and so missed the initial media flurry about Kim's murder he didn't realize the potential
significance of the lift he'd given that night until Graham Potter's trial was well
underway it is not clear who the extra passenger in the taxi was but John Sut Linton has noted grah Potter was known
to offer lifts to strangers not long after the driver came forward John Sut Linton met with gr
Potter in prison although he found Potter polite and soft spoken as his supporters described John also noted
that Potter had a temper he went on an angry defensive rant about the taxi driver who had
recently come forward he also liked to shock Jon and his parents by telling stories about
gory accidents and the notorious criminals he was now acquainted with John suto Linton thought it was
interesting that Potter reveled in keeping company with such individuals when he also blamed two such men for the
crime he was convicted of John Sut linton's book The Stranger you know was published in
1997 16 years after Kim Barry was murdered JN spent time with Kim's family and saw firsthand the devastation they
were left to grapple with Beverly Barry battled with anxiety insomnia and complete
despair during grahan Potter's trial her husband Brian shielded Beverly from some
of the worst details of what had happened to Kim Brian's personality and life experiences led to him repressing his
own emotions he believed he had to stay strong for his family but the stress of knowing what his daughter suffered and
having to identify her body ate away at him Kim's younger brother Wayne became an only child at a vulnerable age and
struggled with the immense public attention his sister's case received John Sut Linton wrote of Kim's
loved ones quote the Barry family to their credit do not hold any malice or hatred towards
grah Potter and his family it may be true to say there is an empty a disbelief that one person could take
another's life the victims of crime are not those who are killed but those who are left to
try and fill the emotional void someone else has thoughtlessly created [Music]

Case 263: Kim Barry

When Brian and Beverly Barry returned from a weekend away to discover their 19-year-old daughter Kim was gone, they initially assumed she was out with friends. Then news broke that a body had been found in some bushland south of their home in Wollongong, New South Wales, and it wasn’t long before the truth came out. Kim had been murdered and brutally mutilated after a night out with a friend. The crime had all the hallmarks of a gangland slaying… but police soon honed in on an acquaintance of Kim’s named Graham Gene Potter…

CREDITS

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

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