Gatton murders

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The Gatton Murders is the name given to a never-solved homicide that occurred near the town of Gatton, Queensland on 26 December 1898. The victims, all members of the same family, were found the following day in a field 2 kilometres from the town by their brother-in-law, who had set out to look for them after they had failed to return from a dance the previous evening. 29-year old Michael Murphy and his younger sisters Norah, 27, and Ellen, 18, had been bashed to death. Both women had also been sexually molested. From the evidence gathered at the scene, it was learned that Norah Murphy was taken aside and raped, then bashed to death. Michael had most possibly already been shot and bashed by then. Ellen was similarly murdered. After their deaths, their corpses were re-arranged so their legs crossed over their bodies with the feet pointing west. This modus operandi has never been repeated in Australian crime and, like the Gatton Murders themselves, remains a mystery to this day.

Several witnesses, including itinerant workers and family members, came under suspicion for the crime, but after a five month investigation, no one was ever charged with the murders. The failure of the Queensland police to solve the crime led to accusations of cover-ups and rumours of incest within the Murphy family; these claims were also subsequently never resolved.

The crime caused shock and outrage across the country and the ineffective investigation, which released several possible suspects without comprehensive interrogation, later became the subject of a Royal Commission. Several modern writers have suggested possible culprits, with one of the most plausible being put forward by Blue Mountains-based author Merv Lilley. Lilley claims his father William was a violent sadist and sexual pervert who could well have been in the Gatton area at the time of the murders.

[edit] References

• Whiticker, Alan J. (2005). Twelve Crimes That Shocked the Nation. New Holland. ISBN 1-74110-110-7

[edit] External links

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