Bradley Murdoch, the Australian man who murdered British backpacker Peter Falconio in 2001, has died from throat most cancers.
Murdoch, 67, was serving a life sentence at a jail in Alice Springs, in Australia’s Northern Territory.
The Northern Territory Division of Corrections advised the BBC that Murdoch died in Alice Spring Hospital’s palliative care unit, on 15 July, a day after the twenty fourth anniversary of the killing.
In a press release, the Northern Territory Police Power stated: “It’s deeply regrettable that Murdoch has died with out, so far as we’re conscious, ever disclosing the placement of Peter Falconio’s stays.”
Murdoch’s demise shall be topic to investigation by the Northern Territory Coroner, officers added.
In 2005, Murdoch was convicted of murdering Mr Falconio, from Yorkshire, however had by no means revealed the placement of his physique.
Mr Falconio was shot lifeless on a distant stretch of freeway close to the Northern Territory city of Barrow Creek, about 300km (186 miles) north of Alice Springs in July 2001.
Murdoch pulled up beside Mr Falconio’s automobile claiming to have seen sparks coming from their camper van.
He shot Mr Falconio within the head as he inspected the automobile, earlier than taking 28-year-old Joanne Lees, Mr Falconio’s girlfriend on the time, into his automotive and binding her wrists with cable ties.
Murdoch was additionally convicted of the tried kidnap and assault of Ms Lees, additionally from Yorkshire, who managed to flee by hiding in outback scrub for a number of hours earlier than she was in a position to sign for assist.
“[Murdoch’s] silence has denied the Falconio household the closure they’ve so lengthy deserved. Our ideas are with the Falconio household in the UK, whose grief continues,” the Northern Territory Police Power stated.
The ordeal partly impressed the 2001 horror movie Wolf Creek.
Murdoch was 43 when he dedicated the crimes.
Throughout his trial, prosecutors stated that Murdoch was more likely to have disposed of Mr Falconio’s physique someplace within the huge expanse of wilderness between Alice Springs and Broome, a distance of practically 1,600km (1,000 miles).
In 2016, the Northern Territory launched “no physique, no parole” laws, which means Murdoch wouldn’t have been eligible for parole in 2032 if he didn’t reveal the placement of Mr Falconio’s physique.
Murdoch had at all times maintained his innocence, and unsuccessfully appealed to overturn his convictions twice.
Colleen Gwynne, the lead investigator into Mr Falconio’s homicide, advised the Australian Broadcasting Company that it was a “unhappy day” for Mr Falconio’s household, and that “an infinite alternative” to search out his stays had been misplaced.
In an interview with native newspaper NT Information printed this week, Mr Falconio’s father, Luciano, stated “I want I might discover him and make an finish to it, bury him”.
“I do know what occurred however I do not know the place he’s,” Luciano stated.
The Northern Territory Police Power stated they continue to be “dedicated to resolving this remaining piece of the investigation”, and reiterated {that a} reward of as much as A$500,000 (£240,000) is obtainable for data resulting in the invention of the stays of the murdered British backpacker.
Appearing Commander Mark Grieve of Northern Territory Police advised a press convention in late June that police had “made quite a few approaches” to Murdoch, however that “sadly… on all events he has chosen to not have interaction with police”.
An announcement launched by Murdoch’s household after his demise stated that he had at all times denied accountability for the crimes “from his arrest till his demise”, and added that “he was far more than the headlines”.
