Unlike the other murder victims, however, Mark's body showed an odd sign of surgical precision. The police came to this conclusion due to the status of his remains, which weren't nearly as decomposed as they should have been; by the time he was discovered at the end of July, he had been dead for no more than a week or two, despite having gone missing at the beginning of June. Suspect 3, an Eastern Suburbs doctor. I first heard of the murders in an episode of an Australian television program called . 2020 familymurders.com All Rights Reserved. This reported sighting led police to the notion that a group of people might have been acting in-tandem to abduct Richard, for reasons that appeared nefarious. This triggered a recurrence of his on-again/off-again bout with alcoholism, and within a week, he had checked himself into the Osmond House rehabilitation center but not before consulting with his attorney for any potential legal ramifications. When this young man woke up the next day, he was surprised to find himself both at home and in significant pain. Bevan von Einem was an apex predator. A farmer that lived nearby Middle Beach and Two Wells, roughly an hour north of Adelaide, had been cleansing his farmland during the advised winter months. Neil Fredrick Muir, aged 25,[12][13] murdered two months after Barnes in August 1979. If that was true, then could that have been happening to the other young male victims that had been viciously murdered in the preceding years? The news was heartbreaking for those that had known Alan. They drove to War Memorial Drive (150m east of the Adelaide Rowing Club ) when Mark had a minor argument with the other male so got out and left. If you have information about the case then contact us through our contact page. Some were involved in the abduction of victims who were murdered, some were involved in the rape of murdered victims, and some were involved in murder. Homosexuality itself would become decriminalized just a few years later, in 1975, with the passing of the Criminal Law Amendment Act, making South Australia the first Australian state or territory where members of the LGBTQ community no longer had to fear government persecution. Among friends, Alan had begun to smoke weed and experiment with new things, pushing himself to the limits of his comfort zone to discover who he was and what he enjoyed. Detective O'Brien was the unfortunate one tasked with notifying the Kelvins that Richard's body had been found; which he describes in his book as one of the most heartbreaking duties he's ever had to endure. A span of 4 years. Subsequent efforts to reach Alan through his friends had failed, and none of them had seen him since the weekend. This website was built on publicly available information contributed by many people who have an interest in this case. Allegations would even surface that indicated Dr. Millhouse had been one of the people in the area that supplied Neil with prescription drugs, but that would remain an allegation for the foreseeable future. However, they were able to learn that - before his body was burned in the brush fire - his remains had been cut into multiple parts with a saw.
The Family Murders - Strange Matters Podcast The Kelvins, though upset at the duration of time that had already passed, understood why the process was so delayed but were hopeful that their son would return home to them, safe and sound. While police began to investigate who might be responsible for this heinous crime, medical examiners testing the body made a pretty shocking discovery: the presence of drugs in his blood. An accountant by profession, he was convicted in 1984 for the murder of 15-year-old Adelaide teenager Richard Kelvin, the son of local television and radio personality Rob Kelvin. While in rehab, Dr. Millhouse refused to speak to police about Neil Muir (or his alleged relationship with the man). It wasn't until Monday morning that Alan's parents decided to contact the police, having not seen him for several days. Some of his strategies were to unscrew his car muffler or pull out his choke and ask an unsuspecting youth to help him with car trouble. Bevan Spencer von Einem was jailed for life for the murder of 15-year-old Richard Kelvin. The periphery of The Family is a grey area. Analysis of Kelvin's bloodstream revealed traces of four hypnotic drugs,[11][26] including Mandrax and Noctec. That was when similar stories of young men being drugged and sexually assaulted began to make waves throughout Australia; young men that had been drugged with similar substances.
Add onto that abductions, drug-lacing, mutilations, victims held in captivity for weeks, and death by sado-masochism. So prosecutors and the police began to build their case around Millhouse without his cooperation, including witness statements that alleged the two had been together the weekend before Neil's violent death. Also, like the other victims, Mark's cause-of-death seemed to be nearly identical: blood loss from an anal injury, caused by the forced insertion of an unknown item. In 2014 when Trevor passed away, his diaries were recovered. The death of George Duncan would serve as a catalyst, eventually martyring Duncan himself and leading to repeals of South Australia's harsh anti-homosexuality laws.
The Family Murders Of Adelaide - True Crime Conversations They wanted to continue eliminating suspects that personally knew Alan ahead of time, but promised to check out von Einem in the future. Later on, Ian would recall the argument cropping up around cigarettes, but that just proves the point of how nonessential it was. Unfortunately, by the time they returned, Mark was nowhere to be found. The older man in the driver's seat reached into the backseat and pulled out a beer from a cooler, offering it to George. Young Blood refers to the age of the victims who were brutally murdered. So they tried to safely guard the parts of the investigation that they could. Four of the five murders remain unsolved. Kelvin was held captive for approximately five weeks[24] and a post-mortem examination revealed that he had died of massive blood loss from an anal injury,[25] likely caused by the insertion of a large blunt object. This has come to be disputed over the years, with some speculating that Alan might have willingly consumed the drug the weekend before his death; or, perhaps, he might have been slipped it by someone at the bars he was rumored to visit with his friends that Saturday. [11], Last edited on 24 February 2023, at 04:35, List of serial killers by number of victims, Von Einem: Lawyers in new bid to re-open Kelvin case, "Doctor found not guilty of 'Family' murder of Neil Muir dies in NSW", "Australian police reopen notorious 1970s Family murders case", "Body in bag: jury acquits doctor in Adelaide", "Lost diary gives South Australia police new lead into Alan Barnes murder by The Family", "Many Theories, Few Clues in String of Adelaide Murders", "Record 24-year non-parole period for boy's killer", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Family_Murders&oldid=1141259172, This page was last edited on 24 February 2023, at 04:35. He failed to make any contact with his family, and police began to express concern that he had gone missing under duress. Sadly, almost all of the evidence that may have been left behind was now gone, burned away to ash along with all of Peter's remaining soft tissue.
The Family Murders (Part One: The Murders) - Spreaker The Adelaide Festival of Arts (also known as just Adelaide Festival) started in 1960 and led to something of a "cultural revival" in the area. According to his family, this was right in-line with Richard's odd sense of humor. The following Sunday, June 24th - one week after Alan had last been seen alive - a couple of hikers were bushwalking up in the area known as the Adelaide Foothills.
Family Murders Are Adelaide's Most Horrific Unsolved Crime - PEDESTRIAN.TV This group was believed to be involved in the kidnapping and sexual abuse of a number of teenage boys and young men, as well as the torture and murder of five young men aged between 14 and 25, in Adelaide, South Australia, in the 1970s and 1980s. Because this murder seemed like the type of crime beset by emotional issues - or likely someone with an ax to grind against Alan, personally - police initially began investigating this as a personal crime. No additional leads would surface in that time-span, and police would continue to refrain from stating that the two victims so far - Alan Barnes and Neil Muir - were connected in any way (at least, they wouldn't say so publicly). Of the five men that fell prey to this violent killer, at least two had been drugged with Mandrax, as had George. Mark Andrew Langley, aged 18,[17] murdered in February 1982. It shows the facts and most likely scenarios, but is fluid so when new information comes to light changes can easily be made. The medical examiners would also find a significant head wound on Neil, which wasn't significant enough to have killed him, but would have likely happened to incapacitate or subdue the man. Likely, he was one of the people seen hanging out with Neil at the bars and clubs just days that weekend. Enjoy reading. Gambier, a city roughly five hours south of Adelaide. The bodies were found from 24th June 1979 and the fifth and last body on 24th July 1983. Peter Stogneff. Within hours, Alan's father and grandfather found themselves tagged to identify the remains, which were undoubtedly the remains of their missing 17-year-old.
Mr B - The Family Murders Eventually, Peter's parents discovered the plot among Peter and his friend to skip school, and conveyed this information to the police - who were just as alarmed as they were. He was seen in the presence of individuals who would become relevant later on, but - at the time - were simply believed to have been his friends. Only one suspect has been charged and convicted for a crime. Police believe this murder is associated with other high profile murders commonly referred to in the media as the 'Family Murders'. Both witnesses - who were friends with Neil and drug users themselves - were prepared to testify should this man be tried for the murder. The Family Murders are a series of violent and depraved sex crimes committed against five young men and boys in South Australia throughout the 1970's and 1980's. In 1988 Detective Trevor Kipling described a group of people whom he suspected as being responsible as "one big happy family" and vowed to do all that he could to bring them to justice. Their psychological profile indicated that Neil's body had been carved up due to either a psychotic killer that derived pleasure from inflicting pain on others or someone that wanted to hide his/her identity. Some of the employees that worked at the area's bars recalled seeing the two together multiple times that weekend, and other character witnesses described Dr. Millhouse and Neil as being very close friends (intimate, even). [5] Others, who have examined the cases, however, argue that there were many more victims. But a discovery by the medical examiner seemed to undermine that: in addition to all of this, Neil's genitals had been mutilated by his killer. On the afternoon of Sunday, June 5th, 1983, Richard was kicking around a soccer ball with his father Rob and his friend Boris at a park near his home. This was about 300 metres from his family home. He has spent that Sunday, June the 5th, playing footy, until the afternoon when his best friend Karl came over.
The Family Murders - Wikipedia Stogneff's body had been cut into three pieces in a similar fashion to Muir. Regardless, this information was incredibly helpful to police, who began to expand their interests to finding people in the area that drove similar vehicles. [7] Suspect 1, an Eastern Suburbs businessman, is believed to have been with von Einem when Kelvin was abducted. However, that was very circumstantial evidence at best, and anything but definitive. He was seventeen years old, with a youthful, handsome appearance, and a carefree, fun-loving attitude. Peter Leslie Millhouse was a doctor from Mt. Unfortunately, it did not. Mandrax was quickly gaining notoriety as a drug used in the commission of date-rape crimes, and the local government decided that the best way to combat their usage was to keep them regulated so that they had a record of everyone that was prescribed them.
Lost diary gives South Australia police new lead into Alan Barnes That Monday - August 27th, 1979 - Neil Muir was seen alive for the last time. Between 1979 and 1983, a series of heinous murders shocked Adelaide. Its always easier to visualise events when you have maps. Five murders and over 150 rapes. Once known as the "City of Churches," Adelaide began going through a stark progression in the 1960s. This caller alleged that the two older men had been driving around a 1963 EJ Holden sedan. Description. But the rumors that he engaged in sex work were mainly perpetrated by those that knew him from his regular haunts: members of Adelaide's gay community, who regularly saw Neil at the gay-friendly bars they frequented. But he decided to instead head to a local mall, named Tea Tree Plaza, where Peter and his friends often hung out on the weekends. The information is easy to navigate and easy reference.