True Crime Scene
Russell St bomber dies in prison
RUSSELL St bomber Stan Taylor, who had been serving a life sentence for the infamous 1986 blast, has died in prison.
Chiro hired undercover cop for evil plot
A MILD-mannered chiropractor who allegedly plotted to have his fiancee’s ex kidnapped, killed, and “turned into dust” with a steel-drum cremation will be free in a little over three years.
Inside Ned Kelly’s fiery last stand
NED Kelly wasn’t an armour-plated hero to the 60 hostages in the Glenrowan inn who braced for “a massacre” as cops opened fire to bring a siege to a bloody end.
The last woman hanged in Australia
ILLICIT sex, torture and murder led Jean Lee to become the last woman executed in Australia. But the 1951 hanging of Lee and two men was mired in controversy.
Silenced over mysterious footprints
THE murders of two soldiers three months apart with the same weapon remain unsolved 74 years on. But did the army cover up an even bigger secret on the beaches of Queenscliff?
Son’s battle to stop Melbourne’s Dr Death
A “deranged” 1920s doctor who owed thousands after a horse racing gambling spree injected his whole family and housekeeper with morphine, but his awful plan to kill did not go smoothly.
Chopper’s widow and agent feud over tape
EXCLUSIVE: THE widow of underworld figure Mark “Chopper” Read is embroiled in a bitter battle for control of her husband’s last filmed interview.
Chopper’s bizarre and brutal life
IT’S 1979, and a hulking young heavyweight called Mark Brandon Read heads a bunch of the most dangerous men in the prison system. Andrew Rule reports.
Tram creep jailed for groping schoolgirl
AN immigration worker who sexually assaulted a 14-year-old schoolgirl on a crowded peak hour tram, then misled police and lied to the court, is behind bars.
Chilling confession: ‘I think I went a little nuts’
A SCHOOL cleaner who brutally raped and murdered popular NSW teacher Stephanie Scott told police, “I think I went a little nuts” in a video confession.
Gang glamour entices thugs
AMERICAN gangster fantasies are inspiring many of the young Melbourne thugs involved in carjackings and home invasions.
Rapist takes his secrets to the grave
THE man believed to be one of Victoria’s worst rapists is dead but the full extent of his atrocities may never be known.
The crimes that shaped Melbourne
CRIMINAL barrister Colin Lovitt has represented the defendants in some of Melbourne’s most high-profile murders. Here, he sheds some light on several of them.
When love ends in a barrel
HE said he loved his wife so much that after he killed her, Fred Boyle kept her body in a barrel in the back yard for 23 years.
Ice gangs prey on Chinese students
EXCLUSIVE: CHINESE students are being used as “sleeper agents” by organised crime syndicates to take delivery of ice shipments in Melbourne.
Toby Mitchell appeals against jail term
FORMER bikie boss Toby Mitchell has launched an appeal against his most recent sentence that could see him free from prison sooner.
How could a mother-of-six do this?
AN evil mum lured a schoolgirl to be raped and murdered by her husband, tricking her into helping look for a missing puppy. And she says she did it for love.
Secret report casts cop kill doubt
EXCLUSIVE: A POLICE report has found there was no evidence one of the men convicted of the Silk-Miller murders was at the scene on the night.
Baden-Clay: It was murder
GERARD Baden-Clay did murder his wife Allison, Australia’s highest court has ruled, finally ending the long-running legal saga.
Slain lawyer’s sons carve up after feud
MURDERED lawyer Joe “Pino’’ Acquaro has left the lion’s share of his multi-million dollar estate to his three estranged sons despite a bitter family feud.
ScallyWAGs & widows of the underworld
THEY fell for some of Australia’s hardest crooks. But in matters of the heart, crime doesn’t always pay, writes Andrew Rule.
Strippers tell of CBD gunman’s deadly fury
STRIPPERS describe bikie Christopher Hudson’s meltdown the day he unleashed his anger in Melbourne’s CBD, shooting three at point-blank range.
Our forgotten Botanic Gardens massacre
FAMILIES ran in terror on a summer’s night when a man opened fire in the Melbourne Botanic Gardens. It’s a long-forgotten case that terrified our city and sparked a mass manhunt.
Peaceful plans for mass kidnap school
THE scene of Victoria’s most shocking mass kidnap of a group of young students for a $1m ransom is for sale, with agents pitching the old schoolhouse as a perfect bed and breakfast.
Guilty plea over schoolgirl’s murder
A MAN has pleaded guilty to the shocking sexual assault and murder of 11-year-old schoolgirl Zoe Buttigieg in her Wangaratta home.
Was this man Jack the Ripper?
HE killed his family and buried them under a fireplace — then did the same thing to his second wife. Could this Melbourne murderer have been Jack the Ripper?
Did Ivan Milat murder missing girls?
THE disappearance of two teenagers has been linked to Australia’s worst serial killer Ivan Milat, with similarities with 14 other girls who’ve gone missing.
Jailed gangster ‘on ice before violent death’
A PROBE into the prison death of gangland figure Hizir Ferman will look at claims he was smoking ice in bed before launching a vicious assault on guards.
Accused killer still haunted by murder
AN accused killer cleared over one of Victoria’s most baffling and tragic cold case murders says his life has been ruined by the allegations.
