EdwardsJudgement PDF

[2020] WASC 339
JURISDICTION : SUPREME COURT OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA

IN CRIMINAL
CITATION : THE STATE OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA -v-

EDWARDS [No 7] [2020] WASC 339
CORAM : HALL J
HEARD : 95 DAYS BETWEEN 25 NOVEMBER 2019

& 25 JUNE 2020
DELIVERED : 24 SEPTEMBER 2020
FILE NO/S : INS 164 of 2018
BETWEEN : THE STATE OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Prosecution
AND
BRADLEY ROBERT EDWARDS

Accused
Catchwords:
Criminal law – Trial by judge alone – Three counts of wilful murder – Offences
alleged to have occurred in 1996 and 1997 – Whether evidence establishes
victims killed by the same person – Whether identity of the killer proven beyond
reasonable doubt – Circumstantial evidence – DNA evidence – Fibre evidence –
Propensity evidence – Whether intent to kill proven beyond reasonable doubt
Legislation:
Evidence Act 1906 (WA), s 31A
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Result:
Count 6 – not guilty

Count 7 – guilty
Count 8 – guilty
Category: A
Representation:
Counsel:
Prosecution : Ms C Barbagallo SC, Ms T M Payne, Mr B M Hollingsworth,

Ms S J Bowman
Accused : Mr P D Yovich SC & Ms G M Cleary
Solicitors:
Prosecution : Director of Public Prosecutions (WA)

Accused : Mony De Kerloy
Case(s) referred to in decision(s):
The State of Western Australia v Edwards [2018] WASC 419

The State of Western Australia v Edwards [2019] WASC 87
The State of Western Australia v Edwards [No 2] [2019] WASC 282
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Table of Contents
Summary................................................................................................................................... 13
Organisation of the reasons ...................................................................................................... 21
Trial by judge alone .................................................................................................................. 22
Charges ..................................................................................................................................... 24
Pleas to counts 1 - 5 .................................................................................................................. 25
Terminology ............................................................................................................................. 25
Prosecution case ....................................................................................................................... 26
Defence case ............................................................................................................................. 41
Pre-trial rulings ......................................................................................................................... 46
Relevant law (directions) .......................................................................................................... 47
Presumption of innocence .................................................................................................... 48
Onus of proof ........................................................................................................................ 48
Standard of proof .................................................................................................................. 48
Verdicts on the evidence....................................................................................................... 49
Publicity ................................................................................................................................ 49
Prejudice and sympathy ........................................................................................................ 50
Right to silence ..................................................................................................................... 51
Police interview – exculpatory statements and credibility lies............................................. 52
Identification evidence ......................................................................................................... 53
Propensity evidence .............................................................................................................. 54
Motive................................................................................................................................... 56
Multiple charges (separate consideration) ............................................................................ 57
Cross-admissibility of evidence ........................................................................................... 58
Lapse of time and lost opportunities .................................................................................... 59
Credibility and reliability ..................................................................................................... 60
Special witnesses, deceased witnesses, video link witnesses and witnesses whose
statements were read in to evidence ..................................................................................... 62
Prior inconsistent statements ................................................................................................ 62
Circumstantial evidence ....................................................................................................... 63
Inferences.............................................................................................................................. 66
Expert evidence .................................................................................................................... 68
DNA evidence ...................................................................................................................... 68
Alibi and opportunity ........................................................................................................... 70
Elements of the charges ........................................................................................................ 71
Absence of a body ................................................................................................................ 73
Alternative verdicts............................................................................................................... 73
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Failure to cross-examine (Browne v Dunn) .......................................................................... 74

Admissions ............................................................................................................................... 77
Evidence ................................................................................................................................... 81
Background and opportunity .................................................................................................... 82
EB – evidence summary ....................................................................................................... 82
Ian Berry – evidence summary ............................................................................................. 91
Susan San Juan – evidence summary ................................................................................... 91
DF – evidence summary ....................................................................................................... 92
Karen McInroy – evidence summary ................................................................................... 96
CH – evidence summary....................................................................................................... 97
KM – evidence summary...................................................................................................... 99
Murray Cook – evidence summary .................................................................................... 100
Brigita Cook – evidence summary ..................................................................................... 102
John Travis – evidence summary ....................................................................................... 104
John Philpott – evidence summary ..................................................................................... 106
CG – evidence summary..................................................................................................... 106
Michael Chivell – evidence summary ................................................................................ 108
Conclusions – opportunity ...................................................................................................... 111
Opportunity to commit the murder of Ms Spiers ............................................................... 111
Opportunity to commit the murder of Ms Rimmer ............................................................ 113
Opportunity to commit the murder of Ms Glennon............................................................ 113
Telstra – employment, vehicles and uniforms ........................................................................ 116
Paul Luff – evidence summary ........................................................................................... 116
Wayne Chivell – evidence summary .................................................................................. 119
Jeffrey Cohen – evidence summary.................................................................................... 120
Stephen Gray – evidence summary .................................................................................... 121
Lynda Eldridge – evidence summary ................................................................................. 126
Robert Kinnear – evidence summary ................................................................................. 129
Francis Van Rullen – evidence summary ........................................................................... 133
Tony Vomero – evidence summary.................................................................................... 135
Later history of vehicles used by the accused ........................................................................ 137
White Camry station wagon ............................................................................................... 137
White Holden Commodore station wagon ......................................................................... 138
Schedule of agreed evidence for relevant vehicles ............................................................. 139
Conclusions – employment, vehicles and uniforms ............................................................... 139
Propensity evidence – Huntingdale, Hollywood Hospital and Karrakatta ............................. 141
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Huntingdale offences .......................................................................................................... 141

AH – evidence summary ................................................................................................ 141
EH – evidence summary ................................................................................................. 143
Hollywood Hospital offence ............................................................................................... 143
WD – evidence summary ............................................................................................... 143
Rick Marshall – evidence summary ............................................................................... 145
Paul McEvoy – evidence summary ................................................................................ 146
Lyn Millett – evidence summary .................................................................................... 147
Karrakatta offences ............................................................................................................. 148
KJG – evidence summary ............................................................................................... 148
Jennifer Grace – evidence summary............................................................................... 154
Noel Tsalis – evidence summary .................................................................................... 155
Wayne Wookey – evidence summary ............................................................................ 156
Marita Cattlin (Bosse) – evidence summary .................................................................. 157
LG – evidence summary ................................................................................................. 158
Conclusions – propensity evidence – Huntingdale, Hollywood Hospital and Karrakatta ..... 158
Propensity evidence – Telstra Living Witness Project ........................................................... 166
Incident 1 – 1995 ................................................................................................................ 167
Rebecca Keamy .............................................................................................................. 167
Incident 2 – 3 December 1995............................................................................................ 168
Katrina Jones – evidence summary ................................................................................ 168
Wendy Elliott – evidence summary................................................................................ 170
Incident 3 – 27/28 January 1996......................................................................................... 171
Julie-Anne Johnstone – evidence summary.................................................................... 171
Christine Herbert – evidence summary .......................................................................... 172
Incident 4 – January 1996................................................................................................... 173
Sahra Miller – evidence summary .................................................................................. 173
Incident 5 – November/December 1996 ............................................................................. 174
Annabelle Bushell – evidence summary ........................................................................ 174
Trilby Smith – evidence summary.................................................................................. 176
Incident 6 – Christmas 1996 ............................................................................................... 177
Natalie Clements (Young) – evidence summary ............................................................ 177
Rebecca Morse (Bushell) – evidence summary ............................................................. 179
Incident 7 – between November 1996 and January 1997 ................................................... 180
Jane Ouvaroff (Woods) – evidence summary ................................................................ 180
William Robinson – evidence summary......................................................................... 182
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Conclusions – propensity evidence – Telstra Living Witness Project ................................... 182

Sarah Spiers – circumstances of her disappearance ............................................................... 188
Amanda Spiers – evidence summary.................................................................................. 188
Emma Wates (McCormack) – evidence summary ............................................................. 189
Chelsea Palmer – evidence summary ................................................................................. 190
Melanie Polain – evidence summary .................................................................................. 191
Christine Hams – evidence summary ................................................................................. 192
Priscilla Key (Pei) – evidence summary............................................................................. 193
Jaroslav Krupnik – evidence summary............................................................................... 193
Mark Laidman – evidence summary .................................................................................. 194
Alec Pannall – evidence summary...................................................................................... 196
John Daniell – evidence summary ...................................................................................... 196
Steven Cummings – evidence summary............................................................................. 197
Simon Yelland – evidence summary .................................................................................. 197
Mosman Park screams ............................................................................................................ 198
Judith Borrett (Garton-Smith) – evidence summary .......................................................... 198
Robyn Peters (Drexel) – evidence summary ...................................................................... 199
Jesse-Marie Munro – evidence summary ........................................................................... 201
Wayne Stewart – evidence summary.................................................................................. 203
Conclusions – time and cause of death of Sarah Spiers ......................................................... 205
Jane Rimmer – circumstances of her disappearance .............................................................. 208
Jennifer Rimmer – evidence summary ............................................................................... 208
Trevor Rimmer – evidence summary ................................................................................. 209
Ellen Magditch – evidence summary ................................................................................. 209
Clare McGuirk (Humphreys) – evidence summary ........................................................... 210
Sharon McColl – evidence summary.................................................................................. 211
Sian Chapman – evidence summary................................................................................... 212
Lynda Donovan – evidence summary ................................................................................ 214
Jarrod Turner – evidence summary .................................................................................... 216
David Kluwen – evidence summary................................................................................... 217
Adam Rimmer – evidence summary .................................................................................. 217
Wellard screams ..................................................................................................................... 218
Kenneth Mitchell – evidence summary .............................................................................. 218
Judith Mitchell – evidence summary .................................................................................. 220
Ian Sturcke – evidence summary ........................................................................................ 221
Cheryl Sturcke – evidence summary .................................................................................. 222
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Jane Rimmer – finding of her body ........................................................................................ 223

Tammy van Raalte–Evans – evidence summary ................................................................ 223
Michael Evans – evidence summary .................................................................................. 225
Paul Langenbach – evidence summary .............................................................................. 226
Kathryne O'Shea (Owen) – evidence summary.................................................................. 228
Jane Rimmer – post-mortem examination .............................................................................. 228
Karin Margolius – evidence summary................................................................................ 228
Clive Cooke – evidence summary ...................................................................................... 231
Alana Buck – evidence summary ....................................................................................... 234
Conclusions – time and cause of death of Jane Rimmer ........................................................ 235
Telstra knife ............................................................................................................................ 237
Steven Daventhoren – evidence summary.......................................................................... 237
Tracey Bell – evidence summary ....................................................................................... 238
Alexander Angus – evidence summary .............................................................................. 239
David Minchin – evidence summary .................................................................................. 241
Robert Scully – evidence summary .................................................................................... 243
Conclusions – Telstra knife .................................................................................................... 245
Ciara Glennon – circumstances of her disappearance ............................................................ 247
Denis Glennon – evidence summary .................................................................................. 247
Caitriona Una Glennon – evidence summary ..................................................................... 248
Neil Fearis – evidence summary ........................................................................................ 249
Abigail Davies (Webster) – evidence summary ................................................................. 250
Michael Young – evidence summary ................................................................................. 252
Martine O'Neill – evidence summary ................................................................................. 254
Monique O'Neill – evidence summary ............................................................................... 255
James Connor – evidence summary ................................................................................... 256
Jonathon Goyder – evidence summary............................................................................... 256
Margaret Rogers – evidence summary ............................................................................... 258
Patricia Mullan (McNeill) – evidence summary ................................................................ 259
Ann Kennerly – evidence summary ................................................................................... 261
Caroline Ellison – evidence summary ................................................................................ 262
Lynette Steenholdt – evidence summary ............................................................................ 263
Angela Rainbow – evidence summary ............................................................................... 264
Phetchara Mombao – evidence summary ........................................................................... 265
Troy Bond – evidence summary......................................................................................... 266
Brandon Gray – evidence summary ................................................................................... 268
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Craig Porritt – evidence summary ...................................................................................... 271

Susan Robinson (Hurst) – evidence summary.................................................................... 272
Lisa Mighall – evidence summary...................................................................................... 273
Ian Stanford – evidence summary ...................................................................................... 274
Karen Mabbott – evidence summary .................................................................................. 276
Conclusions – Ciara Glennon's movements and the car that took her ................................... 278
Ciara Glennon – finding of her body ...................................................................................... 284
Jason Atkinson – evidence summary ................................................................................. 284
Edward Besson – evidence summary ................................................................................. 285
Charles Carver – evidence summary .................................................................................. 286
Robert Hemelaar – evidence summary............................................................................... 287
Ciara Glennon – was her hair cut during an attack (RH17) ................................................... 287
Barry Mott – evidence summary ........................................................................................ 288
Aleksander Bagdonavicius – evidence summary ............................................................... 289
Conclusions – was Ciara Glennon's hair cut during an attack (RH17) .................................. 290
Ciara Glennon – post–mortem examination ........................................................................... 290
Karin Margolius – evidence summary................................................................................ 290
Clive Cooke – evidence summary ...................................................................................... 293
Alana Buck – evidence summary ....................................................................................... 297
Conclusions – time and cause of death of Ciara Glennon ...................................................... 297
Surveillance footage from Claremont..................................................................................... 300
Justin Geary – evidence summary ...................................................................................... 300
DNA evidence ........................................................................................................................ 306
What the prosecution relies on ........................................................................................... 306
Nature of the DNA evidence .............................................................................................. 307
Collection of the relevant DNA samples (AJM40 and 42) ................................................ 308
Adam McCulloch – evidence summary ......................................................................... 308
Robert Macdermid – evidence summary ........................................................................ 310
Michael Teraci – evidence summary .............................................................................. 312
History of AJM40 and AJM42 at PathWest ....................................................................... 313
Laurance Webb – evidence summary............................................................................. 314
Scott Egan – evidence summary..................................................................................... 316
Anna–Marie Ashley – evidence summary...................................................................... 318
Aleksander Bagdonavicius – evidence summary ........................................................... 322
Denise Downe – evidence summary .............................................................................. 323
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George Paton – evidence summary ................................................................................ 324

James Stanbury – evidence summary ............................................................................. 326
Renata Bardo – evidence summary ................................................................................ 327
Scott Payn – evidence summary ..................................................................................... 328
Lucy Lemanski – evidence summary ............................................................................. 329
Andrea Lea – evidence summary ................................................................................... 330
Samantha Underwood – evidence summary .................................................................. 332
Testing done at ESR ........................................................................................................... 333
Sally-Anne Harbison – evidence summary .................................................................... 333
Possible opportunities for contamination ........................................................................... 336
Possible sources of contamination – the kimono................................................................ 337
Collection, movement and testing of the KJG exhibits ...................................................... 338
Dianne Bickhoff – evidence summary ........................................................................... 339
Mark Emmett – evidence summary ................................................................................ 341
Amanda Barnard – evidence summary........................................................................... 342
Teresa Kurtis – evidence summary ................................................................................ 345
John Ashworth – evidence summary .............................................................................. 349
Betty Jo Francis (Thompson) – evidence summary ....................................................... 351
Martin Blooms – evidence summary .............................................................................. 355
Aleksander Bagdonavicius – evidence summary ........................................................... 357
Anna-Marie Ashley – evidence summary ...................................................................... 359
Laurance Webb – evidence summary............................................................................. 363
Anti–contamination measures ............................................................................................ 365
Quality issues at PathWest ................................................................................................. 371
Issue 1 – anal swab (AJM30) ......................................................................................... 372
Issue 2 – Rimmer HVS ................................................................................................... 373
Issue 3 – Glennon shaver (AW23) ................................................................................. 373
Issue 4 – earring (CJC11) ............................................................................................... 374
Issue 5 – Rimmer hair mass subsample (VA6892) ........................................................ 374
Issue 6 – vegetation (RH9) ............................................................................................. 375
Issue 7 – vegetation (RH22) ........................................................................................... 375
Issue 8 – knife ................................................................................................................. 376
Issue 9 – Rimmer fingernails (RH33 and RH34) ........................................................... 377
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Issue 10 – RH21 twig B.................................................................................................. 377

Other issues – DNA register ........................................................................................... 378
Other issues – matrix ...................................................................................................... 379
Other issues – ESR water control ................................................................................... 380
Cellmark and the possibility of other DNA ........................................................................ 382
Andrew McDonald – evidence summary ....................................................................... 382
2008 analysis of AJM40 and 42 ......................................................................................... 385
Carole Evans – evidence summary................................................................................. 385
Andrew Talbot – evidence summary .............................................................................. 387
Interpretation of the results ................................................................................................. 391
Jonathan Whitaker – evidence summary ........................................................................ 391
Susan Vintiner – evidence summary .............................................................................. 404
Mitochondrial DNA............................................................................................................ 408
Conclusions – DNA evidence................................................................................................. 409
Fibre evidence......................................................................................................................... 419
What the prosecution relies on ........................................................................................... 419
Nature of the fibre evidence ............................................................................................... 420
ChemCentre .................................................................................................................... 420
Fibre analysis .................................................................................................................. 421
Fibre transfer................................................................................................................... 421
Characteristics of fibres .................................................................................................. 422
Recovery of fibres .......................................................................................................... 424
ChemCentre processes .................................................................................................... 425
Fibre analysis at the ChemCentre ................................................................................... 428
ChemCentre fibre database ................................................................................................. 434
2014 ChemCentre report .................................................................................................... 438
KJG – collection and history of critical fibres .................................................................... 439
AJM2 – black shorts ....................................................................................................... 440
Jane Rimmer – collection and history of critical fibres ...................................................... 447
Rimmer hair mass ........................................................................................................... 447
Ciara Glennon – collection and history of critical fibres.................................................... 460
AJM33 – t-shirt............................................................................................................... 461
AJM54 – hair mass ......................................................................................................... 475
The billy bucket .............................................................................................................. 496
K1 pillbox ....................................................................................................................... 498
RH17 – lock of hair ........................................................................................................ 501
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1BPX-080 – collection and history of critical fibres .......................................................... 506

Possible sources – Telstra swatch and pants ...................................................................... 514
Rees Powell – evidence summary .................................................................................. 514
Liberty Wagner-Chavez – evidence summary ............................................................... 519
Nilani Randeni – evidence summary .............................................................................. 525
Michael Smith – evidence summary .............................................................................. 527
Kathy Kostas – evidence summary ................................................................................ 529
Ian Summerton – evidence summary ............................................................................. 531
Possible sources – 1BPX-080 ............................................................................................. 533
Collection and history of control fibres .......................................................................... 533
Rees Powell – evidence summary .................................................................................. 533
Craig Porritt – evidence summary .................................................................................. 537
Antonio Laino – evidence summary............................................................................... 540
Comparative analysis of the fibres ..................................................................................... 543
Exclusion of other sources .................................................................................................. 546
KJG ................................................................................................................................. 546
Ms Rimmer – home and vehicles ................................................................................... 546
Ms Rimmer – taxis ......................................................................................................... 547
Ms Glennon – home, work and vehicles ........................................................................ 549
Police uniforms ............................................................................................................... 551
State Mortuary ................................................................................................................ 553
The Continental Hotel .................................................................................................... 553
Other vehicles on the ChemCentre database .................................................................. 554
Interpretation of the results ................................................................................................. 555
Ray Palmer – evidence summary ................................................................................... 555
General conclusions – fibre evidence ..................................................................................... 576
Conclusions – fibre evidence of KJG ..................................................................................... 582
Conclusions – fibre evidence of Jane Rimmer ....................................................................... 583
Conclusions – fibre evidence of Ciara Glennon ..................................................................... 587
Conclusions – fibre evidence of 1BPX–080........................................................................... 589
Arrest of the accused and his police interview ....................................................................... 590
Alleged lies ......................................................................................................................... 598
Conclusions – alleged lies and denials ................................................................................... 598
Homicide pattern analysis evidence ....................................................................................... 600
Deborah Cunningham – evidence summary....................................................................... 600
Stephen Perejmibida – evidence summary ......................................................................... 601
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Peter Clements – evidence summary .................................................................................. 603

Conclusions – homicide pattern evidence .............................................................................. 604
Defence evidence .................................................................................................................... 606
Conclusions ............................................................................................................................ 606
Different courses of reasoning............................................................................................ 606
Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon – first course of reasoning ............................................. 608
Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon – second course of reasoning ........................................ 609
Did the accused kill Ciara Glennon .................................................................................... 611
Did he do so intentionally................................................................................................... 611
Did the accused kill Jane Rimmer ...................................................................................... 612
Did he do so intentionally................................................................................................... 612
Did the accused kill Sarah Spiers ....................................................................................... 613
Verdicts ................................................................................................................................... 619
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HALL J
HALL J:
Summary
1 This is a trial like no other. This is a trial like every other. Those
apparently irreconcilable statements are both true.
2 It is a trial like no other because of the combination of its length, its

size and the high degree of public interest. The events in question
occurred more than 20 years ago but have haunted the memory of many
people and troubled the public conscience. The disappearance and likely
murder of three young women was in itself enough to cause wide concern.
The fact that all three went missing from a popular nightlife area
frequented by many young people inspired a real and pervasive sense of
fear.
3 Whilst courts are almost always open to the public, this is often little
more than a platitude. In this case attendance during the trial was strong
and sustained. Further, publicity both before and during the trial was
significant. Multiple reporters from various media outlets attended every
day. Few trials have been so consistently reported or reported on in such
detail. Scarcely any witness passed through the court without being the
subject of comment. The axiom that justice must not only be done but be
seen to be done was never more apt.
4 Over many years enormous resources were dedicated to the
investigation of this matter. Vast quantities of evidence were obtained
and witnesses interviewed. That has resulted in an unusually lengthy and
detailed prosecution case. Prior to the trial there were 14 pre-trial
hearings over 19 sitting days. The prosecution brief consisted of
178 lever arch files in 44 boxes. The electronic version of the prosecution
brief occupied multiple terabytes of computer database space. There were
95 trial sitting days over seven months, 10,828 pages of transcript,
240 witnesses who were either called or had their evidence read and
2,879 exhibits.
5 But this is a case like every other because, despite the unusual
features I have referred to, the fundamental principles that apply to every
criminal trial apply equally to this one. The courts do not deliver different
standards of justice. Justice is dispensed without fear or favour, affection
or ill-will. The promise of equal justice before the law required that this
trial, like all criminal trials, be conducted with care to ensure fairness to
both the defence and the prosecution. The accused was presumed
innocent, the State bore the onus of proof and the standard of proof was
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HALL J
beyond reasonable doubt. Those principles are unqualified, immutable

and uniform in their application. I have not been distracted by the public
interest or publicity from the proper application of those principles.
6 Also, like every other criminal case, it involves the lives of real
people. Whatever interest others may have, a criminal trial is not a
performance put on for either their edification or entertainment. The
victims were real people who had families that loved them and who
deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. Also, as in every criminal
case, there is an accused person who stands charged with serious offences
and whose fate depends critically on the outcome of this trial. He, like
every other accused person, is entitled to a fair trial conducted according
to law.
7 The accused, Bradley Robert Edwards, is charged with wilfully

murdering Sarah Spiers, Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon. In order to be
guilty of such a charge it must be proven beyond reasonable doubt that the
accused killed the named person, that the killing was unlawful and that the
accused intended to cause death.
8 Sarah Spiers was last seen in Claremont in the early hours of the
morning of 27 January 1996. She was an 18 year old secretary. She has
never been seen again and there has been nothing to indicate that she is
still alive. Though her body has never been found, the only reasonable
conclusion is that she is dead.
9 Jane Rimmer was last seen in Claremont just after midnight on
9 June 1996. She was aged 23 years old and was employed as a childcare
worker. Her body was located in Wellard on 3 August 1996.
10 Ciara Glennon was last seen in Claremont just after midnight on

15 March 1997. She was aged 27 years old and was employed as a
solicitor. Her body was located in Eglinton on 3 April 1997.
11 I am satisfied that the evidence establishes that each of the victims
was abducted and killed. The real issue is the identity of the killer or
killers. In particular, the question in respect of each count is whether it
has been proven beyond reasonable doubt that the accused is the killer.
12 The evidence of identity is circumstantial evidence and, in particular,
forensic evidence relating to DNA and fibres. In order to prove the guilt
of the accused that evidence must be capable not only of supporting an
inference that the accused was the killer in each case, but also of
excluding any reasonable possibility that anyone other than the accused
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HALL J
could have been the killer. That evidence is strongest in respect of the
killing of Ciara Glennon. There is also some forensic evidence in respect
of the identity of the killer of Jane Rimmer. However, in the case of
Sarah Spiers there is no forensic evidence at all.
13 There are two suggested courses of reasoning in respect of each

charge. In respect of Ms Glennon and Ms Rimmer the first course of
reasoning is to determine whether similarities between their cases justify a
conclusion that they were killed by the same person and, if that conclusion
is reached, to then rely on evidence from both cases to determine the
identity of that killer. The second course of reasoning is to look at
Ms Glennon's case first and, if the identity of her killer is proven, to then
use that as propensity evidence in respect of the other charges. This
course of reasoning would then turn to the case of Ms Rimmer to
determine whether the evidence in that case, together with the propensity
evidence, establishes the identity of her killer.
14 In respect of Ms Spiers the first course of reasoning is to determine
whether similarities between her case and that of the other two justifies a
conclusion that they were killed by the same person and to then rely on
evidence from all three cases to determine the identity of that killer. The
second course of reasoning is to use proof of the other cases as propensity
evidence and to then consider whether that evidence, together with that
relating specifically to Ms Spiers, establishes the identity of her killer.
15 I have prepared detailed reasons for the conclusions I have reached.
This summary forms part of those reasons. The reasons will be published
and be available to anyone who wishes to read them. It is sufficient at this
point to state my conclusions.
16 In respect of Ms Glennon and Ms Rimmer I have reached the

following conclusions as to the first course of reasoning:
1. there are significant similarities between the circumstances of their
disappearances and deaths. Those similarities are that:
(a) both Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon were young women;
(b) both attended venues in the Claremont area to socialise

with friends and were last seen in that area before leaving
on their own;
(c) both went missing in the early hours of a weekend

morning;
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HALL J
(d) both went missing within a nine month period from June
1996 to March 1997;
(e) in both cases they were killed in a similar manner, that is

by a sharp-force injury to the neck;
(f) in both cases there were defensive wounds indicating that

they had sought to defend themselves from an attacker
armed with a sharp weapon;
(g) the bodies of both were deposited in semi-rural locations

on the outskirts of the Perth metropolitan area;
(h) the position of the bodies and the covering of them with
plant material from surrounding vegetation; and
(i) both had fibres on them that were consistent with them
having been in a VS Holden Commodore car that was
habitually used by a Telstra employee;
2. those similarities establish beyond reasonable doubt that the same
person killed both Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon;
3. the evidence as to the identity of the killer includes the DNA
evidence, the fibre evidence and the propensity evidence. Of these
the DNA evidence is critical to the prosecution case. I am
satisfied that the evidence establishes beyond reasonable doubt
that the DNA of the accused was under the nails of Ms Glennon's
left hand and that it got there in the course of a violent struggle
that occurred sometime shortly before her death;
4. the fibre evidence establishes that each of Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon were in a VS Holden Commodore car that was
habitually driven by a Telstra employee in the time shortly before
their deaths. I am also satisfied that the accused drove such a
vehicle at the relevant times;
5. the propensity evidence of the Karrakatta incident, which is the
only propensity incident that I have relied on for this purpose,
establishes that the accused had a tendency to violently attack and
abduct young women from the Claremont area;
6. having regard to the DNA evidence, the fibre evidence and the
propensity evidence I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that
the accused was the killer of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon; and
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HALL J
7. the circumstances of the abductions and the nature of the wounds

inflicted proves beyond reasonable doubt that the accused intended
to kill each of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon.
17 The second course of reasoning in respect of Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon leads to the same ultimate conclusions. Applying that course
of reasoning I draw the following conclusions:
1. that Ms Glennon was last seen in Claremont in the early hours of

15 March 1997;
2. when last seen she was in the vicinity of a white VS Holden

Commodore;
3. that Ms Glennon was killed by a person wielding a sharp
instrument and inflicting a fatal injury or injuries to the neck;
4. that it has been established beyond reasonable doubt that the DNA
of the accused was under the nails of Ms Glennon's left hand and
that it got there in the course of a violent struggle that occurred
sometime shortly before her death;
5. the fibre evidence establishes that Ms Glennon was in a
VS Holden Commodore car that was habitually driven by a Telstra
employee in the time shortly before her death. I am also satisfied
that the accused drove such a vehicle at the relevant time;
6. the propensity evidence of the Karrakatta incident, which is the
only propensity incident that I have relied on, establishes that the
accused had a tendency to violently attack and abduct young
women from the Claremont area;
the accused was the killer of Ms Glennon;
8. the circumstances of the abduction and the nature of the wounds

to kill Ms Glennon;
9. Ms Rimmer was last seen in Claremont in the early hours of

9 June 1996;
10. that Ms Rimmer was killed by a person wielding a sharp
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11. the fibre evidence establishes that Ms Rimmer was in a VS Holden

Commodore station wagon that was habitually driven by a Telstra
12. the propensity evidence of the Karrakatta incident establishes that

the accused had a tendency to violently attack and abduct young
women from the Claremont area. The additional propensity
evidence of the killing of Ms Glennon establishes that that
tendency developed to killing an abducted young woman using a
sharp instrument and disposing of her body in a semi-rural
location;
13. having regard to the fibre evidence and the propensity evidence,
including that relating to the killing of Ms Glennon, I am satisfied
beyond reasonable doubt that the accused was the killer of
Ms Rimmer; and
to kill Ms Rimmer.
18 Those findings lead me to conclude that the accused abducted

Ms Rimmer on the early morning of 9 June 1996 in Claremont. He used
his work vehicle, a VS Holden Commodore station wagon, to drive her
from the area. It is not possible to determine exactly how he managed to
get Ms Rimmer into the car. He then drove her to Wellard.
19 At some point a violent struggle ensued. Ms Rimmer was able to
scream but the accused had a knife or other sharp object, which he used to
attack her. She tried to fend off the attack and incurred a defensive injury
to her wrist. The accused then, with intent to kill, stabbed or slashed her
with the sharp instrument, causing one or more fatal injuries to her neck.
Given the screams it is likely that this struggle occurred at Wellard.
20 The accused removed Ms Rimmer's clothing and disposed of her

body in Wellard. He either took or concealed the clothes. He chose a
semi-rural location and put her body on the ground before covering her
with vegetation he gathered from the surrounding area. His intention in so
doing was to minimise the chances of her being found and his offence
being discovered.
21 The findings also lead me to conclude that the accused abducted
Ms Glennon on the early morning of 15 March 1997 in Claremont as she
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was walking home. He again used his work vehicle, a VS Holden

Commodore station wagon, to drive her from the area. It is not possible
to determine exactly how he managed to get Ms Glennon into the car.
22 At some point a violent struggle ensued in which Ms Glennon
scratched or clawed at the accused, thereby getting some of his DNA
under her nails. The accused had a knife or other sharp object, which he
used to attack her. Ms Glennon tried to fend off the attack and incurred a
defensive injury to her arm. The accused then, with intent to kill, stabbed
or slashed her with the sharp instrument, causing one or more fatal
injuries to her neck. Given the pattern of blood soaking on her clothes it
is likely that the fatal wound or wounds was inflicted at Eglinton.
23 The accused then disposed of the body of Ms Glennon in bushland at

Eglinton. He chose a semi-rural location and put her body on the ground
before covering her with vegetation he gathered or broke off from
surrounding trees and bushes. His intention in so doing was to minimise
the chances of her being found and his offence being discovered.
24 In respect of Ms Spiers I have reached the following conclusions as
to the first course of reasoning:
1. there are some similarities between the circumstances of

Ms Spiers' disappearance and death and that of Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon. Those similarities are:
(a) that Ms Spiers, Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon were all
young women;
(b) that all attended venues in the Claremont area to socialise
on their own;
(c) that all went missing in the early hours of a weekend

morning;
(d) that all went missing within a 14 month period, from

January 1996 to March 1997; and
(e) that they were all abducted and killed;
2. those similarities are of a more general nature and are far fewer
than those that exist as between Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon.
They do not allow a conclusion to be reached beyond reasonable
doubt that the person who killed Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon
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must necessarily be the same person as killed Ms Spiers. A

possibility or even probability in that regard is not enough to
support a conclusion beyond reasonable doubt; and
3. accordingly, on the first course of reasoning, evidence as to the
identity of the killer of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon cannot assist
in identifying the killer of Ms Spiers.
25 As regards the second course of reasoning in respect of Ms Spiers

I have reached the following conclusions:
1. Ms Spiers was last seen in Claremont in the early hours of

27 January 1996;
2. she must have been abducted and killed, but the circumstances in
which she was taken and how she died are unknown;
3. there are inconsistencies in the evidence of the Mosman Park

screams that prevent a conclusion that those screams were
Ms Spiers. However, even if they were they can only be explained
by her abductor luring her into the car and taking her to her
intended destination in a manner that is inconsistent with the
Karrakatta propensity evidence;
4. the evidence in regard to a car seen near a telephone box in

Mosman Park does not permit a conclusion to be drawn that it was
the source of the screams or that it was a car of the same make or
model as that driven by the accused at the time;
5. this leaves only the propensity evidence, being the Karrakatta

evidence and the evidence of the killings of Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon. The Karrakatta evidence establishes that the accused
had a tendency to violently attack and abduct young women from
the Claremont area. The killing of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon
establishes that the tendency developed to killing abducted young
women using a sharp instrument and disposing of the body in a
semi-rural location; and
6. the propensity evidence makes it more likely that the accused was
the killer of Ms Spiers but it cannot prove it beyond reasonable
doubt in the absence of any other evidence as to the identity of her
killer.
26 Based on those findings, the verdicts must be as follows:
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1. On count 6, the charge of wilful murder of Sarah Spiers:

not guilty.
2. On count 7, the charge of wilful murder of Jane Rimmer: guilty.

3. On count 8, the charge of wilful murder of Ciara Glennon: guilty.
Organisation of the reasons

27 These reasons are organised so as to deal with the issues in the
following order:
1. principles relating to trial by judge alone;
2. charges that were the subject of the trial;
3. pleas of guilty to counts 1 - 5;

4. terminology;
5. prosecution case;
6. defence case;
7. relevant legal principles applicable to this trial;
8. admissions made by the accused;
9. evidence – which is broken up into the following subject areas:

(a) background of the accused and his opportunity to commit
the alleged offences;
(b) employment of the accused, the vehicles he drove and the

uniforms he wore;
(c) Huntingdale, Hollywood Hospital and Karrakatta
propensity evidence;
(d) Telstra Living Witness Project propensity evidence;

(e) evidence relating to the disappearance of Sarah Spiers;
(f) evidence relating to the disappearance of Jane Rimmer and

the finding of her body;
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(g) evidence relating to the disappearance of Ciara Glennon

and the finding of her body;
(h) DNA evidence;

(i) fibre evidence; and
(j) other evidence (arrest and interview of the accused,

homicide pattern evidence and the defence evidence);
10. conclusions; and
11. verdicts.
Trial by judge alone

28 The State applied for an order under s 118 of the Criminal Procedure
Act 2004 (WA) that the trial of the charges be by judge alone without a
jury. The accused consented to that application. On 1 November 2018
Corboy J made the order sought by the State. That decision was made
having regard to four factors: the extent of pre-trial publicity; the likely
length of the trial; the graphic and disturbing nature of the evidence to be
adduced; and the technical or complex nature of expert evidence proposed
to be presented in the trial.
29 As regards publicity his Honour referred to a real risk that such

publicity had permeated the public consciousness in a way that could not
be adequately addressed by directions to a jury. It would be disingenuous
of me to suggest that as the trial judge I am unaware of the nature and
extent of such publicity. I am also aware of the risk that publicity can
have an unconscious effect on a person. However I have endeavoured to
minimise that risk by recognising it, making a conscious effort to only
have regard to the evidence and by ensuring that my reasoning is
comprehensively recorded in this written judgment.
30 The law and procedure to be applied in a trial by judge alone are

provided for by s 119 and s 120 of the Criminal Procedure Act. Those
sections provide as follows:
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119. Law and procedure to be applied
(1) In a trial by a judge alone, the judge must apply, so far as

is practicable, the same principles of law and procedure as
would be applied in a trial before a jury.
(2) In a trial by a judge alone, the judge may view a place or

thing.
(3) If any written or other law –
(a) requires information or a warning or instruction

to be given to the jury in certain circumstances; or
(b) prohibits a warning from being given to a jury in

certain circumstances,
the judge in a trial by a judge alone must take the

requirement or prohibition into account if those
circumstances arise in the course of the trial.
120. Judge's verdict and judgment
(1) In a trial by a judge alone –
(a) the judge may make any findings and give any
verdict that a jury could have made or given if the
trial had been before a jury; and
(b) any finding or verdict of the judge has, for all

purposes, the same effect as a finding or verdict
of a jury.
(2) The judgment of the judge in a trial by a judge alone must

include the principles of law that he or she has applied and
the findings of fact on which he or she has relied.
(3) The validity of a trial judge's judgment is not affected by a

failure to comply with subsection (2).
31 I recognise that a judge sitting alone does not have the advantage that
a jury has in being able to engage in a group discussion. The ability of a
jury to engage in a free exchange of views and the discipline of having to
formulate, articulate and defend propositions in a such an environment
can assist to clarify thinking. On the other hand, unlike a jury, a judge
sitting alone can engage with counsel, test submissions and ask questions
as to how issues raised by the evidence can be resolved.
32 Juries bring a collective wisdom and experience to the resolution of

cases, but judges are in the business of making decisions and often have to
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do so in the context of a complex body of evidence. Trial judges have

consistent and continuous experience of fact-finding and of making
decisions that demand an objective and dispassionate mind. A judge will
often be required to put to one side inadmissible evidence (of which he or
she is cognisant) in assessing credibility or deciding other disputed issues.
Another example is having regard to an item of evidence for one purpose
and yet disregarding it in relation to another contentious issue within the
same case. The experience gained by a trial judge over time in relation to
a wide range of fact‑finding methods can be a peculiar advantage.
Charges
33 The indictment in this matter contains eight charges. Those charges
are as follows:
(1) On 15 February 1988 at Huntingdale Bradley Robert Edwards
broke and entered the dwelling-house of [EH], with intent to
commit an offence therein
And that the offence was committed in the night.
(2) On the same date and at the same place as in Count (1), Bradley
Robert Edwards unlawfully deprived [AH] of her personal liberty.
(3) On 12 February 1995 at Claremont and elsewhere Bradley Robert

Edwards unlawfully detained [KJG].
(4) On the same date as in Count (3) at Karrakatta Bradley Robert

Edwards sexually penetrated [KJG] without her consent, by
penetrating her vagina with his penis
And that Bradley Robert Edwards did bodily harm to [KJG]
And that Bradley Robert Edwards did an act which was likely to
seriously and substantially degrade or humiliate [KJG].
(5) On the same date and at the same place as in Count (4) Bradley
Robert Edwards sexually penetrated [KJG] without her consent, by
penetrating her anus with his penis
And that Bradley Robert Edwards did bodily harm to [KJG]
And that Bradley Robert Edwards did an act which was likely to
seriously and substantially degrade or humiliate [KJG].
(6) On or about 27 January 1996 at Claremont and elsewhere Bradley

Robert Edwards wilfully murdered Sarah Ellen Spiers.
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(7) On or about 9 June 1996 at Claremont and elsewhere Bradley

Robert Edwards wilfully murdered Jane Louise Rimmer.
(8) On or about 15 March 1997 at Claremont and elsewhere Bradley

Robert Edwards wilfully murdered Ciara Eilish Glennon.
34 On 21 October 2019 the accused entered pleas of guilty to the first

five counts. Those counts will be referred to in more detail later in these
reasons. The trial only concerned counts 6 - 8.
Pleas to counts 1 - 5
35 As mentioned, on 21 October 2019 the accused entered pleas of
guilty to counts 1 - 5 on the indictment. Counts 1 and 2 relate to offences
that occurred in Huntingdale on 15 February 1988. Counts 3 - 5 relate to
offences that occurred in Karrakatta on 12 February 1995. On the making
of those pleas convictions were recorded and sentencing in respect of
those offences was deferred until the completion of the trial.
36 The making of the pleas relieved the prosecution of any obligation to

prove those offences, however the conduct that constituted the offences
was relied on as propensity evidence. I had previously ruled that this
evidence was admissible as propensity evidence. There was an issue as to
what facts were admitted regarding these offences and what facts needed
to be formally proved by the prosecution. The defence declined to agree a
statement of facts. In the end it was accepted that the pleas could be taken
as proving only the essential elements of the offences and that, in the
absence of specific admissions, it was necessary for the prosecution to
adduce evidence to prove other facts relating to those offences.
Terminology
37 In these reasons I have referred to a large number of police officers
and described the work they did some time ago. Some of those officers
are still members of WA Police; others have moved on to different roles.
For the most part when giving an account of evidence that they gave at the
trial I have referred to them by their current title. However, when giving
an account of things that were done at the time I have generally referred to
these witnesses by the title that they held at the relevant time, particularly
when they are referred to by another witness.
38 WA Police has had various names since 1988. Throughout these

reasons I refer to the organisation as WA Police regardless of what
official name that organisation may have had at any particular time.
Similarly, both the ChemCentre and PathWest have had a number of
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name changes. For simplicity I have referred to both organisations by

their current names in these reasons.
39 The use of some acronyms has been unavoidable. In the section of

the reasons dealing with DNA I have used an acronym to describe the UK
organisation Forensic Science Service (FSS) and the Institute of
Environmental Science and Research (ESR), which is located in New
Zealand. I have adopted acronyms used by police and scientists who gave
evidence: LCN for Low Copy Number testing and PCR for polymerase
chain reaction. Likewise in the section on fibres I have used MSP for
microspectrophotometry and UV for ultraviolet. The acronym PPE for
personal protective equipment was also used by a number of witnesses; it
is a term that is now widely used and I have adopted it.
40 I have also used some acronyms commonly used by WA Police,

including DECU for the exhibit storage office at the old police
headquarters on Adelaide Terrace, known as the DNA and Exhibits
Coordination Unit, EMU for the Exhibit Management Unit, which the
exhibit storage location at the WA Police Midland facility and SME for
security movement envelopes. I have used PTS when referring to the
police property tracing system.
41 I have also used some terms particular to these matters, including
Operation Macro or Macro Task Force, the name given to the police
investigation into the disappearance and suspected murders of Ms Spiers,
Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. That investigation expanded in scope to
incorporate other related matters and, to the extent it is relevant, such
changes may be referred to in the reasons. The terms the Wellard scene
and the Eglinton scene are used to describe the locations where,
respectively, the bodies of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon were located.
42 There are suppression orders in place in respect of the identities of

some of the witnesses. Where applicable I have used initials to refer to
those witnesses. The suppression orders have been made available to
representatives of the media to avoid any breaches.
Prosecution case
43 The prosecution case is that the similarity of the circumstances
relating to the disappearance of the three victims, Sarah Spiers,
Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon, establishes that they were killed by the
same person.1
1
ts 966.
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44 The State says that the killer preyed upon the fact that many young
people enjoyed going out in Claremont to have a night out and a few
drinks in the company of their friends. The fact that three young women
disappeared from the streets of Claremont created what was described as
an enigma of the dark. That is to say that there was a mystery as to who
had taken the three victims. The State's case is that there is one killer and
that that killer is the accused.2
45 The manner and place of disposal of the bodies of Jane Rimmer and
Ciara Glennon is said to be consistent with the killer's intention that they
would never be found. The finding of those bodies has enabled forensic
connections to the accused to be discovered. The fact that the body of
Sarah Spiers has never been found creates an absence of forensic
connection to her killer but that, according to the State, simply means that
her killer's identity must be proven in other ways.3
46 The State's case is that Sarah Spiers was abducted and killed after
spending a night out in Claremont on the night of Australia Day
26 January 1996. Ms Spiers called a taxi at 2.06 am on 27 January 1996
and said that her destination was Mosman Park. A taxi was despatched to
pick her up but by the time the taxi arrived she was no longer at that
location. A short time later a series of screams were heard in the Mosman
Park area. Two of the witnesses who heard the screams observed a
light-coloured station wagon parked near a telephone box.4
47 Ms Spiers has not been heard of or seen since that time. She has
made no contact with her friends, family or acquaintances. There has
been no access to her bank accounts and she has not been recorded as
having left the country. The State's case is that the only reasonable
inference is that Ms Spiers is deceased and that she was killed in the early
morning of 27 January 1996.5
48 Jane Rimmer went out with friends on the evening of 8 June 1996.
Towards the end of the evening, at around 11.53 pm, she was waiting with
her friends to get a taxi home. Whilst waiting Ms Rimmer left the group
to go for a walk and was absent when one of her friends managed to flag
down a taxi. Her friends directed the taxi to drive down Bay View
Terrace in Claremont and to stop near where Ms Rimmer was standing.
Her friends enquired whether she wished to leave with them, however she
2
ts 828.
3
ts 827 - 8.
4
ts 829 - 32.
5
ts 834.
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declined. The last sighting of Ms Rimmer was soon after. Her

whereabouts and location remained a mystery until her body was
discovered on 3 August 1996 at Wellard. Screams had been heard in that
area on the early morning of 9 June 1996.6
49 The prosecution case is that Ms Rimmer was murdered by the

accused and her body disposed of in Wellard. A Telstra issued knife was
found on a nearby road. The prosecution alleges that fibres found in
Ms Rimmer's hair correspond to fibres from a vehicle of the type being
driven by the accused at that time and that other fibres correspond to
fibres from Telstra uniforms such as those worn by the accused at the
relevant time. The prosecution say that the post-mortem examination
supports an inference that Ms Rimmer was killed by a cutting of the neck
and that she attempted to defend herself, thereby receiving a defensive
injury to a forearm.7
50 Ciara Glennon went out for drinks in Claremont with some work
colleagues on the evening of 14 March 1997. Ms Glennon left The
Continental Hotel on foot and alone shortly before midnight with the
intention of returning home. She was seen walking down Bay View
Terrace and then along Stirling Highway. Some witnesses report seeing a
woman fitting her description in close proximity to a white VS Holden
Commodore station wagon. The prosecution case is that that car was
being driven by the accused and that Ms Glennon accepted a lift or was
abducted by him in a 'blitz attack'.8
51 The State says that in the early hours of the morning of 15 March
1997 Ms Glennon was killed and her body disposed of in bushland near
Pipidinny Road in Eglinton. The prosecution case is that Ms Glennon's
body was found in a similar location, and concealed in a strikingly similar
manner, to that of Ms Rimmer. In both cases the bodies were disposed of
in bushland and had been covered with branches and vegetation
apparently torn from nearby trees and shrubs. In the case of Ms Glennon
measurements were taken of the height of some of the trees from which
branches had been torn. Some were up to 2 m from the ground, which the
prosecution say indicates that the individual who did this must have been
a fairly tall person. The State's case is that the post-mortem examination
supports a conclusion that Ms Glennon was killed by a cutting wound to
6
ts 838, 840 - 1.
7
ts 842, 844, 849 - 51, 949, 962.
8
ts 853 - 5, 857, 862, 950.
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the neck and that she also incurred defensive wounds to a forearm, like
Ms Rimmer.9
52 The prosecution relies upon DNA extracted from the fingernails of

Ms Glennon. A mixed sample was analysed and found to include DNA
that is consistent with that of the accused to a high degree of probability.
They also rely on fibres found in Ms Glennon's hair and t-shirt, which
correspond to those from a car of the type driven by the accused at the
relevant time and Telstra uniforms worn by him at that time.10
53 The State's case also relies on propensity evidence. It is the State's

case that on 15 February 1988 the accused man broke into a house in
Huntingdale in the middle of the night. He there attacked a young woman
in her bed whilst she was sleeping. He attempted to stuff a stocking into
her mouth. When he fled he left behind a silk kimono which had DNA on
it. That kimono was seized and held in police storage for the next
18 years. The accused's conduct in respect of the Huntingdale offences is
said to demonstrate a propensity on his part to attack vulnerable women
who are effectively strangers to him, from behind and without warning,
using force to physically restrain them and using some type of fabric or
material in or over their mouths to stifle sound. It is also said that the
accused's conduct in the Huntingdale offences is demonstrative of
offending that was calculated, methodical and predatory. The State says
that these offences were sexually motivated and showed a preparedness
on the part of the accused to commit brazen offences to satisfy his own
desires. The State also says that the fact that the accused was at the time
of these offences living with his parents and working full time undermines
any suggestion that he could not or would not offend or could not do so
undetected if he was living with another or others or working full time
hours.11
54 The State also relies on an offence committed on 7 May 1990 at
Hollywood Hospital. On this occasion the accused attacked a woman
unknown to him without warning and unprovoked. He grabbed her from
behind, forced a piece of cloth or fabric over her mouth and dragged her
backwards towards a toilet cubicle. She struggled, fought him off and
broke free. The accused was apprehended at the time and pleaded guilty
to a charge of common assault. The State says that his conduct in this
regard again demonstrates a propensity on his part to attack vulnerable
women who are effectively strangers to him, from behind and without
9
ts 865, 871 - 3, 962.
10
ts 888, 898, 932 - 4, 951.
11
ts 915, 945.
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warning, using force to physically restrain them and using some type of
fabric or material in or over their mouths to stifle sound.12
55 The State also relies on the offending conduct known as the

Karrakatta offences. On 12 February 1995 the State alleges that the
accused drove a Telstra van to Rowe Park in Claremont in the early hours
of the morning. He there waited in darkness, prepared and ready to
attack, subdue, abduct and sexually assault a female stranger. The
17-year-old victim was walking alone and intoxicated through the park
when the accused attacked her. He grabbed her from behind without
warning and forced her to the ground. He tied her wrists together behind
her back using cord he had brought with him which the State says was
already knotted into improvised handcuffs. He forced cloth or fabric into
her mouth. He then carried her to the van he was using and put her in the
back. He bound her feet and put a hood over her head. He drove her to
an isolated part of Karrakatta Cemetery where he twice sexually
penetrated her with force sufficient to cause her injuries. He dropped her
into some bushes and returned to his car. The State alleges that the
accused left his semen in the victim. The accused has admitted
committing these offences by his pleas of guilty to counts 3, 4 and 5. The
State says that this conduct demonstrates a propensity on the part of the
accused to attack vulnerable women who are strangers to him from behind
and without warning using force to physically restrain them and using
some type of fabric or material in and over their mouths to stifle sound.13
56 The State's case is that the accused possesses or possessed such a

tendency and that this is borne out by each of the sets of offences alone.
That is, the Huntingdale offences, the Hollywood Hospital offence and the
Karrakatta offences are each in themselves said to establish this tendency.
However when viewed collectively it is said that the propensity is
irrefutably established. Further the accused's repeated exhibition of that
tendency in 1988, 1990 and 1995 establishes that the tendency was
entrenched and long-standing. Further the State says that the accused's
conduct in the Karrakatta offences demonstrates a more particular
tendency; that is, a tendency to violently attack and abduct vulnerable
women leaving the Claremont nightlife precinct in the early hours of a
weekend morning.14
57 The State also relies on a series of incidents that is referred to as the

'Telstra Living Witness Project'. The State's case in this regard is that the
12
ts 945 - 6.
13
ts 946.
14
ts 946.
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accused, at some point during the mid-1990s, started driving around

Claremont and Cottesloe after dark offering lifts to young women who
were seemingly alone. Some of those women accepted the lift and arrived
safely at their destination. Others declined the lift or accepted it together
with a friend. Three others, the State says, never made it to their intended
destination and became the victims of the alleged murders.15
58 The State's case is that the accused drove around the periphery of the
Claremont nightlife area in a Telstra vehicle likely wearing his Telstra
uniform picking off potential victims. It is said that this conduct both
created and presented opportunities for the accused to find and select his
victims even though the method by which Ms Spiers, Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon were abducted is unknown. The State says this does not
detract from the probative force of the propensity evidence because the
accused exhibited this tendency in circumstances very similar to the
circumstances in which Ms Spiers, Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon were
abducted and also to the circumstances in which the victim of the
Karrakatta offences was abducted. The common underlying features
between the Karrakatta offences and the Claremont murders are said to
be:16
1. that each victim was taken suddenly from the periphery of the
Claremont nightlife precinct having just left that precinct;
2. each was attacked within a 25 month period;

3. each was attacked in the early hours of the morning on a Saturday
or Sunday;
4. each was attacked during or close to the period that a male driver
in a Telecom or Telstra vehicle had been seen driving in or around
the Claremont area offering lifts to women who were seemingly
on their own;
5. each victim was aged between 17 and 27 years of age and was of a
small build and fair complexion;
6. each victim was vulnerable in that they were alone, on foot and
affected by alcohol; and
7. each of the four victims was driven away from the area.
15
ts 947.
16
ts 947, 952.
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59 The State also says that the Karrakatta offences show that the
accused had the skills and ability to be able to subdue, restrain, bind, hood
and gag a victim, carry her to and conceal her in his car without the victim
being able to scream out, raise an alarm or defend herself. The accused's
demonstrated ability to do this is said to support the State's contention that
he had the requisite skill and ability to subdue and abduct Ms Spiers,
Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon.17
60 The State also says that the accused's commission of the Karrakatta
offences shows that he was able to commit this offence undetected whilst
living with his first wife and whilst maintaining full time employment.
This is said to undermine any suggestion that the accused would not or
was incapable of committing the Claremont murders undetected because
of work or family commitments.18
61 The State also relies on the Huntingdale and Karrakatta offences to

show that the accused repeatedly lied during his electronically recorded
interview with police on 22 December 2016. In particular by denying
knowledge of his involvement in relation to the Huntingdale and
Karrakatta offences and claiming to have no idea where Rowe Park was
(being the park from which the Karrakatta victim was abducted). He also
claimed to have never been to the Karrakatta Cemetery at night or the
early hours of the morning and distanced himself from this area by
claiming that he had only been to the cemetery from about 2008
onwards.19
62 The State also relies on answers given by the accused during the
interview in which he denied familiarity with the Claremont area and
stated that he had only attended that area from about 2009 onwards. This
particular statement was initially relied on as being a lie that evidences
consciousness of guilt. That is, a lie which the accused told because he
feared that the truth would implicate him in the offences alleged. This
was the only lie which the prosecution relied on for this purpose.
However, that position was abandoned at the conclusion of the trial.
Nonetheless the prosecution continue to rely on this and other lies for the
purposes of credibility. That is, lies that can be used in assessing whether
the denials of responsibility given and claims of innocence made by the
17
ts 953.
18
ts 953.
19
ts 954.
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[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
accused in the interview should be accepted or give cause to doubt his

guilt.20
63 The State says the propensity evidence enhances the weight to be

attached to the fibre evidence and the DNA evidence. The propensity
evidence undermines the plausibility of any innocent explanation for that
other evidence. It is also said to bolster the integrity of the DNA evidence
by making any possible suggestion of contamination or an adventitious
match unlikely.21
64 The State's case as opened also relied on evidence of motive. It was

suggested that the evidence was capable of supporting an inference that
when the accused experienced emotional turmoil in his life he was
motivated to attack women who were strangers to him. There was said to
be evidence that the accused was in a state of emotional upset at a time
proximate to each of counts 6, 7 and 8. However, at the conclusion of the
State's case the prosecutor accepted that the evidence was incapable of
establishing this motive and this aspect of the prosecution case was
abandoned.22
65 In regard to the Telstra Living Witness Project evidence the State's

case is that the five23 incidents relied upon involved a lone male driver
who was the accused. In order to prove this aspect of the case the State
relies upon the following:24
1. the description of the lone male driver as being broadly consistent
with that of the accused man at the time;
2. the identification of the vehicle as being a Telstra vehicle, or the
association of the vehicle with that particular type of work, in
circumstances where the accused man worked for Telstra and had
access to a range of Telstra vehicles;
3. that on the last three occasions the vehicles as described were

consistent with the vehicle the accused man was allocated for
work and private use at that time, being a 1996 VS Holden
Commodore station wagon;
20
ts 954 - 5, 10219 - 20.
21
ts 955 - 6.
22
ts 957, 9859.
23
In closing submissions, the State relied on only four of these incidents; ts 10157.
24
ts 959.
Page 33
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
4. that in respect to one incident the place where the pick-up

occurred is the same location from which the victim of the
Karrakatta offences was abducted in February 1995;
5. that during his interview with police the accused admitted that he
would frequent the Ocean Beach Hotel in Cottesloe in the late
1980s and this association and interest in this particular area is
relevant to the three of the incidents; and
6. the evidence pertaining to the Karrakatta offences, which the State

says demonstrates that the accused man was driving a Telstra
vehicle in the early hours of the morning around the Claremont
area on that occasion waiting for an opportunity to arise so that he
could offend.
66 The State says that if it is established that the accused was the driver
on one, some or all of the instances relied upon by the State that this
evidence is relevant in two ways; first as propensity evidence and second
as circumstantial evidence.25 In respect of the first basis the State
contends that the evidence demonstrates a tendency that the accused had
to drive around the Claremont and Cottesloe area in his Telstra vehicle in
the lead up to, and during, the alleged offending period, offer lifts to
women who were seemingly alone and vulnerable and to drive them away
from the area. This evidence when considered in combination with other
evidence to be adduced at trial is said to significantly increase the
likelihood that the accused man was the assailant in the Claremont
murders in that it:26
1. renders it more probable that the accused was the person who
drove each of Ms Spiers, Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon from the
Claremont area and that he did so in his work vehicle;
2. enhances the veracity of the automotive fibre evidence and the

proposition that the fibres came from the accused's work vehicle;
3. enhances the veracity of the Telstra clothing fibre evidence and the
proposition that the fibres came from Telstra pants and in
particular the accused's Telstra pants;
4. bolsters the integrity of the fingernail DNA evidence as well as
rebutting any suggestion of contamination and any suggestion of
any adventitious DNA profile match;
25
ts 959.
26
ts 959 - 60.
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[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
5. undermines the plausibility of any innocent explanation advanced

by the accused regarding how the relevant fibres came to be in
Ms Rimmer's hair, Ms Glennon's hair and on Ms Glennon's t-shirt;
and
6. undermines the plausibility of any innocent explanation advanced

by the accused regarding how the accused's DNA came to be on,
under or about Ms Glennon's fingernails.
67 As to the second basis on which the State says that the Telstra Living
Witness Project evidence is admissible, it is said to be a piece of
circumstantial evidence going to proof of the identity of the offender as
regards opportunity to commit the offences and the means by which the
accused was able to get the victims into the car. It is said to provide an
explanation as to why and how the victims may have been more willing to
get into his vehicle voluntarily and why the accused would be less likely
to draw attention to himself if he was in a work vehicle. It is also said to
demonstrate that the accused operated on the periphery of the Claremont
nightlife area and explains why he may not be captured on CCTV footage
which was primarily recording in the heart of that precinct. In short, the
Telstra Living Witness Project evidence combined with the Karrakatta
offences assists by explaining how the three murdered women came into
contact with the accused man, how the accused man was able to lure them
into his vehicle and how he was able to attack and subdue them
efficiently.27
68 The State says that the principal fact in issue in respect of each of
counts 6, 7 and 8 is the identity of the assailant. The State suggests that
the case should be approached by first considering counts 7 and 8. There
are said to be two possible courses of reasoning to concluding that the
accused was the assailant on these counts. The first of those courses
necessitates a conclusion based on the factual and circumstantial
similarities that they were both committed by the same person. Upon
reaching that conclusion evidence in respect of either of those offences
could be used to establish identity.28
69 The second course of reasoning involves considering the evidence as
to one of those two counts in isolation and determining if the offence is
proved beyond reasonable doubt. If so satisfied evidence of that offence
can be used as propensity evidence in determining the identity of the
assailant on the other count. The State says that both courses of reasoning
27
ts 960.
28
ts 961.
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[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
are open on this case and both will lead to the same conclusion; that is,
that the accused is the assailant on both counts 7 and 8.29
70 As to the first course of reasoning the State says that there are a
number of striking similarities between the facts and circumstances of
counts 7 and 8, in particular:30
1. the geographical proximity: Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon had

both been participating in nightlife activities in the Claremont
precinct on the nights they disappeared. They were both last seen
on the periphery of that precinct. Jane Rimmer was socialising
with friends at The Continental Hotel on the night of Saturday
8 June 1996 and the last confirmed sighting of her was at about
12.04 am on 9 June as she stood outside The Continental Hotel in
Bay View Terrace. Ciara Glennon was socialising with friends at
The Continental Hotel on the night of Friday 14 March 1997 and
the last sighting of her was at about 12.20 am on Saturday
15 March 1997 as she stood on the southern side of Stirling
Highway apparently talking to someone in a vehicle;
2. the relatively close temporal proximity: the offences occurred

nine months apart;
3. the time and day of the week: both victims were last seen alive in
the early hours of the morning on a day of a weekend;
4. the age and appearance of the victims: the victims were of a
similar age and appearance. They were aged 23 and 27 years.
They were both of small build and fair complexion with blonde
hair;
5. the vulnerability of the victims: each of the victims had consumed

alcohol in the hours before they disappeared and when last seen
each of them was either standing or walking alone in or near the
Claremont nightlife precinct seemingly making their way home
and looking for or waiting for transportation away from the
precinct;
6. the manner of death: although the bodies of Ms Rimmer and

Ms Glennon were in a decomposed state when found, both women
had defects to their necks consistent with having had neck injuries
inflicted on them, that is, having had their throats cut;
29
ts 961.
30
ts 961 - 3.
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[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
7. other injuries: each of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon had injuries

to a forearm which were consistent with having been inflicted by a
blade or sharp edged instrument. The State says that an inference
can be drawn from the location of those injuries that they were
defensive wounds sustained during the commission of these
offences;
8. the timing of death and disposal of the bodies: Ms Rimmer and

Ms Glennon were each murdered and their bodies disposed of
within hours after their disappearance from Claremont;
9. the manner of the disposal of the bodies: the bodies of both
victims were disposed of in a strikingly similar manner. Each was
placed on the ground in bushland and covered by branches torn
from nearby trees;
10. the location of the disposal sites: the disposal sites of the bodies
of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon are approximately the same
distance from Claremont; the former south of Claremont and the
latter north of Claremont. At those sites the remains of the victims
were found a short distance from a dirt track which itself was only
accessible via a gravel road;
11. the connection to a 1996 VS Holden Commodore: fibres present

in the hair of Jane Rimmer and fibres present in the hair of Ciara
Glennon have been identified as coming from a 1996 VS series I
Holden Commodore or the equivalent Toyota Lexcen.
Additionally Ciara Glennon was last seen talking to someone in a
car described as a white late model VS Holden Commodore
station wagon. Telstra records indicate that the accused was
allocated such a vehicle for work and private use at the time Jane
Rimmer was last seen and at the time Ciara Glennon was last seen;
and
12. the connection to Telstra technician clothing: a fibre present in the

hair of Jane Rimmer and fibres present in the hair and on the shirt
of Ciara Glennon have been identified as having come from pants
or shorts manufactured for Telstra and issued to its technicians,
including the accused, from mid-1993.
71 The State says that there is an inescapable inference, given the

circumstantial evidence referred to, that Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon
were abducted and murdered by the same person. If so, evidence in
respect of either of those two offences can be used to establish the identity
Page 37
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
of that person. The evidence as to identity relied upon by the State is as

follows:31
1. the fingernail DNA evidence;

2. the automotive fibres in both Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon's
hair;
3. the Telstra clothing fibres in both Jane Rimmer and Ciara

Glennon's hair, on Ciara Glennon's shirt, on KJG's shorts and in
the vehicle used by the accused when it was discovered 22 years
later;
4. evidence that the accused had been issued with relevant items of
blue clothing prior to the Karrakatta offences;
5. that Ms Glennon was seen talking to someone in a car matching

the description of the accused's Telstra car at the time (being the
make and model of car from which the automotive fibres came);
6. the accused's propensity to attack and abduct young women
leaving the Claremont nightlife area as established by the
commission of the Karrakatta offences;
7. the accused's propensity to violently attack women not known to

him in a particular manner as established by his commission of the
Huntingdale, Hollywood and Karrakatta offences;
8. the Telstra knife found near where Jane Rimmer's body was left;
and
9. the accused's conduct in the Telstra Living Witness Project

evidence.
72 As to the second course of reasoning the State suggests that the

approach should be to first consider the evidence as to identity in count 8
in isolation. The State says that the evidence in relation to that count is
capable of proving beyond reasonable doubt that the accused was the
person who murdered Ms Glennon. The evidence relied upon in this
regard is as follows:32
1. the fingernail DNA evidence;
31
ts 963 - 4.
32
ts 964.
Page 38
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
2. the automotive fibres in Ciara Glennon's hair;
3. the Telstra clothing fibres in Ciara Glennon's hair and on her shirt;
4. evidence that the accused had been issued with relevant items of
clothing prior to the Karrakatta offences;
5. that Ms Glennon was seen talking to someone in a car matching

the description of the accused's Telstra car at the time;

leaving the Claremont nightlife area as established by the
accused's commission of the Karrakatta offences;

him in a particular manner as established by his commission of the
Huntingdale, Hollywood and Karrakatta offences; and

evidence.
73 The State says that if it is proved beyond reasonable doubt that the
accused committed count 8 then the evidence of that offence can be used
as propensity evidence in considering whether the accused committed
count 7. In this regard the evidence as to identity in respect of count 7
would be:33
1. the automotive fibres found in Jane Rimmer's hair;

2. the Telstra clothing fibre found in Jane Rimmer's hair;
3. identical fibres being present in the accused's vehicle when it was

examined in early 2017;
4. the Telstra knife found on Woolcoot Road;
5. the propensity evidence derived from count 8 including all of the

similar facts and circumstances between counts 7 and 8;
leaving the Claremont nightlife areas established by the Karrakatta
offences;
33
ts 965.
Page 39
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J

him in a particular manner, as established by his commission of
the Huntingdale, Hollywood and Karrakatta offences; and
evidence.
74 As to count 6, the State accepts that there is no forensic evidence as

to identity in respect of the killer of Ms Spiers. However it is said that
there is some other evidence as to identity in respect of count 6 which
means that there is again two possible courses of reasoning to determine
the identity of the assailant on this count. The first course of reasoning
relies on a conclusion that, due to the factual and circumstantial
similarities of the three offences, they were all committed by the same
person. If that conclusion is reached then evidence in respect of any of
the three offences can be used to establish identity. The State says that the
following evidence supports a conclusion that the same person abducted
and murdered Sarah Spiers as the other two victims:34
1. the geographical proximity;
2. the close temporal proximity: all three offences occurred in a

14 month period;
3. the time of day and week: all three victims were last seen alive in
the early hours of a morning on a Saturday or Sunday;
4. the age and appearance of the victims: all three victims were of
small build, a fair complexion and blonde hair and were aged
between 18 and 27 years; and
5. the vulnerability of the victims: each of the victims consumed

alcohol in the hours before they disappeared and when last seen
each of them was standing or walking alone in or near the
Claremont nightlife precinct seemingly making their way home.
75 The State also asserts that during the period 1 January 1994 to
31 December 1997 only three women went missing from the Claremont
area, being the three victims. This fact in combination with the strikingly
similar facts and circumstances of their disappearance is said to compel a
conclusion that the assailant on each occasion was the same person.
34
ts 965 - 6.
Page 40
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
However, this aspect of the prosecution case relied on homicide pattern

evidence and was effectively abandoned at the end of the trial.35
76 The evidence that is said to compel the conclusion that the person
who committed count 6 is the accused, is as follows:36
1. all of the evidence previously referred to in respect of counts 7 and

8;
2. the description of the car seen in Mosman Park at the time of the
screaming incident, which is consistent with the accused's Telstra
car at the time; and
3. the Telstra Living Witness Project evidence.

77 The second course of reasoning in respect of count 6 involves
considering the evidence as to one of the other two counts, either count 7
or 8, in isolation and determining if it is proved beyond reasonable doubt
that the accused was the assailant in that count, then using that as
propensity evidence. The State concedes that although there is some
evidence as to identity on count 6 it is not strong in isolation. The State
submits that it is open to consider the evidence as to either count 7 or
count 8 in isolation or in combination with each other (if satisfied that one
offender committed those two offences) and determine beyond reasonable
doubt that the offender was the accused in respect of count 7 or 8 or both.
If so satisfied it is said that the evidence of either count 7 or 8 or both
could then be used as propensity evidence to determine the identity of the
assailant in count 6. That propensity evidence could then be considered in
conjunction with the other evidence that goes to identity on count 6 to
determine if that count is proven to the requisite standard. If that line of
reasoning is followed the identity evidence previously referred to would
be relied upon and to it would be added the propensity evidence of counts
7 or 8 or both. It is said that as propensity evidence the evidence of
counts 7 or 8 or both is very strong given the underlying similarities in
facts and circumstances between the three offences.37
Defence case
78 Senior counsel for the accused said that the defence to the charges is
simple – it was not him. It is not suggested that any of the deaths was
35
ts 966 - 8, 10239.
36
ts 969.
37
ts 969 - 70.
Page 41
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
other than an unlawful killing. The real issue is the identity of the
offender.38
79 The defence notes that the State relies on evidence that can be
divided into four categories: DNA evidence, fibre evidence, propensity
evidence and other evidence. In relation to DNA evidence the defence
says that the ultimate questions are:39
1. whether the only conclusion that can be drawn is that the DNA
found on the analysis of AJM40 and 42 (the fingernail DNA) was
the DNA of the accused; and
2. whether that DNA got there during a struggle between

Ms Glennon and the accused that ended with her death.
80 The defence suggests that the second question is an indispensable

step in proof of the State's case and that if that step cannot be taken the
accused cannot be convicted in respect of count 8. Further, if it is not
possible to be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt of the accused's guilt of
count 8 then it is not possible to be so satisfied about counts 6 or 7.40
81 The defence accepts that the mixed DNA profile extracted from the
sample obtained from AJM40 and 42 (the fingernail DNA) is consistent
with a two person profile, the contributors to which are Ms Glennon and
the accused. The defence also accepts that the likelihood of a chance
match between the male component of that mixed profile and the
accused's profile is very low, however the defence says that there are a
number of reasons why there should be doubt as to how the accused's
DNA formed part of that sample.41
82 The defence does not advance a specific alternative explanation but

they do suggest that there is evidence that indicates a real risk of
contamination. The factors that the defence point to are as follows:42
1. that the material analysed was not fingernail scrapings but

clippings. These clippings were taken as part of the post-mortem
examination procedure. That part was not videorecorded as other
parts of the examination were. Further there was difficulty
38
ts 973.
39
ts 973 - 4.
40
ts 974.
41
ts 975.
42
ts 974 - 7.
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[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
obtaining a sample of one of the nails (AJM40) because it was

close to the quick;
2. AJM40 was initially assessed by PathWest scientists as being

debris that was not suitable for testing;
3. that assessment occurred in the context of PathWest carrying out

low copy number testing of other exhibits in 2003, testing that was
carried out despite the laboratory not being accredited to do that
type of testing;
4. when the relevant samples were sent to FSS in the UK in 2008 the
samples were prepared for testing by a scientist who no longer has
any memory of what he did. He is only able to refer to what he is
likely to have done by reference to usual procedures;
5. the DNA in question is trace DNA which was collected and stored
in the 1990s when the state of knowledge and the protocols in
handling such samples were much less sophisticated than was later
the case; and
6. there is a possibility of cross-contamination with other exhibits
that did have the accused's DNA on them. In this regard the
defence rely upon the following examples of contamination:
(a) intimate swabs collected from Jane Rimmer when analysed

at PathWest in 1996 produced no DNA profile. However
they were later analysed again in 2017 by the UK
laboratory Cellmark. The later analysis disclosed an
almost complete DNA profile matching that of a male
PathWest scientist who was involved in preparing those
swabs for DNA analysis at the time of the earlier testing;
(b) an intimate swab collected from Ciara Glennon identified

as AJM30 yielded no results when PathWest analysed it in
1997. However when later analysed at Cellmark a DNA
profile was obtained in which 17 of the 19 components
matched another PathWest scientist. That scientist had
been involved in testing the exhibit between 1997 and
2001;
(c) fingernail samples from Jane Rimmer identified as RH33

and 34 were found and combined and analysed at Cellmark
in 2017 or 2018. A mixed DNA profile was obtained; the
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[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
major component of which matched Ms Rimmer's profile.

The minor component was subjected to Y chromosome
analysis and was found to be consistent with the profile of
a male PathWest scientist, although there was no
documentation that this scientist had been involved in
processing these exhibits. The explanation is that the
layout of the examination area at the time of processing
would have allowed for the scientist in question to be in
the vicinity of the items during examination and processing
and therefore represents a possible source of
contamination; and
(d) a swab from a branch located on top of Jane Rimmer's

body was examined in 2002 and given exhibit number
RH21. This yielded a partial profile that was later found to
match the profile of a victim of a completely unrelated
crime. Samples relating to that unrelated victim were
processed in the laboratory some days either side of this
sample. PathWest reached a conclusion in 2007 that this
was not a finding of evidentiary value; but in 2009 the
exhibit was still being considered, though rejected for
possible further testing.
83 Whilst the defence accepts that the scientific literature suggests that
the chance of contamination in a laboratory is usually remote, secondary
transfer has been known to occur and is documented. In circumstances
where other incidents of contamination are known to have occurred, and
to have been undetected for some period, the defence says that it is
necessary to consider just how remote the chance was here and whether it
can be safely ruled out.43
84 As regards the fibre evidence, the defence case is not that there is a
dispute about the classification of fibres as corresponding or similar.
Rather the defence argument is focussed on the uniqueness or otherwise
of the fibres, in particular whether it can be safely said that they can only
have come from the sources that the State claims. Further there is an issue
as to how the fibres got where they were found. Questions of continuity
and possible contamination are raised. That applies not merely in the
laboratory but also to the activities of the deceased women on the nights
and days of their deaths. The defence refer in particular to the fact that at
the time of her disappearance Ms Glennon was wearing a jacket that had
43
ts 977 - 8.
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[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
earlier been thrown on the floor of the hotel and then picked up by a
colleague who wore it for a period before she retrieved it. The impact of
these events on the finding of fibres in Ms Glennon's hair and on her
clothing may be of significance, recognising that the jacket was not
ultimately found.44
85 The defence also put in issue the process of collection, storage,

handling and examination of the exhibits. The defence case is that there
are large gaps in the chain of continuity of important exhibits. There is an
issue as to exhibit handling, recording and forensic processing protocols
and whether they were always satisfactory.45
86 The evidentiary significance of the fibre findings is also a live issue.

The State seeks to draw the cases together by focusing on a relatively
small number of common fibres and the sources that they say these fibres
come from. The defence questions how many fibres constitute a
statistically significant number for the purpose of linking the accused with
a given exhibit. Questions as to how many fibres in total were collected,
how many of those fibres were chosen for examination, how the ones
chosen were selected and how many of those might be said to support the
State's case as opposed to how many might either take it nowhere or even
perhaps contradict the State's case, are raised.46
87 As to propensity evidence senior counsel said that the probative

value of the evidence relating to counts 1 - 5 of the indictment was at least
questionable given that there are marked differences between what
occurred in those incidents and what is known to have occurred to the
victims of counts 6 - 8. The defence position in respect of the Telstra
Living Witness Project evidence is that the State has chosen incidents that
it assesses as best fitting the accused. The defence asserts that in making
this choice the State has sought to avoid adducing evidence of several
other incidents which do not have anything to do with a Telstra vehicle or
with working in the telecommunications industry. These other incidents
have been deemed irrelevant when perhaps more properly they may be
said to be simply unhelpful to the State's case.47
88 In any event the defence say that the Telstra Living Witness Project
incidents that the State has chosen to rely on do not actually take its case
anywhere. The defence position is first, that there must be real doubt that
44
ts 978.
45
ts 979.
46
ts 979.
47
ts 979 - 80.
Page 45
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
any of them involve the accused. Second the defence say that there is no
logical reason why these incidents are necessarily the work of a murderer.
Third they say that they form only part of a large body of evidence that
the police obtained involving a number of men picking up or apparently
trying to pick up young women walking alone or seemingly alone in the
area in the period in question. The defence say that the Telstra Living
Witness Project evidence does not have any discerning power in
distinguishing the accused as the offender. The behaviour as a whole
likely involved a number of different men and most of it involved no
actively sexually predatory behaviour, except for one incident in which a
relatively mild sexual advance is alleged. The defence assert that, rather
than strengthening the case against the accused as the likely offender, this
evidence proves nothing against him and may even suggest other possible
suspects.48
89 The accused does not point the finger at any specific alternative
suspect. However the defence does say that the State has endeavoured to
present a neat picture by streamlining and selecting evidence that best fits
its theory, but in doing so has not taken into account all of the evidence.49
90 As to the rest of the evidence the defence case is that not all of the
evidence is consistent and that it is important not to gloss over
inconsistencies or to only select evidence that confirms the State's case. It
is said that the proper approach is to fit the case theory to the evidence,
not to try to fit the evidence to the case theory, whether it comfortably fits
or not. The defence position is that none of the other evidence, even taken
at its highest, either alone or in combination will ultimately assist in
proving that the accused was responsible for any of the offences, let alone
all of them. Indeed it is suggested that some of this evidence is likely to
raise a reasonable doubt rather than resolve it.50
Pre-trial rulings
91 Prior to the trial there were a number of directions hearings regarding
evidentiary and procedural issues. Rulings made following those hearings
have been published as separate judgments and it is unnecessary to
summarise them here. To the extent that for the purposes of those
hearings I was required to view or consider evidence which I subsequently
ruled was inadmissible, I have put my knowledge of that evidence aside
48
ts 980 - 1.
49
ts 981.
50
ts 981.
Page 46
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
and it has formed no part of my consideration of whether the accused is

guilty of the charges against him.51
92 One ruling related to evidence that the prosecution contended was

relevant to motive. This was referred to as the 'emotional upset evidence'.
I determined that this evidence would be received provisionally with a
view to making a ruling on its admissibility at the end of the prosecution
case. At that time the State conceded that the evidence had not
established the suggested motive and that it was not admissible on that
basis. Though some of the evidence was still relied on as being relevant
to whether the accused had the opportunity to commit the offences, much
of it was inadmissible entirely. I have also put that evidence aside and it
has formed no part of my consideration of whether the accused is guilty of
the charges against him.52
Relevant law (directions)

93 As noted earlier, s 119 of the Criminal Procedure Act requires that if
any law requires or prohibits information or a warning or instructions to
be given to a jury the judge in a trial by judge alone must take the
requirement or prohibition into account if those circumstances arise in the
course of the trial. The obligation is not limited to responding to and
addressing the submissions of the parties as to the applicable legal
principles, warnings and directions, but extends to identifying and
applying any other legal principles, warnings and directions that are
relevant.
94 Sometimes this requirement is dealt with in trials by judge alone by
judges stating in their reasons that they have 'directed themselves' as to
certain matters. There is a certain awkwardness and absurdity in this
formulation. The trial judge is not two different people: one who gives
and one who receives directions. In my view it is sufficient to state the
necessary legal principles and to apply those principles in the reasoning
process.
95 There must be a judgment in a trial by judge alone that meets the

criteria of s 120(2) of the Criminal Procedure Act. The judgment must
therefore include the principles of law that the judge has applied and the
findings of fact on which the judge has relied. It is not enough, however,
51
The State of Western Australia v Edwards [2018] WASC 419; The State of Western Australia v Edwards
[2019] WASC 87; The State of Western Australia v Edwards [No 2] [2019] WASC 282; The State of Western
Australia v Edwards [No 3] [2019] WASC 405; The State of Western Australia v Edwards [No 4] [2019]
WASC 418; The State of Western Australia v Edwards [No 5] [2019] WASC 419.
52
The State of Western Australia v Edwards [No 4] [2019] WASC 418 [110]; ts 9859.
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[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
to merely state the principles and the factual conclusions, the judgment
must reveal a process of reasoning which makes clear how conclusions
have been reached. If, in the case of conflicting evidence, the evidence of
one witness has been preferred over that of another the reasons should
reveal why such a choice has been made.
96 In the present case the following legal principles are relevant and I
have applied them in my reasoning.
Presumption of innocence
97 In every criminal trial the starting point is that the accused person is
presumed to be innocent. That presumption remains until such time as his
or her guilt is proven to the criminal standard. If guilt is not proven the
presumption of innocence remains. That presumption applies to the
accused in this case, as it does to every person charged with criminal
offences in this jurisdiction.
Onus of proof
98 The onus of proof, that is, the responsibility for proving the charges,
lies upon the State, that is, the prosecution. It is the State that has brought
the charges and the State that must prove them. That is the case in every
criminal trial. An accused person does not have to prove his or her
innocence, indeed he or she does not have to prove anything. The onus is
on the State from the start to finish. It never shifts to the accused.
Standard of proof
99 The standard of proof that the prosecution must meet in order to
prove that the accused is guilty of any of the charges against him is
beyond reasonable doubt. They are ordinary English words. They mean
what they say. They do not require explanation. It is sufficient for me to
say that this is the highest standard known to the law. That standard
applies in every criminal case. It is a high standard, but it is not an
impossible standard. That is the standard that must be applied in
determining whether the accused is guilty or not guilty of each charge.
100 Before I could find the accused guilty of a charge I would have to be
satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that he was guilty of that charge. If
I am satisfied to that standard then the verdict must be one of guilty. If
I am not satisfied to that standard then the verdict must be one of not
guilty. Sometimes people refer to the 'benefit of the doubt', but it is not a
benefit to find someone not guilty if the case is not proven beyond
reasonable doubt, it is their right and what is required by law.
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101 The standard of proof of beyond reasonable doubt applies to the

elements or essential components of each of the charges. It is only if all
of the elements are proven beyond reasonable doubt that the accused can
be found guilty of a particular charge. I will set out the elements of the
charges shortly. When I refer to the elements I may use the words
'satisfied' or 'proved' when referring to them. If I do so it should be
understood that this means satisfied or proved beyond reasonable doubt.
Verdicts on the evidence

102 The verdicts must be based only on the evidence adduced in this
trial. That means the testimony of the witnesses and the exhibits that have
been tendered. I have relied only on that evidence. I have not engaged in
any speculation or guessing. I am conscious that with the lapse of time
some evidence is no longer available or witnesses' memories have faded,
however I have not been distracted by wondering about what other
evidence might have shown if it was available. I have focused only on the
evidence that is available and it is on that evidence that I have decided the
case.
103 Whilst I have carefully considered submissions made to me by

counsel representing the State and the accused, I am conscious that their
submissions are not evidence. Whilst it is proper to take into account
such submissions, ultimately it is a matter for me what conclusions can be
drawn from the evidence.
Publicity
104 The events that are the subject of this case have been the subject of
intense media publicity over many years. The coverage has included
speculation as to the motive and identity of those who may be responsible.
It has also included references to the circumstances of the disappearance
of the victims and the progress of the police investigations. None of that
coverage is evidence in this case. It is in large part due to that publicity
that an order was made that this trial be by judge alone.
105 The arrest and charging of the accused brought with it a new wave of
publicity. That publicity has continued through the trial. Almost every
detail of the case was reported on and subjected to analysis by journalists
and commentators. It is unlikely that any trial in this State has received
the amount of detailed coverage as this trial. This is, no doubt, a
reflection of the public interest in the case.
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106 Access by the media is an important part of ensuring that justice is

not only done but seen to be done. Whilst the court was open to the
public, the media played an important role in ensuring that those who
were unable to attend could remain informed as to the progress of the
trial. In order to ensure that any reporting was as accurate as possible I
allowed the media to have access to transcript and provided copies of
some exhibits on application.
107 During the course of the trial the COVID-19 pandemic occurred.
Whilst this did not affect the continuation of the trial, it did make it more
difficult for members of the public to attend. As a consequence I made
arrangements for daily recordings of the proceedings to be placed on the
court's website. Processes were put in place to prevent the breach of any
suppression orders and to prevent any unauthorised copying or sampling
of the recordings.
108 It would be impossible not to be aware of the publicity in relation to
this case. However, it is not part of my role to monitor that publicity and I
have not sought to do so. I have also been careful to disregard anything
that I may have seen in the media. I have ignored any such coverage
because it, of course, is not evidence. The opinions and views of others
regarding the evidence are entirely irrelevant. The outcome of this trial
depends upon my assessment of the evidence and not on any views that
may have been expressed in the media.
Prejudice and sympathy

109 This case involves the deaths of three young women. That is, of
course, a tragedy for each of them and for their families. It is impossible
not to feel sympathy in those circumstances, but it is necessary to put that
sympathy aside because it has no role to play in the assessment of the
evidence. Sympathy for the victims and their families cannot assist in
determining whether the accused is guilty of the charges.
110 It is also possible to feel sympathy for the accused given that he is in
custody and has faced the daunting task of defending himself against a
very large, lengthy and detailed prosecution case. Parts of that case have
delved into the details of his personal life. But any sympathy for the
accused is also irrelevant and must be put aside.
111 Equally, feelings of dislike for or prejudice against a person are also
irrelevant. Prior to the trial the accused pleaded guilty to five charges on
the indictment. The evidence relating to those charges and to another
incident, the Hollywood Hospital incident, were relied upon by the
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prosecution as propensity evidence. Whilst to the extent that it is relevant

I have taken that evidence into account, I have been careful to avoid any
feelings of prejudice that may be engendered by such conduct.
112 I am conscious that what I am required to do is approach the
evidence in a rational and impartial way. Any possible sympathies or
prejudices must be put aside. My task is to consider what logical
conclusions can be drawn from the evidence as a whole. A fair trial
requires such an approach. It is in the interests of both the prosecution,
the accused, the families of those involved and the public that the trial be
fair and be seen to be so.
Right to silence
113 One of the aspects of the onus of proof being on the State is that the
accused has a right to silence. The right to silence does not commence in
this Court. A person who is arrested by the police has that right from the
beginning and it continues through the trial. An accused person is not
obliged to speak to the police or to give evidence at their trial, but they
may do so if they wish.
114 In this case the accused chose to speak to the police. An edited
recording of that interview was tendered in evidence by the State and will
be referred to further later in these reasons. At the trial he chose not to
give evidence. As such he exercised his right to remain silent. It would
be wrong to draw any adverse conclusion from the exercise of that right.
It would be a right of no value if, when a person chose to exercise it, an
adverse inference was drawn.
115 The silence of the accused is not evidence against him. Nor can it be
used to support any inference adverse to him. The fact that an accused
person chooses not to give evidence at their trial is not an admission of
anything, cannot be used to fill any gap in the prosecution case and cannot
be used as a make-weight in assessing whether the prosecution has proved
its case beyond reasonable doubt. To the extent that the word 'make-
weight' is not commonly used, its meaning in this context is clear – the
fact that the accused did not give evidence does not strengthen the
prosecution case or supply additional proof against him. I have not taken
into account the fact that the accused did not give evidence at the trial
when assessing whether his guilt has been proved to the required standard.
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Police interview – exculpatory statements and credibility lies

116 Evidence of statements made by a person out of court are prima facie
hearsay and inadmissible. However, there is an exception where an
accused makes admissions against his interests. If such admissions occur
in the course of an interview with the police, evidence of what was said is
generally only admissible if it is in the form of a recording. An interview
may contain answers that are said to incriminate the accused as well as
answers that are exculpatory (such as denials of guilt). Where the
prosecution seeks to rely on the recording of an interview the whole of the
recording must be admitted. That is, the prosecution cannot only tender
inculpatory parts and edit out exculpatory parts, they must, in essence,
take the good with the bad. All answers given by the accused form part of
the evidence and must be considered in assessing whether guilt is proven.
117 Although all of an interview containing mixed statements may be

admitted in evidence it does not follow that all statements have to be
given equal weight. It is open to give less weight to exculpatory
assertions than to admissions. The rationale for this is that exculpatory
statements are not statements made against interest, are not made on oath
and are not subject to cross-examination.
118 In this case the prosecution tendered recordings of interviews with
the accused because it relied on what were said to be admissions (such as
when he first met the woman who was to become his second wife and that
the accused had access to and drove a Telstra vehicle at the relevant
times) as well as one alleged lie that was said to be a lie told out of a
consciousness of guilt of the murders. The interviews also contained
numerous and repeated denials as to the allegations, including the alleged
murders of Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon. Those denials are evidence
in the case that must be taken into account.
119 Lies told by an accused person in a record of interview may be
relevant either as evidence of consciousness of guilt or as only being
relevant to credibility. In this case the prosecution initially relied on a
passage in the interview as being a lie told out of consciousness of guilt.
However, in closing address senior counsel for the State said that that
position was no longer maintained. I understood this to mean that whilst
the interview contained lies none of them was said to be a lie that was
relevant in proof of guilt of the accused on any of the charges. Those lies
remain, however, relevant in determining what weight, if any, can be
given to the accused's denials of responsibility.
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120 In particular, the denials by the accused as to involvement in the

Karrakatta and Huntingdale offences and denial as to familiarity with the
Claremont area are relied on by the State as lies going to his credibility.
The accused having now admitted the Karrakatta and Huntingdale
offences by pleading guilty to them it follows that his denials in the
interview must have been untrue. These lies are only relied upon for the
purposes of assessing the credibility of the accused. In the context of this
case that means that these lies are only relevant in assessing what weight
is to be given to the accused's denials of involvement in the murders. That
is, if he lied in regard to his involvement in the Huntingdale and
Karrakatta offences does this adversely reflect upon the credibility of his
claims not to be involved in the murders?
121 One important consideration in this regard is that lies that are only
relied upon as reflecting on the credibility of the accused cannot be used
as evidence of guilt. To show that a person's honesty is questionable does
not prove that he is guilty of an offence. A liar is not necessarily a
murderer. The fact that the accused may have lied about the Huntingdale
and Karrakatta offences may be relevant in assessing what weight to give
his denials of involvement in the murders, but it does not provide any
evidence that can be used in determining whether the accused in fact
committed any of those murders. I have, therefore, been careful to ensure
that lies relevant to credibility have only been used in the limited way I
have referred to. They have not been used in determining whether or not
the accused is guilty of the murders.
122 If the denials of the accused as to responsibility for the murders are
believed, or if they create or support a reasonable doubt as to guilt, then
he must be acquitted. However, if I reject or discount his denials, having
regard to lies he told in the interview and to my assessment of the weight
to be accorded those denials, this does not lead to a conclusion that he
must be guilty. If his denials are rejected then that evidence must be put
aside and it is then necessary to consider whether the other evidence in the
trial establishes guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
Identification evidence
123 Some of the witnesses in this case gave evidence as to a car or driver
that they saw. In some cases this related to a car or driver seen at the time
that one of the victims went missing. In other cases it related to other
incidents that were said by the State to be relevant as propensity evidence
(the Telstra Living Witness Project incidents).
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124 Where identification evidence represents any significant part of the

proof of guilt of an offence it is important to be conscious of the dangers
of convicting on such evidence where its reliability is disputed.
Experience has shown that entirely honest witnesses may be mistaken
about evidence as to identity. Furthermore, the longer a mistaken belief is
held the more firmly it may be adhered to. Witnesses who give such
evidence may be sincere and convincing, but this should not obscure the
possibility that they may be wrong.
125 In assessing evidence of identity it is necessary to take into account

the circumstances in which any observations occurred. For example, was
it daylight or night-time, if at night what was the artificial lighting like,
what were the weather conditions, was anything obscuring the line of
sight and how long did the witness have to make the observations. There
may have been factors that affected the capacity of the witness to make
accurate observations. For example, the witness may have been distracted
or concentrating on other things, or have poor eyesight, or have been
intoxicated to some degree. On the other hand there may have been
something unusual, striking or memorable about the incident that would
make it more likely that the witness would recall it. It is also pertinent to
consider whether there has been a delay between the time any observation
was made and the time it was reported to police, and then between that
time and the time that evidence is given in court.
126 One or more of the factors that I have identified are relevant to the
witnesses who gave evidence falling into this category. I am conscious of
the potential dangers in identification evidence and will refer to the
relevant factors when assessing the reliability of the evidence of each
witness.
Propensity evidence
127 Propensity evidence is a form of circumstantial evidence. It is
similar fact evidence or other evidence of the conduct of a person, or
evidence of the character or reputation of the accused person or of a
tendency that the accused person had or has. The fact that a person has a
proven propensity or tendency to behave in a particular way does not in
itself establish that on another occasion they have done the act alleged to
constitute the charged offence. However, the existence of such a
propensity may make it more likely that he did so. When this evidence is
added to other circumstantial evidence it may assist in determining
whether the charge has been proved beyond reasonable doubt. That is, it
is evidence that may be capable of adding weight to the prosecution case.
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128 The first matter to consider in respect of propensity evidence is

whether that evidence establishes the existence of a propensity on the part
of the accused. This requires a consideration of what it is that the
evidence said to be relevant to propensity actually proves. In some cases
that evidence may be contested and it will be necessary to make findings
of fact in that regard. In this case the propensity evidence principally
relates to three earlier incidents (Huntingdale, Hollywood Hospital and
Karrakatta) which were the subject of charges that the accused pleaded
guilty to. The evidence relating to the factual circumstances of those
incidents was largely uncontested.
129 There is another area of propensity evidence relied on, the Telstra
Living Witness Project incidents, that are not the subject of any separate
charges or admissions on the part of the accused. In respect of those
incidents they can only prove, or assist in proving, a propensity on the part
of the accused if the conduct alleged by those witnesses is established.
Whether those incidents occurred, exactly what occurred and whether the
accused was the person responsible in respect of any of them was in issue
at the trial.
130 The second matter to consider is the nature of the propensity and
how it relates to the alleged offence. The broader the propensity or
tendency (that is, the less specific it is) the less likely it will be to afford
assistance in determining whether the accused committed the alleged
offences. It is important to clearly identify the fact in issue to which the
propensity evidence relates. In this case that issue is the identity of the
person who killed each of the victims.
131 The weight to be given to the propensity evidence may not be the
same in respect of each count on the indictment. The evidence on each
count may reveal more, or fewer, circumstances that are common to the
proven tendency and this will affect the probative value of the propensity
evidence. For this reason it is important to consider what probative value
the evidence has in regard to each particular count on the indictment.
132 In some cases propensity evidence is relied upon as evidence that an

alleged event occurred, in other cases the event may not be in issue but
there is a question as to the identity of the perpetrator. In this case there is
no real issue that each of the victims was abducted and murdered. Rather
the issue is who committed each of those murders. Propensity evidence
may be relevant in determining whether a particular person is more likely
to be the perpetrator of a crime, but where propensity evidence is used in
this way the evidence should be carefully scrutinised to see if there are
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points of similarity that actually make it more likely that it was the
accused and not some other person who committed the alleged acts.
133 Even if propensity evidence is relevant and probative, it is important

to emphasize that it cannot alone prove the guilt of the accused. There is
always an inherent risk that an assumption is made that because a person
has previously committed criminal or disreputable acts of a certain type he
must be guilty of the charges he now faces. Such an assumption cannot
be made in a criminal trial. However likely it may seem that an accused
with a proven propensity committed the alleged offences, such a
likelihood cannot alone establish proof beyond reasonable doubt. It may
assist in coming to that conclusion, but there must be other evidence to
show that the accused committed the acts alleged. I have been careful to
avoid the erroneous course of reasoning that because the accused
committed the admitted incidents he must, for that reason alone, be guilty
of the offences charged.
Motive
134 Motive is not an element of any of the offences charged. It is not
necessary for the prosecution to prove that the accused had a motive to
kill any of the alleged victims. The reasons why a person may have
committed an offence may be unknown and a person is guilty of an
offence if it is proved beyond reasonable doubt that he or she committed
it, even if no motive is established. However, evidence of motive, whilst
not necessary, can be relevant because it may make it more likely that the
accused committed the offence alleged. A motive or interest in
committing an offence is never enough on its own, but it can be a piece of
circumstantial evidence which, when added to all the other evidence, may
persuade the finder of fact that an accused person is guilty of an offence.
135 In this case the prosecution opened its case by saying that the
accused was motivated by feelings of emotional upset or distress. They
argued that when having such feelings the accused was motivated to
commit a sexual offence with violence against an unknown female.
However, at the end of the prosecution case the State accepted that the
evidence did not establish that the accused was in such a state at or around
the relevant times and, accordingly, this aspect of the prosecution case
was not pressed. Since, as noted above, motive is not an element of the
offences charged, this meant that the State had to prove its case by relying
on other evidence.
136 The effect of the State's concession was to render some of the
evidence given at the trial irrelevant. In particular, evidence regarding
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potentially upsetting events in the accused's life and his response to those
events was irrelevant. Evidence as to what the accused had told a
psychologist and a pre-sentence report writer regarding his reasons for
committing the Hollywood Hospital offence was also irrelevant.
However, some of the evidence regarding the background of the accused
remained relevant because it bore on the issue of whether the accused had
an opportunity to commit each of the offences. The irrelevant evidence
has not been referred to in these reasons and has not been taken into
account by me in coming to any conclusions.
137 In some cases the absence of any motive on the part of the accused,
or the existence of positive reasons why the accused would not wish to
commit offences of this type, may be a relevant consideration. That is not
a factor here, because all the indications are that whoever killed each of
the victims was a stranger to them. Whatever the reasons of the killer or
killers were they were not related to any existing relationship with the
victims. It is highly unlikely that the responsible person would have any
apparent reason for committing offences of this kind. The absence of any
obvious motive would thus not assist in this case in considering whether a
person was likely to be the killer of any of the victims.
138 In any event, it is important to distinguish between absence of proven
or apparent motive, on the one hand, and proven absence of motive, on
the other. The fact that there is no proven motive is not the same thing as
proven absence of motive.
Multiple charges (separate consideration)

139 There are three counts against the accused that are the subject of this
trial. They are being tried together because it is alleged that they are
charges of the same character and are said to arise from a series of
connected events. Many of the witnesses gave evidence that relates to
more than one of the charges. However the evidence against the accused
in respect of each count is not the same and some of it is only relevant and
admissible in respect of one count or another. I will come back to that
issue shortly.
140 It is important from the outset to stress that the case against the
accused on each count must be considered individually. A separate
verdict in respect of each charge is required. It does not follow that
because I conclude that the accused is guilty or not guilty on one count
that the verdict on other counts must necessarily be the same.
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141 It may be that there are similarities between two or more of the
murders that make it more likely that the same person committed them.
As I will refer to shortly, such similarities may be relevant in considering
the evidence in each case. But it cannot merely be assumed that the same
person committed all three murders. There can be tendency to make such
an assumption where the victims were all taken from a particular
geographical location and this is reflected in references to the 'Claremont
Serial Killer'. However, I have not commenced with any assumption that
the three victims were necessarily killed by the same person.
Cross-admissibility of evidence
142 The prosecution relies on the evidence relating to each of the charges
as admissible to prove those charges and as propensity evidence. That is,
that the evidence in respect of count 6 is admissible both to prove that
charge and to prove a tendency on the part of the accused which is
relevant to proof of the other charges. The same is said in regard to the
evidence relating to counts 7 and 8.
143 At a pre-trial directions hearing the defence conceded that the
evidence on each count was cross-admissible on this basis and I agreed
that that concession was properly made. That is, I concluded that the
evidence in respect of each count was also admissible in respect of the
other counts because it met the requirements of s 31A of the Evidence Act
1906 (WA), in that it was capable of proving a relevant tendency on the
part of the accused, had significant probative value and that the degree of
risk of an unfair trial as compared to the probative value was such that
fair-minded people would think that the public interest in adducing all
relevant evidence must have priority over the risk of an unfair trial.
144 For evidence of one count to be used as propensity evidence on

another count it would be necessary for the evidence on the first count to
establish that the accused was the perpetrator on that count. This is
because the relevance of the evidence depends on it being capable of
proving that the accused had a tendency that made it more likely he would
commit another offence of that type. That means that before evidence on
one count can be considered as propensity evidence in respect of another
count I would have to be satisfied that the accused committed the first
offence.
145 There is another possible basis for the admissibility of evidence from
one count in respect of another: as similar fact evidence to prove that the
same person was the perpetrator. This course of reasoning does not relate
to proof of a tendency or propensity on the part of the accused, rather it
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relies on there being evidence of common features in respect of two or

three of the counts. One of the alternative bases on which the prosecution
case is brought is that the common features are such that it is possible to
be satisfied that the same person killed two, or all three of the victims.
This course of reasoning would require proof beyond reasonable doubt
that the same person committed two or three of the alleged offences. If
that satisfaction is reached then it would be possible to accumulate
evidence in respect of the relevant two, or three, counts to establish the
identity of that person. For evidence to be admissible on this basis it
would have to be demonstrated that the common features of the three
cases (or any two of them) are so distinctive that they are capable of
proving beyond reasonable doubt that only one person could have
committed the three (or two) offences under consideration.
Lapse of time and lost opportunities

146 The passage of time between the occurrence of the alleged offences
and the trial was considerable, between approximately 23 and 25 years.
This has a number of practical consequences for the accused. In
particular, it adversely affects his ability to effectively challenge the
prosecution evidence. It also makes it more difficult for him to muster
positive evidence that could assist him.
147 It is well known that witnesses asked to recall events from many
years ago will often have difficulty doing so. Many of the witnesses in
this case recognised and referred to that difficulty. Some of them
acknowledged that they had relied on records made at the time or
statements made closer in time. This served to refresh memories in some
cases, but in others it was plain that the witness no longer had any
memory of the events but believed that contemporaneous records were
accurate. In some cases, however, the records had been lost or were
incomplete. The possibility of errors in the records is more difficult to
expose where witnesses have little or no independent memory.
148 Over time memories fade and there is the real possibility that
witnesses may be mistaken as to what occurred. It is also a matter of
common experience that the longer a witness believes something the more
convinced they become that it is true, even if they were mistaken in their
original recollection. A witness may sincerely and strongly believe
something which is simply wrong and that error will become more
difficult to expose, or for the witness to accept, the longer the lapse of
time.
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149 Further, the lapse of time means that the possibility of effectively
challenging evidence is reduced. An example of this is in respect of
forensic testing. Tests done many years ago using now superseded
techniques are difficult to question. The inability to seek verification by
further independent testing is also lost where, as here, all the material in
some relevant samples has been consumed. This is particularly the case
with the DNA evidence. Another example is where witnesses refer to
events that occurred in an environment that no longer exists. This may
make it difficult to check the accuracy of the account given by the
witness.
150 The accused was not arrested, charged and interviewed until 2016.
The charge relating to Ms Spiers was not preferred until approximately
one year later. Until he was charged the accused was not on notice of the
allegations against him or of any need to gather evidence that may assist
him. It is more difficult for the accused to obtain any positive evidence
that could have assisted him, for example alibi evidence, so long after the
events in question. To locate and obtain accurate evidence of his
movements so long ago would be very difficult.
151 I will take these matters into account when considering whether the
prosecution has proved its case. The existence of the disadvantages to the
accused as a result of the passage of time means that I must scrutinise the
evidence with great care. It is also relevant in considering whether it is
appropriate to draw an inference suggested by the prosecution or in
considering whether an alternative innocent inference is open. I will take
those disadvantages into account when considering whether I am satisfied
beyond reasonable doubt of the guilt of the accused in respect of any of
the charges.
Credibility and reliability

152 My role as the trial judge involves making an assessment of the
evidence, that is, to consider the evidence of the witnesses in particular.
This includes not only what is said by the witnesses, but the way in which
it is said.
153 When considering what witnesses have said, I will consider the
credibility and the reliability of the witnesses. Credibility simply means
the honesty or truthfulness of a witness; whether what that witness says
can be accepted as being the truth. Reliability means accuracy; whether
the witness has given an accurate account of what occurred. In respect of
reliability I acknowledge that sometimes an entirely honest witness can
get things wrong, simply because, for example, they have got a defective
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memory, or the conditions were stressful, or they were intoxicated or

simply due to the lapse of time. And all of those factors are ones that I
will take into account in considering the reliability of a witness.
154 The consistency of what a witness says must also be taken into
account. It is relevant to consider whether a witness has been consistent
in what they have said on other occasions. It is also relevant to consider
whether their evidence is consistent throughout; that is, is their testimony
internally consistent. Has what the witness said remained the same
throughout their evidence, both in chief and in cross-examination? If
there are inconsistencies are they in respect of significant matters and is
there some reasonable explanation for them? I will also consider whether
the evidence of a witness is consistent with the evidence of other
witnesses whose evidence I am prepared to accept. If a witness's evidence
is inconsistent in any of these respects that is a factor that I can take into
account in considering whether to accept the evidence of that witness. On
the other hand if the evidence given by a witness has been consistent on
significant matters that may be a factor that suggests that the witness is
telling the truth.
155 I have also had regard to the demeanour of witnesses; that is, the way
a witness behaved when he or she was in the witness box. I have had the
advantage of being able to observe witnesses closely, not only as to what
they have said but the way in which they have said it, the manner and tone
that they have used and their body language. All of these are factors that I
have taken into account in assessing the witnesses. In doing so I have
taken into account that giving evidence in a court room, in a matter of
great importance and under the gaze of a judge, lawyers, media and
members of the public can be a daunting experience. It would be natural
for some people to feel apprehensive in such a situation and this may
affect their demeanour in ways that do not necessarily reflect on their
credibility.
156 I recognise that whether to accept the evidence of a witness is not an

all or nothing matter. It is not a case of accepting everything that a
witness says or rejecting what that witness says entirely. It is possible for
a witness to be credible or reliable in some respects but not others. I
understand that I am entitled to accept some parts of a witness's evidence
but not others.
157 I acknowledge that the evidence of witnesses is in the answers that

they gave, not in the questions that were put. Sometimes a proposition
can be put to a witness by counsel and the witness does not accept it. In
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that case there is no evidence of that proposition, unless it is proved by

some other evidence.
Special witnesses, deceased witnesses, video link witnesses and witnesses

whose statements were read in to evidence
158 Some witnesses were declared special witnesses because they had
some particular vulnerability or sensitivity that would have made it
difficult for them to give evidence in open court. I recognise that this is
an ordinary procedure of the court and that no adverse inference against
the accused should be drawn from the fact that such arrangements were
made. I note that the arrangements did not detract from my ability to
make an assessment of the credibility of these witnesses. The witnesses
who were declared special witnesses were as follows: EB, KJG, WD,
AH, CG, Adam Rimmer, Amanda Spiers and Karen McInroy.
159 Some other witnesses were deceased, ill or unable to be located and
applications were made for their statements to be read pursuant to
sch 3 cl 7 of the Criminal Procedure Act. In considering the evidence of
these witnesses I have taken into account that I have not had the benefit of
seeing or hearing the witnesses and that it was not possible for them to be
cross-examined. To the extent that the evidence was disputed I accept
that the accused was at a disadvantage by being unable to cross-examine
those witnesses.
160 A large number of witnesses gave evidence by way of video link
from remote locations, either in the State, interstate or overseas. The
giving of evidence in this manner is now a normal part of most criminal
trials. The quality of the links was generally good and did not detract
from my ability to see or hear the witnesses. Because the trial was
conducted as an eTrial the exhibits were able to be displayed on screens
and remote witnesses were not disadvantaged by not being in the court.
Prior inconsistent statements

161 Some witnesses had prior statements put to them in
cross-examination. This was done where it was suggested that there was
an inconsistency between what they had said in their evidence and what
had been said in the statement. If a witness admits that he or she said
something different on an earlier occasion that may be something to take
into account when considering that witness's credibility. However, what
is said in the earlier statement is not in itself evidence of the truth of what
was said unless the witness accepts it on oath. It is also necessary to
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consider any explanation a witness may give for a suggested

inconsistency.
Circumstantial evidence
162 In this case the prosecution relies upon circumstantial evidence.
Circumstantial evidence is evidence of the surrounding circumstances
relating to an event or occurrence. It can be contrasted with direct
evidence; that is, evidence of that event or occurrence as observed by a
witness or recorded by some device. In the present case there is no direct
evidence of the alleged murders; that is, there is no witness who saw the
killing of any of the victims. Accordingly, the prosecution must rely on
evidence of the surrounding circumstances to prove its case.
163 Circumstantial evidence is not necessarily any less reliable than

direct evidence. Indeed, it may be more reliable in some instances
because direct evidence can be the product of subjective interpretation and
the fallibility of human perceptions and memory, whereas evidence of
surrounding factual circumstances may be clear, objective and
uncontested. Which is not to say that some circumstantial evidence may
not suffer from the same issues. It is important, therefore, to assess the
weight of any evidence without any assumptions based on the category
into which it falls. However, there are some special considerations that
arise in respect of circumstantial evidence and the inferences that can be
drawn from it.
164 In a circumstantial case there may be one or more components that
are essential in proving guilt, alternatively it may be that a component is
not essential but rather contributes strength to the prosecution case.
Sometimes the analogies of a chain and a cable are used to explain this
distinction. In a chain each link is essential to the ability of the structure
to hold. In a cable each strand is not essential but instead contributes
strength to the cable. If a component is essential to proof of guilt then it
must be proven beyond reasonable doubt. If there are no such essential
links then the standard of beyond reasonable doubt only applies to proof
of the elements of the offence.
165 In speaking of the components of a case I am referring to the steps in
a course of reasoning that lead to a conclusion of guilt. These can also be
referred to as intermediate findings of fact. A distinction is to be drawn
between evidence and factual findings. Factual findings are based on
evidence. In a circumstantial case it is not always necessary that each
individual thing referred to in evidence be proven beyond reasonable
doubt in order to reach a conclusion of guilt. However, if there is an
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intermediate factual step in the process of reasoning towards guilt that is

indispensable, then that step must be proven beyond reasonable doubt.
Put another way, if a finding of fact is an essential component of the
course of reasoning leading to guilt then that finding can only be made if
it is proven beyond reasonable doubt.
166 The analogies of a chain and a cable can be useful in understanding

how a process of logic must work in a particular case. However, the
danger of analogies is that they can come to dictate how every case should
be viewed. It is sometimes assumed that every circumstantial case is
either wholly one thing or the other. The truth is that in any particular
case some components may be indispensable whereas others are not
(though they add weight to the prosecution case). Thus it may be an
over-simplification to categorise a circumstantial case as being in the
cable category or the chain category. A case may have elements of both.
What is necessary is to determine whether a particular component is
indispensable to proof of the prosecution case.
167 In the first course of reasoning advanced by the State in respect of its
case on counts 7 and 8 the first step is that the similarities between the
circumstances of the disappearance and deaths of Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon leads to a conclusion that they were both killed by the same
person. If that course of reasoning is followed that first step is
undoubtedly an indispensable one and must be proved beyond reasonable
doubt. The same is true of the first course of reasoning advanced by the
State in respect of Ms Spiers.
168 There is an issue as to whether a finding that the accused's DNA is in
a sample taken from Ms Glennon as a result of a struggle between them
that ended in her death, is an essential link in the prosecution case. That
is, whether such a finding is an indispensable step to proof of the identity
of the killer of any of the victims. The defence submit that without that
finding the State cannot prove that the accused was the offender in respect
of any of charges. The State submits that the DNA evidence is not the
only evidence of identity and that it should not be viewed in isolation.
169 The defence have assumed that the test for whether an intermediate
finding is an indispensable link is whether the contribution of a particular
finding makes a critical difference to whether an element of the offence
can be proved to the required standard. I accept that this is a useful test,
though it will not invariably produce the correct answer. This is because
in a case with many components there will always be a critical point at
which proof to the required standard is achieved. It may be easy to
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mistake the critical contribution that a finding makes with it being an

indispensable link, even though that contribution could (if the case were
analysed differently) be provided by other findings. That problem is more
easily avoided here because the prosecution case on identity relies on
relatively few individual components.
170 The suggested test might also fail to produce the correct answer in
circumstances where a number of intermediate findings each made on the
basis of probability when taken together will produce satisfaction beyond
reasonable doubt. In such circumstances any one of the findings might
make the crucial difference to proof of guilt, but that would not imply that
any of those findings needed to be based on proof beyond reasonable
doubt. The fact is that proof of guilt beyond reasonable doubt can in some
circumstances be based on findings made on the basis of probability
because of the cumulative effect that the findings may have.
171 Another way of identifying an indispensable link is to ask whether it
is a discrete step which must be proven before addressing the next step in
the reasoning process towards an ultimate inference of guilt. That is,
whether proof of a fact is a necessary condition for establishing a further
and different fact. In this case the prosecution submits that a finding as to
identity is based on the cumulative effect of a number of separate findings
arising from the DNA, the fibres and the propensity evidence. On the
other hand the defence submits that the DNA evidence is the only
evidence that is able to identify the accused as an individual, rather than
as a person sharing characteristics that may be held in common with
others.
172 I accept that the DNA evidence does not stand alone on the issue of
identity. It does however form a very significant part of the prosecution
case. I doubt that the other evidence as to identity could prove that the
accused was the killer of Ms Glennon without the contribution of the
DNA evidence. That is because the other evidence, in particular the
propensity evidence and the fibre evidence, is only capable of proving
non-unique characteristics of the likely killer, that, even when viewed
together, cannot identify a specific individual.
173 Thus, the prosecution case critically depends on the DNA evidence
and on a finding as to how that DNA came to be under the fingernails of
Ms Glennon. In the context of this case I take the view that that means
that in order to be satisfied that the accused is the perpetrator of any of the
murders I must be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the fingernail
DNA is that of the accused and that it got on or under the fingernails of
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Ciara Glennon in the course of an attack upon her. I acknowledge that a

different analysis of the evidence may be open that would allow for the
possibility that a finding on a probability basis could, together with other
findings, allow for proof of identity beyond reasonable doubt. But for the
reasons I have given I have preferred the approach that the DNA finding
is a critical link.
174 In the circumstances of this case, therefore, a finding as to the DNA

is a necessary condition for establishing that the accused is the person
who killed Ms Glennon (and that, in turn, is a necessary step in relation to
proof of identity in regard to the other counts). However, that does not
mean that the DNA evidence must be viewed in isolation. In particular, in
considering that evidence it is relevant to take into account the other
evidence as to identity insofar as it assists in drawing a conclusion as to
the provenance of the DNA. Nor does it mean that a finding in respect of
the DNA is sufficient without more to prove the guilt of the accused. It is
a necessary but not sufficient condition.
175 I should note that on the first course of reasoning in respect of
Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon the DNA evidence would be relevant to
prove the identity of the person who killed them both. On the second
course of reasoning the DNA evidence would only be relevant to prove
the identity of the person who killed Ms Glennon. This raises an issue as
to whether the second course of reasoning is capable of sustaining a
conclusion of guilt in respect of Ms Rimmer as there is no DNA evidence
in her case. In my view it would be so capable because on the second
course of reasoning the question of the identity of Ms Rimmer's killer
would only be reached after it had been proven that the accused had killed
Ms Glennon. The additional propensity evidence provided by that
conclusion would add very significantly to the prosecution case, such that
it together with the fibre evidence would be capable of proving the
identity of Ms Rimmer's killer beyond reasonable doubt.
176 As I have noted, circumstantial evidence is not inferior to, or of any

lesser quality than, direct evidence, but it does require a different process
of reasoning, one that involves the drawing of inferences.
Inferences
177 Inferential reasoning is not speculation. Inferential reasoning is the
drawing of a logical deduction from the proven facts. Inferential
reasoning is not in any way a lesser form of coming to a conclusion than
seeing something directly, but there are special rules that relate to it.
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178 When drawing inferences it is important that the evidence should not
be looked at in a piecemeal way to see what conclusions can be drawn
from each part of the evidence when viewed in isolation. Rather the
whole of the evidence should be considered together to see what
inferences can be drawn. A question or doubt that might arise where one
piece of evidence is looked at in isolation may be resolved when the
whole of the evidence is considered. A circumstance should not be
rejected because, considered alone, no inference of guilt can be drawn
from it. Further, a number of pieces of evidence that would not lead to an
inference of guilt beyond reasonable doubt when taken separately may
establish guilt to that standard when taken together. Circumstantial
evidence can cumulatively eliminate other possibilities. On the other
hand in some cases deficiencies in individual aspects of the evidence will
not be resolved by other aspects of the evidence and those deficiencies
may be sufficient to create a reasonable doubt, either alone or when
considered cumulatively.
179 An inference of guilt, that is, an inference adverse to the accused,
cannot be drawn unless it is the only inference that is reasonably open on
the evidence. If there is an innocent explanation that is open then an
inference of guilt cannot be drawn. In practical terms this means that the
prosecution must exclude any possible reasonable inference consistent
with innocence. If the evidence taken as a whole leaves open any
reasonable hypothesis consistent with innocence it is my duty to acquit the
accused. This is an aspect of the requirement that guilt in a criminal case
be proven beyond reasonable doubt, because if the evidence allows for the
reasonable possibility that the accused is innocent then guilt beyond
reasonable doubt has not been established.
180 For an inference to be reasonable it must rest upon something more

than mere conjecture. The bare possibility of innocence does not prevent
a finding of guilt if the inference of guilt is the only inference reasonably
open upon a consideration of all the facts proven by the evidence.
181 When a case against an accused person rests substantially upon

circumstantial evidence a verdict of guilty will not be open unless the
circumstances are such as to be inconsistent with any reasonable
hypothesis other than the guilt of the accused. To be satisfied beyond
reasonable doubt of the guilt of the accused it is necessary not only that
his guilt should be a rational inference, but that it should be the only
rational inference that the circumstances allow to be drawn.
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Expert evidence
182 In this case a large number of expert witnesses were called. They
included experts on DNA, fibres and forensic pathology. Those witnesses
offered opinions as to what conclusions could be drawn from the factual
evidence. Opinion evidence is not generally admissible, but an exception
is made for experts who have training or experience in an accepted area of
science.
183 Notwithstanding that experts may have particular scientific

knowledge I remain the judge of the facts, so it is for me to decide
whether I accept or reject that evidence. In considering expert evidence it
is relevant to take into account the qualifications of the experts, the basis
of any opinion, the course of reasoning adopted by the experts and the
degree of certainty with which they have expressed their opinions. These
considerations may affect not only whether the evidence of an expert is
accepted but what weight that evidence has.
DNA evidence
184 Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is a molecule which is one of the
basic building blocks of humans. It contains the information that
determines the personal characteristics of each person. Because DNA is
highly variable as between different people it has come to be used as a
means of proving the identity of a suspected offender. DNA evidence is
now widely accepted for use in investigations and court proceedings.
However, it is important to understand the nature and limitations of such
evidence.
185 DNA evidence involves the comparison of a questioned sample of
DNA from a crime scene with a known sample of the DNA of the
accused. This is done by analysing both samples using a kit that identifies
the alleles that are present at a number of loci on the DNA molecule. At
each locus an individual will have two alleles, one inherited from each
parent. Loci are chosen that are known to be highly variable in the
population. By comparing the results to see whether alleles present in the
sample from the accused are also present in the questioned sample it is
possible to determine whether there is a likelihood that the accused is a
contributor to the questioned sample or whether the accused can be
excluded as a possible contributor. If there is a reasonable possibility that
the questioned DNA is that of the accused, or that he has contributed to a
mixed sample, any conclusion is expressed in the form of a likelihood
ratio. That is the case here.
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186 The production of DNA profiles is the end result of an analysis of

samples that involves a number of discrete steps. The validity and
reliability of the profile depends upon each of those steps being carried
out with care and in accordance with recognised scientific methods. It is
relevant, therefore, to consider the procedure followed in a particular case
in determining whether the evidence is reliable. It is not simply a matter
of referring to the end results.
187 Before making a comparison the reporting scientist may examine the
profile and discount or exclude some features, for example because they
do not reach reportable limits or because they are recognised artefacts of
the kits used to analyse the sample. The reliability of the final
conclusions may depend on whether these judgement calls are sound, so
any evidence in this regard must be considered before turning to the
likelihood ratio.
188 A likelihood ratio compares two competing hypotheses, that the
accused is the contributor to the questioned sample or that some other
unknown and unrelated person is the contributor. The ratio is expressed
in statistical terms that may, as here, involve very large numbers. It is
important not to be overawed by these numbers and to bear in mind that,
however high they may be, the question of whether it is the accused's
DNA in the sample is ultimately one for me to answer. That question
must take into account all of the relevant evidence. The identity question
does not involve a mechanical application of probabilities, nor is it one
capable of being reduced to a mathematical computation.
189 The likelihood ratio should also not distract attention away from a
consideration of other questions, in particular, how the DNA of the
accused may have got into the questioned sample and when it did so.
DNA analysis cannot establish what type of cells the DNA came from,
when it was deposited or how it came to be in the tested sample. Proof
that the DNA of the accused is highly likely to be in the questioned
sample does not in itself prove guilt. It is also necessary to be satisfied
that the DNA got into the sample in a manner that implicated the accused
in the alleged offence.
190 DNA evidence is a type of circumstantial evidence. If accepted it

shows the probability of a match as compared with the chance of a
random occurrence. This evidence, if accepted, may not alone prove
guilt, but it can be taken into account along with all of the other accepted
evidence in determining whether guilt is proved beyond reasonable doubt.
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Alibi and opportunity

191 An alibi is a claim to have been at some place other than the scene of
the alleged crime at the relevant time. Where an alleged crime involves
the commission of an act at a particular place and time the effect of alibi
evidence is to cast doubt on whether the accused committed the offence.
There is no onus on an accused person to advance alibi evidence and the
absence of any such evidence proves nothing. However, where there is
some evidence that the accused was at another place at the relevant time
there is an onus on the prosecution to disprove that alibi. If evidence of
an alibi is accepted, or even if it only creates a reasonable doubt as to
whether the accused could have committed the offence, then the accused
must be acquitted of the relevant charge.
192 Evidence of alibi must be considered in the context of the evidence

as a whole. It may be that there is other compelling evidence that
establishes that the accused committed the offence. The existence of such
evidence may be sufficiently strong as to disprove the alibi. There may
also be issues regarding the credibility or reliability of the evidence as to
the existence of the alibi. On the other hand it may be that other evidence
does not affect or weaken the alibi evidence. Whatever the outcome, alibi
evidence must be carefully considered because, unless the alibi is
disproven by the prosecution, it will stand as an impediment to a
conclusion that the accused is guilty.
193 An alibi may be raised by the accused person himself. That is, it
may be that the only evidence that the accused was at some other place at
the relevant time comes from the accused, either when interviewed by the
police or when giving evidence. An alibi dependant on such evidence
must still be disproved by the prosecution and this will require
consideration of the credibility and reliability of the evidence given
(or relied upon) by the accused.
194 The law requires that where an accused person intends to rely upon
an alibi they must provide notice of this to the prosecution. The purpose
of such a notice is to give the prosecution an opportunity to investigate the
alibi and obtain any evidence relevant to proving or disproving it. In this
case the accused filed an alibi notice on 18 October 2019. The notice
referred to evidence that the accused may give if he chose to exercise the
right to give evidence at the trial. In the event the accused chose not to
give evidence, so the contents of the notice are irrelevant.
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195 Although the accused did not give any evidence of an alibi, there was
some evidence in the prosecution case53 that was potentially supportive of
an inference that he would have had difficulty committing two of the
offences due to limited time or because he was with another person. This
evidence relates to counts 6 and 8.
196 In relation to count 6 there was some evidence as to the movements

of the accused on 26 and 27 January 1996. That evidence is that on the
evening of 26 January 1996 he had dinner in Golden Bay and that the
following morning he attended work at 8.00 am at premises in West Perth.
Whilst the evidence does not place the accused at some place other than
Claremont at the time when Sarah Spiers went missing in the early hours
of the morning of 27 January 1996, it could limit the opportunity for him
to have abducted and killed Ms Spiers. This is relevant evidence to take
into account in assessing whether the accused killed Ms Spiers. More
detailed reference to the evidence will be made later in these reasons.
197 In relation to count 8 there was some evidence as to the movements
of the accused on 14 and 15 March 1997. On the evening of 14 March
1997 the accused was expected to join friends at a holiday home in
Mandurah, but failed to arrive until the following morning. He gave an
explanation for his failure to arrive the following evening, which if
accepted would mean that he was with another person for some time the
previous evening. The time of his arrival in Mandurah is also relevant.
Depending on the interpretation of what the accused said, this could either
place him at some place other than Claremont at the time when
Ms Glennon went missing in the early hours of the morning of 15 March
1997, or it could limit the opportunity for him to have abducted and killed
Ms Glennon. It was suggested in closing submissions that it was open on
the evidence to conclude that the accused was with KM that night and that
this would, in effect, be an alibi that would have made it impossible for
him to have committed the offence. This is relevant evidence to take into
account in assessing whether the accused killed Ms Glennon. More
detailed reference to the evidence will be made later in these reasons.
Elements of the charges

198 Each of the counts alleges that the accused committed wilful murder.
Wilful murder is no longer an offence under the Criminal Code, however
it was at the relevant times and the offence is preserved in respect of acts
that occurred at those times by virtue of s 37 of the Interpretation Act
1984 (WA). Each of the elements of the offence must be proven beyond
53
And also in Admissions.
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reasonable doubt. The elements of the offence of wilful murder are as

follows:
1. that the accused did the relevant act (the identity question);
2. that the act done was that the accused killed the deceased (that is
caused the death of the deceased);
3. that the killing was unlawful; and
4. that at the time of the killing the accused intended to cause the
death of the deceased.
199 The first and second elements incorporate two essential components,
identity and killing. It must be proven beyond reasonable doubt both that
the deceased in question was killed and that the person who did the killing
was the accused. Identity is the essential matter in issue in this case.
200 A person who causes the death of another, directly or indirectly, by

any means whatever, is deemed to have killed that other person. There
may be no single cause of the death of the deceased, but it is sufficient if
the conduct of the accused is a significant or substantial cause of the
death. The question of whether an act or acts of the accused has caused
the death of the deceased is not a philosophical or scientific one, but one
to be determined by applying common sense to the facts as they are found
to be, appreciating that the purpose of the enquiry is to attribute legal
responsibility in a criminal matter.
201 It is unlawful to kill any person unless such killing is authorised,
justified or excused by law. The law provides for excuses or
justifications, for example duress and self-defence. There is no
suggestion that any such matters arise in this case. If the deceased were
killed by the accused no question of lawfulness arises. Any such killing
would be unlawful.
202 The intention to cause death must have been held by the accused at
the time of the doing of the act or acts that caused the death. Such an
intention does not have to have been held for a long time. It may be held
only momentarily. Pre-meditation or a plan to kill is not required, though
if such a plan was made it will be relevant in considering whether an
intent to kill existed at the relevant time. An intention to kill is a state of
mind and, as such, will usually be proven by inference from the
circumstantial evidence. The question is whether the evidence establishes
that the only reasonable inference is that the accused intended to kill the
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deceased at the time of the act or acts that caused the death of the
deceased.
Absence of a body
203 In the case of Sarah Spiers, her body has never been located. The
absence of body in a murder case does not preclude a finding of guilt.
However, there must be evidence that proves that the alleged victim is
dead and that the victim was killed by the accused. That may be more
difficult in the absence of a body, but it is not necessarily impossible.
204 In such a case the prosecution must rely on the circumstantial

evidence supporting an inference that death occurred as alleged. As with
other inferences, inferences that the victim is dead and was killed by the
accused must be the only inferences reasonably available on the evidence
adduced at the trial. If the evidence leaves open a reasonable possibility
that another person may have been responsible then the accused must be
found not guilty.
Alternative verdicts
205 The three counts in the indictment that are the subject of the trial
(counts 6, 7 and 8) allege wilful murder contrary to s 278 of the Criminal
Code. As I previously noted, that section was operative at the times of the
alleged offences but has since been repealed. The repeal does not affect
liability incurred prior to the repeal as that liability is preserved by s 37 of
the Interpretation Act.
206 Also at the relevant times, s 595 of the Criminal Code provided for
alternative verdicts in the case of a person charged with wilful murder.
That section has also been repealed, but its effect is also preserved by the
Interpretation Act. By virtue of s 595, a person charged with wilful
murder can, if that offence is not established by the evidence, be instead
convicted of (relevantly) murder or manslaughter. That means that those
alternative verdicts are available by virtue of statute in this case and do
not have to be pleaded in the indictment.
207 The essential difference between wilful murder, murder and

manslaughter is in the specific intent of the accused person that must be
proved. That is, if it is proven that the accused unlawfully killed the
named deceased person, whether they are guilty of wilful murder, murder
or manslaughter will depend on the intent that they had at the time of the
acts which caused death. If the intent was to cause the death of the person
(or that of some other person), the accused is guilty of wilful murder. If
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the intent was to do grievous bodily harm to the person (or some other
person), the accused is guilty of murder. There are other ways in which
murder can be committed, but they are not relevant in the circumstances
of this case. If the accused unlawfully killed the person in circumstances
that do not constitute wilful murder or murder, the accused is guilty of
manslaughter. That is, manslaughter will be proven if the accused
unlawfully killed the person without it being proven that he intended to
cause death or do grievous bodily harm.
Failure to cross-examine (Browne v Dunn)

208 The State submitted that there were a number of matters raised by the
defence in closing address that were not put to prosecution witnesses. It
was said that this meant that the relevant witnesses had no opportunity to
answer those assertions and that it would be unfair to the State to make
any adverse finding based on those assertions.54
209 It is a rule of practice that both the grounds upon which it will be
suggested that a witness is to be disbelieved and the nature of the case
upon which a party intends to rely should be put to the opponent's
witnesses in cross-examination (unless notice has already been given of
these matters to the opposing party). This is particularly so where the
case of the party relies upon inferences to be drawn from other evidence
in the proceedings. Fairness ordinarily requires that if a challenge is to be
made to the evidence of a witness, the ground of the challenge must be put
to the witness in cross-examination. This rule is necessary both to give
witnesses the opportunity to respond and to allow the opposing party the
opportunity to call evidence either to corroborate that response or to
contradict the inference sought to be drawn.
210 The extent to which detailed cross-examination is called for depends

on the circumstances. The witness must be given an opportunity to
respond to the allegation and to its essential features. Cross-examination
on every point to be made in closing address is not required. Whether
there has been a breach of the rule, and the significance of it, will depend
upon the importance of the allegation to the credibility of the witness and
the practical consequences of any failure to put a specific point. This
essentially requires an assessment of whether there has been any
unfairness to the opposing party.
211 The rule applies to both civil and criminal trials, but needs to be
applied with some care when considering the conduct of the defence in
54
State's application dated 8 July 2020.
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criminal proceedings. The position of an accused, who bears no burden of

proof in a criminal trial, cannot be equated with the position of a
defendant in civil proceedings. The rule does not compel the defence to
clear up inconsistencies in the prosecution case.
212 A potential consequence of breach of the rule where a matter is first

raised in closing address in a jury trial includes that the trial judge can
give a direction to the jury pointing out that the matter was not put to the
relevant witness, that it should have been put so that the witness could
have an opportunity of dealing with the suggestion, that the witness has
been deprived of the opportunity of giving that evidence and that the court
has been deprived of receiving it. These are considerations that the jury is
entitled to take into account in assessing what, if any, weight is to be
given to the matter raised in the closing address. The same principle can
be applied in a trial by judge alone.55
213 The State submitted that the rule was breached by defence counsel in
closing address in the following respects. It was asserted that:
1. the witness Wayne Stewart was mistaken as to whether he saw a
station wagon rather than a sedan, but that this was not put to
Mr Stewart in cross-examination;
2. Mr Stewart did not tell police in 1996 that he had seen a vehicle,
but that this was not put to Mr Stewart in cross-examination;
3. the witness Brigita Cook should not be believed regarding a
conversation with the accused in which there was reference to loss
of a baby on the basis that there was no evidence that such an
event had occurred (that is, that it is unlikely that the accused
would say something like this if it was untrue), but that there is no
evidence as to whether or not such a loss had occurred or that the
accused would not have said it even if untrue;
4. the witness KM was wrong as to the date and content of a
conversation she had with the accused regarding the end of their
relationship, but that this was not put to KM in cross-examination;
and
5. witnesses who heard screams in Mosman Park and Wellard may
have unconsciously tailored their evidence having regard to
55
Other possible responses such as recalling the witness for further cross-examination or aborting the trial were
not suggested as being appropriate in this case.
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information that they may have become aware of subsequently,

but that this was not put to those witnesses in cross-examination.
214 As regards the first matter, it was put to Mr Stewart in

cross-examination that the features of the vehicle he saw were not unique
to station wagons and, indeed, that some were shared with sedans.56 That
was sufficient to raise the contention made in closing. Insofar as defence
counsel referred in closing to a photograph not put to Mr Stewart, that is a
matter of no real consequence and I do not rely on it.
215 As regards the second matter, in context what counsel said in closing
was that the first statement made to police by Mr Stewart was in 2017.
The point was that by this time it was not possible to independently
determine what could be seen given the growth of vegetation in the
intervening period. This does not constitute any breach of the rule. The
issue of what could be seen by Mr Stewart in 1996 was very clearly raised
in cross-examination.57
216 As regards the third matter, it was put to Ms Cook in
cross-examination that she could be mistaken about this aspect of the
conversation.58 As to whether there was any objective evidence that it
was untrue, in my view defence counsel was referring to the evidence of
EB, the ex-wife of the accused, who said she had given birth to a child
after their separation. To the extent that the submission could be taken as
being a reference to whether EB had ever lost a baby at any time, then it is
correct that there was no evidence in that regard. However, that is not
how I have interpreted the submission of defence counsel. In those
circumstances there was no breach of the rule.
217 As regards the fourth matter, the possibility that KM was mistaken as
to the date of the break-up was put to her in cross-examination.59 In
closing address defence counsel conceded that there was a difficulty with
his contention in that there was a specific detail in the conversation that
referred to a fact that became known at a later time. He also conceded
that he had not challenged the witness that she was wrong in this
particular detail. This does not, however, result in any unfairness to the
prosecution because, as is apparent, the evidence of the witness was
unchallenged on this issue and no other evidence that could support the
defence position was led. In fact, relevant evidence as to the timing and
56
ts 1816.
57
ts 1822.
58
ts 1310.
59
ts 1153 - 4.
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supportive of the prosecution case was led by the State from another
witness (and was unchallenged). In these circumstances a direction of the
type I have referred to earlier is not necessary in respect of this matter.
218 As regards the fifth matter, defence counsel made the impugned
submission in regard to one of the Wellard scream witnesses. 60 Defence
counsel submitted that the witness may have been unconsciously
influenced in her evidence as to the sound and direction of the screams by
the finding of Ms Rimmer's body and the investigation by the police. This
was not put to the witness, but it would have been pointless to do so. To
ask a witness whether they have been unconsciously influenced by other
information is hardly likely to produce a meaningful answer. The most
that could be done is to ask whether the witness was aware of other
information at the time the statement was given, but the long lapse of time
would militate against any reliable answer in that regard. Nor is this a
matter that has produced unfairness to the State as there is no other
evidence that could have been led on the issue. The rule was not breached
in regard to this matter.
219 For the reasons I have given I decline the State's invitation to apply a
direction in respect of any of the matters raised. That is, I do not consider
that the submissions made by defence counsel were unjustified or
produced material unfairness to the prosecution. I do not intend to
discount or disregard those submissions.
Admissions
220 The accused made formal admissions of facts at the commencement
of the trial, pursuant to s 32 of the Evidence Act. The effect of those
admissions is that I can take the matters admitted as having been proved.
The admissions are as follows:61
1. I was born on 7 December 1968.
2. [EB] and I became registered proprietors of the property located at

10 Fountain Way, Huntingdale in the State of Western Australia on
4 June 1991 and we began living there sometime between that date
and the date of our wedding.
3. [EB] and I were married on 23 November 1991.
60
ts 10610.
61
Exhibit 14367.
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4. [EB] and I transferred title to the property located at 10 Fountain

Way, Huntingdale in The State of Western Australia to Ronald
Hilgert and Gail Hilgert on 3 April 1997.
5. [CG] and I became registered proprietors of the property located at

344 Acton Avenue, Kewdale in the State of Western Australia on
15 August 2000. I lived at that address from sometime between
that date and the date of our wedding until 22 December 2016.
6. [CG] and I were married on 16 December 2000.
7. Troy Adam Edwards, date of birth 28 April 1971, was working for
Telecom in the Denham Shark Bay area from 22 January 1996 to
8 February 1996.
8. My parents Bruce Robert Edwards and Elizabeth Kaye Edwards

left Australia on 7 December 1996 and returned on 12 January
1997.
9. My parents Bruce Robert Edwards and Elizabeth Kaye Edwards

left Australia on 19 January 1997 and returned on 22 May 1997.
10. On 8 June 1996 I played softball for the Kelmscott Bulldogs

Softball Team at the Langford Park Sporting Complex, Langford
Avenue, Langford in a game scheduled to start at 3.45 pm and end
at 5.15 pm.
11. On 22 February 1997 [KM] and I stayed the night together at the
Grange Motel in Margaret River.
12. In the course of my employment with Telecom/Telstra, I worked

on the PABX systems at the places and on the dates listed in
(a schedule annexed to the signed admissions).
13. On Saturday, 27 January 1996 I worked at Dumas House starting at

approximately 8 am and ending at approximately 9.45 pm.
14. Between June 1993 and October 1996, Sheldon and Hammond
supplied Telecom Australia with a total of 58,900 production
knives with the word Shelham engraved on the blade hilt. Of the
58,900 Shelham knives dispatched Australia wide between June
1993 and October 1996, 4,200 were dispatched to Western
Australia. The knives were issued to Telecom employees for use
during their employment.
15. I was assigned by Telecom Australia for work use and part private
use, a white 1992 Toyota Camry Executive station wagon, VIN
6T172SV2109318479 and engine number 3S81590006 bearing the
number plates 8IJ-235 from 26 October 1994 until 1 May 1996
other than during periods of annual leave exceeding one week.
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That car was first licensed to Telecom Australia on 22 April 1992

and remained licensed to Telecom Australia until 15 May 1996.
16. As at 26 and 27 January 1996, I lived at 10 Fountain Way,

Huntingdale. I was not on annual leave as at 26 January 1996 or
27 January 1996.
17. I was assigned by Telstra Corporation for work use and part private
use, a white 1996 VS Holden Commodore Executive station
wagon, VIN 6H8VSK35HTL917998 and engine number
VH570913, bearing the number plates 9GP-082 from 29 April
1996 until 22 December 1998 other than during periods of annual
leave exceeding one week. That car was first licensed to Telstra
Corporation on 29 April 1996 and remained licensed to Telstra
Corporation until 3 June 2000.
18. As at 8 and 9 June 1996 I lived at 144 Gay Street, Huntingdale. I

was not on annual leave as at 8 June 1996 or 9 June 1996.
19. As at 14 and 15 March 1997, I lived at 144 Gay Street,

Huntingdale. I was not on annual leave as at 14 March 1997 or
15 March 1997.
20. On 7 May 1990, I unlawfully assaulted [WD]. On 1 June 1990, I

was convicted on my own plea of guilty of the offence of unlawful
assault of [WD], contrary to s 313 of the Criminal Code, and was
sentenced to two years' probation.
21. Sarah Ellen Spiers was born on 12 November 1977.
22. At 2.06 am on Saturday, 27 January 1996, Sarah Ellen Spiers

telephoned for a taxi from a Telstra telephone box on Stirling Road
near the intersection with Stirling Highway, Claremont.
23. Sarah Ellen Spiers' parents, Donald and Carol Spiers, and sister
Amanda Spiers, have not seen or heard from her since she made the
telephone call referred to in the above paragraph.
24. Sarah Ellen Spiers did not go to work at her usual workplace, BSD
Consultants in Subiaco, on any day after 26 January 1996.
25. Sarah Ellen Spiers did not attend the Sky Show on Sunday,
28 January 1996, as she had previously arranged with her friend
Emma Jane Wates nee McCormack.
26. Sarah Ellen Spiers is deceased.
27. Graham Atkinson and Lynda Maude were married at the Don
Cuthbertson Reserve Cooloongup on 4 May 1996. They held their
wedding reception at the Rockingham Soccer Club in Rockingham
on that day. [EB] and [DF] went to that reception.
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28. Jane Louise Rimmer was born on 12 October 1972.
29. As at 8 June 1996, Jane Louise Rimmer lived at 5/276 Cambridge

Street, Wembley.
30. Jane Louise Rimmer died on or about 9 June 1996.
31. On 3 August 1996, the body of Jane Louise Rimmer was found in
bushland off Woolcoot Road, Wellard.
32. Ciara Eilish Glennon was born on 20 November 1969.
33. Ciara Eilish Glennon died on or about 15 March 1997.
34. On 3 April 1997, the body of Ciara Eilish Glennon was found in
bushland off Pipidinny Road, Eglinton.
35. On 2 December 2016, Detective SC Michelle Haase obtained a

voluntary DNA sample from [AH], DNA barcode 8129243.
36. On 13 December 2016, Detective SC Michelle Haase obtained a

voluntary DNA sample from [BAH], DNA barcode 8129246.
37. On 22 December 2016, Detective SC Steve Kang obtained a DNA

reference sample from me, DNA barcode 8141569.
221 Further admissions were made later in the trial, on 5 and 30 March
2020. The admissions made on 5 March 2020 are as follows:62
1. On 2 August 1996, Yvonne Taylor and John Sidney Taylor, being
the parents of Tracey Chrystal (nee Taylor), departed Australia.
Yvonne Taylor and John Sidney Taylor returned to Australia on
10 September 1996.
2. On 4 March 1997, Ciara Eilish Glennon had a PAP smear taken by

Dr Yien Chin. The PAP smear was received by PathWest on
18 March 1997 and given reference number Q97C5229P. A single
source DNA profile was obtained from the PAP smear. This single
source DNA profile is the DNA profile of Ciara Eilish Glennon.
222 The admissions made on 30 March 2020 are as follows:63

1. The hair mass (VA2638/96F0448.006) located by investigators on
26 August 2009 at the Chemistry Centre WA (ChemCentre), and
from which the subsample VA3681/F0662027-0 was later taken, is
that of Jane Louise Rimmer.
62
Exhibit 30386.
63
Exhibit 30387.
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2. The hair mass exhibit VW1 (05F0925.109/F0660927-0), and the

subsample taken from this hair mass, VW1A (05F0925.110/
F0660928-9) as received by the ChemCentre on 28 September
2018, are those of Ciara Eilish Glennon.
3. The 'known' hair sample exhibit (96F2948.216/

VA2565/F0662102-2), as originally received by ChemCentre on
20 November 2012, is that of Ciara Eilish Glennon.
4. The hair sample exhibit RH17 (05F0925.112/

VA1815/F0662029-1), as received by ChemCentre on
19 December 2018, is that of Ciara Eilish Glennon.
5. The hair sample exhibit (05F0925.111-001) as received by

ChemCentre on 31 October 2018 in the large plastic bucket
(F0660929-1), is that of Ciara Eilish Glennon.
Evidence
223 The prosecution evidence can be conveniently summarised by being
divided into subject areas. I will summarise the evidence in respect of
each subject. The summaries represent my assessment of the substance of
the evidence of the witnesses. Some witnesses gave evidence that
referred to more than one area and this means that those witnesses appear
in more than one part of the reasons.
224 There may be some overlap between the subject areas and I have
taken this into account in coming to my conclusions. At the end of each
subject area I will state my findings. In doing so I have not considered the
evidence of each area in isolation, but rather having regard to other
evidence which may strengthen or weaken one or another of the possible
inferences that the evidence supports. I will also explain why I have
accepted or not accepted the evidence of a witness on a particular issue, in
particular having regard to my assessment of the credibility or reliability
of the witnesses.
225 Not all of the evidence adduced at the trial will be summarised in this
judgment. That is because I have only summarised evidence that is
relevant to one or other of the issues that remained live at the end of the
trial. Some matters that were in issue at the start of the trial and were the
subject of extensive evidence fell away because concessions were later
made by either the State or the defence. For example, evidence relating to
the alleged 'emotional upset' motive became irrelevant at the end of the
trial when the State conceded that its argument in regard to that motive
would not be maintained. Another important example was in respect of
the fibre evidence. During the trial there was extensive cross-examination
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regarding the possibility that the critical fibres could have been
inadvertently introduced by police officers, at the mortuary, at the
ChemCentre or during the course of the movement of the various relevant
exhibits. However, in closing submissions senior counsel for the accused
accepted that, whilst this had been a legitimate line of questioning, there
was little to support an inference that the fibres had been introduced in
this way.64
Background and opportunity

EB – evidence summary
226 EB met the accused between 1988 and 1989 when she was 18 or
19 years old. She met him through her then boyfriend, Chris Nixon, who
was working with the accused at Telstra. At the time she got to know the
accused she was living with Mr Nixon and another friend in Noranda and
the accused was living in Gay Street, Gosnells with his parents. She can
recall the timing of the start of her relationship with the accused because it
coincided with the end of her relationship with Mr Nixon. In mid-1989
EB and the accused got to know each other a lot better, decided they liked
each other and the accused moved in with EB sometime before his 21st
birthday.65
227 EB and the accused first lived together in the three-bedroom villa in
Noranda that EB had previously shared with Mr Nixon and her friend.
They moved out of Noranda and lived for a short time in the accused's
parents' holiday house in Madora Bay. They then rented a unit in Osborne
Park for several months, and then moved into the Gay Street house with
the accused's parents, his brother and his sister. EB recalled that some
months before they were married they purchased a house together. She
was shown the transfer of land document dated 31 May 1991 for
10 Fountain Way, Huntingdale which confirmed her recollection of the
time between the purchase of the house and her marriage to the accused in
November that year. She was also shown the certificate of title for
10 Fountain Way, Huntingdale which recorded that on 4 June 1991 the
accused and EB became registered proprietors of the property. They
moved in a couple of weeks after they purchased the house because they
wanted to paint it first. The accused and EB were living at the Fountain
Way property when they got married. When she was shown their
64
ts 10811 - 2.
65
ts 995 - 8, 1000, 1004 - 5.
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marriage certificate EB remembered that they were married on

23 November 1991.66
228 At the start of their relationship EB was working as a clerk for a law
firm in Perth and the accused was working for Telstra. Because EB did
not have a car the accused drove her to work in his van and dropped her
off between 8.00 am and 8.30 am and picked her up between 5.00 pm and
5.15 pm. She recalled that she stopped working at the law firm during the
time they were living in Huntingdale. At some point she had started
working casually in a pet shop in Thornlie on Thursday nights and
Saturday mornings, in addition to her work at the law firm. Eventually
she left the law firm to work at the pet shop, Bates Pet Paradise in
Thornlie, and was then offered a full time position at Bates Pet Paradise at
Rockingham City Shopping Centre.67
229 EB was asked about the hours that the accused worked during their
relationship. She said that he worked the same hours that she did:
8.30 am to 5.00 pm. She said he sometimes worked Saturdays on an ad
hoc basis and that she did not recall him coming home late after working
in the evenings or working on Sundays.68
230 EB described the deterioration of her relationship with the accused.

She said that it occurred in 1994 or 1995 and that it started when the
accused brought home a computer and began to spend a lot of time on it in
the evenings. She said that he spent hours at a time on the computer and
that she would often go to bed on her own. She usually went to bed
between 9.00 pm and 10.00 pm and by the time she woke up between
6.00 am and 7.00 am on midweek mornings he was in bed but she did not
know what time he got there. Once or twice she woke during the night to
see that the computer light was on; she recalled one specific night that the
light was still on in the computer room at 3.00 am. EB said that she began
to feel that the accused was not interested and was not 'present' in the
marriage; she said that the relationship 'slowly deteriorated'.69
231 EB met DF in 1994 while she was working at the law firm. DF was
at the law firm offices working on a renovation. They became friends and
then started to see each other outside work. She recalled that DF took his
children to an agistment centre in Wattle Grove to ride her horse. She
could not recall how often she would see him out at the agistment centre,
66
ts 996 - 7, 1000 - 1; exhibit 00034, exhibit 00035.
67
ts 994, 998, 1002 - 4, 1030; exhibit 00028.
68
ts 1033.
69
ts 1037 - 9.
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but said that she would see him and his children regularly as the
friendship progressed. When they first met, DF was living in Bassendean
with friends and she was living at Huntingdale with the accused.70 The
evidence relating to the relationship with DF was primarily relevant to the
emotional upset motive, which was later abandoned. I have referred to
this, and other similar evidence, only because it had some relevance to
placing other events in time (such as when the separation of EB and the
accused occurred).
232 EB described a New Year's Eve 'get-together' at a house in Helena

Valley that DF was looking after. She arrived at the house in the
mid-morning by herself and DF and his two children were there when she
arrived. She said others, including Karen and David McInroy, arrived
later. She recalled swimming with DF's two children and said that they
had all sat outside by the pool, had a few drinks, listened to music and had
something to eat. She recalled that she and the accused had not arrived
together, that he had arrived sometime later than she did. She was asked
about her interactions with DF on that evening and said that they had been
talking and laughing, that their interactions were the same as she had with
others who were there. She said that at that point in time they were very
good friends and that nothing sexual or intimate had happened between
them.71
233 EB said that in the time that she knew DF he travelled once to
England; she said that was 'at the beginning' but that they were not in a
relationship at the time. They got closer once DF returned from England.
EB said the first time she went out with DF was after his trip to England
but before the Helena Valley party. They went to a restaurant in Mount
Lawley and then to DF's house in Bassendean, she then returned home.
She did not sleep at DF's house and denied there was sexual contact
between them at this point.72
234 EB was asked when her relationship with DF became an intimate

one. She said that DF moved from Bassendean into the house at Fountain
Way as a boarder. Initially they were close, but had not started a sexual
relationship. He stayed in one of the bedrooms of the three bedroom
house; she and the accused were in the main bedroom and the computer
was in the other bedroom. She and DF got along well, spoke like
70
ts 1039.
71
ts 1041 - 3.
72
ts 1040, 1043.
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housemates and shared meals together. She said that her friendship with
DF did not turn into an intimate relationship until the end of 1995.73
235 EB described an incident that occurred during the time that DF was
living at Fountain Way. She was sitting on the bed in DF's bedroom and
leaned in and gave him a hug and kiss on the cheek. The accused
happened to be in the doorway to the room and saw what occurred. The
accused became upset. She recalled that not much was said but that she
got up and left the room and that the accused followed her into the main
bedroom. She and the accused had a discussion but she could not recall
what was said. After the discussion the accused appeared calm. She and
the accused remained together and DF continued to live at the house. She
agreed in cross-examination that this incident made her wonder what she
ought to be doing and after a while she decided to leave the house.74
236 EB's recollection of the date when she and the accused separated was
that it was late 1995 to early 1996. She said she went to live at her mum
and dad's house in Golden Bay for a week or two weeks because she was
confused about what she wanted; whether to pursue a relationship with
DF or stay with the accused. When she left she took the clothes that she
had, she did not take any furniture. She said that after she moved out the
accused and DF remained in the house for a time but then DF moved to a
house in Warnbro. She could not recall if she moved back into the
Fountain Way property and did not have a specific memory of where she
went to after her parents' house. She recalled that after she moved in with
her parents she spent a night with DF in late 1995 or early 1996 at the
Dolphin Inn in Rockingham.75
237 EB gave evidence that after she moved out the accused knew she was
at her parents' house and went there one evening to visit her. He turned
up without notice one afternoon, they had a conversation and he stayed for
dinner. He asked her if she wanted to go to see some fireworks, she could
not recall whether there was a particular event or the location of the
fireworks. She said 'no'. She said there was no discussion about the
relationship, no anger on the part of the accused and they had got along
well. She said that he did not seem upset or angry.76
238 EB said that at some point she moved out of her parents' house and
started living with DF at a house in Warnbro. When asked about when
73
ts 1044 - 5, 1086.
74
ts 1046 - 7, 1082 - 3, 1087 - 8.
75
ts 1047 - 9, 1051 - 2.
76
ts 1050, 1091.
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this was, she said she could not recall specifically but that it would have
been early 1996 but she could not recall which month. She recalled that
she only took her clothes with her to the first house she lived at in
Warnbro. When told in cross-examination that the address of this house
was Monterey Crescent, she said that 'rings a bell'. She and DF lived
there for a short time and then moved to another house in Javanica Court,
Warnbro. EB was not able to have her dog with her at the first house, so
the dog stayed at Fountain Way. When she and DF moved into the
Javanica Court house the dog come to live with them; she recalled that
this was sometime after April or May 1996.77
239 EB was asked about the times that she saw the accused after she left
the Fountain Way house. She recalled one occasion on which she went
out with the Edwards family to the Lakers Tavern. She went to his
parents' house, then to Lakers Tavern with the family group for a
celebration and then afterwards back to Fountain Way with the accused.
She said that she stayed the night with the accused and that they had sex.
She said the next morning was a workday because she remembered the
accused ironing his shirt in the laundry. She asked him whether they were
doing the right thing in separating or whether they should work out their
marriage difficulties. The accused did not say anything to her at all.78
240 EB's evidence is that the accused did not at any time make any
comment to her about them separating and never asked her to return. She
did not recall him voicing any upset about it. A few months after they
separated, in 1996, she went back to Fountain Way and collected her
things; the accused had packed up her property neatly and left it in the
front lounge room. The last time she went to Fountain Way was to pick
up her dog. The accused was not there on that occasion.79
241 EB was asked whether she had telephone communication with the
accused after she moved in with DF. She said that she had made one
phone call to the accused to let him know that she was pregnant to another
man. The timing of the phone call and her recollection of dates in her
pregnancy emerged from questions put to EB by both counsel.80
242 On 21 December 1996 EB gave birth to a daughter.81 She gave
evidence that she became pregnant in April or May 1996. She used a
home pregnancy test first and then two or three weeks later went to a
77
ts 1052 - 3, 1084.
78
ts 1054 - 66, 1095, 1194.
79
ts 1056 - 8.
80
ts 1058, 1098.
81
ts 1061.
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doctor in Rockingham to confirm the pregnancy. She recalled that she

had used the home pregnancy test a couple of days after feeling sick the
morning after a celebration with friends of DF. Some months later she
had an ultrasound.82
243 She told the accused that she was pregnant because she did not want
him to hear about it from anyone else, in particular from another member
of his family. In respect of the timing of the phone call, she said she was
living in Javanica Court, Warnbro at the time she made the phone call to
the accused and that she made the call between April and May 1996, after
the visit to the doctor. She could not recall the exact conversation, apart
from him asking if the baby was his, she told him that it was not and then
said 'goodbye'. The conversation was civil. She said she was not sure if
the conversation was before or after the ultrasound that she had some
months into her pregnancy.83
244 EB said she saw the accused three times after their separation. On
one occasion he turned up at the shops while she was working at Bates
Pets Paradise in Rockingham. She recalled he had a bank statement with
him. On another occasion, while EB was living at Javanica Court, the
accused came to the house with some papers for her, she cannot recall
what the papers were, and he stayed for 10 or 15 minutes. She noticed
when she went outside to say goodbye to him that he was driving a white
station wagon with a child seat in the back. She asked him about it and he
said that he had met someone with a little girl. The third occasion she saw
the accused was at a bank on the Rockingham foreshore. At this meeting
the accused gave EB the papers for the Mazda vehicle she drove. She
recalled that once the house was sold, the vehicle loan was paid out and
the vehicle transferred into her name.84
245 EB was shown the contract for sale of the Fountain Way property,
which was signed by both the accused and herself on 2 March 1997. She
was also shown the transfer of land document for the property which was
signed by both of them on 2 April 1997. She was shown the application
for divorce made by the accused and herself and recognised her
handwriting on the document and her signature and that of the accused.
She was shown the decree nisi for the dissolution of the marriage dated
24 December 1997 and which became absolute on 25 January 1998.85
82
ts 1058 - 9, 1061, 1103.
83
ts 1059, 1085, 1099 - 100.
84
ts 1060, 1066 - 8.
85
ts 995, 1069 - 70, 1072, 1074 - 6; exhibit 00029, exhibit 00031, exhibit 00040, exhibit 00041.
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246 EB was asked about work uniforms worn by the accused. She said
that when they were first living together he wore a Telstra shirt, Telstra
pants, and a jumper with a v-neck, which had a logo on it. She recalled
that the pants were grey and shirt was white, the jumper was grey and that
he wore dress shoes. She was asked whether the colour of clothing
changed and she said that the colours of the uniform remained the same
while they were together.86
247 EB gave evidence that the accused was six feet tall and of medium
build when she knew him. She said that in the course of their relationship
he put on a little bit of weight. She said that he required glasses for
reading but wore contact lenses while he was at work and when
socialising. His hairstyle always remained the same: short and clean cut.
She could not recall if he had a part in his hair but when shown one of
their wedding photos agreed that his hair was the same throughout their
relationship as it was on that day. She said that the length of his hair did
not vary greatly.87
248 EB recalled that there was a time in their relationship that the
accused had a beard but she could not say for how long, perhaps months.
She remembered him being clean shaven at the start of their relationship
and that on one occasion he had grown a beard, which she recalled when
shown the photographs of him with facial hair. In terms of the timing as
to when he had a beard she could say that it was after she got her horse, in
February 1992 and before the horse was sold in 1994 - 1995.88
249 EB gave evidence that the accused was a social drinker and did not
drink to excess. In cross-examination she said that he occasionally drank
enough alcohol so that he was over the limit and not able to drive. She
said that he would drink if they went to barbeques or out for dinner and
his preferred drink was beer, particularly Corona and Redback. She could
not recall him drinking spirits but in cross-examination said that she
would not argue with the proposition that he drank Jack Daniel's and coke
from time to time. She said he was not a smoker and did not have any
medical issues.89
250 EB gave evidence about the vehicles that the accused owned and
drove while they were together. She said there was never a time that he
did not have a Telstra vehicle that he brought home from work. She said
86
ts 1004.
87
ts 1014 - 5; exhibit 00019.
88
ts 1018, 1021 - 2, 1025; exhibit 00024, exhibit 00037, exhibit 00135.
89
ts 1023, 1078.
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he had two Telstra work vans while they were together. The first of these
was when they were living in Noranda. EB remembered it as a white,
'square-type', 'older-type' van with a Telstra logo, a roof rack, ladders and
windows that she could see through. She did not travel very often in the
first van.90
251 EB said that the accused acquired the second work van while they
were living in Huntingdale. The second van was newer, not as square in
shape, with a logo on both sides and ladders on the top. She said that it
had a cab at the front with two seats, and a plastic cover over a grille
behind the seats. The back of the van had shelving on both sides for work
material and floor space with cables. She was asked whether the van had
a door at the back and replied that the door was at the side of the van. She
said there was nothing at the back of the van that she could recall.91
252 EB said that while they were living in Fountain Way the accused had
another Telstra vehicle, a white, two-door Hilux utility. In
cross-examination she said that she did not recall exactly when he had that
vehicle and would not quarrel with the Telstra records if they record him
having had it from 1993 to October 1994. She agreed that after the Hilux
he had a white station wagon and that he had that car up until and past the
time of their separation. She initially said that she remembered seeing it
when he came to see her at Javanica Court but agreed that she was not
sure whether it was the one that he had before.92
253 EB also recalled that the accused drove a blue HR Holden sedan and
a gold Ford LTD. She said in cross-examination that she had not been in
the blue HR Holden. She said that he may have acquired the gold LTD
while she was with him, although he may have had it before they got
together. She recalled that the gold LTD was the car that they drove in
together. The accused had the gold LTD for the duration of the
relationship, and when he was driving his work vehicle it remained in the
driveway.93
254 When they were first together EB did not own a car and the accused
drove her to and from work in his work vehicle. When she first started
working for Bates Pets Paradise at the Rockingham Shopping Centre she
got a lift to Rockingham with Karen McInroy and on Thursday evenings
and Saturdays drove herself to work in the accused's gold Ford LTD.
90
ts 998 - 9, 1001; exhibit 00033.
91
ts 999, 1002 - 3.
92
ts 1008 - 9, 1081.
93
ts 1000 - 2, 1032, 1082.
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A few months after she started working in Rockingham the accused

purchased a green Mazda 626 for her. She was shown a certificate of
vehicle registration, which recorded that the vehicle was purchased by the
accused on 25 July 1995. She recalled that she had the Mazda for about
six months before she and the accused separated and that she took the car
with her when they parted.94
255 EB was asked whether she recalled that there was one day the
accused did not pick her up after work. She replied that there was and
said it was the date of the 'Hollywood Hospital incident'. She was
working in the city as a law clerk at the time and the accused had not
collected her after work as she was expecting him to, so she had waited
until 5.30 pm and then caught the bus home to Noranda. When she
arrived he was not there. She saw him later that evening at his parents'
house after a friend drove her to their house.95
256 EB said that the night before this incident she and the accused had
had an argument about getting married; she said she raised the topic. She
could not remember the exact conversation but recalled asking the
accused if he was thinking about them getting married. She said that the
accused started to get a bit upset, that she got upset and left the room to go
into their bedroom. She said the accused tried to console her a few times
but she did not want to talk about it anymore. Later that night they had
talked about it and had hugged and made up.96
257 EB was asked about whether she and the accused had mobile phones.
She said they had acquired phones during their relationship and while they
lived at Fountain Way. The accused was responsible for organising the
phones. She denied that there were ever lengthy periods of time in which
she could not contact him and agreed in cross-examination with the
proposition that the accused was always contactable on his mobile
phone.97
258 EB said that she and accused used to go to his parents' holiday house
at Madora Bay. She recalled that the family would go there, often at
Christmas, and that she and the accused drove there in his gold Ford LTD.
She recalled that they travelled from Huntingdale to Madora Bay via
Nicholson Road, Thomas Road, King Road, Mundijong Road and then
Baldivis Road or Old Mandurah Road. When she was asked if they ever
94
ts 1027, 1031, 1036 - 7; exhibit 00038.
95
ts 1005 - 6.
96
ts 1006.
97
ts 1034 - 5, 1079.
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went another way she said they took that route the majority of the times
they went and that was the route she could remember.98
259 She did not remember ever going to the OBH or out in Claremont
with the accused. She said she did not go to any riding schools in
Wellard.99
Ian Berry – evidence summary

260 Detective SC Ian Berry was tasked to undertake a search of public
records to determine if any fireworks had occurred in the Mandurah
region in 1995 and 1996. He made enquiries with the City of Mandurah
but no records had been retained for the period. He then searched copies
of local newspapers held in the State Library. In particular he searched
copies of the Mandurah Mail, which was a weekly publication, published
each Thursday.100
261 The results of Det SC Berry's search were as follows. One edition
from 19 January 1995 was missing. An edition dated 29 June 1995
contained reference to a fireworks display to occur at 9.00 pm on 6 July
1995 to mark the opening of the Rockingham City Shopping Centre. An
edition dated 25 January 1996 contained reference to a fireworks display
to occur at 8.30 pm on 26 January 1996 at the western foreshore, Cape
Bouvard. An edition dated 1 February 1996 contained reference to the
fireworks referred to in the previous edition. An edition dated 21 March
1996 contained reference to a dragon boat race that had been held on the
previous Sunday and that the opening ceremony had included fireworks.
No other references to fireworks in the Mandurah region in that two year
period were found.101
Susan San Juan – evidence summary

262 A schedule of agreed evidence from international movement records
was tendered by consent. It states that it is derived from the evidence of
Susan San Juan, an Australian Border Force Supervisor with the
Department of Immigration and Border Protection. It shows all
international movements recorded in the Movements Reconstruction
Database of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection in the
period 1 January 1988 to 30 June 1997 for the accused, Bruce Richard
98
ts 1007, 1035 - 6.
99
ts 1035 - 6.
100
ts 6336, 6359 - 60.
101
ts 6360 - 4; exhibit 01907, exhibit 01909.
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Edwards (his father), Elizabeth Kaye Edwards (his mother), his brother
and his sister.102
263 Relevantly, the schedule records that the only international

movements of the accused were a departure from Perth on 18 April 1988,
returning on 2 May 1988. His parents and siblings also left and returned
on the same dates. The accused's parents were absent overseas for an
extended period in late 1996 to early 1997; they departed Perth on
7 December 1996 and returned on 12 January 1997 and then departed
again on 19 January 1997 and returned on 22 May 1997.103
DF – evidence summary
264 DF met EB in late 1993 while he was working on a re-fit of the
offices of a law firm where she was working. He recalled that he had a
migraine and she got him something to eat and some paracetamol and
they started talking. EB offered to give DF's children a ride on her horse.
A couple of days later, at the weekend, he took his children to the
agistment centre where her horse was. DF took her out for a meal to say
thank you. On a Friday they went to an Italian restaurant in Mount
Lawley and then after dinner they went to the house where DF was
staying in Bassendean.104
265 DF said that once he and EB were at his house they spent some time
drinking wine and listening to music. At about 4.00 or 5.00 am he drove
EB home to Huntingdale; she asked him to drop her off around the corner
from where she lived because she told him she was married and she did
not want her husband to find out. DF said that he and EB had sex that
evening.105
266 After that evening EB and DF became friends. EB came to the house
where he was living in Bassendean on about six occasions. He recalled
that she visited on the weekend and that she drove to his house in a gold
Ford LTD. Over time the relationship developed into an intimate one.106
267 During the time he was in a relationship with EB, DF travelled to the
United Kingdom; he was shown a page from his passport which records
that he departed Australia on 4 October 1994 and arrived back at Perth
airport on 10 November 1994.107 About six weeks after he came back
102
ts 2788 - 9; exhibit 15596.
103
Exhibit 15596.
104
ts 1404 - 7.
105
ts 1406 - 7.
106
ts 1407 - 10.
107
Exhibit 00163.
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from the United Kingdom, EB visited him at the house in Bassendean. He

recalled that EB stayed overnight and that this was the second time that
she stayed at his house. She had to stay on this occasion because her car
would not start. EB called the accused the next day and he came to the
house and started the car. The accused and EB then left.108
268 A couple of weeks later, in approximately January 1995, EB invited

DF to come to the house in Huntingdale to watch a television program.
After that he went to the Fountain Way house once a week to watch the
program. The first time he left straight away, but a couple of times after
that he started sleeping on their sofa. A short while later EB came to his
house and asked if he wanted to move into their house and rent a room. In
cross-examination, after having his memory refreshed by reference to his
statement, DF agreed that EB and the accused asked DF to move in on
one of the occasions that he was at their house having dinner and
watching the television program. He said that the arrangement came
about through the mutual agreement of the three of them.109
269 In March 1995 DF moved into a spare bedroom the Fountain Way
house. He recalled that the house had three bedrooms; EB and the
accused occupied the front bedroom, he had one bedroom and the third
bedroom was fitted out as an office for the accused's computer work.
While DF was living in the house he and EB continued their sexual
relationship; early on Sunday mornings they had sex in DF's bedroom
while the accused was asleep in the main bedroom. He said this happened
five or six times.110
270 While DF was living at the house he befriended the accused.
DF helped the accused to fit out his computer room with shelving, build a
shed at the back of the house, and find a car for EB. DF joined the
accused's softball team. In cross-examination he agreed with the
proposition that while he was living at Fountain Way he did his best to
make sure that the accused did not find out that he had an intimate
relationship with EB.111
271 DF saw the accused go into his computer room every night of the
week; he could hear that he was in there because he could hear the dial up
tone of the internet and the sound of the keys on the keyboard. The only
108
ts 1410, 1413.
109
ts 1414, 1433.
110
ts 1415 - 6.
111
ts 1437.
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time the accused was not on the computer was when DF and the accused
went to a nearby field to throw a softball together.112
272 DF gave evidence that the accused typically came home after work,
got changed and then went on the computer, coming out for meals and
then going back to the computer again. He saw EB ask the accused to
'come to bed' or 'come to dinner'. DF usually watched television and then
went to bed at 10.00 or 10.30 pm. DF recalled that usually when he went
to bed the accused was on the computer.113
273 DF was asked about the vehicles that the accused and EB drove. He
recalled a gold-coloured Ford LTD and a work vehicle, a Toyota Camry
station wagon. He recalled that EB drove a green Mazda 626. In
cross-examination he agreed that the accused later swapped the Camry for
a white Commodore station wagon. He agreed that both of these cars had
Telstra signage on them, although in re-examination he said he could not
recall whether the Commodore had a logo on it. DF said the accused did
not bring home other kinds of work cars.114
274 DF recalled an incident that occurred while he was living with the
accused and EB. He said that he was in his room and EB came in to the
room; while they were looking at photographs together and laughing,
EB and DF kissed each other on the lips. While they were kissing, the
accused opened the door to the room and put his head inside the room.
The accused did not say anything and then walked off. EB followed the
accused out of the room. DF heard a heated discussion or argument
between the accused and EB in their bedroom. DF started packing his
things.115
275 EB then returned to DF's room. DF asked EB 'what's happening?'

and she said 'don't worry' and then asked him what he was doing. He said
to her 'I'm going'. EB then said 'don't worry. It's sorted' and DF said 'No,
I've got to go'. EB said 'Well [the accused] doesn't want you to go' and
DF said to EB 'If he doesn't want me to go he's to come and tell me
himself'. DF then had a conversation with the accused in his bedroom.
The accused said to DF 'I don't want you to go'. DF said that the accused
was crying, DF was crying and EB was crying. DF said 'I've overstepped
the boundaries' and the accused said 'I don't want you to go'. DF said
'Then I'll look for somewhere else. I won't go. I'll look for somewhere
112
ts 1416, 1434.
113
ts 1418, 1435.
114
ts 1436, 1443.
115
ts 1421 - 2.
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else'. DF said that incident prompted him to look for somewhere else to
live.116
276 DF said in examination-in-chief that a couple of weeks later he

moved to a house in Monterey Crescent, Warnbro. He was asked in
cross-examination about the amount of time he stayed living at the
Huntingdale house after the incident. He was shown his statement and
confirmed that he had stated 'I decided to stay, but I only stayed for about
a month before I moved out in February 1996 to my own place in
Warnbro'. He was told that gas records for Monterey Crescent show that
an account was set up on 16 February 1996. He agreed that about a
month after the kissing incident he moved out of Huntingdale.117
277 In cross-examination he was asked about dates and with some

prompting was able to piece together his movements after he left Fountain
Way. He agreed that he spent Christmas 1995 at the accused's parents'
house with EB and the accused. He also agreed that he spent New Year's
Eve of 1995 going into 1996 with a group at The Boulevard and recalled
that he felt jealous when he saw the accused and EB kissing at midnight
that night. He said he thought that this was before the kissing incident at
Fountain Way. He also agreed in cross-examination that his recollection
is that the kissing incident happened before Australia Day 1996 and that
as at Australia Day 1996 he was living at Fountain Way and did not move
out until February 1996. He agreed that the kissing incident must have
happened in January 1996. DF said after the kissing incident that the
accused treated him courteously and asked him to stay.118
278 DF recalled that after he moved out of Fountain Way he lived at
Monterey Crescent, Warnbro by himself for three weeks before
EB moved in with him. After DF and EB had been together for some
months EB became pregnant. He said they lived at Monterey Crescent for
six months before moving to another house in Warnbro.119
279 DF was asked about the names of the places he lived in Warnbro.
Once the names of other streets and the sequence of events was put to him
in cross-examination his evidence was that he first lived in Monterey
Close (by himself, then with EB) and then he and EB moved together to a
house with a pool. Their daughter was born while they were living at this
house. They then moved to another house and that was the house he was
116
ts 1422.
117
ts 1423, 1430.
118
ts 1431, 1438 - 9.
119
ts 1423 - 4.
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living at when one day he came home from work everything was gone.
DF and EB split up in the early 2000s and DF moved back to England.120
280 DF was asked about the accused's work attire while he was living in
Huntingdale. He said that the accused wore khaki trousers or knee-length
shorts and a white shirt. He recalled that the uniform changed so that the
shirt had a stripe and a Telstra logo.121
Karen McInroy – evidence summary

281 Karen McInroy met the accused and EB at the end of 1992 or the
start of 1993. She first met EB when EB came to see a horse at an
agistment centre in Brigadoon. She and EB became friends, they spent
most weekends together at the agistment centre and EB assisted her with
dog shows. From 1993 Ms McInroy and her husband and EB and the
accused became friends and socialised a lot together, they had barbeques
and dinners and attended each other's houses. She also knew DF, who
attended the agistment centre with his children. DF also socialised with
the McInroys and EB and the accused.122
282 Ms McInroy was employed by Bates Pet Paradise as state store
supervisor at the time. She gave evidence that in about August or
September 1995 EB started working full time at Bates Pet Paradise at the
Rockingham store located in Rockingham Shopping Centre.123
283 Ms McInroy said that she knew the accused worked for Telstra but
usually EB and the accused came to their home in personal vehicles: a
gold LTD and later EB's Mazda 626. She recalls seeing a Telstra vehicle
at their house but could not say when.124
284 Ms McInroy recalled that she spent New Year's Eve 1994 to 1995 at
a house that DF was housesitting with a pool. The McInroys went to the
party and took their dogs with them. She recalled that DF and EB were
already at the house when they got there and that that the accused arrived
later. At the party, Ms McInroy observed that EB and DF had become
quite close and that there was flirtatious behaviour between them; she
observed a lot of joking around and touching. She said that she observed
120
ts 1440 - 1, 1427.
121
ts 1426.
122
ts 1107, 1110 - 1, 1117 - 8.
123
ts 1118 - 9.
124
ts 1113.
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this behaviour both before and after the accused arrived at the party. She
recalled that they all stayed the night at the house.125
285 Ms McInroy said that she said that she stopped visiting EB at
Fountain Way when EB moved out of the house. She recalled that she
learned that EB was pregnant in April or May 1996. Ms McInroy had
become pregnant in 1995 and her child was born in June 1996. She said
that she maintained a friendship with EB after she split from the
accused.126
286 When EB moved in with DF she was not able to have any animals so
EB's dog Asha came to stay with the McInroys. Ms McInroy said that
was in July or August 1996. Then in mid to late 1996 when EB and DF
moved into another house where they were able to have a dog, the dog
went back to live with them.127
CH – evidence summary
287 CH said that she met the accused in either late 1994 or early 1995 on
a Sunday at the Ocean Beach Hotel (OBH) in Cottesloe. She was there
with her friend, Tracey Taylor, and they met the accused and his brother,
Troy. She recalled that the accused was pretty tall; she is five foot nine
and he was a lot taller. She said he had a medium build and was very
clean and tidy with dark hair worn to one side and short (but not like a
short, back and sides) sitting on the very back of his collar. He did not
have a beard or moustache but may have had a little bit of a shadow.128
288 After this first meeting CH saw the accused again the following
week because Troy Edwards was interested in her friend Tracey and they
organised for the four of them to catch up again. From that time she and
Tracey and Troy and the accused went out together to pubs and other
places.129 They went a couple of times to the OBH and she recalled that
they also went to a big hotel in Claremont with a veranda around it; she
said 'I think it is The Continental'. When asked further about going there
with the accused she said 'We more than likely did. I couldn't say very
specifically we went there on a particular day' and that she could not be
'100 per cent certain' that she had been there with Troy Edwards and the
125
ts 1114, 1116.
126
ts 1106, 1120 - 1.
127
ts 1124.
128
ts 1189 - 90.
129
ts 1189 - 1190.
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accused but said 'If I haven't been there with him, I've certainly seen him
at the venue'.130
289 CH and the accused also went out together as a couple. She recalled
going out to dinner to an Italian restaurant in Northbridge on at least one
occasion. CH said that her association with the accused as a dating
arrangement did not last long, there was a degree of physical intimacy but
it was not a serious relationship and she saw him as more as a mate. CH
said that the accused obviously wanted to take their relationship further
but that she was not ready to do that because she had a young son. She
remembered that she had a conversation with the accused about this while
they were sitting in a car outside her house in Joondalup. CH said that she
explained to him that she did not want anything further and that the
accused took it very graciously.131
290 In regard to the timing of their relationship CH was asked about

where she was living. She said that she lived at two addresses in the time
she knew the accused; in Ness Cove, Joondalup until July 1996 and then
in Castle Rock Turn, Joondalup from 12 July 1996 to 21 January 1997.
She recalled the accused picking her up from both of these addresses.132
291 CH said that the accused drove a company car and that he was very
proud of it. He drove a white station wagon that looked to CH like a
Holden Commodore-type car; she said that it was very clean and
meticulously kept. She could not recall seeing any signage on the car; she
said it might have had some but it was not 'that obvious'. She sat in the
front passenger seat of the car and recalled that there was a regular back
seat. She was in that vehicle on quite a few occasions. CH also recalled
that the accused drove another vehicle; a fairly new darker bluey-grey
colour sedan, which was a standard looking Commodore-type vehicle,
also meticulously kept. She could not recall the accused having a Camry
during the time she knew him.133
292 CH continued to see the accused over a period of time until late 1996
or early 1997; she can recall this because she met her former husband a
couple of weeks before 3 November 1996. She stopped seeing the
accused when she relocated not long after Christmas and did not give the
accused her new phone number.134
130
ts 1197 - 8, 1209.
131
ts 1159, 1200 - 1, 1210.
132
ts 1192.
133
ts 1193 - 4, 1196, 1203 - 5.
134
ts 1190, 1211.
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KM – evidence summary
293 KM met the accused in the 1990s when she was working at Central
TAFE and the accused was at her workplace in his capacity as a Telstra
technician. She described the accused as wearing glasses, clean shaven,
with dark hair cut in a short back and sides hairstyle and a little bit
overweight. They got to know each other over a period of years through
friendly interaction at work.135
294 In September 1996 KM was promoted at work and the accused sent
her a card to congratulate her, suggested that she take him out for lunch
and gave her his phone number. A few weeks later she saw the accused at
a work function. She said when she saw the accused at this time he had
lost a lot of weight and was wearing contact lenses. The accused and KM
were part of a group at the function who went back to a house in Leeming.
They spent the night together and he drove her home the next morning in
his Telstra or Telecom white station wagon.136
295 KM and the accused then started a romantic relationship. This was
shortly before the accused's birthday on 7 December 1996. From that
time, the accused and KM saw each other most weekends; sometimes they
saw each other on Fridays, sometimes on Saturdays, sometimes both days.
The accused stayed over at her house in Booragoon. During their
relationship the accused drove a white station wagon with logos on the
outside and two front seats and a rear bench seat.137
296 On 22 February 1997 KM and the accused went to Margaret River
for a weekend. They stayed one night with KM's cousin in Eaton on the
way there and then one night at a motel called The Grange. On the night
they returned from Margaret River KM stayed the night at the accused's
house at Gay Road, Huntingdale. She did not recall anyone else being at
the house on that night. During this weekend she noticed that there was
something different between them and their relationship 'sort of started to
fizzle out'.138
297 KM did not recall where she spent the weekend of 14 and 15 March
1997. She was asked whether she recalled meeting the accused's friends.
She said she recalled meeting them but did not remember their names.
She remembered that the accused was concerned about a friend who had
an illness; in cross-examination she said 'Murray rings a bell'. When
135
ts 1139, 1146, 1148 - 9.
136
ts 1140 - 2, 1146.
137
ts 1143, 1147 - 8.
138
ts 1144 - 6.
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asked whether she recalled that the friend had multiple sclerosis, she said
'I think it was'.139
298 KM said that her relationship with the accused was over by 21 April
1997, which was the date of her daughter's 18th birthday. The accused
came to her house sometime before that and they had a conversation in the
kitchen. The accused told KM that he had met another woman. He
referred to the other woman's first name (which is the first name of CG).
KM was surprised. The accused stayed the night after this conversation
and they had sex. In the morning the accused said to KM that he still
wanted to break up with her. The accused had previously said that he
would take her daughter out for lunch for her birthday; after he ended the
relationship he said to KM's daughter that he would still take her out for
lunch. KM and the accused had no further contact.140
Murray Cook – evidence summary

299 Murray Cook worked at Telstra from 1984 to 1999. He met the
accused in the course of his employment with Telstra and they became
friends. In 1995 Mr Cook was working at Telstra headquarters in Walters
Drive, Herdsman. In September 1995 he was transferred to work
permanently for Telstra at Royal Perth Hospital (RPH) as a senior
technical officer.141
300 Before Mr Cook went to work at RPH he had the use of a Telstra
vehicle. He did not need a work vehicle while he was working at RPH so
on his last day at headquarters he was required to empty his vehicle and
leave it at Herdsman. Because the accused lived in a neighbouring suburb
he gave Mr Cook a lift home to Thornlie. The accused was driving a
relatively new, 1994 or 1995 Holden Commodore station wagon.
Mr Cook was able to recall that the licence plate of the vehicle was
9GP-082. That is the only Telstra car that Mr Cook recalls the accused
driving; he said he was 'surprised' when told in cross-examination that the
car with that licence plate was only registered to Telstra in April 1996.142
301 After the accused drove him home, Mr Cook asked the accused if he
liked to play pool and the accused said that he did. They then had a game
of pool in Mr Cook's games room. From that time they regularly played
pool together at the Cooks' house on Wednesdays. On those evenings the
139
ts 1145, 1151 - 2.
140
ts 1144, 1152 - 4.
141
ts 1256 - 7, 1259.
142
ts 1254, 1256 - 7, 1259 - 60, 1262, 1269.
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accused arrived at around 7.00 pm and they played four or five games of
pool.143
302 When he was working at RPH Mr Cook rarely worked overtime;

however, on 27 January 1996 he recalled that he worked overtime at
Dumas House in West Perth. He said that he knew it was in his wife's
diary that he had worked overtime that day and he remembered his boss
saying 'Hey, we've run out of people' and 'we need somebody else, and
can you help?' He worked that day with Lindsay Hilton, John Travis,
John Berkelaar and the accused. He said that he arrived at Dumas House
with the accused but could not recall which car they had taken.144
303 Mr Cook became unwell in early March 1997. On the Tuesday after
the long-weekend at the start of March he went for tests and a week or so
later it was confirmed that he had multiple sclerosis. He recalled telling
the accused about his diagnosis shortly after it was confirmed. The week
after he received the diagnosis he and his wife went to stay at a house in
Dawesville owned by a work colleague of his wife. His recollection about
the date he went to Dawesville is based on the fact that his wife's birthday
is on 9 March; his step daughter's birthday is on 10 March and his
mother's birthday is 21 March. He was able to say that they were in Perth
for his wife's birthday, then went to Dawesville for 10 or 11 days and
were home by his mother's birthday.145
304 When Mr Cook told the accused about his illness he said 'We're
going to stay at Dawesville. If you are interested you can come down'.
He recalled that the accused said 'I'll be there Friday'. The accused did not
arrive on the Friday night. Mr Cook stayed up until 'probably' 10 or 11
o'clock and then turned off the lights. The accused arrived at 11.00 am
the next day. Mr Cook said to the accused words to the effect of 'What
the hell? You were supposed to be here'. The accused said 'I was trying
to reconcile with my wife'. Mr Cook then gave evidence as follows:
'When he said that, I may have said "well how did you go?" and he just
shook his head'. The accused then stayed at the house in Dawesville on
the Saturday night.146
305 Mr Cook recalled meeting KM between 1995 and 1997. He said that
the accused told him he was dating an older woman and then took KM to
the Cooks' house to meet them. He was asked in cross-examination if the
143
ts 1260 - 1.
144
ts 1264.
145
ts 1254 - 6, 1275, 1280 - 1.
146
ts 1265 - 6.
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accused was referring to his break-up with KM in the conversation he had

with him in Dawesville; in re-examination Mr Cook said that he recalled
the accused saying 'wife'.147
306 Mr Cook experienced fatigue as a result of his multiple sclerosis;
after his diagnosis he cut down the amount of time that he spent playing
pool with the accused. The accused was supportive of him with his
illness.148
307 Mr Cook first gave a statement in January 2017; he gave five

statements in all. He said that he had discussed things with his wife and
that some things that are in later statements may have been things he has
adopted after looking at documentation.149
Brigita Cook – evidence summary

308 Brigita Cook is the wife of Mr Cook. She met the accused when she
and her husband were living in Thornlie. She recalled the accused coming
to their house to play pool with her husband and that he did so regularly
on a Wednesday night for a year or more. She did not see what car he
drove when he came on these occasions and said that he sometimes
walked to their house because it was not far. After Mr Cook was
diagnosed with multiple sclerosis he became more easily tired and less
able to socialise in the evenings and so the pool evenings became less
frequent.150
309 Ms Cook did have occasion to see the accused driving a Telstra
vehicle; a Holden Commodore. On one Christmas Eve the accused
picked her up from her workplace in the city and gave her a lift home to
Thornlie. He was driving a station wagon with only two seats in the front,
no seats in the back and Telstra equipment in the back. It had Telstra
signs on the doors.151
310 Ms Cook said that in 1996 it was unusual for her husband to be
called to work on a Saturday because at the time he was working at RPH
and there was no need for him to do overtime. However, on Saturday
27 January 1996 she recalled that he left the house at 7.30 am because he
had to start work at 8.00 am. She said that it was a very hot day and their
evaporative air conditioner had broken down that morning. The accused
147
ts 1278.
148
ts 1266, 1279.
149
ts 1267 - 8.
150
ts 1282, 1284 - 7, 1308.
151
ts 1287 - 8.
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and Mr Cook went to work together on that day and took their only car, a
grey Ford Fairmont. The accused did not leave a car at the Cooks' house.
Before they left for work, the accused and Mr Cook tried to fix the
air-conditioner. Because the air-conditioning was not working she shut up
the house to keep it cool and stayed home and watched television. She
said that Mr Cook arrived home between 5.00 pm and 5.30 pm and that
they had a video night with friends that evening.152
311 Ms Cook has kept a diary since 1994. She was initially asked to
recall what had occurred during this time period without refreshing her
memory from the diary. She was later shown some pages from her diary
and asked to explain what some of her notes meant. Before she was
shown her diary she said she did not 'write down the movie' but did make
a note of Mr Cook's overtime. When shown the relevant page she
confirmed that on 27 January 1996 she had made the note 'video night Lez
& Shez' and 'Muz working OT'.153
312 When asked about the trip to Dawesville in 1997 Ms Cook recalled
that she took annual leave in March 1997 and they went to Dawesville
after her birthday on 9 March 1997. She had a work associate who had a
house in Dawesville and on a number of occasions the Cooks stayed there.
When shown entries from her diary for March 1997 she confirmed that
she had written 'start holidays' on 3 March, 'my birthday' on 9 March and
'Kylie's birthday' on 10 March. She said she and her husband went to
Dawesville on the Monday or Tuesday after her birthday and stayed there
until 'not quite the 21st'. She confirmed that in an entry in the diary on
Thursday 20 March she had written 'Busselton' and the names of two of
her friends. She said that the friends live in Mandurah and that Mr Cook
also has a sister who lives in Busselton. She believed that they stayed
overnight in Busselton and then returned home on the Friday for
Mr Cook's mother's birthday.154
313 Ms Cook said that she and her husband invited the accused to stay
with them in Dawesville on Friday 14 March 1997. Ms Cook expected
the accused to arrive in the evening of 14 March and he did not arrive; he
arrived mid-morning the next day, between 10.30 and 11.00 am, in his
Telstra vehicle. She believed that she and her husband asked why he had
not come on the Friday and the accused said that he had been trying to
152
ts 1290 - 1, 1298, 1301.
153
ts 1289 - 92; exhibit 00211.
154
ts 1289, 1293 - 6; exhibit 00212.
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reconcile with his ex-wife. She thought he went home that afternoon and
just stayed for the day.155
314 On another occasion Ms Cook recalled the accused bringing a friend

to dinner, who she described as a woman older than the accused who wore
a 'fair bit' of jewellery and was flamboyantly dressed. She could not recall
the woman's name. Ms Cook was asked in cross-examination if, when he
gave the reason for his delayed arrival Dawesville, the accused could have
said that he was either reconciling with or breaking up with KM. She
rejected this suggestion and said she was sure that he had said his
'ex-wife'. She said that there was no mention of KM. She remembered
that some months after the accused had brought KM to dinner at their
house he brought CG and her daughter to the Cooks' house.156
John Travis – evidence summary

315 John Travis worked for Telstra as a technician from 1982 to 2013.
From late 1988 through to the early 2000s he worked in the Corporate
Customer Division in facility management. This meant that he was
allocated to look after the internal telephone systems of large corporate
customers. He had responsibility for large projects and would resource
personnel from the depot to assist him on these projects. This work was
generally done over long-weekends when there were no workers in the
customer's premises.157
316 Mr Travis met the accused sometime after 1988, because they both
worked out of the Leederville depot. On some occasions when Mr Travis
needed to call for volunteers to assist on large projects the accused came
to work with him. One of those projects was at Dumas House, West
Perth. The work was over the Saturday and Sunday of the Australia Day
long-weekend 1996. Mr Travis worked both days, but not all others who
assisted him did.158
317 Mr Travis said that there were five people who worked on this
project – himself, the accused, Mr Cook, John Berkelaar and Lindsay
Hilton. He could not recall the hours worked but had kept a hand-written
record in his diary. He is a meticulous record keeper. According to his
records the four named people came to assist him with the job on
155
ts 1296 - 7.
156
ts 1285 - 6, 1308, 1310.
157
ts 1896, 1898.
158
ts 1898 - 9.
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Saturday, 27 January 1996. They all started work at 8.00 am, apart from
Mr Cook, who started at 10.00 am.159
318 Mr Travis recorded the start and finish times, the length of time each
person worked and what floor of the building they worked on. He worked
on the 9th floor from 8.00 am to 3.30 pm, on the 8th floor 3.30 pm to
9.30 pm and then on the 7th floor from 9.30 pm to 10.00 pm.
Mr Berkelaar worked on the 9th floor from 8.00 am to 10.30 am, on
8th floor from 10.30 am to 7.30 pm and then on the 7th floor from
7.30 pm to 9.30 pm. Mr Hilton worked on the 9th floor from 8.00 am to
11.00 am and then on the 8th floor from 11.00 am to 8.00 pm. Mr Cook
did not work on the 9th floor; he commenced on the 8th floor at 10.00 am
and worked on that floor for 7 hours and 45 minutes (the end time is not
recorded). Mr Cook would have finished work at 6.15 or 6.45 pm
(depending on whether he took one or two meal breaks). The accused
worked on the 9th floor from 8.00 am until 10.30 am and on the 8th floor
from 10.30 am to 9.45 pm. Allowing for meal breaks, the accused worked
a total of 12 hours 45 minutes on 27 January 1996. On the following day,
Sunday 28 January 1996, only Mr Travis and Mr Hilton worked at Dumas
House.160
319 Mr Travis could not recall what car the accused arrived in on
27 January 1996 or what type of car he drove at that time. He did not see
the accused arrive but said that those starting at 8.00 am would have
gathered outside and would have entered the building together as he had
the keys.161
320 It was put to Mr Travis in cross-examination that Mr Cook had given
evidence that he started at 8.00 am and finished at 4.00 pm, an eight hour
period. Mr Travis disagreed with those times and said that Mr Cook may
have been confused with another job that he did at Dumas House, because
Mr Cooke was a regular that came to assist him. He maintained that his
diary is 100% accurate, and that Mr Cook must be mistaken.162
321 Mr Travis said that if his vehicle had to go in for a service he could
arrange to take a pool fleet vehicle. There was a register to fill in when an
employee took a pool fleet vehicle. There was a person in charge of pool
159
ts 1900.
160
ts 1902, 1903 - 6, 1908.
161
ts 1909 - 10.
162
ts 1915.
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vehicles and that person had the key to the box in which the vehicle keys
were kept.163
John Philpott – evidence summary

322 In 1997 John Philpott was a consultant physician working at
Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in the Department of Pulmonary Physiology
and Sleep medicine. The accused saw Dr Philpott on two occasions: first
on 8 January 1997 for a consultation and again on 10 March 1997 after
the accused had spent a night in a sleep laboratory at the hospital.164
323 At the first consultation Dr Philpott took a full history from the
accused that was recorded in his file. The accused said to the doctor that
he was a 28-year-old man, had separated from his partner 11 months prior
to the appointment, was a non-smoker and drank about one bottle of
spirits per week. His height was recorded at 185.1 cm and he was
92 kg.165
324 The accused spent a night in the sleep laboratory on 20 February
1997. Dr Philpott was not present for the overnight study.166
CG – evidence summary
325 CG met the accused on 1 April 1997 when he attended her workplace
to fix the telephones because they had been affected by lightning. The
accused was at her workplace for a few days and in that time they had
some conversations and he asked her to go out with him. One evening in
the week of 12 April 1997 CG and the accused met at a McDonalds store
near Shepperton Road and Albany Highway. CG took her two-year-old
daughter with her to meet the accused. She recalled that on that evening
the accused was driving a white Telstra station wagon with a logo on the
side and a roof rack.167
326 Their first proper date was at an Italian restaurant in Northbridge;

they went there for dinner and then drove to Fremantle for ice-cream. The
accused picked up CG and her daughter from her parents' house in a white
station wagon with Telstra signage on it and a roof rack. CG's daughter
travelled in a booster seat in the back of the vehicle behind the driver's
seat. After they had ice-cream in Fremantle the accused drove CG and
163
ts 1911 - 2.
164
ts 1447 - 8, 1450.
165
ts 1449.
166
ts 1450.
167
ts 1157 - 8.
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her daughter back to her parents' house where she was living at the
time.168
327 CG recalled that when she met the accused at her workplace he was
wearing dark blue full-length trousers and a short-sleeved blue Telstra
shirt and black shoes. She said that the accused was tall, with short, very
dark brown, almost black hair with a left-hand side part and olive skin.
She said he did not have facial hair and usually wore contact lenses; she
said he only wore glasses after they got married.169
328 Two or three weeks after they first met CG and her daughter went to
the house the accused was living at with his parents. They became
engaged in June or July 2000 and married on 16 December 2000. Once
they got married they lived at 344 Acton Avenue, Kewdale. They
purchased this property in mid-2000. CG left the relationship on 24 July
2015 and the accused and CG's daughter remained living at the house.170
329 In June 1997 they had a conversation as the accused was driving CG
home. He told CG that he had a criminal record for assault. He said to
CG that his first wife had cheated on him when they were going out as
boyfriend and girlfriend and he could not cope with it. She said 'He
couldn't handle it and – and the Hollywood incident, he had a brain snap'.
CG said that he had cried and she had cried with him.171
330 CG kept a notebook during her marriage to the accused. For reasons
that were not explained, in 2014 she copied details from the accused's
bank statements into the notebook after she found them in a file or folder
in a drawer or filing cabinet behind his desk in his study. The statements
were printed statements from the bank with the accused's name on top.
She copied the information from the bank statements into the notebook for
the years 1996 to 2000. She did not make any changes to the information
but also included the days of the week next to the dates.172
331 The original bank statements were numbered across the top and
CG copied those statement numbers into the notebook. She was shown
her notes for 'statement 15', which includes entries ending at 31 December
1996. At the bottom of the second page she noted 'missing 16'. She was
asked to explain that notation and said that she had tried to find statement
16 but it was not there. The first entry on 'statement 17' is 3 April 1997.
168
ts 1159 - 61.
169
ts 1161 - 2.
170
ts 1162 - 3, 1165.
171
ts 1163.
172
ts 1170, 1172 - 3, 1176 - 7.
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CG confirmed that the notebook contained no information for the period

31 December 1996 to 3 April 1997. When CG left 344 Acton Avenue,
Kewdale she left the notebook there and did not know where it was from
about September 2014.173
332 The prosecution relied on the notebook because it contains entries

which are said to show the use of automated teller machines (ATMs) in
Claremont. The particular entries relied on are as follows:174
05/12/96 Bay View ATM $300 BANKWEST Thur
13/12/96 Bay View ATM $300 BANKWEST Fri
333 CG was shown home videos, which she said were taken on the
accused's father's camera. In one video taken at his parents' home in
Gay Street she recognised the accused's Telstra vehicle as the vehicle the
accused was driving when they started dating. She thought that the video
was taken in late 1997, early 1998. She was also shown a recording of her
daughter at three-years-old (she turned three in April 1997) taken at the
front of her parents' house. She confirmed that she, the accused and her
daughter were all present when the footage was taken. She was also
shown a video taken from the accused's Telstra car at the time her
daughter was aged three or four. She identified her daughter sitting in a
child seat at the back of the vehicle and the grate at the rear of the vehicle
that could be moved forward and back. She was asked if it is the same
vehicle as in the earlier footage and said it 'probably' was the same
vehicle.175
Michael Chivell – evidence summary

334 Michael Chivell is employed by Bankwest. His statement was read
in to evidence. He has held the position of self-service manager for the
bank since 2008. He is responsible for the overall management of the
bank's ATMs including third party relationships with other institutions.176
335 In 2017 the police asked Mr Chivell for information about

withdrawals from the bank in 1996 and 1997. The police provided
Mr Chivell with a schedule said to contain a record of ATM bank
transactions with Bankwest. Since financial institutions are only required
to keep records for seven years Bankwest does not retain any ATM
transaction records from the dates in the schedule. Mr Chivell was not
173
ts 1176, 1179 - 80.
174
ts 1173 - 5; exhibit 00048.
175
ts 1180 - 86; exhibit 03416, exhibit 03417, exhibit 03418.
176
ts 1330.
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able to confirm whether the transactions took place nor provide

information about the accounts involved.177
336 The location of ATMs can be identified by a number and short name.
The number is called the ATM ID. The short name of an ATM is a piece
of text or a title with sufficient information to enable the location of the
transaction to be determined. There are a limited number of characters in
the field so the description may be a shortened form of words. The short
name is typically what appears in bank statements.178
337 During 2014 and 2015 the Bankwest ATM network was closed down
and changes were made to allow for the integration of the Bankwest
machines into the network operated by the Commonwealth Bank of
Australia. In this process both the identification numbers and short names
of the Bankwest ATMs changed, so Bankwest machines in use today have
different names and numbers to what they had 20 years ago.179
338 In order to provide details about the transactions listed in the
schedule180 Mr Chivell tried to locate source data that pre-dated the
change in 2014 and 2015. The earliest record he could locate is an
electronic spreadsheet that contains what Mr Chivell believed to be the
addresses of every Bankwest ATM in operation during September 1997.
Mr Chivell converted the information to a more modern electronic format,
added a column about the machine's status after the 2015 change and
called the 'file WK4 1997 data'. This spreadsheet contains a list of ATM
ID numbers and addresses, it does not contain the short names used at the
time.181
339 The earliest record of Bankwest ATM short names that Mr Chivell
could find was located in another electronic document dated 2009. This
document was sent to police. Mr Chivell then created a schedule in which
he reproduced the schedule provided by police and added the ATM
addresses and ID numbers that appeared to him to be consistent with the
description or details provided. Mr Chivell found that some of the
descriptions were clearly referring to a valid ATM address and others
were too vague to be positively identified to a specific location. For
example, because there were a number of possibilities for the entry titled
177
ts 1330 - 1; exhibit 00514.
178
ts 1332.
179
ts 1332.
180
Exhibit 00514.
181
ts 1332 - 3; exhibit 00515.
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'Forum' on 21 April 1997 Mr Chivell included all of the locations that he

deemed relevant.182
340 Mr Chivell sent the updated schedule to the police. The police then
sent Mr Chivell another version with expanded ATM addresses, which
were inserted in an additional column in yellow along with the short
names that were used by those ATMs in 2009. Mr Chivell included any
short names that were consistent with the descriptions. He noted that a
few of the ATM ID addresses listed in 1997 did not have a corresponding
short name in 2009. This may be explained by the 12-year gap between
the list and the 2009 list of addresses and machines may have been added,
removed or relocated. Mr Chivell reviewed the updated schedule
prepared by police and confirmed that it is accurate.183
341 Mr Chivell was asked to comment on the entry dated 5 December

1996 and described as 'Bayview ATM'. He said that in September 1997
the only Bankwest ATMs at an address similar to 'Bayview' were the two
machines ATM 04701 and ATM 04702, which were both located at
36 Bay View Terrace, Claremont. In 2009 the short name for ATM
04701 was Bay View Terrace TCE and the short name for ATM 04702
was Bay View TC2. There are no machines other than those two that had
a short name that included the words 'bay' and 'view' as separate words or
'Bayview' as one word or anything similar. Mr Chivell said that it was
'impossible' for him to say 'for certain' what the short names of ATMs
04701 and ATM 04702 were in 1997; however, he said that 'given the
words "Bay View" being two words were used in 2009 it is entirely
feasible that they were also used in 1997'. The description 'Bay View'
used to describe a bank transaction on 5 December 1996 is consistent with
the description that would have appeared on the bank statement at the
time if the transaction was conducted at 36 Bay View Terrace, Claremont,
Western Australia.184
342 This evidence could be used to support a conclusion that the accused
was in Claremont on two occasions in December 1996. However, there is
no evidence that he did anything other than use an ATM on either of these
occasions. The dates do not correlate with any alleged offence. The
significance of this evidence must, in these circumstances, be slight. It
does no more than show that the accused had been to Claremont in this
general time frame. As to whether this has significance to the answers
182
ts 1334; exhibit 00514, exhibit 00516, exhibit 00517.
183
ts 1334 - 5; exhibit 00518.
184
ts 1336.
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that the accused gave in his police interview in 2016, that will be dealt
with later in these reasons.
Conclusions – opportunity
Opportunity to commit the murder of Ms Spiers
343 As will become evident later in these reasons, I am satisfied that
Ms Spiers went missing between approximately 2.00 am and 2.15 am on
the morning of 27 January 1996. A relatively short time later screams
were heard in Mosman Park that are alleged to have been those of
Ms Spiers. There is no evidence as to where the accused was at this time.
However, there is some evidence as to his location in the period
immediately before and after this.
344 As at 26 and 27 January 1996 the accused has admitted that he was
living at 10 Fountain Way, Huntingdale. I am satisfied that by this date
the accused and EB had separated and she had moved out of the house.
DF said that he remained at the house for some weeks after EB left and
that he only moved out in February. As unlikely as it seems that the
accused would tolerate the continued presence of DF in his home (or that
DF would want to remain there), even if DF was still living there as at the
Australia Day long-weekend it is improbable that he would have paid any
particular attention to the movements of the accused, and he certainly said
nothing in that regard in his evidence.
345 The evidence of EB is that after separating from the accused in late
1995 or early 1996 she went to stay with her parents in Golden Bay for a
few weeks. She says that the accused visited her there on one occasion.
He arrived in the afternoon, stayed for dinner and then invited her to
accompany him to a fireworks show. She declined that invitation and he
left. Although she cannot remember the date, searches of local
newspapers conducted by the police show that there was a fireworks show
at 8.30 pm on the evening of Australia Day, 26 January 1996. It is likely
that this is the fireworks that the accused was referring to as searches of
local newspapers have revealed no others in that area at around that time.
I note that there is other evidence that the Sky Show fireworks were held
in Perth at 8.00 pm on Sunday 28 January 1996. Given the distance from
the home of EB's parents to Perth it seems unlikely that this was the
fireworks show that the accused was referring to.185 On this basis I accept
that the date that the accused saw EB at her parents' house was 26 January
1996. Accordingly, the accused was at EB's parents' house earlier on the
185
See the evidence of Steven Cummings summarised later in these reasons.
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evening that Ms Spiers disappeared. However, EB gave no evidence as to

the precise time that he left. All she was able to say was that dinner was
usually between 5.00 pm and 7.00 pm and that the accused left after
dinner and before she went to bed, which was usually around 9.00 pm to
10.00 pm. This evidence does not exclude the possibility that the accused
was in Claremont in the early hours of the morning (but it does not, of
course, assist in proving that he was).
346 The accused was rostered to work on a job at Dumas House in West
Perth the following morning. According to Ms Cook he came to her
house first and travelled in to work with her husband, Murray, leaving at
about 7.30 am for an 8.00 am start. However, the reliability of Ms Cook's
recollection in this regard is questionable as she stated that it was a very
hot day and that the air-conditioner at her house was not working.
Weather records show that the maximum temperature in the area that day
was, in fact, 29°C.186 By Perth standards this could not be described as a
very hot day.
347 There is also an inconsistency between the evidence of Mr and
Ms Cook and the work records kept by Mr Travis. Although Mr Travis
no longer has an independent recollection of who worked what hours, he
was a meticulous record keeper and his diary records the accused starting
work at 8.00 am and Mr Cook starting at 10.00 am. If these records are
correct, and I have no reason to doubt them, then it is unlikely that the
accused and Mr Cook travelled to Dumas House together. Whilst it is
clear that Mr Cook did work at Dumas House that day, I think it is likely
that Ms Cook is recalling some other occasion when she refers to the
accused coming to their house on a hot day and Mr Cook and the accused
travelling together from there. The one fact that it seems to me that is
clearly proven by the evidence is that the accused worked at Dumas
House on 27 January 1996 from 8.00 am until 9.45 pm. I am unable to
determine where he travelled from or what car he drove.
348 For the accused to be responsible for the abduction and killing of
Sarah Spiers he must have had sufficient time to do so between seeing EB
at her parents that evening and attending work at Dumas House the
following morning. It is difficult to precisely determine the length of time
between these events. Allowing an hour to eat dinner and assuming the
accused left before EB went to bed, the time frame could be anywhere
between 10 and 14 hours, but this is only a broad estimate. The time
between Ms Spiers last being seen alive and the accused's attendance at
186
ts 9871 - 2; exhibit 30655.
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work in West Perth is shorter, being less than six hours. That window of
opportunity is narrow, but not impossible. This is a relevant factor that
must be taken into account in considering whether the accused committed
this offence.
Opportunity to commit the murder of Ms Rimmer

349 As will become evident later in these reasons, I am satisfied that
Ms Rimmer went missing sometime shortly after midnight in the early
hours of 9 June 1996. At around 3.00 am screams were heard in Wellard
and I am satisfied that they were hers and that this must have occurred
shortly before she was killed. There is no evidence as to the location of
the accused between midnight and 3.00 am on 9 June 1996. However,
there is some evidence as to where he was earlier in the evening of 8 June
1996.
350 As at 8 and 9 June 1996 the accused was living at the home of his
parents at 144 Gay Street, Huntingdale. He was not in a serious
relationship at that time. It is possible that the relationship with CH may
have commenced, but that appears to have been only a casual friendly
relationship that involved no intimacy. Meetings and contact between the
accused and CH were not regular. He was not on leave from his
employment at this time.
351 The accused has admitted that on 8 June 1996 he played softball for
the Kelmscott Bulldogs Softball Team at the Langford Park Sporting
Complex, Langford Avenue, Langford. The game he played was
scheduled to start at 3.45 pm and end at 5.15 pm. There is no evidence as
to his movements after that game was finished. There is nothing to either
prove or exclude that he was in Claremont or Wellard in the early hours of
the following morning.
Opportunity to commit the murder of Ms Glennon

352 As will become evident later in these reasons, Ms Glennon went
missing sometime between midnight and 12.30 am on the morning of
15 March 1997. There is no evidence as to where the accused was at that
time. However, there is some evidence as to where he was earlier that
night and the following morning.
353 As at 14 and 15 March 1997 the accused was still living at the home
of his parents at 144 Gay Street, Huntingdale. His parents were absent
overseas at the time (and had been for over two months). It is likely that
he was in a relationship with KM at this time. This was a sexual
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relationship that involved regular contact on either Friday or Saturday

nights (or both), but KM has no specific recollection of the night of
14 March 1997. He was not on leave from his employment at this time.
354 The accused had agreed to join Mr and Ms Cook at a holiday house
in Mandurah on the evening of 14 March 1997, but did not arrive. I
accept the evidence of Mr and Ms Cook in this regard. They have good
reason to remember the event as it related to the diagnosis of multiple
sclerosis that Mr Cook had recently received. That and other date markers
enable them to place the event in time with accuracy. Unlike the work at
Dumas House, there is nothing to indicate that their recollections in regard
to the timing of this event are unreliable. Mr Cook was annoyed that the
accused did not arrive as promised as he had stayed up waiting for him.
355 When the accused arrived the following morning he gave the excuse
that he had been trying to reconcile with his wife. There was an attempt
in cross-examination to suggest to Mr and Ms Cook that the accused was
not referring to his ex-wife but, possibly, to KM. Both witnesses rejected
these suggestions and Ms Cook in particular was firm in her recollection
as to what the accused said. I found their evidence in this regard to be
consistent and convincing.
356 The claim by the accused that he could not come to Mandurah
because he was attempting to reconcile with his ex-wife implies that he
spent some considerable time with her the previous evening. If that was
so it could potentially limit his opportunity to have committed the offence.
This claim was an out of court statement made by the accused, but was led
by the prosecution and so is admissible as evidence even if it has an
exculpatory meaning. However, it is relevant to take into account that it
was not made on oath or confirmed by sworn evidence. Furthermore, it is
inconsistent with the evidence of EB. According to EB there was never
any attempt at reconciliation at or around this time. By March of 1997 EB
and the accused had been separated for over 12 months, the marital home
had been sold and EB had had a child with another man. The explanation
that the accused was with EB that evening can be excluded given her
evidence in this regard, which I accept.
357 In his closing address defence counsel submitted that it was open on
the evidence to conclude that the accused was referring to being with KM
rather than EB on the previous evening (as had been suggested in
cross-examination).187 There was reference in KM's evidence to an
occasion when the accused had spent the night with her before saying to
187
ts 10713.
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her that he had met someone else and that the relationship with her was
over. If that occasion was the night of 14 March 1997 it would provide an
alibi for the accused. However, that submission is not supported by the
evidence for the following reasons. First, Mr and Ms Cook gave evidence
that the accused said he had been trying to reconcile with his ex-wife.
There is no scope for this to be confused with a statement that he was
breaking-up with a girlfriend. I found the evidence of the Cooks to be
credible in this respect. Second, although KM could not put a definite
date on the occasion of the break-up, she knew it was before her
daughter's birthday on 21 April 1997 and that the accused had referred to
the first name of the new woman he had met. CG said in her evidence
that she first met the accused on 1 April 1997. This is the date also given
by the accused to the police when he was interviewed. CG's first name is
the same as that KM says the accused mentioned to her. Third, it was not
put to KM that she was mistaken as to the name given to her by the
accused. This leads to the necessary conclusion that the occasion when
the accused spent the night with KM before breaking up with her was not
the night of 14 March 1997. The evidence points clearly to that night
having been sometime between 1 and 21 April 1997.
358 This evidence does not prove that the accused was in Claremont at
the relevant time in the early morning of 15 March 1997, but it leaves
open the possibility that he was. It does not support a reasonable
alternative innocent hypothesis and does not cause me to have a
reasonable doubt as regards whether the accused had an opportunity to
abduct and kill Ms Glennon.
359 I also take into account that the Cooks said that the accused arrived
in Mandurah on the morning of 15 March 1997, at approximately
10.30 am to 11.00 am. For the accused to be responsible for the abduction
and killing of Ms Glennon it would have to be possible for him to have
done that and still have time to make the trip to Mandurah arriving that
morning. Bearing in mind that the prosecution case is that Ms Glennon
was killed at Eglinton soon after she was abducted, the accused would
need to be able to have abducted her, driven to Eglinton, killed her,
deposited and covered the body and then driven from Eglinton to
Mandurah. The window of opportunity is again confined, being about
10 hours, but it is not impossible. This is a relevant factor that must be
taken into account in considering whether the accused committed this
offence.
360 There is an issue as to what significance can be ascribed to the fact

(as I find it to be) that the accused gave a false reason for his failure to
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arrive in Mandurah on the evening of 14 March 1997. It might be thought

that the accused lied because the real reason he was late could not be
revealed, namely that he was responsible for the abduction and death of
Ms Glennon. That is, it was a lie told out of consciousness of guilt,
notwithstanding that it was not a lie told to a person in authority.
However, the State has not sought to use the evidence in that way and I
have not so used it. Given that the accused had let down a friend in a time
of need by failing to arrive as promised, there is every possibility that the
accused would want to provide an apparently good and sufficient reason
for that failure (whatever the real reason for that failure was). A lie told in
these circumstances is not necessarily indicative of guilt. It is not of the
same character as a false alibi given to police in response to an allegation.
I have only used the evidence that the excuse was untruthful in assessing
whether the accused had an opportunity to commit the offence.
Telstra – employment, vehicles and uniforms

Paul Luff – evidence summary
361 Paul Luff started working at Telstra in November 1985 and in
January 1986 began an apprenticeship as a telecommunications
technician. The accused was an apprentice at Telstra at the same time.
The apprenticeship was for four years. After two years at a training centre
in Manning the apprentices were assigned to the field and did training in a
specialised area. Mr Luff specialised in residential customer equipment
installation and the accused specialised in PABX (private automatic
branch exchange). In the third year of Mr Luff's apprenticeship he moved
into the same area as the accused and they became friends. They were
initially working at the Telstra depot at Oxford Close, Leederville.188
362 For the first two years of the apprenticeship Mr Luff did not wear a
uniform. His first uniform was a light brown, almost khaki, shirt and dark
brown pants, either long pants or shorts. He recalled that the uniform was
manufactured by Yakka. The next uniform was a blue or white shirt and
navy blue pants. Later he wore grey trousers and shirts in half a dozen
different styles, including pinstriped and plain coloured. He could not
recall the dates when the uniforms changed but said that the change from
brown to blue uniform happened during his apprenticeship. He and the
accused wore the same uniforms, but they may have had different styles
within each colour scheme.189
188
ts 1217 - 9.
189
ts 1223.
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363 Mr Luff was asked about his work vehicles. He said that there were
'pool vehicles' and also vehicles that were allocated to particular workers.
Pool vehicles were vans and station wagons and could be utilised by
anyone at Telstra who had a requirement to use one. There was log book
in the vehicles to record who had the use of the vehicle and he always
filled out the log book when he had a pool vehicle. The pool vehicles
were located in the carpark attached to the Telstra depots around Perth. It
was not possible for technicians to help themselves to vans.190
364 Mr Luff said that Telstra technicians did not have private use of
vehicles until there was a change from Commonwealth licence plates,
which had a 'Z' on them, to standard State licence plates. After this
change the technicians were given the option to buy private use of the
vehicle and an amount was deducted from their pay. A different colour
numberplate surround was used to show that a vehicle was a private use
vehicle. Orange numberplate surrounds were used for private use vehicles
and vehicles with black numberplate surrounds were not able to be used
for private use. He said that the private use vehicles were vans or station
wagons. The private use vehicles were only permitted to be used within
80 km of the home of the employee. Telstra also provided fuel cards.191
365 Mr Luff had a vehicle for private use while he worked at Telstra
from the time he was able to do so until he left. He was asked whether a
technician with a private use vehicle could also access pool vehicles. He
said that he may have had access, but that there was no need for him to do
so.192
366 Mr Luff had a Nissan Vanette, a Hiace van, and Commodores and
Camrys during the period that he worked at Telstra. These cars were all
station wagons and not sedans. They all had Telstra logos on the side and
on the bonnet, ladder racks and the vans had steps up the back. The larger
vans had a third seat, but the smaller vans only seated two people. He did
not recall seeing a van with a seat behind the driver. The vans also had a
steel-framed wire mesh cage behind the front seats so that equipment
would not come forward from the back of the van in the event of an
accident. The cages were fixed and bolted into the vehicles, although
there may have been variations in some of the vehicles. The vans had
shelving in the rear part of the van with plastic tubs. To access the rear
part of the vehicle the Nissan Vanette had a lift-up tail back and a sliding
190
ts 1224, 1229, 1241.
191
ts 1225, 1228 - 9.
192
ts 1225, 1229.
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door at the side; the Hiace had sliding doors on the side and a tilting
back.193
367 Mr Luff recalled the accused driving a Camry, Commodores and

then Falcons, all station wagons. His recollection was that both he and the
accused had vans at the start of their time at Telstra and then both had
station wagons. He said that the accused had the private use of a vehicle
from the same time he did and continued to have one after Mr Luff left
Telstra in 2000.194
368 Mr Luff said that technicians sometimes worked overtime, either

scheduled overtime where there was a big job that had to be done outside
of business hours, or they could be called out after hours. The technicians
could be required to work on any day and were required on an ad hoc
basis depending on workload.195
369 Mr Luff and the accused became friends after the second year of
their apprenticeships while they were both located at Oxford Close. They
socialised outside of work and Mr Luff visited the accused at home. The
first time he went to his house was before the accused was married and he
was living at Gay Street Gosnells with his parents. Mr Luff attended the
accused's marriage to EB and recalled that EB came to dinner at his house
one night with the accused.196
370 Mr Luff continued to socialise with the accused after his separation
from EB. He was asked whether he ever discussed the separation from
EB with the accused and he replied that he did not believe that he did. He
observed that after the separation the accused was pretty upset, a bit quiet;
he said 'I remember him being a little bit broken up about it'. He said that
the accused was not an expressive person and was not coming to work
crying or anything like that.197
371 Mr Luff spoke to the accused about his behaviour after the separation
because he observed that the accused was drinking quite a bit; he spoke to
him on more than one occasion about it. The accused told him how much
he was drinking and that it was getting hard for him to keep drinking like
that so he was going to give it up. Mr Luff recalled that when the accused
and CG got together the accused became very focussed on CG and did not
193
ts 1225 - 8.
194
ts 1223, 1225, 1238 - 1239.
195
ts 1230 - 1.
196
ts 1231.
197
ts 1231 - 3.
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HALL J
hang around after work as much as he did when he was single and that the
accused did not drink very much after that.198
Wayne Chivell – evidence summary

372 Wayne Chivell is currently employed by Telstra as a leading
operative and system matter expert for mobiles, installation and
construction work. He has worked at Telstra for 29 years (30 in February
2020). In the 1990s was working for Telstra as a technician, in pay phone
installation and maintenance and later in country installation. He does not
recall ever meeting the accused.199
373 Mr Chivell said that during the time he was a technician employees
could pay a fee for a part-private use arrangement for vehicles and could
use the vehicle 24 hours a day, 7 days a week within an 80 km radius of
their home. An orange coloured number plate surround was used to show
that the vehicle could be used for private use.200
374 In the mid-1990s he recalled technicians driving Mitsubishi vans,
L300s, expresses, Ford panel vans, Toyota Hiaces, Camrys and Nissan
Pintaras. In the rear of the vans there was a shelving on the side of the
van opposite the side sliding door and the middle of the van would be
open. Pool vehicles were available to technicians to book out for specific
projects or for them to drive if their own vehicle was being serviced. Pool
vehicles were available for use in the 1990s by a person who had a
part-private use arrangement. Pool vehicles would not normally have
shelving in them.201
375 In the early days there were only decals on the doors of the vehicle.
When the Telstra signage changed to the 'bigger T' the decals were on the
side, rear and front of the vehicles. There were also magnetic decals,
including 'blank' decals that could be used to cover the Telstra signage.
He thought these were in use at around the time the telecommunications
market was deregulated.202
376 Mr Chivell said that in the mid-1990s the uniform for the group he
worked in was coloured khaki and brown. That group was responsible for
payphones. The work group that services residential properties also wore
the same uniform. There was another work group called Telecom
198
ts 1233, 1236.
199
ts 1311, 1313.
200
ts 1312.
201
ts 1313 - 5.
202
ts 1315 - 6.
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Business Services who wore light blue shirts and navy blue pants. That
group did small commander systems, though he thought that PABX
systems may have been done by a different group. The Corporate and
Government work group wore white shirts, possibly with stripes.
Uniforms changed and when this occurred there was a gradual
change-over. In cross-examination Mr Chivell conceded that for the
majority of the 1990s he worked in the country. He had worked for about
four years in the city and his evidence about vehicle use and uniforms of
others are based on that period.203
Jeffrey Cohen – evidence summary

377 Jeffrey Cohen worked for Telstra between July 1980 and November
2017 and is now retired. Between 2010 and 2015 he worked as a PABX
technician. He met the accused when he became a PABX technician in
around 2010.204
378 When Mr Cohen first started working at Telstra he worked in Pier
Street, then he moved to Oxford Close, Leederville and then to Walters
Drive, Herdsman. When he was working at Oxford Close, Leederville he
was working with Commander systems; he then moved into working with
PABX systems. Once he moved to Walters Drive he was mainly a PABX
technician.205
379 Mr Cohen gave evidence about the uniforms that were supplied to
Telstra employees. When he first started working at Telstra the uniform
was brown. He said after that it might have been blue for a while and then
went to corporate grey and business shirts, then it went back to blue. He
recalled that he was working at Oxford Close when they moved to the
corporate uniform, which was grey trousers and business shirts. He
recalls wearing blue clothes when he was based at Walters Drive for the
last three or four years of his employment. Prior to that was when he was
at Leederville and the corporate uniform was introduced.206
380 Mr Cohen said that employees were generally issued with two pairs
of trousers and five shirts and five pairs of socks. Each year an employee
was entitled to two more pairs of trousers and five shirts, and if an item of
the uniform was damaged a replacement could be obtained.207
203
ts 1318 - 22
204
ts 2093 - 5.
205
ts 2095 - 6.
206
ts 2096 - 7.
207
ts 2097.
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381 Mr Cohen provided some of his old Telstra clothing to the police.
He first gave the police four pairs of shorts and a pair of trousers and then
later three or four jumpers and three jackets. He identified photographs of
a pair of blue shorts as being like those that he provided to police. He said
that they were old but could not say when he wore them; he knew he had
had them for over 10 years. A small patch of material with a Telstra logo
is sewn under the waistline. Mr Cohen said that the logo was on all the
shorts and pants that he wore. There is also a label showing that the item
was made for Telstra Corporation Uniforms by Yakka.208
382 In the mid-1990s Mr Cohen drove a Telstra vehicle and for a while
he had private use of a vehicle;209 he had various vehicles over the time,
L300 vans, Commodores and Falcons.210 The L300 vans had shelving or
racks in the back and sufficient space to put large boxes.211 The front of
the vans had seats for the driver and passenger and a console between
them.212 The vans had signage on the front, back and both sides of the
vehicle.213 Most of the vehicles had roof racks and a conduit for putting
pipes and ducting in. Mr Cohen himself did not have a roof rack, he put
his ladder inside the van. Access to the back of L300 vans was through a
sliding door to the side or by lifting up the back. The floor of the van
generally had wood over it. The front of the vans are blunt looking,
somewhat like a VW kombi but bigger. They do not have a bonnet. A
Mazda van was also available when he was based at Walters Drive. He
was also allocated Commodore and Falcon station wagons. In the
mid-1990s the vehicles were all white.214
383 If for some reason Mr Cohen could not use his allocated vehicle he
said that he could access pool vehicles if he needed to. If another
employee was on holidays he could use their vehicles as well. There was
a log book that he had to sign in and sign out for the vehicle. The pool
vehicles were generally L300s and there was only ever two or three
available at a time.215
Stephen Gray – evidence summary

384 Stephen Gray started working at Telstra in 1972, when it was the
Postmaster-General's Department. The name of the organisation changed
208
ts 2097 - 8; 2106; exhibit 00244, exhibit 00245, exhibit 00246, exhibit 00247.
209
ts 2099.
210
ts 2100.
211
ts 2100.
212
ts 2100.
213
ts 2100.
214
ts 2100 - 3.
215
ts 2104.
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to Telecom and then to Telstra. He continued to work at Telstra until

2000. Mr Gray was a telecommunications technical officer in the 1980s
and then from October 1990 was a senior telecommunications technical
officer, or technician. He worked in corporate services in Colin Street,
West Perth in the maintenance section of the PABX stream.216
385 In around 1995 the corporate services section moved from

Colin Street to a depot at Herdsman. Mr Gray said that after he stopped
working as a technician he was involved in dispatching jobs for other
technicians and then from April 1997 to June 1999 he was the fleet
manager, in which role he was responsible for the vehicle fleet at that the
Herdsman depot. From June 1999 he was a customer communications
analyst until his retirement in December 2000.217
386 Mr Gray said that his role in fleet administration involved

maintaining and running the fleet vehicles. His main task was to reduce
vehicle costs at the depot and part of that job was to reduce the ratio of
fleet vehicles to staff. Fleet vehicles included all the vehicles that were
used by technicians in both the installation and maintenance streams. The
managers and team leaders had their own arrangements with the company
for their vehicles, Mr Gray's only involvement with their vehicles was to
organise servicing of them.218
387 Mr Gray said that there were two kinds of fleet vehicles: vehicles
allocated to technicians for both work and private use and pool vehicles,
which were not allocated to a particular technician. He controlled the
process for access to or use of a pool vehicles, which were allocated for
various reasons. A technician could use a pool vehicle if their allocated
vehicle had been in an accident or had broken down. Pool vehicles were
also sometimes allocated to employees who were being rewarded for good
service by management. Pool vehicles were also used by managers if
their contracted vehicle was out of action. Pool vehicles were kept at the
depot. There was no secure carpark so Mr Gray tried to arrange for pool
vehicles to be taken home every night as management did not want the
vehicles unattended in the public carpark.219
388 The keys to the pool vehicles were kept inside a locked cabinet or
drawer in Mr Gray's desk or with the allocated driver. His desk was in the
fleet management area, which was in an open plan office with 60 or 70
216
ts 2108 - 9, 2153 - 4.
217
ts 2109 - 10, 2153.
218
ts 2110 - 1.
219
ts 2111 - 2.
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desks. Entry to the building was limited by mil key. Only authorised
people (including technicians) had mil keys that enabled them to access
that part of the building. The pool vehicles were commonly Commodore
wagons; Mr Gray did not recall the precise makes and models. He said it
is likely that there were also vans as pool vehicles. There were also
Camrys and Nissans, which were a little smaller, with smaller cargo areas.
There were very few sedans as pool vehicles.220
389 When Mr Gray started in fleet administration there were no

part-private use agreements, the vehicles were given to technicians to take
home because the organisation did not want the vehicles to remain at the
depot. Technicians might be allocated a van for a week or a month.
Technicians would occasionally swap vehicles. He could recall
technicians bringing in their vehicles to work in the morning, swapping all
of their equipment into a pool vehicle, leaving their vehicle to be serviced
during the day, driving the pool vehicle during the work day and then
coming back in the evening, swapping their gear over and driving their
allocated vehicle home.221
390 Sometimes vehicles were swapped without his knowledge or

permission. There were occasions when the fact that a vehicle had been
used without Mr Gray's knowledge came to his attention; for example,
where a traffic offence was committed or a customer complaint was
received. The vehicles had a 1800 number on the bumper bar and if
someone was driving a pool vehicle and an incident occurred he might
receive a phone call. Fines were often paid by the company because it
was not possible to work out who was driving the vehicle. When Mr Gray
first took over fleet management there was no formal documentation to
record the use of pool vehicles. He and his manager created an Excel
spreadsheet that included all drivers, all vehicles, all dates and other
relevant information so that if there was, for example, a speeding fine the
company could determine who was driving the vehicle at the time. 222
391 Mr Gray said that in the 1990s the vehicles all had permanent
signage on the outside. The vehicles were delivered without signage to a
depot and then the signage was put on within a short period by Telstra.
There was a class of vehicles that was not badged, namely vehicles used
by employees at a higher position than team leader. Those employees had
a novated lease agreement with Telstra. These were essentially private
vehicles leased through Telstra. Vehicles of this type were never
220
ts 2113 - 4, 2116 - 7.
221
ts 2117 - 8.
222
ts 2117 - 8.
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available as pool vehicles. The changeover of the company name from

Telecom to Telstra resulted in a change in the signage on the vehicles. He
did not recall that old signage was removed from existing vehicles. He
thought that what happened was that as vehicles were replaced new logos
were affixed, so there was a gradual change as the new vehicles came in.
The vehicles were on either a 12 month or 24 month lease and some
vehicles had the old badging until the replacement vehicle arrived and the
new badging was put onto it.223
392 In regard to the fit-outs of the vehicles Mr Gray said that there was a
cage in the rear of the wagons. The cages could be moved and could be
located either behind the driver or behind the backseat, wherever was
most suitable to the technician using the vehicle and how much gear they
needed to put in the back. He said that a PABX technician might not need
to carry a lot of large equipment and could place what was required on the
back seat.224
393 Between 1990 and 1997 Mr Gray was aware of occasions when
technicians used sedans, but it was rare. He said that not all people who
worked in corporate services were technicians and that people who
worked in customer service might have sedans. Sometime these sedans
might come into the pool of vehicles managed by Mr Gray, if after the
customer services employees no longer needed the vehicle the lease had
not expired.225
394 Part-private use vehicles could be distinguished from pool vehicles
by the colour of the number plate surrounds: one was blue and one was
orange. If a technician had a part-private use agreement the vehicle had
an orange number plate surround. Blue surrounds were used for vehicles
that could be taken home but could not be used after hours for private
purposes. However, if a person with a part-private use agreement went on
leave and the vehicle went into the pool the number plate surround stayed
on.226
395 There were two scales of part-private use; if there were two seats
then the employee paid less, if there were four seats then they paid more.
With a part-private use agreement technicians were not supposed to empty
out their tools at home and use the rear part of the vehicle for private use.
There was also a limit on the distance that could be travelled, he thought it
223
ts 2121, 2160 - 2.
224
ts 2122.
225
ts 2124.
226
ts 2126 - 7.
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was 80 km. The driver of a vehicle with a part-private use agreement was
responsible for regular safety checks: oil, water, and tyres. Mr Gray said
it was very likely that if a Telstra employee had been allocated a particular
vehicle then no one else would have access to that vehicle over the its
lifetime with Telstra.227
396 Mr Gray was asked about the vehicles that he drove. He recalled that
when the organisation was called Telecom, the first vehicle he had as a
technician was a Mitsubishi L300 van. Once he moved into corporate
services in October 1990 he had a Camry wagon, and a Nissan Pintara
wagon. When he was at Herdsman he had Commodore wagons. He had
a series of vehicles that were essentially his permanent work vehicle and
he only used a pool vehicle when his work vehicle was not available to
him. When his vehicle was being serviced, which was approximately
every two or three months, he made use of a pool vehicle. He said when
he did so he asked the person in charge of the vehicles for the use of a
vehicle. When he arrived at the depot the person in charge of the vehicles
would hand him the keys to a pool vehicle. When he was a technician he
did not know the whereabouts of the key to the locker in which the
vehicle keys were stored. He had a fuel card and was required to
document his fuel use, he had to hand in the documentation to his
superiors and the documentation was checked; he said that an employee
would be pulled up if the fuel card use appeared anomalous.228
397 Mr Gray gave evidence about Telstra uniforms. He said that when
he worked as a technician in the 1990s he always wore a uniform. It was
a requirement that all customer-facing staff wore uniforms. From 1990 to
1997 he said the uniform was largely the same; it was blue, and for a little
while they had a small 'T' logo on the pockets of the pants and there were
logos on the ties and shorts. In later versions there were no external logos
on the pants. He said that the colours of the uniforms varied but the pants
were always a dark blue colour. The workwear worn by technicians was
shorts, with Telstra socks and a short or long sleeve top.229
398 Mr Gray provided some of his old workwear to the police. Amongst
these items was a pair of blue pants of a type that he wore in the 1990s, up
to about 1997. When he was working in fleet management he wore
technician clothing and when he became a corporate manager in 1997 he
wore suits. He retained the pants and may have worn them as late as
1999, but does not remember doing so. He said that after he was not
227
ts 2127.
228
ts 2120, 2156 - 9.
229
ts 2128 - 9.
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required to wear the pants for work he used to wear them around the
house. The pants he provided to the police were not new and had been
washed many times. After he stopped wearing them they remained in his
cupboard until he gave them to the police. He was shown a Telstra order
form in his name for some clothing, dated 23 May 1996. It is for three
pairs of permanent pleat trousers, five business shirts, a parka jacket and a
corporate tie. The trousers ordered are the same size as those given to the
police but Mr Gray could not say whether those given to the police were
one of those pairs that formed part of this order. There was, however, a
record of these items being delivered to Mr Gray on 29 May 1996. A
further order form dated 29 May 1997 was for various items including
two pairs of navy pleat trousers in the same size as the previous year,
which were delivered to Mr Gray on or about 4 June 1997.230
Lynda Eldridge – evidence summary

399 Lynda Eldridge was employed by Telstra for 39 years; she started
there in 1980 and finished in March 2019. At the time she ceased
employment with Telstra she had been employed as a business analyst
specialist since 1990. She worked in the fleet management part of the
operations team.231
400 The Telstra document retention policy that was in place in the 1990s
required fleet documents to be kept for seven years and then be destroyed.
Hard copy documents were destroyed and electronic data was archived off
the system (meaning it was recorded to tape, which was destroyed after
the retention period had expired). In February 2015 the fleet management
system changed and three years' data was transferred to a new fleet
management company, LeasePlan.232
401 Ms Eldridge explained that between 1988 and 2015 the Telstra
vehicle fleet was managed through Fleet MIS, a fleet management
computer system that was built to manage Telstra vehicles. In the 1990s
Telstra kept details about all the vehicles that it owned or leased on the
Fleet MIS system. She was requested to find data about the accused's use
of vehicles in that time period. Due to the passage of time, she was able
to locate some vehicle information but unable to access other information
that was requested. The information that was unavailable was
230
ts 2132 - 3, 2135 - 7, 2143 - 4, 2147; 2149; exhibit 00739, exhibit 00741, exhibit 00742.
231
ts 1470.
232
ts 1470 - 2.
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'transactional', by which she said she meant purchases made against a

vehicle for fuel, repairs and the like.233
402 Ms Eldridge said that in the 1990s part-private agreements were

available to some employees, which was an agreement that the employee
could use an allocated vehicle for private use. These agreements were of
two types, P1 and P2. A P1 agreement permitted the use of front and rear
seats of the vehicle for private use. A P2 agreement was for light
commercial vehicles and permitted the use of the front seats only.
Commercial vehicles included vans and station wagons (where the rear
seats were locked down behind a cargo barrier). Part-private agreements
were first introduced in 1988. An employee who entered into such an
agreement would have an amount deducted from their fortnightly pay.
Private use of the vehicle was restricted to within 80 km of the
metropolitan area or 100 km for those in regional areas. Towing and
recreational (off-road) driving was not permitted. If an employee went on
annual leave for over two weeks then the vehicle had to be left at the place
of work. Vehicles that were subject to a part-private use agreement had
an orange surround to the number plates. Part-private use agreements
ceased to be available from 1 March 1999, though existing agreements
continued.234
403 Telecom changed its name to Telstra on 1 July 1995. Following the
name change, the logo changed. The re-branding policy was to promptly
transition all operational vehicles to the new Telstra branding within a
reasonable timeframe. This was a gradual or progressive process that was
managed by each unit. The old logos or decals had to be taken off and
new ones put on. The decals were stuck on permanently and had to be
steamed off. No records are retained by Telstra that show what date the
change of logo occurred for specific vehicles. Both Telecom and Telstra
policy required all vehicles to be identified as such. Before 1 July 1995
Telecom vehicles displayed a decal on the driver's door and passenger
door. After the changeover, Telstra vehicles displayed decals on those
doors as well as on the front bonnet and a small one on the rear of the
vehicle.235
404 Ms Eldridge was asked in cross-examination the following question:

'But there were no stick-on decals that you could just peel off, were there,
in that era?' And she replied: 'so either a stick-on or a magnetic one, no'.
She agreed that the Telecom and Telstra policy was that all vehicles were
233
ts 1472.
234
ts 1473 - 4, 1476, 1479, 1513.
235
ts 1476 - 7, 1518 - 9.
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identifiable as company vehicles. She was also asked whether there was
equipment to cover decals over and she said that in that period of time
there was not. She said that in more recent times – with the rolling out of
the NBN – that had been done.236
405 The information that was retrieved from Fleet MIS was shown in
screen captures or screenshots. This information is not able to be
manipulated. Ms Eldridge extracted information as to all the vehicles
allocated to the accused; that is, where he was registered as the driver of
the vehicle.237 The following relevant information can be distilled from
the records produced:
1. From 24 May 1990 to 18 February 1993 a vehicle with licence

plate 8AO-109 was allocated to the accused. This vehicle was a
white Nissan Vanette.238
2. From 19 February 1993 to 26 October 1994 a vehicle with licence

plate 8HS-259 was allocated to the accused. This vehicle was a
Toyota Hilux utility, with a dual cab, fibreglass canopy, shelving
and a ladder rack.239
3. From 26 October 1994 to 1 May 1996 a vehicle with licence plate

8IJ-235 was allocated to the accused. The vehicle was a 1992
Toyota Camry Executive station wagon.240
4. From 29 April 1996 to 22 December 1998 a vehicle with licence
plate 9GP-082 was allocated to the accused. This vehicle was a
white 1996 Holden Commodore Executive VS, with a ladder rack,
tinted windows and a carrier conduit on top of the vehicle (a long
PVC tube with caps that lengthy items can be placed in).241
406 Ms Eldridge located the part-private use agreements that were stored
in the system in respect of the accused. The agreement attached to the
employee, so while an agreement is in place it covers whatever vehicle is
allocated to the employee and an agreement could cover a number of
vehicles over time. There were three relevant part-private use agreements
that the accused had entered into. From 21 September 1995 to 1 April
1996 the accused had a P1 agreement; that is, for a passenger vehicle with
all seats able to be used. From 2 May 1996 to 3 September 1998 the
236
ts 1518 - 9.
237
ts 1473, 1477 - 8.
238
ts 1479, 1491; exhibit 00623.
239
ts 1480, 1493 - 4; exhibit 00624.
240
ts 1480, 1495 - 6.
241
ts 1480, 1504; exhibit 00625.
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accused had another P1 agreement. From 3 September 1998 to 9 June

1999 the accused had a P2 agreement, for the front seats only.242
407 In addition to vehicles that were allocated to employees there were

four Telstra vehicles that were not assigned. It is not clear from the
evidence where these vehicles were kept or what type of vehicles they
were. Ms Eldridge said that there may have been a sign-in/sign-out
register for these vehicles but there are no records remaining in that
regard. Any such hardcopy records would most likely have been
destroyed pursuant to the document retention policy.243
408 Ms Eldridge was aware from checking Telstra documentation that in
1996 information regarding Telstra vehicles had been provided on request
to the WA Police. The list of vehicles and driver names does not include
the accused or the car then being driven by him. In 1998 there was
another request form the WA Police, for a list of active vehicles as at 23
to 28 January 1996. A list was prepared and provided. However, it did
not include vehicles that were no longer registered to Telstra as at the time
of the reply in December 1998.244
Robert Kinnear – evidence summary

409 Robert Kinnear is employed by Telstra as a team leader in the special
services area for corporate customers. He has been employed by Telstra
for 39 years.245
410 In the 1990s there were two main Telstra depots: one in Oxford
Close, Leederville that mainly did maintenance, and one in Colin Street,
West Perth that mainly did installation. The two divisions were
eventually amalgamated in a new depot, which was located at 55 Walters
Drive, Herdsman. A lot of the field technicians started and finished their
day from this depot and it was where the Telstra office staff were
located.246
411 Mr Kinnear met the accused when the two depots moved to
Herdsman. He had been working at the West Perth depot and the accused
had been working at the Leederville depot. Mr Kinnear recalled that
when the employees from the two depots moved to Herdsman the accused
242
ts 1482 - 4; exhibit 00620.
243
ts 1471, 1507.
244
245
ts 1355.
246
ts 1355 - 6.
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was working in the PABX area, looking after corporate customers' large
telephone systems.247
412 Most of the Telstra field technicians worked a standard roster, from
8.00 am to 4.40 pm each day, which enabled them to have a rostered day
off once a fortnight. The rostered days off were staggered by the manager
of the teams so that everyone did not have the same day off. In the
mid-1990s both Mr Kinnear and the accused were field technicians.248
413 Mr Kinnear was asked to explain a number of terms relating to

Telstra technicians' pay and conditions. He said that technicians received
allowances for specified work types, so that if they were handling certain
materials or doing more physical work, they were paid an extra allowance
on top of their usual pay. Meal allowances were paid when employees
worked over their designated meal breaks; for example, if an employee
worked past 6.30 or 7.00 pm for another couple of hours they would be
able to claim a meal allowance.249
414 Mr Kinnear was asked whether Telstra retains records showing
where employees were working and their work allocations in the
mid-1990s. He said he was not aware of any records that were kept that
would still be available today. Mr Kinnear has tried to locate docket
books, service books and the like but has not been able to locate any. He
has not been able to locate any documentation that shows the work
allocated to the accused in the mid-1990s. He said that the records existed
at the time and most technicians kept a small diary or notepad to write
down customer details for every job that they did and note the customer's
name and phone number. The books were fairly small and filled up
quickly; when the books were full the technicians threw them in the
bin.250
415 Mr Kinnear was asked whether there is a way for him to ascertain
what Telstra assets there were in the Wellard area in 1996. Underground
cabling, also known as 'pit and pipe', is located underground on the side of
most streets in Perth and in some areas in the country. In residential areas
it is laid by Telstra before houses are built. The cabling is not generally
visible because it is buried, but inspection points (which look like small
concrete manhole lids) can be seen; the inspection points provide access
to the cables. The pit and pipe that is in the Wellard area now would have
247
ts 1356.
248
ts 1356 - 7.
249
ts 1356 - 9.
250
ts 1359 - 60.
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been there for a considerable time but Mr Kinnear is not able to determine
exactly how long. There are mapping systems that are used to show
where Telstra assets or infrastructure are located but those maps are
generally not dated so they do not assist in showing when an asset was put
in place; looking at the maps today there is no way to determine what
assets were there in 1996.251
416 Mr Kinnear was shown an aerial map of Wellard and asked about the
area that includes Woolcoot Road, Millar Road and Mortimer Road. He
said that there were no significant Telstra assets in that area; that is,
exchanges or buildings of that kind. He confirmed that the buildings
shown on that map are not part of Telstra infrastructure. Mr Kinnear said
that there is pit and pipe in the area. Telstra field technicians may need to
go to this area if a fault arose or if there was a new installation; they could
access the pit and pipe through the inspection points. The cabling in this
area does not require a PABX technician to service, a field technician who
worked in the residential division would be required. All Telstra
technicians working were issued with a standard knife and a residential
area technician might take the knife to a job in this area.252
417 In the late 1980s, early 1990s Telstra technicians communicated via
pagers; the earlier pagers were a simple device that could only send a
signal. The later pagers showed a message on a digital display.
Technicians took pagers with them and were contactable through someone
sending a message to the pager and then the technician would respond to
the message. Pagers were phased out when mobile telephones were
introduced; originally large mobile telephone briefcases were used and
then within 12 to 18 months all technicians were issued with a mobile
phone. Mr Kinnear was shown an article in a company magazine that
helped him to recall when mobile phones were introduced, which he
estimated to be late 1980s, very early 1990s.253
418 Mr Kinnear was asked about Telstra uniforms in the early 1990s. He
said that different Telstra divisions had different uniforms; country people
and lines people had khaki brown, dark brown pants and a fawn or light
brown shirt. In the early 1990s the corporate division (which Mr Kinnear
was in) introduced a corporate uniform that was comprised of grey pants
and a number of shirt options (including a white shirt, coloured shirt, long
sleeve and business type shirts with thin red or blue lines in them) and a
red or blue tie. He was shown a page from Telecom WA magazine, of
251
ts 1361, 1363, 1397.
252
ts 1361 - 4, 1397 - 8
253
ts 1365 - 7; exhibit 00716.
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August 1989, containing a story about the new corporate image for the
corporate customer service division. This article included a photo of
Mr Kinnear wearing the new uniform – grey pants and a white shirt with a
maroon vest, and with his suit jacket on the back of the chair. This
uniform was manufactured in King Street, Perth. At the time the photo
was taken he was working as a technician and it was taken at a depot in
Wellington Street.254
419 The uniform from the article was in use for three or four years and
then Telstra introduced a national uniform, in 1994 or 1995, which was
made by Yakka. The uniform worn by technicians was comprised of blue
long pants, blue shorts, blue socks, blue or white button up shirts and a
blue polo shirt. This uniform was worn by all of the field technicians
regardless of where they worked. At the time of the change to the
uniforms Telstra provided the employees with a large amount of
information, including brochures and pamphlets and order forms.255
420 Mr Kinnear was shown a series of delivery receipts from the 1993,
1994 period that were retained in archive and that he located at the request
of the police. He explained that when a Telstra employee wanted a new
uniform they would fill out an order form for the items that they wanted
(within the limits prescribed by the uniform policy). The office processed
the orders and then the uniform was delivered, along with a delivery
receipt, to the office to be collected by the employee, who signed the
receipt to show when they received it. He recalled that in the first order of
the new uniform they could order five shirts, two pairs of pants, five pairs
of socks and these could be replaced as required. The employees had to
fill in the forms and then gave them to the office to place the order, the
employees did not liaise directly with Yakka.256
421 Mr Kinnear was shown a number of order forms and delivery

receipts that contain the accused's name and employee details and which
were typical257 of the forms used at the time:
1. An order form dated 2 August 1995 for one size 97R coverall.
The delivery receipt for the coverall is dated 21 August 1995.258
2. A delivery receipt dated 22 August 1995 for one pair of 'Telecom
Navy Telecom Trouser', signed as received on 29 August 1995.259
254
ts 1367 - 9; exhibit 00718.
255
ts 1368 - 70; exhibit 00728.
256
ts 1370 - 4, 1390.
257
ts 1374.
258
ts 1374 - 7, 1380; exhibit 00730, exhibit 00732.
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3. An order form dated 16 October 1995 for two pairs of size 97R
navy blue shorts, a white long-sleeved business shirt and four
white short-sleeved business shirts. The delivery receipt for this
order was signed by the accused on 30 November 1995.260
4. An order form dated 17 November 1995 for one pair of size 97R
navy blue trousers.261
5. An order form dated 30 April 1996 for a navy parka jacket, a navy
corporate tie, three pairs of short socks and a leather belt. The
delivery receipts for this order (it arrived in two lots) are dated
16 and 21 May 1996.262
422 Mr Kinnear was also shown two forms for other employees which
show that navy trousers were being ordered from Yakka as early as
October 1993 (delivered 9 July 1994).263
Francis Van Rullen – evidence summary

423 Francis Van Rullen was employed by Telecom in 1980 as a trainee
technician and later went through a training course and became a qualified
technician. In the period 1986 to 1988 he worked at Cloisters Arcade in
the city servicing business customers. He then went to the PABX install
section in Colin Street, West Perth. He was there for a short time before
moving to an on-site position at the Health Department at 189 Royal
Street, East Perth. He was made redundant in 2002 but later rejoined
Telstra in the same role and continues to work at the Department of
Health as on-site technician looking after the department's PABX phone
system. He met the accused while he was working in Cloisters Arcade.
The accused came in to his section as an apprentice technician and was
placed with him for a period of time. He could only vaguely recall the
accused being there and could not recall how long he was there for.264
424 Mr Van Rullen was asked about the uniforms that he wore while
employed by Telecom and Telstra. He said that uniforms were introduced
in the period 1986 to 1988. The first uniform he recalled was a
khaki-coloured shirt with a Telecom logo on the left pocket and dark
brown trousers. The trousers were available but many employees wore
jeans or casual pants with the khaki shirts. Different departments had
259
ts 1377 - 80; exhibit 00731.
260
261
ts 1382 - 3; exhibit 00735.
262
263
264
ts 1340.
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different uniforms but he recalls the khaki shirt being the uniform that all
employees were assigned. The uniforms changed a few times while he
was working for Telstra.265
425 After Mr Van Rullen left Cloisters Arcade in 1988 a new uniform
was issued, it was a corporate uniform that was comprised of grey trousers
and a white shirt with fine pinstripes and first a Telecom, then the Telstra
logo. At some stage they did have blue trousers with white shirts; but
Mr Van Rullen could not remember the order that the uniforms went in.
He recalled that while he was working at the Health Department he wore
blue trousers and white shirts. The shirts had a logo on the left-hand side.
He recalled that it was a very small version of the logo with 'Telecom
Australia' written next to it. The pants did not have a logo on them at
first, but now they all have a badge on them near the belt line.266
426 Mr Van Rullen was asked about the conditions of employment for
Telstra employees. He said that employees who had signed an employee
agreement worked a nine-day fortnight, which was 8 hours and
10 minutes a day. The employees on this arrangement had one day a
week as a rostered day off. Others who worked a 10-day fortnight worked
7 hours and 21 minutes a day. Different technicians had different
employee agreements. He thought that technical staff in the mid-1990s
generally all worked a nine-day fortnight and worked from 8.00 am to
4.40 pm with a half-hour lunch break. Technicians worked overtime
occasionally but not very often; if there was a lot of work, the technicians
might work on their rostered day off as overtime.267
427 Mr Van Rullen said that if employees took leave or rostered days off
that would be manually recorded in timesheets and reflected in their
payslips. Because he was working on-site in the mid-1990s he had to
telephone the office and record his times over the phone instead of
recording them on a timesheet. When he was working at Cloisters he
filled in a manual timesheet, which was received by his team leader in the
office and then couriered to the main office in Pier Street.268
428 In the mid-1990s the office would communicate with technicians via
landline telephones, either the customer's phone or a public phone if the
technician was on the road. In approximately 1988 pagers were
introduced and the technician would respond to a pager message by
265
ts 1339.
266
ts 1345 - 7; exhibit 00746.
267
ts 1342 - 3.
268
ts 1343 - 4.
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calling the office, again either using a customer's phone or a public

phone.269
429 Telecom and Telstra produced a corporate magazine called 'Pulse'.

Mr Van Rullen said he generally did not read the magazine, but
recognised some extracts as being from editions of the magazine as
follows:270
1. April 1993 – an article about the 'new corporate identity' for

Telecom, which includes reference to a change to the corporate
logo, signage on buildings, payphones and vehicles;271
2. July 1993 – an article headed 'New Identity Bringing Staff

Together', which refers to a number of events in NSW held to
launch 'the new corporate identity'. There is an image of a car
with the Telecom logo on the front bonnet. On a subsequent page
there is photograph of a Telecom employee wearing a uniform;272
3. September 1993 – an article headed 'A New Look For Our
Customer Contact Staff', which refers to a new corporate
wardrobe, including navy trousers and shorts. There are
photographs of employees modelling the clothes. The article
states that there are six elements which make up the wardrobe, one
of which is described as enhanced image workwear. The new
clothing was to be issued to employees 'who have visual customer
contact for most of the working day'. There is reference to the
manufacturer as being Yakka and that a test run had already been
conducted in Victoria for 20 staff. The main distribution rollout
was expected to be completed before Christmas.273
4. October 1993 – an article headed 'Techs are Models in Poster

trend', which includes photographs of various promotional posters
in which employees appear wearing uniforms.274
Tony Vomero – evidence summary

430 Tony Vomero has been employed by Telstra since 2013. He is the
global payroll manager for the organisation. This role includes ensuring
that Telstra complies with legislative and regulatory requirements. He has
269
ts 1344 - 5.
270
ts 1347.
271
ts 1347 - 9; exhibit 00747.
272
ts 1349 - 50; exhibit 00748.
273
ts 1351; exhibit 00750.
274
ts 1351 - 2; exhibit 00751.
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over 20 years of experience in payroll from working in other

organisations. He has been authorised by Telstra to provide the accused's
HR and payroll documentation.275
431 Mr Vomero said that the systems used by Telstra were as follows;
between 1988 and 1997 the PERKINS HR system; between 1990 and
1997 the RAPS system (mainly for pay and remuneration) in
collaboration with PERKINS. In 1997 Telstra moved to a new system
called TIPS, which incorporated PERKINS data transferred to TIPS. In
1999 all the systems were consolidated into one called HR Pay. This
system was in use between 1999 and 2010. These data systems are no
longer operational but Mr Vomero was able to retrieve data from them.
Telstra is required to save data for seven years; however, they retain as
much of this data as they can so that they are able to extract it when
required.276
432 The PERKINS system stored HR data, including position
information, and some information about leave. Mr Vomero extracted
some information about the accused including positions he held at Telstra,
some of his travel history, the dates he took leave, compensation plans
and pay information. The accused's personnel file recorded that he
commenced as an apprentice technician on 28 January 1986 and was
appointed as a permanent Telecom Australia staff member on 28 January
1987.277
433 Mr Vomero produced a record of the positions within Telecom and
Telstra held by the accused. On 15 March 1990 the accused was a
telecommunications technician, on 25 April 1991 he was a
telecommunications technical officer grade 2, and on 4 June 1992 he was
a senior telecommunications officer grade 1. Mr Vomero was not able to
locate any document that recorded the places that the accused worked at
in the 1990s. The records do show that between 1995 and 1998 the
accused worked in various corporate business units. Two corporate
telephone directories list the various units that the accused worked in
during 1994 and 1996.278
434 A work schedule for the accused could not be located.279
Mr Vomero was able to say that the accused worked full time in the late
1990s, comprised of a 73.3 hour fortnight, which is a nine day fortnight,
275
ts 1575 - 6.
276
ts 1576 - 7.
277
ts 1577 - 8, 1580 - 1; exhibit 00755.
278
ts 1586 - 7, 1592 - 6; exhibit 00757, exhibit 00763, exhibit 00764.
279
ts 1596.
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working 8.10 hours a day. A list of allowances paid to the accused and
recorded in the Telstra payroll system (RAPS) was produced. The system
shows that on 11 February 1995 the accused claimed three hours overtime
at time and a half and six hours at double time. He claimed two
allowances in relation to work on 25 January 1996 (disability and field
cable allowances).280
435 Various payslips and summary reports for the accused were
produced, including for the periods ending 7 February 1996, 21 February
1996, 6 March 1996, 12 June 1996, 26 June 1996, 19 March 1997 and
2 April 1997. There are a number of entries on these slips for allowances
and overtime, but not with the date 27 January 1996. These slips show
that the accused was working in the fortnightly pay periods in which each
of the offences are alleged to have occurred.281
436 Records regarding the accused's leave history show that the leave he
took between 12 February 1995 and 15 March 1997 was recreation leave
on 18 May 1995, 6 November 1995 to 29 November 1995, 4 November
1996 to 29 November 1996, sick leave on 4 May 1995, 18 July 1995,
24 July 1995, 25 July 1995, 22 February 1996, 29 May 1996, 26 August
1996, 9 October 1996, 17 October 1996, 28 October 1996, 29 October
1996, 31 October 1996, 6 February 1997, 7 March 1997 and bereavement
leave on 15 January 1997.282
437 There is a record in the personnel file of the accused of some

workplace incidents he had been involved in. The accused sustained an
injury at work on 9 April 1996. Telstra does not hold any records relating
to the accused's assault on WD on 7 May 1990.283
Later history of vehicles used by the accused
White Camry station wagon

438 Mark Boorn purchased the white Camry station wagon 8IJ-235 in
1996 and sold it in 1997. Two photographs of the vehicle provided by
Mr Boorn to the police were tendered in evidence. They were taken just
before Mr Boorn sold the car in 1997 and show a white station wagon
with no particular distinctive features. The rear lights wrap around the
rear edges of the vehicle and there is number plate set into a recess in the
280
ts 1597, 1601 - 2, 1605; exhibit 00775.
281
282
ts 1621 - 7; exhibit 00770.
283
ts 1629; see exhibit 00755.
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rear door. On one of the photographs the number plate can be read:
8IJ-235.284
439 Annette Dvorak owned the white Camry station wagon between
1997 and 2004. When she purchased the vehicle it had standard yellow
registration plates. She put personalised plates, NET-004, on the vehicle,
which remained on it until it was sold. Ms Dvorak found some
photographs of the vehicle taken in about 2000 which she gave to police.
They show the car parked in front a vacant block. It appears to be a white
station wagon with no particular distinctive features.285
White Holden Commodore station wagon

440 On 5 July 2000 Kylie David purchased a white Holden Commodore
station wagon with vehicle registration 1ARZ-557 from Wanneroo Autos.
On 28 May 2002 she changed the licence plate to a personalised plate:
FISHN. The personalised number plate was transferred to one of her
other cars when she sold the Commodore. She sold the vehicle on
25 February 2004. In the time that she had the vehicle Ms David did not
do any repairs to the interior and the only mechanical repairs she recalls
doing was a repair to the radiator. She did not recall having the vehicle
detailed or cleaned extensively inside. Ms David did not find anything
unusual in the vehicle such as jewellery or clothing, nor did she see any
unusual stains.286
441 Neal McGurk owned the Holden Commodore vehicle, which then
had a registration 1BPX-080, from 2004 to 2007. He purchased the
vehicle from a second-hand dealer called Metro Motors. He works as a
medical imaging technologist, and has done since the 1970s. He
purchased the car for use in transporting medical equipment and
commuting. The vehicle was in good condition when he purchased it and
he does not recall anything out of the ordinary relating to the condition of
the car. He does not recall locating anything in the vehicle when he
purchased it. He sold the car to his friend David Palmer.287
442 David Palmer purchased the white Holden Commodore station

wagon from Neal McGurk on 30 October 2007. The registration plates of
the vehicle at that time were 1BPX-080. At the time of purchase the
vehicle was in very good condition and appeared to still have all of its
original paintwork and interior linings and fittings. The interior was clean
284
285
286
ts 1890 - 1.
287
ts 1891 - 3; exhibit 00391.
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'as a pin', apart from some dog hair and hay. He did not recall anything
unusual about the interior when he purchased the vehicle. Since
purchasing the car only Mr Palmer and his wife have driven it. He has not
replaced any of the interior linings or fittings, he only put seat covers on
the front seats. Externally, one front side panel was replaced after an
accident six months after he purchased the car. On Thursday
22 December 2016 police executed a search warrant at Mr Palmer's house
and seized the vehicle. The evidence regarding the examination of the
vehicle will be referred to later in these reasons.288
Schedule of agreed evidence for relevant vehicles

443 During the trial a schedule of agreed evidence for relevant vehicles
was tendered by consent. It sets out the vehicles registered to certain
persons, and in the case of the accused the vehicles registered to Telstra
and allocated to him at various times. Relevantly, a white 1990 Nissan
panel van 8AO109 was registered to Telstra between 30 April 1990 and
17 June 1996, a white Toyota Hilux utility 8HS259 was registered to
Telstra between 18 February 1992 and 17 January 1998, a white 1992
Toyota Camry station wagon was registered to 'Telecom' (that is, Telstra)
between 22 April 1992 and 15 May 1996 (this vehicle was later
registered as NET004 and then 1BUZ380), a white 1996 Holden
Commodore station wagon 9GP082 was registered to Telstra between
29 April 1996 and 3 June 2000 (this vehicle was later registered as
1ARZ-557, FISHN and then 1BPX-080).289
Conclusions – employment, vehicles and uniforms

444 The accused was employed by Telstra at all relevant times. He was
not on leave as at the dates that any of the alleged murder offences
occurred. Accordingly, he would have had his usual work vehicle
available to him at those times.
445 As at the date of the Karrakatta offences, 12 February 1995, the
accused was allocated the white Toyota Camry station wagon as a work
vehicle. The earliest part-private use agreement that was produced was
dated September 1995, so it is not clear whether the accused was
permitted to use this car for private purposes prior to that date. In any
event, the description given by KJG of the car into which she was placed
does not accord with a station wagon; rather it is more consistent with a
288
ts 1894 - 5.
289
Exhibit 30451.
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van. This is likely to have been a Telstra van obtained from the pool of
vehicles that were available for use by technicians.
446 As at the date of count 6, 27 January 1996, the accused was allocated
the Toyota Camry station wagon as a work vehicle. By this time the
accused had entered into a part-private use agreement, so he was
permitted to use this car for private purposes after work hours. For this
reason it is probable that the number plates had an orange border
surround. As at this date it is likely that the vehicle had Telstra decals on
both the driver and front passenger doors, the front bonnet and at the rear.
Later photographs of the vehicle (after it had been sold by Telstra)
confirm that it was a white station wagon with no particular distinctive
features. The rear lights wrapped around the rear edges of the car and
there was a central brake light in the rear window. The number plate was
set into a recess in the rear door.
447 As at the date of count 7, 9 June 1996, the accused was allocated the
Holden Commodore station wagon as a work vehicle. A part-private use
agreement continued to apply, so he was permitted to use the car for
private purposes after work hours. For this reason it is probable that the
number plates had an orange surround. It is likely that this vehicle had
Telstra decals on both the driver and front passenger doors, the front
bonnet and at the rear.
448 As at the date of count 8, 15 March 1997, the accused was still
allocated the Holden Commodore station wagon as a work vehicle. A
part-private use agreement continued to apply, so he was permitted to use
the car for private purposes after work hours. It is probable that there was
still an orange surround around the number plates. It is likely that the
Telstra decals referred to in the last paragraph were still in place. The
vehicle was later seized by the police and it is clear that it is a white
station wagon with no particular distinctive features.
449 There is conflicting evidence as to whether there was a blank

magnetic cover that would be used to cover the decals. Mr Chivell
thought there were such covers, but he expressed himself in somewhat
vague terms. Ms Eldridge said that such covers were not available at the
relevant time and had only been used more recently with the roll out of
the NBN. Mr Gray and Mr Cohen gave no significant evidence on the
issue. I am not convinced that at the relevant time the decals or logos
were removable or able to be concealed using a magnetic cover.
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450 The evidence is that at all relevant times uniforms were worn by
those Telstra employees that interacted with customers. As the accused
was a technician this would include him. The uniform changed in 1993
and from at least that time included dark navy pants and shorts for men,
manufactured by Yakka, such as those provided to the police by
Mr Cohen and Mr Gray. Although EB referred to the accused wearing
grey workwear I consider that it is likely that she is remembering the type
of clothing the accused wore at an earlier period of their relationship.
There are no surviving records of the accused having ordered uniforms
prior to 1995, however the nature of the document retention policy means
that there is a likelihood that any earlier documentary records would have
been destroyed. Uniforms made using Telstra Navy fabric were in
production from 1993 and it is likely that the accused was wearing blue
Telstra uniforms from 1994.
Propensity evidence – Huntingdale, Hollywood Hospital and Karrakatta

Huntingdale offences
AH – evidence summary
451 AH gave evidence about the offences committed against her by the
accused on 14 February 1988. On that date she was 18 years old and was
living with her parents and two brothers at a house on Bullfinch Street,
Southern River. She knew of the accused because his younger brother
was friends with her two brothers and the accused's mother was her
netball coach. She also attended the same primary school and high school
as the accused.290
452 AH had been out with her boyfriend on the day of the offence and
she returned to the house at 6.30 pm. She went to bed at around 10.30 or
11.00 pm. She slept with her head at the end of the bed, on her stomach
with her hands under the pillow.291
453 During the night AH felt something on top of her, which woke her
up. She felt that she could not push up and that something was pressing
either side of her from her waist below her arms, against her body. She
felt a hand come over and be held against her mouth. She said 'It's okay.
I won't scream' because she thought that her boyfriend had come back
290
ts 1865 - 7.
291
ts 1871 - 3.
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inside the house. She felt another hand come onto the back of her head;
one hand was pushing up and one hand was pushing down.292
454 AH moved her head from side to side, stopped, moved again and
then stopped again, because she was waiting for the person who she
thought was her boyfriend to take his hands off her. She said 'what are
you doing?' and 'let go of me'. She felt the hand come off the back of her
head and the weight of the person shift like he was reaching behind. Then
the person moved his other hand and she felt that he had some fabric in
his left hand. She noted that the right hand was calloused.293
455 AH moved her mouth slightly to the side and said 'I love you'. She
then felt the pressure came off her back a little so she could pull her hand
out from under the pillow. She raised her hand up in order to stroke his
face. As her finger touched his face she felt stubble and realised that it
was not her boyfriend's face because she knew that her boyfriend had
shaved that day. She dug or jabbed her fingernail into the man's cheek as
hard as she could.294
456 The man got off her and AH heard a tiny patter; she said he was very
light as he landed on the carpet of her room. She put her hands over her
head and braced for about four seconds because she thought that he was
going to hit her. She turned her head slightly to the side to see who was
standing there and did not see anyone so she pushed up on her elbow and
looked back over her right shoulder towards her bedroom door. She saw a
man standing in her doorway facing towards her. He was almost as tall as
the doorframe and was wearing something like a long-sleeved white
cotton nightie.295
457 AH said that for 'half a heartbeat' she and the man stared at each
other in the dark and then she turned around and hammered on her wall
and screamed for her dad. As she turned back the accused took off. She
heard a bang and a few seconds later her father and then her mother came
into the room and turned the lights on. There was some light in her room
from the street light at the front of the house, which came through because
her curtains did not close properly.296
292
ts 1873 - 4.
293
ts 1874 - 5.
294
ts 1875 - 6.
295
ts 1876 - 9.
296
ts 1876 - 7.
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458 AH found a kimono lying on her bed along the wall, as well as some
black knotted stockings and another piece of material. The police arrived
and seized the kimono, stockings and piece of material.297
EH – evidence summary
459 The statement made by EH was read in to evidence. He is the father
of AH.298
460 On the evening of Sunday, 14 February 1988 EH was at his house on

Bullfinch Street, Southern River. He watched television and went to bed
at about 10.30 pm. When he went to bed the rear sliding door was shut
but not locked. When he went to bed he left the door to his room wide
open. Sometime later he was awoken by a muffled yell for help from his
daughter's bedroom. Her bedroom was next to his and at the front of the
house. He then heard a bang on the wall between AH's room and his
room and a scream for help.299
461 EH leapt out of bed and ran towards the doorway. He ran into the
door, which was closed. He was shocked because the door was always
open. He hurt his head. After he recovered he went into his daughter's
room. He found her in a dazed and distressed condition. She told him
something so he checked the house and the grounds. He found nothing.300
462 He went to call the police and found that the plug had been pulled
from the phone connection. He reconnected the phone and called the
police.301
Hollywood Hospital offence
WD – evidence summary
463 WD is a retired social worker. In 1990 she was working at
Hollywood Repatriation Hospital as a senior social worker. She worked
in the Allied Health Office, which was located in an annex at the back of
the Palliative Care Unit of the hospital. She shared the office with a
senior physiotherapist and a senior occupational therapist. The office area
was at the end of a ward and there was a toilet on the other side of the
office.302
297
ts 1877 - 8.
298
ts 2612.
299
ts 2612.
300
ts 2612.
301
ts 2613.
302
ts 1533 - 7.
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464 WD gave evidence about an incident that occurred on 7 May 1990

when she was assaulted by the accused. At about 1.30 or 2.00 pm she was
seated at her desk in the office facing the window. She was writing a
report and recalled that she wanted to get home for her daughter's
birthday. She was alone in the office area. She heard someone at the door
to the ward, and the accused said to her words to the effect of 'Excuse me,
can I use the toilet?' or 'Where is the toilet?' or 'Can I use the toilet?' She
could not recall the precise words that were used. She glanced around by
swivelling on her chair and saw that the person who had spoken to her
was a Telecom worker. She said 'Yeah sure' and carried on writing her
report.303
465 WD heard the toilet flush and then became aware of the accused
behind her moving towards the ward door. He said 'Oh I've dropped my
pen, can I go back and get it?' She then felt him put his right hand over
her face from her right-hand side. He had a cloth in his hand; she recalled
that it was a light-coloured cloth, which was heavier than a handkerchief.
He put the cloth over her mouth. He forced her up with his right hand
against her face and with his left arm lifting her shoulders. He pulled her
up and back and her chair moved back with her.304
466 WD struggled as the accused pulled her up and back. At first, she
tried not to breathe in because she thought that there was something on the
cloth; then when she had to breathe, she realised that there was nothing on
the cloth, so she struggled harder. Her feet slipped on the carpet as she
was being pulled back and up and towards the door to the toilet and one of
her shoes fell off. As she struggled, she twisted around and kicked the
accused hard in the leg. The chair fell over. The struggle lasted
10 seconds and then the accused stopped.305
467 WD staggered backwards but remained on her feet; she looked at the
accused and moved back. The accused moved towards her and said 'I'm
sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry'. She moved as quickly as she could towards
the door - she had one shoe off and one shoe on and her cardigan hanging
off - and she ran up the ward. She saw a locum doctor and tried to explain
to him what had happened but she could hardly speak because she felt in
shock. The doctor continued towards the accused and she went to the
nurses' station. WD suffered bruising and contusions on her neck.306
303
ts 1534, 1537 - 8.
304
ts 1538 - 41.
305
ts 1539 - 41.
306
ts 1539 - 41.
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Rick Marshall – evidence summary

468 Rick Marshall's statement was read in to evidence. From April 1974
to February 1994 he was employed as a fire, safety and security officer
with the Commonwealth Department of Veteran Affairs at Hollywood
Repatriation Hospital in Nedlands. In that role he had responsibility for
all security matters, including the response to all security related
incidents.307
469 Mr Marshall recalled an incident that happened approximately three

or four years prior to February 1994, when he finished working at
Hollywood Hospital. He estimated that it was in 1990 or 1991. He said
that the incident occurred on a week day during his day shift; dayshift
hours were 6.30 am to 2.30 pm. He received a duress page to attend the
Palliative Care Unit in Ward 8. When he got to the unit he was advised
that a female staff member had been assaulted in the social work area. He
went to the social work area and saw a woman who was crying and upset;
she was being comforted by another woman who he believed was a
member of staff.308
470 Mr Marshall saw a man sitting on a bench seat about 3 m from the
toilet area. The man had his head down and in his hands and was
muttering to himself 'I don't know why I did it. I don't know what came
over me'. Mr Marshall asked the man 'What is going on here? What
happened?' The man said 'I don't know what came over me'. Mr Marshall
asked him 'What did you do?' The man replied 'I just saw her. I grabbed
her and tried to drag her into the toilet cubicle'. Mr Marshall asked 'Who
are you and why are you here anyway?' The man said 'I have been
working on the telephone system'. Mr Marshall said to him 'You know
you are in serious trouble and you can't leave. You have to wait for the
police. I wouldn't say anything else until you talk to the police'. He said
'Yeah, I know'. The man said to him 'What am I going to do about work?'
Mr Marshall said 'That's the least of your worries'.309
471 Mr Marshall said that the man appeared withdrawn. He advised the
switchboard staff to contact the police and he waited with the man until
the police arrived. He returned to the security office and made a notation
in the official security occurrence book and produced an incident report.
Mr Marshall said that he still remembers this incident because of the
nature and seriousness of it, the fact that the Hollywood Repatriation
307
ts 2609 - 11.
308
ts 2609 - 10.
309
ts 2610.
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Hospital did not have a lot of serious security incidents, and because he
was directly involved in this incident.310
Paul McEvoy – evidence summary311

472 Paul McEvoy is a clinical psychologist. In May 1990 he was
working in private practice and worked on a contract basis for the Prisons
Department. He had previously worked in that department for 10 years.
In May 1990 Mr McEvoy prepared a psychological report on the accused,
which was prepared following his plea of guilty to assault in the
Magistrates Court.312
473 Mr McEvoy spoke to the accused on two occasions and prepared a

report dated 28 May 1990. In his evidence Mr McEvoy read from the
report. On page one of the report Mr McEvoy wrote:313
It appears that [the accused] had been in a state of some distress in the
week leading up to the offence. He explained during the first interview
that he had argued with his de facto wife on the evening prior to the assault
and was still disturbed by this argument the following day. However, on
the occasion of the second interview [the accused] explained that he had
also been carrying a heavier emotional burden from the previous week
when his de facto wife had informed him of her infidelity with a previous
boyfriend earlier in their relationship. Although he insisted to her that he
understood and accepted her actions, he acknowledges that he was actually
deeply distressed by her admission.
474 On page two of the report Mr McEvoy wrote:314

[The accused] is unable to clearly identify why his pent-up anger should be
released when it did or why he acted out on his victim, a woman whom he
had only met that day. He acknowledges feeling angry that 'nothing was
going right for me', but suggested that he was not angry with his victim.
He was in a state of emotional distress related to the disruption in his
relationship with his girlfriend and reports being further frustrated that the
task in which he was engaged was not going well despite his continued
efforts all day. He did indicate that he felt slightly annoyed when his
victim answered a question in a manner which he felt revealed some
irritation with him. This occurred soon before the attack.
310
ts 2610 - 1.
311
Although the evidence of Mr McEvoy was led as part of the prosecution's case on the 'emotional upset'
motive, this part of the case was later abandoned. I have only relied on the evidence insofar as it provides an
account by the accused of what occurred.
312
ts 1542.
313
ts 1543 - 4.
314
ts 1544 - 5.
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475 Mr McEvoy said that his practice in performing assessments of this

kind is to take notes during the assessment interviews and then write the
report afterwards. He was asked if he was directly quoting the accused in
the report and replied that where he is directly quoting the accused it is
indicated in the report and he is otherwise paraphrasing what the accused
said.315
Lyn Millett – evidence summary316

476 Lyn Millet is a registered clinical psychologist. In 1990 she was
self-employed and did contract work for the Department of Corrective
Services as a pre-sentence and psychological report writer. In May 1990
she was contracted to prepare a report as part of a pre-sentence report on
the accused as a consequence of him having pleaded guilty to assault. She
spoke to the accused once at Balcatta Community Corrections office
before she wrote the report. The report is dated 25 May 1990 and is a
general pre-sentence report, not a psychological report.317
477 Ms Millet read from pages one and two of the report:318
The following description of the offence was supplied by the defendant.
[The accused] was working at the Hollywood Repatriation Hospital on
7 May 1990 in the course of his employment with Telecom. He was in a
PABX room next to the victim's office. He asked her for directions to the
nearest toilet. He was directed down the hall, used the toilet and went
back to work. He quickly realised his pencil was missing and went back
into the toilet to check for it. As he came out the victim was sitting with
her back to him. [The accused] placed a dishcloth over her mouth and also
grabbed her around the waist. She struggled and screamed. [The accused]
stated he then realised what was happening, let her go and apologised. She
ran off and he returned to his work room and identified himself to other
hospital staff that were sent to find him. During the pre-sentence interview
[the accused] stated he felt very ashamed of his actions and could not
identify why he did it. He remembered being very frustrated at not being
able to fix the equipment that day and he was also under a lot of pressure
in his de facto relationship.
478 Ms Millet read another passage of the report from pages two and
three:319
315
ts 1545.
316
Although the evidence of Ms Millett was led as part of the prosecution's case on the 'emotional upset' motive,
this part of the case was later abandoned. I have only relied on the evidence insofar as it provides an account by
the accused of what occurred.
317
ts 1546 - 7.
318
ts 1549.
319
ts 1549 - 50.
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[The accused] began dating his current girlfriend in September 1989. He

moved out of his parents' home to live with her in December. He
described their relationship as 'fairly serious' and indicated they were
trying to save money to get married although [the accused] mentioned that
they argued a lot over money as his girlfriend tended to spend quite freely.
According to [the accused] she wants to get married as soon as possible
and until he committed the offence had been placing considerable pressure
on him to set a wedding date.
479 Ms Millet read other passages of the report from pages four and
320
five:
Leisure
[The accused] stated that he had very few close friends and tended to
spend all his time with his girlfriend going for drives or seeing movies.
Health
He recalled he used to drink quite a lot when he was younger but made a
decision not to drink when he met his current de facto.
General comments
From his own admission he tends to control his emotions and tries to
suppress his anger as he feels he has a bad temper.
480 Ms Millet was asked if she is directly quoting the accused in her
report. She said that her practice is to use paraphrasing and when she
records verbatim quotes she uses quotation marks.321
Karrakatta offences
KJG – evidence summary

481 Four statements made by KJG were read in to evidence. The first
statement was taken on 12 February 1995, the second statement was taken
between 12 February and 26 February 1995, the third statement was taken
on 10 July 1997 and the fourth statement was signed on 5 November
2019.322
482 KJG was born in 1977. At the time of making both the first and
second statements she was 17 years old. In 1995 she was living at home
320
ts 1550 - 1.
321
ts 1551.
322
ts 1944, 1949, 1965 - 6.
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with her parents in Cottesloe. She was a student and had two part time
jobs.323
483 On the evening of Saturday 11 February 1995 KJG was wearing a

white t-shirt, a denim vest, black tailored shorts and a pair of black leather
slip-on shoes. At about 8.00 pm her sister dropped her at a party at the
Claremont Aquatic Centre on Davies Road, Claremont. While at the
party, she had two alcoholic drinks. She stayed at the party until
approximately 9.30 pm.324
484 KJG was picked up from the aquatic centre by friends at about
9.30 pm and was taken to a party in Mosman Park. She stayed at the
party until about 11.00 pm and then she and a friend left to go to Exit
nightclub in Northbridge by taxi. She arrived at Exit around 11.30 pm.
At about 12.30 or 1.00 am she left Exit nightclub and went by taxi to Club
Bayview in Claremont and arrived just after 1.00 am.325
485 While KJG was at Club Bayview she danced with friends and talked
to people she knew. She left Club Bayview at about 2.00 am, walked
downstairs out of the club and bought a hotdog. She spoke to friends
while she ate the hotdog. She only had 50 cents, so she could not catch a
taxi home. She decided to go to a friend's house to stay the night. Her
friend lived at 84 Gugeri Street, Claremont and she had stayed there
before. She started walking to her friend's house between 2.30 am and
3.00 am.326
486 KJG walked up St Quentin Avenue and turned left into Bay View
Terrace. She walked up Bay View Terrace to the end and turned right
into Gugeri Street. She walked along the footpath next to Gugeri Street
on the opposite side of the road to the railway line. She did not notice
anyone walking past her or behind her as she walked along Bay View
Terrace or Gugeri Street. She did not notice any vehicles travel past her.
She walked with her head down and her arms folded.327
487 KJG walked across Langsford Street and then continued along the
footpath. About 300 m from Bay View Terrace the footpath goes through
a small park. There are a few bushes on the left-hand side of the footpath
and the park was on the right-hand side of the footpath. The area was
323
ts 1941, 1945, 1949 - 51, 1966.
324
ts 1941, 1943, 1945, 1950 - 2, 1966.
325
ts 1941, 1945, 1952.
326
ts 1942, 1946, 1954.
327
ts 1946, 1955.
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dimly lit; there were no lights in the park and although there were street
lights she did not recall there being much light between the trees.328
488 When KJG was about 10 m down from Langsford Street she was
grabbed from behind. She did not see where the person came from and
she did not see a car pull up or slow down on Gugeri Street. She did not
see the person who grabbed her. The man put his left hand over her
mouth and his right hand on her bicep. She tried to get his arm off by
shrugging her shoulders from side to side and moving her right arm
backwards. He pushed her to the ground on the side of the park away
from the road by pushing her with both of his hands onto the front of her
shoulders at the top of her chest. She fell to the ground.329
489 The man then bound KJG's wrists behind her back. He put a thick
cloth or gauze or sock into her mouth. She struggled by bringing her legs
up and pushing forward with her pelvis to try to push him off. He put one
arm under her back and one arm under her knees and picked her up and
walked about 10 m or 20 paces to a vehicle. She did not know where the
vehicle was parked because her eyes were closed. In KJG's first two
statements she said that she was gagged almost immediately after being
grabbed, whereas in her third statement she says that the gag was applied
after she was put in the vehicle.330
490 The man put KJG into the vehicle. She did not recall hearing any
doors open. She could feel that there was space around her in the back of
the vehicle. There was a bit of room to move and she was not resting
against a seat, it felt like she was resting against the side of the vehicle.
She was sitting on a tray-top with no cushioning, it was metal and she
could feel carpet. The vehicle was light-coloured. She thought it was a
type of panel van because of the way that she was put into it. The man
put a cloth bag over her head, made of cotton or calico. He tied her feet
together with a piece of the cord. Her feet were in front of her and her
knees were bent. She was sitting up in the back of the vehicle. She was
very frightened.331
491 KJG estimated that she was driven around for 25 minutes. She heard
the accused speak but could not hear what he said because it was muffled.
She was not sure if he was speaking to her or if there was someone else in
the car. The car stopped and the man came around to the back of the
328
ts 1942, 1946, 1955.
329
ts 1942, 1946, 1955 - 6.
330
ts 1942, 1946 - 7, 1956 - 7.
331
ts 1942, 1944, 1947, 1957 - 8.
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vehicle. He opened the back and pulled her down to the back of the
vehicle. He lifted her out and carried her with one arm under her legs and
the other arm behind her back. At some point her legs dropped down and
he dragged her by holding under her arms and pulling her along so her
heels were dragging in the dirt. Her shoes came off at this time.332
492 The man put KJG down on the ground on her back. She could feel
sand, grit and twigs underneath her. She still had the bag over her head.
The man sat on top of her with his legs on each side. He pushed up her
top and her bra and rubbed and licked her breasts. He undid the zip at the
back of her shorts and pulled her shorts and underpants halfway down her
legs to about her knees. He undid the cord around her ankles and ripped
or pulled her shorts and underpants off.333
493 The man pushed KJG's legs apart and put his penis inside her. She
thinks he might have tried a couple of times to do that because she tensed
up and pushed her pelvis up because she was in agony. She felt him
penetrate her vagina with his penis. He lay on top of her and was moving
his penis in and out. It was very painful; she recalled that it hurt her
severely twice during the time he was penetrating her.334
494 The man pulled the bag off KJG's head while he was penetrating her
and took the cloth out of her mouth. She kept her eyes shut and pretended
to be unconscious. He continued to push his penis in and out of her
vagina. She said it did not feel like he had a condom on. She estimated
that he had his penis inside her vagina for five or 10 minutes.335
495 The man rolled KJG over onto her stomach. She kept her eyes
closed. She felt his penis go into her anus. She felt a lot of pain. She
remembered her face lying against the dirt.336
496 After that the man got up and walked off. KJG knew he had walked
off because she could hear his footsteps on the twigs on the ground. She
did not see where he went to, she stayed lying where she was. She opened
her eyes but did not move her head. All she could see was a tree and that
it was dark.337
497 The man was away for about two minutes. He came back and picked
KJG up like he had done before: one hand under her back and the other
332
ts 1942, 1947, 1957 - 8.
333
ts 1942 - 3, 1947, 1958 - 9.
334
ts 1943, 1947 - 8, 1959 - 60.
335
ts 1948, 1960.
336
ts 1943, 1948, 1960.
337
ts 1943, 1960 - 1.
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hand under her legs. She had her eyes closed. He walked about eight
steps or 5 m and pushed her into some bushes by dropping her down from
about half a metre. She heard him walk off. She rolled herself to her
knees and tried to stand up and started struggling to get her arms free.338
498 KJG heard the man coming back so she sat back down in the bushes.
The man pushed her on her right shoulder so that she fell onto her side.
He then picked her up again, one hand under her back and one hand under
her legs, and walked about 3 or 4 m. He threw her into the centre of some
bushes that were a lot denser than the other bushes. She lay in the bush
and acted like she was unconscious.339
499 KJG heard the man walk away and then heard the car start and drive
away. She did not see any car lights. Her hands were still bound but she
kicked the cord off from around her feet. She rolled out of the bushes and
stood up. Although it was quite dark she realised that she was in a
cemetery because she could see some gravestones. She ran through some
bushes and out a gate that was about 5 m from where she was lying in the
bush.340
500 KJG turned left and walked down Dalkeith Road on the opposite side
of the road to the cemetery. She said it was getting lighter so she thought
it was near dawn. She had no clothes on the lower part of her body. The
first street sign that she saw was Karella and she turned right and kept
walking straight. She saw some houses but did not seek help there
because she was too frightened and was embarrassed because she did not
have any clothes on. She got her vest off and draped it over the front of
her with her elbows.341
501 KJG walked some distance and then found a Salvation Army
building. She walked up to a sliding door and it opened. She walked into
the bottom part of the building into a foyer area. She saw a phone on the
wall and knocked it off the wall with her chin. She dialled 000 with her
chin but it did not work. She dialled her home number with her chin and
it did not work. She pushed several red buttons with her chin. She was
yelling out 'help me'. She put her ear to the receiver and heard a woman
on the other end. She said 'can you help me? Come and get me'. The
338
ts 1943, 1948, 1961.
339
ts 1943, 1948, 1961.
340
ts 1943, 1948, 1961 - 2.
341
ts 1943, 1948, 1962.
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woman asked where she was but she did not know. She told the woman
that she had been raped and started crying.342
502 KJG then ran out of the building and down Karella Street. She saw
headlights coming towards her so she ran across the road and hid behind
some parked cars. She thought that the person who attacked her might
have been in the vehicle and that he was looking for her. While she was
hiding behind the cars she ripped her hands apart so that her hands were
free, although the cord was still wrapped around her left hand. She
watched the vehicle drive past – it was a white van like a mini bus or a
white panel van.343
503 KJG ran further along the road to a phone box on the corner of
William Street and Monash Avenue, Nedlands. She dialled 076 and
spoke to the operator. She asked the operator to put her through to her
friend's number but no one answered. The operator asked her what she
wanted to do so she asked the operator to put her through to her parents'
number. Her father answered the phone. She was crying and she asked
him to pick her up. She could see a sign that said 'Hollywood Hospital' so
she asked her father to pick her up from there.344
504 After she hung up the phone KJG went to Hollywood Hospital and
bashed on the doors and cried out 'help'. She saw a nurse at the end of the
corridor pointing to her to go around the side of the building. She became
hysterical and pushed numbers on the security code pad. The nurse came
towards her and opened up the door. She took her inside and got her
some yellow hospital pants. Not long after that, her parents and the police
arrived.345
505 KJG stated that throughout the incident she kept her eyes closed
much of the time. The only time she saw her attacker was when he first
pushed her to the ground. At that time she only looked at him for about a
second and she was not directly looking at his face. She said that she had
never seen her attacker before. She described him as young,
approximately 20 to 25 years old, with straight, brown, medium-length
hair. She did not remember any facial hair. He was wearing a light t-shirt
and jeans. She said that he was Caucasian, about six foot or six foot one,
with quite a solid build and an Australian accent.346
342
ts 1944, 1948 - 9, 1962 - 3.
343
ts 1944, 1949, 1963.
344
ts 1944, 1949, 1963 - 4.
345
ts 1944, 1949, 1964.
346
ts 1942, 1944, 1956, 1958, 1960, 1964 - 5.
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506 Later the police took KJG to the cemetery near where her clothes had
been found by police. Nothing of hers was missing except her sister's
licence that she had with her; she did not know when she lost it. She did
not know what happened to the bag that was on her head or the cloth in
her mouth. After she had spoken to police and showed them where she
walked she was taken to the Sexual Assault Resource Centre (SARC) for
a medical examination.347
507 In her fourth statement KJG provides information about the cars that
her family drove at the time: her mother drove a silver Nissan Pulsar, her
father drove a blue Ford Falcon and her sister drove a white Sigma. The
only family member who worked for Telstra or Telecom was her
grandfather and he had stopped working there when she was a little girl.
None of her friends or friends of her family worked at Telstra on or prior
to 11 February 1995. She had never been in a Telecom or Telstra vehicle.
She did not have contact with a Telecom or Telstra employee in the days
leading up to 11 February 1995. These are matters that are relevant to the
fibre evidence (which will be referred to later in these reasons).348
Jennifer Grace – evidence summary

508 The statement provided by Jennifer Grace was read in to evidence.
From 1987 to 2000 she worked for Wormald Security, which later became
Chubb Security. She worked in accounts and operations. Her duties
included producing running sheets for patrol guards and compiling client
reports. She also has experience working as a patrol guard.349
509 Ms Grace gave evidence about a piece of equipment called a data
wand. This is a black plastic handheld electronic device that was used by
patrol guards and static guards to store information about the sites they
patrolled and the times they were in attendance at various points on the
sites. The data wand had a red and green light on one side and a round
end that could fit over data discs that were located at fixed data points at
the patrol site location. The data points at patrol sites were entered into
the computer system. When a guard attended a patrol site he or she would
touch the end of the data wand to the data point and wait for the light to
turn from red to green, which confirmed that the data wand had correctly
registered the contact with the data point. The information relating to the
data point location and time attended would then be recorded and stored
347
ts 1964.
348
ts 1966.
349
ts 1982 - 5.
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on the data wand until it was downloaded onto the related computer
program.350
510 One of Ms Grace's duties was to download the information from the
data wands onto the computer program. Patrol guards had their data
wands downloaded daily; static guards had their data wands downloaded
when the device was full or towards the end of the month. The data wand
patrol client reports were generated at the end of the month or at the
client's request. The data wand patrol client report for Karrakatta
Cemetery for the period 25 January 1995 to 15 February 1995 shows the
date and location of the patrols by the guard at Karrakatta Cemetery.
There are three data points at the cemetery, the Book of Remembrance
office, the workshop toilet and the Orthodox toilets. The report records
that on 12 February 1995 the point at the Book of Remembrance office
was activated at 00.07, 01.35, 04.59, 10.05 and 14.44 hours. The point at
the workshop toilet was activated at 00.10, 01.38, 05.02, 10.08 and 14.47
hours. The point at the Orthodox Toilets was activated at 00.14, 01.43,
05.05, 10.12 and 14.52 hours.351
511 The times on the document are in local Western Australian time.
Ms Grace stated that the date and times were set up to be current, she does
not recall any occasion when there was inaccurate date and time
information in the reports or where the data had been manipulated by a
user.352
Noel Tsalis – evidence summary

512 On the night of 11 February 1995 Noel Tsalis was working as a
security officer for Wormald. His patrol circuit included Karrakatta
Cemetery. His shift started at 6.00 pm and ended at 6.00 am. In that
period he attended Karrakatta Cemetery three times. He did a perimeter
patrol and an internal patrol. The internal patrol required him to use an
electronic wand to register at three wand points inside the cemetery
grounds.353
513 Mr Tsalis was driving a Hyundai Excel hatch or similar with

spotlights fitted to a roof rack. The light on the passenger side was fixed
pointing outwards and the light on the driver's side was able to be
manoeuvred so that he could shine it around if required. He marked the
perimeter patrol on a map; he travelled the perimeter three times in each
350
ts 1983.
351
ts 1984 - 5; exhibit 01285.
352
ts 1984 - 5.
353
1985 - 6.
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shift. He had not timed it but estimated that it took him five minutes or a
little longer to drive around the perimeter. As he was driving he had his
headlights on and the spotlights on the roof on, which he shone into the
cemetery. The route he marked is Railway Road, Loch Street, Carrington
Street, Dalkeith Road, Karella Street, Smith Road and Aberdare Road.
There was no particular starting point, as it would depend on what
direction he was coming from.354
514 Mr Tsalis drove around the exterior perimeter and then drove inside
the cemetery. He entered the cemetery through the main entrance on
Railway Road. Once inside the cemetery he tapped the wand against a
data point at three locations: the Book of Remembrance (marked A on the
map), the grounds shed (marked B on the map) and the Orthodox toilets
(marked C on the map). At each location he got out of his car and tapped
the wand until it beeped and registered that he was there. He would then
leave by the main entrance.355
515 Mr Tsalis was shown the printout of the data wand information for
12 February 1995. He said that the document showed that at 12.07 am he
hit the wand at the point at the Book of Remembrance, at 12.10 am he hit
the wand at the point at the workshop toilets and then at 12.14 am he hit
the wand at the point at the Orthodox toilets. Then at 1.35 am he was at
the Book of Remembrance, 1.38 am at the workshop toilets and 1.43 am
at the Orthodox toilets. He was next at the three locations at 4.59 am,
5.02 am and 5.05 am.356
516 Mr Tsalis said that there were no lights inside the cemetery at that
time, the only lights came from the streetlights shining in. He noticed
nothing unusual during his patrols of the cemetery that night.357
Wayne Wookey – evidence summary

517 Wayne Wookey was working as a security officer at Hollywood
Private Hospital on Sunday 12 February 1995. The hospital is located on
Monash Avenue, Nedlands. Williams Road intersects with Monash
Avenue at a t-junction opposite the main entrance to the hospital.358
518 On the night of 11 February going into 12 February 1995

Mr Wookey was working the nightshift; he started at 11.00 pm and
354
ts 1989 - 91, 1995 - 6; exhibit 01290.
355
ts 1986 - 9, 1991, 1996; exhibit 01290.
356
ts 1991 - 4; exhibit 01285.
357
ts 1989 - 90, 1995.
358
ts 1974 - 5; exhibit 01278.
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finished at 7.00 am the next day. One of his tasks as security officer was
to conduct regular foot patrols of the exterior of the hospital. In the
course of his shift on that night he estimated that he did three or four
'walk-arounds', during which he walked mainly around the exterior of the
hospital but also in some inside corridors. A walk-around could take up
to two hours.359
519 In 1995 Mr Wookey was a heavy smoker and in the course of a

nightshift would have approximately 10 cigarettes. He smoked outside
the hospital buildings. Towards the end of his shift he joined one of the
cleaners who was having a cigarette at the front of the hospital close to a
big water feature near the entrance driveway. Whilst there he saw a car
driving along Williams Road towards the hospital with its high beam on.
It was still dark and the hospital was not well-lit outside so the car's lights
were blinding. He turned his head away because the lights were too
bright. He heard the car slow down. As the lights went away he turned
back to look at the car. It turned left onto Monash Avenue and headed up
towards the cemetery.360
520 Mr Wookey described the vehicle as a white Hiace type van with a
Telstra or Telecom sticker on the door. He said he thought it was a newer
model vehicle because of the curved shape of the window on the driver's
door and because it was 'really shiny white'. He was 30 to 40 m away
from the intersection of Williams Road and Monash Avenue. He could
not see any occupants of the vehicle. It was not speeding. He estimated
the time as around 4.40 or 4.45 am.361
521 Later that morning, at about 5.30 or 5.45 am Mr Wookey heard a call
on the radio from the nurse manager saying that someone was trying to
get in the front door of the hospital. He said that this was 45 minutes to
an hour after seeing the van.362
Marita Cattlin (Bosse) – evidence summary

522 A statement made by Marita Cattlin was read in to evidence. On
Sunday 12 February 1995 she was working nightshift as a registered nurse
at the Hollywood Village Nursing Home run by The Salvation Army. 363
359
ts 1975 - 6.
360
ts 1976 - 8; exhibit 01278.
361
ts 1978, 1980 - 1.
362
ts 1980 - 1.
363
ts 1971.
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523 At 5.20 am the emergency phone rang. Ms Cattlin picked it up and

had a conversation with the person on the line. She asked the woman on
the phone where she was and whether she could describe the location.364
524 Ms Cattlin said that the woman on the phone told her that her hands
were tied, that she had been raped and that she did not know where she
was. Ms Cattlin told the woman to stay where she was and that she would
ring the police. She rang the police and the police dispatch record shows
that the call was made at 5.29 am on 12 February 1995.365
LG – evidence summary
525 LG is the father of KJG. His statement was read in to evidence. In
1995 LG, his wife and their two daughters lived together in the family
home.366
526 On Sunday 12 February 1995 he was awoken at 5.34 am by a reverse

charges telephone call from KJG, who was crying hysterically. She asked
him to come and pick her up. He asked her what had happened and where
she was. She told him that she had been taken by a man and tied up and
left at the cemetery and that she was at a telephone box opposite
Hollywood Hospital. He told KJG to go to the hospital and that he would
find her there.367
527 LG and his wife drove to Hollywood Hospital where he saw KJG, a
nurse and police officers. KJG asked him to remove the cord from around
her wrist. He removed it with difficulty; he said he did not pay much
attention to the knot, but it appeared to tighten on itself the more he pulled
it and it appeared to be connected to her around her middle in some way.
The cord was about 4 m long and cream in colour. The cord appeared to
be a Telecom extension cord.368
Conclusions – propensity evidence – Huntingdale, Hollywood Hospital and

Karrakatta
528 The accused has pleaded guilty to offences arising from each of the
Huntingdale, Hollywood Hospital and Karrakatta incidents. There was no
significant dispute regarding the facts of those incidents. I accept that
each incident occurred as described by the victims. The significant
364
ts 1971.
365
ts 1971; exhibit 01270.
366
ts 1972 - 3.
367
ts 1972.
368
ts 1972 - 3.
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question is precisely how that evidence can be used. This requires

identification of what propensity or tendency is proven by the evidence.
529 If the three incidents are viewed together any propensity or tendency
which is drawn from them must reflect features that are common to all.
The defence accepted that these incidents in combination can be taken to
establish that the accused had, and acted upon, a tendency to attack
women unknown or barely known to him, from behind, using force and
the use of a cloth to stifle any sounds and with a sexual motivation.
However, it was submitted that in the absence of distinctive similar
features these incidents would not have sufficient similarity to establish a
propensity that was of probative value.369
530 The only common features that could be described as truly

distinctive are that each of the attacks was from behind and involved the
use of a cloth to stifle sound or subdue the victim. The probative value of
a tendency with these distinctive features is limited in circumstances
where there is no evidence as to the exact method used to abduct
Ms Spiers, Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. However, there is another
approach to the evidence.
531 If the Karrakatta incident is viewed alone it bears a number of

features in addition to being an attack upon a woman unknown to the
accused. In particular, it was an offence involving violence, the victim
was a young Caucasian woman in the 17 to 27 age range, the victim was
abducted after socialising in the Claremont nightlife area and whilst
leaving that area alone and on foot, the offending occurred in the early
hours of a weekend morning and the offending occurred in the period
1995 to 1997. These are features that, together, are distinctive and are
also common to the murder counts. There is no evidence that Ms Rimmer
left the area alone and on foot, and it is not known exactly where she was
when she was abducted. She was last seen on Bay View Terrace, but that
is only a minor qualification.
532 The Karrakatta offending proves that the accused has, or had, a
tendency with the described features and that tendency has, in my view,
significant probative value to the issue of the identity of the person who
committed counts 6 - 8. A tendency or disposition to behave in a
particular way can be inferred from one incident if the particular
circumstances support such a conclusion. In the case of the Karrakatta
offending the circumstances show that it was not a momentary lapse but a
planned course of conduct. This is apparent from the use of the hood, gag
369
Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, KJG and Propensity Evidence, 19 - 20 [67], [70].
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and cord and the selection of an evidently vulnerable victim. The conduct
also continued over an extended period. These features support a
conclusion that the accused had a tendency to act in this way.
533 I am conscious that there was a sexual motivation to the Karrakatta
offending but that evidence that the murder counts were sexually
motivated is more limited. For reasons that I will explain later in respect
of each victim, I am unable to reach a firm conclusion that the abduction
and murders of Ms Spiers and Ms Glennon were sexually motivated; that
is certainly a possibility but it is not a clearly proven feature. This means
that insofar as the tendency proven by the Karrakatta offending includes a
sexual motivation this is not a feature that has probative value in
determining the question of identity in respect of counts 6 and 8.
534 However, the evidence does support a conclusion that the abduction
and murder of Ms Rimmer was sexually motivated. This means that the
sexual motivation present in the Karrakatta offending adds to the
probative value of that evidence in respect of count 7.
535 There remains a question of what relevance the Huntingdale and
Hollywood Hospital incidents have. Those incidents do not share the
same distinctive features referred to, indeed they have many obvious
differences. For example, the Huntingdale incident involved an attack
upon a sleeping victim in her home and the Hollywood Hospital incident
involved an attack upon an older woman in a workplace during the
daytime. Viewed independently those two incidents provide no assistance
in determining the identity of the person who committed counts 6 - 8. The
only relevance that they could have is in providing context for the
Karrakatta incident. One of the features of the tendency established by
the Karrakatta incident is that it involved a violent attack upon a woman
unknown to the accused. It is of some relevance to know that that feature
was not an aberration or an out of character trait of the accused. The
Huntingdale and Hollywood Hospital incidents are capable of showing
that this trait was a longstanding one and had developed over time.
Absent this evidence the Karrakatta offending might seem to be an
isolated and out-of-character incident in an otherwise normal, if not
mundane, life. The likelihood that the accused would again display the
tendency shown in the Karrakatta incident could be affected by taking into
account the earlier incidents.
536 The evidence of the Huntingdale and Hollywood incidents could

only be relevant in the very limited way I have described. That is, it is not
directly relevant to the proof of any fact in issue, rather it could only be
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relevant to a proper understanding of the Karrakatta evidence. The earlier

incidents do not make it any more or less likely, when viewed in isolation,
that the accused is the person responsible for the murders of Ms Spiers,
Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. They could only provide assistance in
assessing the true nature of an essential feature of the tendency proven by
the Karrakatta incident. Namely, that the feature of violently attacking
unknown women was not a recent or unprecedented character trait.
537 Whilst I consider that the argument for the relevance of the earlier
incidents is strong, there is a counter argument. If the proper
characterisation of those earlier incidents is that they are evidence of
conduct of the accused that is relevant to proof of an aspect of a tendency
or propensity, then they should only be admissible if they meet the test of
having significant probative value.370 That test is higher than mere
relevance and exists to ensure that the prejudice which inevitably
accompanies the admission of evidence of unrelated past offending is
mitigated. To apply the test of significant probative value to the
Karrakatta evidence, but not to evidence that only explains or provides
context to that evidence could have the effect of subverting the purpose of
s 31A of the Evidence Act.
538 The pre-trial ruling that the earlier incidents were admissible as
propensity evidence was made in a different context to that which applied
at trial. At the time of the ruling the accused had not pleaded guilty to
counts 1 - 5. The focus of attention at that time was whether the earlier
incidents had significant probative value in proof of the Karrakatta
charges. I made reference to the relevance of the earlier incidents in
explaining the Karrakatta incident. However, having considered the
matter further, particularly having regard to the matters raised in the
previous paragraph, I have come to the conclusion that, whatever
approach is taken to the evidence of the earlier incidents, they should only
be taken into account if they meet the standard of having significant
probative value. I am not satisfied that they do meet that test. The limited
relevance of the evidence and the significant differences between those
earlier incidents and the circumstances of the alleged murders means that
that evidence is of some, but not significant, probative value. For these
reasons I will disregard the evidence of the Huntingdale and Hollywood
Hospital incidents in making any assessment of whether the guilt of the
accused has been established on any of the charges.
370
Evidence Act 1906 (WA), s 31A.
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539 It is next necessary to consider the extent to which the Karrakatta

evidence assists in proving the identity of the person who killed
Ms Spiers, Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. Whilst the defence accepts that
the Karrakatta offences are admissible in support of the State's case on
counts 6 - 8, that is said to be only to the extent that the specific
propensity they prove is probative of one or more of the murders.371 The
similarity of the count in question to any tendency the accused had is
critical to the probative value of that evidence. The defence position is
that, to the extent that is known how counts 6 - 8 were committed, there
are material differences with the way in which the Karrakatta offences
were committed such that they do not ultimately help to prove the identity
of the offender in any of counts 6 - 8.372 I will now turn to consider the
points of difference raised by the defence and the significance of them.
540 The first matter raised is the personal characteristics of the victims.
The defence say that the only common features of the four victims is that
they were all Caucasian women with an age range of 17 - 27 years.373
Their heights, builds and hair colours varied. I accept that this is accurate,
but it is not a matter that in my view is of great significance in assessing
the probative value of the Karrakatta evidence. There is no reason to
think that the tendency revealed by the Karrakatta offences was one that
was specific to women of a very particular appearance. Any differences
in appearance between KJG and any of the murder victims do not make it
less likely that the accused is the killer of those murder victims.
541 The next difference is that the accused did not kill KJG or make any
attempt to do so. The defence submit that, without diminishing the
seriousness of the attack upon KJG, he had her completely within his
power and could have killed her if he had wished to do so. This is said to
be a fundamental difference that goes to the heart of the probative value of
any propensity that the Karrakatta offences show.374 The State sought to
meet this submission by suggesting that it was open to conclude that the
accused intended to kill KJG but was disturbed before he could do so and
that he returned to the scene in order to kill her, only to find that she had
left. The evidence of Mr Tsalis, Mr Wookey and Ms Cattlin was relied
upon to support this theory.375
371
Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, KJG and Propensity Evidence, 21 [73].
372
373
Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, KJG and Propensity Evidence, 21 [82] - [83].
374
ts 10446; Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, KJG and Propensity Evidence, 23 [84].
375
ts 10071 - 7; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The Propensity Evidence, 174 - 5 [25] - [44].
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542 The State relies on the following evidence to support the claim that
the accused intended to kill KJG:376
1. that the accused removed the hood covering KJG's face, thereby
creating a risk that he would be identified;
2. that the accused ejaculated during the offences, thereby creating a

risk that his DNA would be recovered;
3. that it is likely that the accused was disturbed by the perimeter

patrol conducted by Mr Tsalis, given the timing of the patrols and
the time when KJG spoke to Ms Cattlin on the emergency
telephone at the nursing home;
4. the conduct of the accused in picking up KJG and placing her into
bushes and then returning and placing her into another area of
bushes; and
5. the sighting by KJG of a white van as she walked away from the
nursing home, which is said to support an inference that the
accused was returning to the scene.
543 The issue is whether these facts, taken collectively, support the
contention that the accused intended to kill KJG. The suggestion is that in
removing the hood the accused had decided that any risk of being
identified was no longer a concern because he intended to kill KJG.
However, the removal of the hood occurred only after the accused had
restrained KJG, taken her to the poorly lit cemetery and during the course
of the sexual assault upon her. There are other possible explanations for
the removal of the hood in these circumstances. For example, that he no
longer considered it necessary in order to restrain KJG, that the risk of
identification was diminished by the poor lighting in the cemetery or that
he wanted to see KJG's face in order to enhance his sexual pleasure.
544 As regards ejaculation, any risk that this would result in

identification assumes a high level of efficacy of DNA typing technology
in early 1995 and an awareness of that technology on the part of the
accused. In fact, as will become apparent later in these reasons, DNA
profiling was at a relatively early stage of development at that time and it
had only limited utility in identifying suspects. This conduct on the part
of the accused is at least as consistent with ignorance on his part as it is
376
State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The Propensity Evidence, 174 - 5 [26], [27], [29], [36] - [39], [43].
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with a conscious acceptance of risk. It is not open to use the fact of

ejaculation as evidence of an intention to kill.
545 As regards the perimeter patrol, it is not possible to say with any
degree of certainty that such a patrol disturbed the accused. KJG used the
emergency telephone at the nursing home at about 5.20 am. Mr Tsalis
conducted the internal patrol between about 4.59 am and 5.05 am. If the
external patrol was conducted first and took about five minutes then it is
possible that Mr Tsalis passed the area where the accused assaulted KJG
(at the closest some 350 to 400 m away). But the passing of Mr Tsalis's
vehicle could only have been momentary, certainly he noticed nothing
unusual and there is no suggestion that he paused. KJG makes no
mention of hearing any passing car or seeing any lights. If the accused
noticed the patrol it would have been immediately apparent to him that it
had moved on.
546 As regards the conduct of the accused, concealing KJG suggests
hesitation or uncertainty on his part, but not necessarily that he had been
disturbed and was concealing her with the intention of returning to kill
her. Indeed, if that was his intention it might be expected that he would
reapply the hood and gag and secure KJG's feet. Furthermore, if the
accused wanted to kill KJG he had ample opportunity to do so before
leaving the area.
547 As regards the sighting by KJG of a white van, she cannot say that it
is the van in which she was abducted. Understandably, she feared that it
was and acted accordingly, but her ability to make observations of the van
in which she travelled was very limited. The description of the van she
saw driving towards her was general in terms and it could not be
concluded with any degree of certainty that it was the van seen earlier by
Mr Wookey or that it was a van being driven by the accused. In these
circumstances this evidence is not capable of supporting an inference that
the accused was returning with the intention of killing KJG.
548 It was KJG's evidence that during her ordeal she believed she was
going to die. That is an entirely understandable belief in the
circumstances, but proving as a fact that the accused had such an intention
is another matter. In my view the available evidence, even when taken
together, is not capable of supporting an inference that the accused had
such an intention. In those circumstances this is a point of difference
between the Karrakatta incident and the alleged murders. That is, the
tendency proven by the Karrakatta offences is not a tendency to kill. That
is a matter that is relevant in considering the weight to be given to the
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propensity evidence. It reduces the probative value of that evidence to

some extent, but not such as to deprive of it of significant probative value.
In saying that I recognise that it is not inconceivable that a man who has a
proven tendency to violently abduct unknown women may progress to
murder. The propensity evidence does not prove that possibility, but it is
not inconsistent with it.
549 The next point of difference is the method used to abduct the victims.
The State case was that, whilst it was not known exactly how Ms Spiers,
Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon were taken, it could be inferred that they
were either lured or forced into the accused's car.377 If they were lured
into a car on some pretence of being given a lift, this would be a point of
difference to the Karrakatta offences that would weaken the probative
value of that evidence.
550 Whilst I accept that a luring scenario would be different to what

occurred in Karrakatta, the fact is that there is no evidence that allows a
conclusion to be drawn that either of Ms Rimmer or Ms Glennon were
lured into a car, rather than forced. Thus it is not possible to say that this
is a point of difference with the Karrakatta offences. The position in
respect of Ms Spiers is somewhat different. As will become evident later
in these reasons, the prosecution case is that screams heard in Mosman
Park were made by Ms Spiers. That would only be possible if Ms Spiers
had been lured into a car and had given her destination to the driver.
I accept that in the case of Ms Spiers this is a point of difference that
reduces the probative value of the Karrakatta evidence.
551 The final point of difference is that in the case of Ms Spiers and
Ms Rimmer the prosecution case is that they were able to scream and in
the case of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon to defend themselves from their
attacker. This is said to be different from Karrakatta in that KJG was
bound and gagged. The defence accepts that the Karrakatta offences
show that the accused had the ability to subdue, restrain, bind, hood and
gag a victim, carry her to and conceal her in a vehicle without the victim
being able to scream out or raise the alarm or defend herself. The defence
submits that this raises a question of why the accused did not use these
skills if he is responsible for counts 6 - 8.378
552 In my view the fact, if it be proven, that Ms Spiers and Ms Rimmer
were able to scream does not necessarily mean that abilities of the type
referred to in the previous paragraph were not utilised. The defence
377
See State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, Count 6 - Sarah Spiers, 283 [65].
378
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argument assumes that all other circumstances, including the character

and response of the victim, were the same. That is not an assumption that
can be made. Different victims, for perfectly understandable reasons, may
respond to an attack in different ways. Some, like KJG, may think that a
pretence of unconsciousness is their best defence. Others may choose
more active resistance. Furthermore, the use of the skills described did
not mean that in the case of KJG she at no point had an opportunity to
scream – she did have such an opportunity when the gag was removed,
but had already committed to a different strategy for dealing with her
ordeal.
553 The fact that Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon were able to defend
themselves is also not necessarily inconsistent with the skills
demonstrated in the Karrakatta offending. All that is known is that both
women had injuries that are consistent with defensive wounds, but when
and how they were incurred and what degree of resistance they were able
to mount is not known. For these reasons I do not accept that the screams
and defensive wounds are a point of difference that reduces the probative
value of the Karrakatta evidence.
Propensity evidence – Telstra Living Witness Project

554 There are seven incidents that fall into this category of evidence.
The prosecution opened on five of these incidents. Towards the end of
the prosecution case, and at the request of the defence, the prosecution
called another witness to make her available for cross-examination. She
gave evidence about a sixth incident. Evidence about a seventh incident
was read in by consent. The prosecution relies on four incidents
numbered 3, 5, 6 and 7. The four incidents relied on by the prosecution
occurred on various dates between about December 1995 and about
January 1997. Some of the incidents involve multiple witnesses. It is
convenient to refer to them in chronological order (bearing in mind that
the timing is often only an estimate). All of the incidents that the State
originally relied on had a link to Telstra or a vehicle used in
telecommunications work. The two later witnesses do not have an
apparent link to Telstra. The State explained in opening that the project
was originally known as the living witness project but was later described
as the Telstra Living Witness Project.379
379
ts 883 - 4, 9437, 9772, 10156 - 7; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, Telstra Living Witness Evidence,
250 [15], [20], 252 [21], 254 [22], 258 [23].
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Incident 1 – 1995
Rebecca Keamy
555 Rebecca Keamy was called by the State at the request of the defence.
She gave evidence of an incident that happened on a Friday night
sometime in 1995, when she was aged around 20 years old. Whilst she
could not give an exact date, she was sure that it occurred before the
disappearance of Ms Spiers.380
556 On the night in question Ms Keamy believes she had attended a

birthday celebration at Club Bayview and was wearing what she described
as her 'party outfit', a pink skirt and black top. She was walking home
alone along Stirling Highway when a car stopped and the driver offered
her a lift. She was near a bus stop outside Methodist Ladies College when
this occurred and estimated the time as between 2.00 am and 3.30 am, or
at least well after midnight.381
557 The car that stopped was a white, small station wagon. It was not a
Holden or Ford. She described it as a 'Japanese-style car'. She did not
recall it having anything on the roof or any markings or logos. It was an
older car, at least it did not have a 'new car smell', and it didn't feel neat.
The driver was male and spoke to her through the passenger side window.
He seemed well-spoken and polite. He did not have a noticeable accent.
He offered her a lift, which she initially refused. However he repeated the
offer and she accepted and got in to the passenger seat.382
558 Ms Keamy attempted to engage the man in conversation once she
was in the car, but he did not respond. This made her feel nervous. She
was also concerned because the car took off quite quickly. Whilst still on
Stirling Highway the man put his hand on her leg and she pushed it away.
He repeated the action more forcefully and she again pushed his hand
away and told him not to touch her. She directed the driver to turn left
and her perception was that he complied somewhat reluctantly. She was
sufficiently fearful that she contemplated jumping out of the car when it
slowed down.383
559 She directed the man to turn into McNeil Street, where she was then
living. He stopped the car near an intersection and she got out, ran away
and hid near to her block of units. She could hear the noise of the
380
ts 9437 - 9, 9448.
381
ts 9440 - 1, 9449.
382
ts 9441 - 3, 9445 - 8, 9450.
383
ts 9443 - 6.
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stationary car from where she was hiding. She remained there for a short
time before entering the block of units by the back door.384
560 Ms Keamy described the driver as being quite small and skinny. She
estimated that he was no taller than her, though she only saw him seated
in the car. He had dark hair, brown but not black, of a medium length, not
short back and sides. It was collar-length, not shoulder-length. His hair
was not completely straight, rather it had a bit of a curl. He was
Caucasian with a straight nose and olive skin. She estimated his age as
older than 25, at least five to seven years older than her.385
561 In re-examination Ms Keamy said that she had only a brief
opportunity to observe the car from the outside. She did not see it coming
and only saw it when it pulled up alongside her. The only other time she
saw it from the outside was when she was running away. As to the driver,
she said the drive was a very short one, a couple of minutes at most and
that she looked at him only a couple of times. Most of the time she was
looking ahead because she was frightened and thinking of ways to get out
of the car. She also said it was quite dark; she does not recall a light being
on in the car at any stage.386
Incident 2 – 3 December 1995
Katrina Jones – evidence summary

562 Katrina Jones gave evidence about an incident that occurred after she
had been at the wedding of her then boyfriend's brother. She initially
thought that the wedding was in late November 1995, but in
cross-examination agreed that the wedding took place on 3 December
1995. The wedding reception was at the Albion Hotel on Stirling
Highway.387
563 Ms Jones left the wedding late at night after an altercation and
needed to get back to her car that was parked at her boyfriend's parents'
house in Laurence Road, Innaloo. She did not have any money. She
crossed the road and spoke to a pizza delivery driver who could not help
her. She then started walking. She decided to go back to see her
boyfriend and ask him for some money to get home. He gave her $20.388
384
ts 9444, 9447 - 8.
385
ts 9445, 9449 - 50.
386
ts 9448 - 9.
387
ts 1727, 1744.
388
ts 1728 - 9.
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564 Ms Jones started walking again, along the left-hand side of Stirling
Highway towards Perth. She recalled being on the other side of the street
to 'Mercy College'.389 She saw a big white van travelling towards
Cottesloe on the other side of the road. She said the van did not have
markings on it. She saw that the windows of the van were open. The van
slowed down and the driver looked across at her. The van then drove a
little further, did a U-turn and drove back, pulled up next to her and
stopped.390
565 The driver of the van said to Ms Jones 'Are you all right?' and she
said 'No, as a matter of fact I'm not' and the driver said 'Can I give you a
lift?' This conversation happened with Ms Jones standing near the
passenger door of the van and speaking through the open window. She
said 'I need to get into Perth' and he said 'All right, I am taking you into
Perth'. She got into the van; she recalled that she had to lift herself up into
the passenger seat. She noticed a logbook and a badge with the driver's
picture on it on the dashboard. There were no rear seats.391
566 Once inside the van Ms Jones turned around and looked in the back
and noticed that there were little drawers that rattled as the van drove.
Her brother worked for Telstra so she recognised the items in the back of
the van. She and the driver had a conversation about her brother and
about his work. She asked the driver what he did and he told her that he
worked for Telstra, or Telecom. In cross-examination her previous
statements were put to her on this point. In her first statement, made in
1997, Ms Jones told the police that the driver told her he worked in
telecommunications. In a statement made in 2017 she said that the driver
told her that he worked for Telecom or Telstra. In a statement made in
2018 she said she was not sure if the driver said that or if she had been
influenced by media reports that a Telstra technician had been arrested.
She said in that statement that she was not sure that the driver said he
worked for Telecom or Telstra but she was certain he said he worked in
telecommunications as a repair man at installation sites.392
567 Ms Jones asked the driver what he was doing driving around at
2.30 in the morning. He said to her 'I was heading to Cottesloe … I just
picked up damsels in distress like yourself'. He was very friendly and
389
This may be a reference to Methodist Ladies College.
390
ts 1729 - 31, 1749 - 50.
391
ts 1731 - 3, 1750, 1752.
392
ts 1733, 1745 - 8.
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polite. She said 'Well, actually my car is in Laurence Road' and he said
'No problem, I'll take you to that'.393
568 Ms Jones asked the driver to drop her five houses away from the
house in Innaloo because she did not want him near her car. She got out
of the van and offered him $20. He said 'no, no, that's fine'. She walked
2 or 3 m past the front of the van and then turned around to find the driver
behind her. He grabbed her arm and tried to kiss her. She said to him
'Hey, whoa. Whoa. Whoa. Don't you – I'll drop you'. He then backed
off, turned around and went back to the van.394
569 Ms Jones walked slowly because she wanted to try to get his
numberplate. She heard the van start and drive away and then she turned
around to look at the numberplate. She did not have a pen and was only
able to see a couple of the numbers but by the time she got back to her car
she could not recall them. She then got into her car and drove home,
arriving there at 4.30 am.395
570 Ms Jones described the driver of the van as tall: she is five foot and
he was a lot taller than her, she said six foot seven or six foot five. He
was aged between 25 and 27, had dark brown hair, no facial hair and was
slightly tanned with a 'normal' build. He was wearing a short-sleeved
shirt and, she thought, tan trousers.396
571 It was put to Ms Jones in cross-examination that in July 1996 she had
told police that the driver was about 21 years of age with fair hair and cut
short. In a later statement she described the driver as having short,
light-brown hair and a round youngish face. She accepted that was an
accurate description of the driver's hair colour. In cross-examination she
said he 'definitely wasn't 6 foot'. 'I knew he wasn't 6 foot and I knew he
wasn't five four'. Ms Jones said that she is 'not good with ages or
heights'.397
Wendy Elliott – evidence summary

572 A statement from Wendy Elliott was read in to evidence. On
Saturday 2 December 1995 she married Stephen Elliott at St Dominic's
Catholic Church, Innaloo. The reception was held that evening at the
Albion Hotel on Stirling Highway Cottesloe. Her brother-in-law Michael
393
ts 1733 - 4.
394
ts 1735 - 7.
395
ts 1737 - 9.
396
ts 1736, 1738 - 9, 1752, 1754.
397
ts 1752 - 4.
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was at the wedding ceremony and reception with his then girlfriend,
Katrina. Ms Elliott and her husband left the Albion Hotel at about
11.30 pm. She does not recall if Katrina was still there when she left.398
Incident 3 – 27/28 January 1996
Julie-Anne Johnstone – evidence summary

573 Julie-Anne Johnstone was living in Alfred Cove in the mid-1990s
and often socialised in the Claremont, Cottesloe area and went to The
Continental, Club Bayview, and the Ocean Beach Hotel (OBH). After a
night out at these places she would usually catch a taxi home or get a lift
with a friend who was driving.399
574 Ms Johnstone gave evidence about an incident that occurred on
Saturday 27 January going into Sunday 28 January 1996. That evening
Ms Johnstone went to a party at Adam Davey's flat in Nedlands, near the
Rose Gardens. Mr Davey was the boyfriend of Ms Johnstone's friend
Megan Lamont. Robyn Drexel was also at the party. At around 1.00 am
Ms Johnstone went to Club Bayview.400
575 Ms Johnstone stayed at Club Bayview for approximately 40 minutes
and then left on her own. Over the evening, a six-hour period, she had
four or five drinks; she felt pretty sober and was tired. She went down the
rear stairs of Club Bayview and walked to the west side of Hungry Jack's
to Stirling Highway to catch a taxi near the bus stop.401
576 When Ms Johnstone got to the bus stop there was a younger male
there, but he walked off after a few minutes. While she was waiting a car
pulled into the curved part of Stirling Highway near where she was
standing. She was looking towards Fremantle and did not look at the car
when it first pulled in. The car remained there for 10 or 15 minutes.
After a while Ms Johnstone turned around to have a look at the car. She
saw a man in the car; he leaned over to the passenger side of the vehicle
and wound down the window and looked at her for about 30 to
60 seconds.402
577 The vehicle was a white sedan with four doors and a Telstra sign on
the passenger side door. The logo was a circle with Telstra written in it;
there was a circle around the 'T'. The colours of the logo were orange and
398
ts 1757 - 8.
399
ts 1694 - 5.
400
ts 1695, 1708 - 9.
401
ts 1696 - 7, 1704 - 5.
402
ts 1697 - 703, 1708.
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blue. The car looked to Ms Johnstone like a Toyota Camry, a model

somewhere between 1992 and 1996.403
578 The man was about a metre away from Ms Johnstone. She described
him as Caucasian, with tan or olive skin. He 'sort of' had a receding
hairline, brown hair, which was shorter on top and at the sides and longer
at the back, with loose curls. He had broad shoulders and was wearing a
denim shirt. He was aged 30 to 35 years old and did not have facial hair.
He appeared to have broad shoulders.404
579 Ms Johnstone said 'What?' to the man; he did not respond. She
turned around and walked further west on the footpath towards Fremantle
and waited for a taxi near the old church. The vehicle drove off after a
few seconds.405
580 A few months after this incident she sat down with police and an
identikit picture was produced. She accepted that it could in fact have
been done in 1998. She said that her recollection of what the man looked
like was clear, even though it was two years or more after the incident.
The identikit image prepared with Ms Johnstone reflects what she
believes the male driver looked like. The image was tendered and bears
no resemblance to the accused.406
Christine Herbert – evidence summary

581 Christine Herbert is a retired property manager whose statement was
read in to evidence in order to put a date on the party that Mr Johnstone
attended. Between 1988 and 2006 Ms Herbert worked at Graham Day
and Associates in Nedlands. One of the properties she managed was Unit
3, 114 Stirling Highway Nedlands. She remembered a male tenant called
Adam. The block of units was on the corner of Louise Street and Stirling
Highway, opposite the Rose Gardens.407
582 On 29 January 1996 Ms Herbert made a note in a telephone message

book in which she recorded that other tenants had rung about a very loud
party that had been held at Unit 3, 114 Stirling Highway on the previous
Saturday night. In 1999 she provided a copy of this note to the police
under cover of a fax which referred to 'Adam Davey party'. She has no
403
ts 1699, 1702 - 3, 1708.
404
ts 1701 - 3, 1708.
405
ts 1702.
406
ts 1705 - 7; exhibit 01124.
407
ts 1758 - 9.
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recollection of sending this fax but confirmed that it is in her handwriting

and the fax cover sheet is one used by Graham Day and Associates.408
Incident 4 – January 1996
Sahra Miller – evidence summary

583 Sahra Miller's two statements were read in to evidence by consent.
In the summer of 1996 she was living in Fremantle and working as a
barperson at the Cottesloe Hotel. One night after work in late January
1996 she went with a group of work colleagues and friends to Club
Bayview. She left her car parked in Cottesloe and cannot recall how she
got to Club Bayview, but believes someone else drove her there.409
584 Ms Miller stayed at Club Bayview for about two hours and then
started walking back to her car. She had not drunk much and was not
intoxicated. She walked down Stirling Road, under the railway
underpass, left onto Claremont Crescent, past Scotch College and left onto
Curtin Avenue. She walked south along the footpath on the western side
of Curtin Avenue.410
585 Ms Miller had not walked far along Curtin Avenue before she saw a
car coming towards her driving north. The car slowed abruptly as it came
close and Ms Miller moved to the far right side of the footpath and
continued walking. The car drove past and when she looked back she
could not see it. A short time later she saw the same car coming towards
her again from the same direction as the first time. The car began a slow
reverse with the passenger side door staying parallel to her.411
586 The car was a newer model white station wagon, either a Ford or a
Holden. It appeared to be clean and in good condition. It was completely
white with no trim, external markings or roof racks. Ms Miller could not
see through the side windows because it was dark and the windows were
tinted. She could not see how many people were in the car. All she could
see inside the car was the dash lights.412
587 Ms Miller started to run towards Grant Street and was aware that the
car had reversed into a driveway and was following her. She turned into
Grant Street because it had a median strip which she could use as a
barrier. The car turned into Grant Street and drove on the wrong side of
408
ts 1759 - 60; exhibit 01129.
409
ts 9772 - 5.
410
ts 9772.
411
ts 9772 - 3, 9775.
412
ts 9773.
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the road towards her. She ran across the median strip to the other side of
the road. The car drove along Grant Street to a break in the median strip
and then turned back towards her, again on the wrong side of the road.
She crossed back and stayed on the median strip. The car stopped and
reversed back to the gap in the median strip. Soon after this the car drove
off.413
588 Ms Miller continued walking until she reached her parked car. She
states that she was incredibly scared throughout the incident and
afterwards. She reported the matter to police on 11 June 1996. She
decided to report the incident after the disappearance of the second girl
from Claremont (Jane Rimmer) because she thought it might be
relevant.414
Incident 5 – November/December 1996
Annabelle Bushell – evidence summary

589 In the mid-1990s Annabelle Bushell was living with friends in
Napier Street, Nedlands. She said that at the time she socialised mainly in
Claremont at The Continental and Club Bayview, and in Cottesloe at the
OBH. She often went to the OBH on the weekend, on Friday after work,
on Saturdays and Sundays for a 'Sunday session', which was from four or
five o'clock in the afternoon to about 9.00 pm. She is a friend of Trilby
Smith and they have been to the OBH together on a number of
occasions.415
590 Ms Bushell gave evidence about an incident that occurred on an
occasion after she and Ms Smith had left the OBH. She gave a statement
to police about this incident in June 1997 and recalled then that the
incident occurred in November or early December 1996; when she gave
evidence she could not recall when the incident occurred. She was
22 years old in 1996.416
591 Ms Bushell said that she and Ms Smith were at the OBH for five or
six hours and in that time they played pool and drank approximately 15 to
20 middies of full strength beer. She recalled that it was night when they
left the OBH and walked east up Eric Street towards Stirling Highway.
They were on the right-hand side of Eric Street (facing towards Stirling
Highway) when she saw a white station wagon coming towards her from
413
ts 9773 - 5.
414
ts 9774.
415
ts 1644.
416
ts 1664.
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Stirling Highway. She saw a Telstra logo on the front, right-hand side of
the bonnet as she was looking at the car: a round circle with a capital 'T'.
The vehicle was a white station wagon that looked like a Camry wagon, a
Lexcen wagon or a Commodore-type wagon. The vehicle slowed down
as it went past them. She and Ms Smith continued to walk along Eric
Street. Her next recollection was being on the other side of the road about
halfway up Eric Street getting into the vehicle with Ms Smith. She said it
was the same vehicle that had driven past them on the other side of the
road. There was only one person in the vehicle, the driver. She got into
the front passenger seat of the vehicle and Ms Smith got into the back
seat.417
592 Ms Bushell described the driver's side profile; she said he was a man
with neat, dark hair in a 'to the ears and collar' type cut, neatly dressed in
dark trousers and a lighter coloured top. He was aged 30 to 40 years old,
Caucasian, with a light tan, a normal build and about the same height as
the back of the seat of the vehicle.418
593 Ms Bushell does not remember getting into the car or much of the
journey in the car but did recall being at the traffic lights at the
intersection of Bay View Terrace and Stirling Highway. She said they
were travelling along Stirling Highway east towards the city and came to
the intersection with Bay View Terrace. She recalled looking at the red
traffic light and wanting to get out. She could not remember what was
said or done in the vehicle, but said that she had a strong instinct to get
out. She got out of the vehicle and pulled Ms Smith out by opening the
back passenger door and reaching in and grabbing her. She and Ms Smith
then walked home.419
594 Ms Bushell said that she liked Holden Commodores and was familiar
with makes and models of cars. When she was spoken to by police in
1997 she was shown a bundle of 43 photographs of vehicles of various
kinds. She told the police that there were three of them that were of a
similar shape to the vehicle that she and Ms Smith were in. One
photograph was described as being like the vehicle except that the vehicle
in the photo was more square or modern; the vehicle that she had been in
had a more rounded rear boot. The photograph is of a white station
wagon.420
417
ts 1646 - 51, 1660 - 3; exhibit 01179.
418
ts 1652, 1658, 1664.
419
ts 1653 - 4, 1663.
420
ts 1655, 1659.
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Trilby Smith – evidence summary

595 Trilby Smith said that in the mid-1990s she was 18 or 19 years old
and was living in Subiaco. At that time she socialised in the Claremont
and Cottesloe area and recalled going to the OBH on Sundays. She
usually went to a 'Sunday session' with a group of friends from about
3.00 pm until about 8.00 or 9.00 pm. She generally went home after that
or sometimes went to a pub on Stirling Highway. She and her friends
usually got a lift home or would catch a cab or hitchhike; she hitchhiked
home a lot at that time.421
596 Ms Smith recalled an incident when she was 18 or 19 years old when
she and her close friend Annabelle Bushell were given a lift after a
Sunday session. She said that they had been at the OBH and were on their
way home to Subiaco. When she left the hotel the sun had not yet set.
She had had quite a few beers at the OBH and was intoxicated when she
left. She and Ms Bushell could not get a taxi at the OBH so they walked
up Eric Street and started hitchhiking. Ms Smith said she would have
been on the left-hand side of the road and her intention was to walk
towards Claremont and then Subiaco.422
597 Ms Smith recalled that she and Ms Bushell got into a white van. She
said that there was a door in the back of the van that opened or swung
outwards; she thought that there were two doors. Ms Bushell got into the
front of the van. The van had front seats, a bench seat running down the
left-hand side, and electrical gear on the right-hand side. There were a lot
of cables in the rear of the van and little holders for electrical things lined
up against the wall. There was a black mesh between the back of the van
and where the driver was at the front, that she understood was to stop
work gear slamming into the front of the vehicle if it was in an
accident.423
598 A man was driving the van. He did not get out of the van to let her
in the rear door. While Ms Smith was sitting in the back of the van she
could hear Ms Bushell talking to the driver. She could see some of what
the driver looked like from the back: he was quite wide-shouldered with
dark to black hair and tan skin. She did not see his face or eyes. She
described his voice as a monotone; she did not hear any accent.424
421
ts 1520 - 2, 1525.
422
ts 1521, 1523 - 5; exhibit 01179.
423
ts 1532.
424
ts 1527 - 9.
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599 Ms Smith and Ms Bushell were driven in the direction of Subiaco.

She could not recall the route that they took; she remembered an
underpass and that they were dropped off near a little park with a grass
area and pine trees. She said that Ms Bushell opened up the door of the
van and dragged her out of it. The van then drove off.425
600 After they were dropped off Ms Smith and Ms Bushell went over to
the other side of the road where the grass and the pine trees were. They
were lying on the grass talking and the sprinklers came on.426
Incident 6 – Christmas 1996
Natalie Clements (Young) – evidence summary

601 In the mid-1990s Natalie Clements socialised in the Claremont and
Cottesloe area. She was previously known as Natalie Young. On the
Friday night before Christmas 1996 she went out for dinner with friends
and then to the OBH for drinks. Ms Clements was with five friends:
Rebecca Bushell, Jennifer Kopke, Jocelyn Stockwell, Vanessa Saunders
and Sanchia Robinson.427
602 Ms Clements and her friends went to dinner in the early evening.
She recalled that she had something to eat, a glass of champagne and
some wine (half a bottle). About 10.00 pm they left the restaurant and
caught a taxi to the OBH. They arrived at the OBH at 10.15 pm and
stayed until it closed at midnight. While she was at the OBH
Ms Clements was at the front bar of the hotel and drank three scotch and
cokes. While she was sitting at a table at the front window of the front bar
she saw a Holden Commodore with a Telstra sign on it drive past; it was
turning from Marine Parade right into Eric Street. She recalled that the
vehicle drove past twice.428
603 After she left the OBH Ms Clements and her friends tried to get a
taxi from the front of the OBH in the Eric Street carpark. They tried for
about half an hour and then started walking. Ms Clements walked up Eric
Street towards Curtin Avenue with Rebecca Bushell. Her other friends,
including Jocelyn Stockwell, were behind them. They were walking
towards the train station at Grant Street, Cottesloe to catch a train to
Claremont.429
425
ts 1655, 1659.
426
ts 1531.
427
ts 1451 - 2.
428
ts 1452 - 4, 1459, 1461, 1466 - 7.
429
ts 1453 - 5, 1460 - 1, 1463; exhibit 01179.
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604 As Ms Clements was walking along the south side of Eric Street (not
far from the shopping centre near the Broome Street roundabout) she tried
to hail what she thought was a taxi. She first heard the vehicle behind her.
She turned around and saw a vehicle with something on its roof, which
made her think it was the 'flag fall' on the roof of a taxi. She recalled that
the vehicle was a white station wagon with its lights on and a ladder in the
middle of the roof and that it 'appeared like a taxi'. Ms Clements stepped
out onto the road to hail it.430
605 Ms Clements said that after she hailed the vehicle it slowed down
and when it was about 5 m away she realised the vehicle was not a taxi
and then she stepped back off the road. The vehicle slowed down and
Ms Clements said to the person in the vehicle 'No I didn't need a lift'. The
vehicle had been travelling in the same direction as she was, from Marine
Parade towards Curtin Avenue. Ms Clements said she was speaking to
the driver at the driver's side of the vehicle.431 Ms Clements recalled that
the vehicle was a Commodore, had a Telstra logo on the driver's side door
and an orange numberplate outline or plate frame.432
606 Ms Clements said that the driver of the vehicle was male but because
he was in shadow she could not provide a further description of him. She
did not know if there were other occupants in the vehicle. The window of
the vehicle was halfway down so she could talk to the driver. After she
said 'No' she kept walking and the vehicle accelerated and continued to
travel in an easterly direction towards Curtin Avenue. As she continued
to walk along Eric Street the vehicle drove past her on two other
occasions. On these occasions it slowed down but did not stop. In
cross-examination she was shown her statement and agreed that she had
said 'I remember we hailed it again on the second occasion thinking it was
a taxi'. She confirmed the truth of that statement. When she reached
Curtin Avenue she was able to get a taxi.433
607 Ms Clements first gave a statement to police on 6 June 1997. When

the events first happened she did not consider that it was worth reporting
to police but later, after talking to a friend, thought there might be
something more to the incident. When she spoke to police she understood
that the incident might have some importance in relation to the
investigation into the unsolved murders. When she first gave a statement
430
ts 1454 - 7, 1460, 1463 - 4; exhibit 01179.
431
ts 1455 - 7, 1460, 1464 - 5, 1469.
432
ts 1455 - 7, 1459 - 60, 1464 - 5, 1469.
433
ts 1457 - 9, 1467 - 8.
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to police she did not mention that she had spoken to the driver; she first
mentioned that in a witness statement that she made in September 2019. 434
Rebecca Morse (Bushell) – evidence summary

608 In the mid-1990s Rebecca Morse was living in Shenton Park, before
moving to Melbourne in February 1997. She was using her former name
of Bushell at that time. She used to go out regularly in Claremont and
Cottesloe. She went to the OBH in Cottesloe most weekends, generally
on a Sunday or Friday after work. She went there to meet friends, many
of whom were from the country and had gone to boarding school. She
generally got home after the OBH by taxi; however often it was difficult
to get a taxi, and she and her friends sometimes waited a long time or
decided to walk to Stirling Highway and try to flag a taxi down as they
walked.435
609 Ms Morse gave evidence about an incident that occurred on the

Friday before Christmas in 1996. She had been out for dinner at
Salamanders restaurant in Cottesloe with a group of friends, including
Natalie Young, Sanchia Robinson and Jenny Kopke. At the restaurant she
drank two or three glasses of wine. After dinner some of the group
walked to the OBH and some got a taxi; Ms Morse got a taxi. They left
the restaurant at about 9.45 pm and then stayed at the OBH until it closed
at midnight. At the OBH she drank five or six gin and tonics.436
610 After the OBH closed Ms Morse and her friends stood outside the
hotel for about 20 minutes to half an hour waiting for a taxi, then started
walking as a group up Eric Street towards Stirling Highway. She walked
along the footpath on the right-hand side of Eric Street with Natalie
Young. As they were walking a vehicle came past them driving towards
the beach. It was a white station wagon that looked like a Commodore.
The first time she saw it was when she was between Broome Street and
Curtin Avenue. She recalled that the vehicle looked like a taxi because it
had a ladder on the roof in the middle of the car. She said that they kept
trying to flag it down thinking it was a taxi, then as it got closer realised it
was not a taxi. She said that the vehicle had a Telstra logo on the
passenger door. The vehicle was travelling slowly. It came past them
five or six times; enough so that they were annoyed because they kept
thinking it was a taxi. It was on the same side of the road each time and
434
ts 1462, 1465 - 6, 1468.
435
ts 1666 - 7.
436
ts 1668 - 9, 1672.
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the group did not change the side of the road that they were walking on.
They caught a taxi home from near Curtin Avenue.437
Incident 7 – between November 1996 and January 1997
Jane Ouvaroff (Woods) – evidence summary

611 Jane Ouvaroff gave evidence about an incident that occurred
between November 1996 and January 1997. At the time she was living in
Subiaco and socialised in the Claremont area. She was known by her
former name of Woods at that time.438
612 One Friday or Saturday night after Ms Ouvaroff had been at Club
Bayview with friends she and her friend Will Robinson were walking
towards Mr Robinson's home in Shenton Park. She thought it was after
midnight; she was tired and had been drinking. She and Mr Robinson
were looking for a taxi and walking along a road that runs alongside the
railway, having turned right from Bay View Terrace. As they were
walking they met a friend called Mark Nylund and he walked with
them.439
613 When the three of them reached a park Mr Nylund and Mr Robinson
said they wanted to sit down. The park ran alongside the road that leads
to Subiaco and Shenton Park. The park had grass and was not a children's
play area. They sat down on the grass a few metres from the road and had
a rest. After a while Ms Ouvaroff went out to the road to look for a taxi.
She walked a short distance along a footpath towards Subiaco.440
614 Ms Ouvaroff saw a car come towards her with its headlights on, it
was coming from the Subiaco direction. She put her hand up to hail it. It
looked to her like a Ford or Holden Station wagon. The vehicle stopped
and she opened the front passenger door and asked if the driver would
give her a lift either home or to Shenton Park. There was no one in the
vehicle apart from the driver. She got into the car and sat in the front
passenger seat. She said that she could not see what the driver looked like
because there was no interior light on in the vehicle. Once she was inside
the vehicle she realised that it was not a taxi. She said 'this is not a taxi',
but was not concerned. She does not recall what response the driver
437
ts 1668 - 70; exhibit 01179.
438
ts 1554 - 6.
439
ts 1556 - 9, 1569; exhibit 01249.
440
ts 1558 - 61.
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made. She did not feel threatened or unsafe. By this time the driver had
started driving in the direction of Cottesloe.441
615 After they had driven a short distance Ms Ouvaroff asked the driver
if he could stop the vehicle so that she could go and get her shoes. She
signalled to him where the park was and he stopped the vehicle so that she
could get out and get her shoes. When she went into the park she got her
shoes and also Mr Robinson and Mr Nylund, who were both still lying
there. All three of them then got into the vehicle. The men got into the
back seat of the vehicle. She said to the driver words to the effect of
'These are my two friends … They need a lift too to the same place'. The
driver then did a U-turn and they drove to Shenton Park. As they drove
she tried to strike up a conversation with the driver but he was not
receptive. They were dropped off at their desired destination.442
616 Ms Ouvaroff said that the vehicle was a white station wagon. It had
cloth seating of a light-brown or fawn colour and was an automatic.
There were dash lights but no overhead light. It had two front seats and a
back seat.443 There may have been a grill behind the back seat. She noted
that the vehicle had a Telecom or Telstra logo on the passenger side of the
car. She recalled that there were tools in the back of the vehicle because
she could hear them rattling around.444
617 Ms Ouvaroff saw the driver in silhouette. He had dark hair cut in a
short, 'normal' cut for a male. He was white and aged in his mid-twenties
or early thirties. She did not notice whether he was much bigger than her
and said she did not believe he was a large man.445
618 Ms Ouvaroff said that a few minutes before she saw the vehicle and
hailed it she had seen a similar vehicle, a white station wagon, driving in
the direction of Subiaco or Shenton Park. When the car came back she
assumed that it was the same car that had come back to get her.446
619 Ms Ouvaroff made a statement some months after the incident
happened. During her evidence she repeatedly said that she could not
remember details without consulting her statement.447
441
ts 1561 - 3.
442
ts 1563.
443
ts 1564, 1569.
444
ts 1566 - 7.
445
ts 1566 - 7.
446
ts 1567 - 8.
447
ts 1569.
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William Robinson – evidence summary

620 In the mid-1990s Willian Robinson was living in Shenton Park and
socialised in the Claremont, Cottesloe area including going to
The Continental and Club Bayview on the weekends. He usually got
home by taxi but on a number of occasions he walked home.448
621 Mr Robinson gave evidence about a particular evening that he had

been at Club Bayview. He said he thought it was a weekend night in
December 1996. He left Club Bayview somewhere between 2.00 am and
4.00 am. He had had a lot to drink and his memories of the night are
patchy. He said that he left Club Bayview with Jane Woods and Mark
Nylund, or perhaps they ran into Mr Nylund outside. They walked up
Bay View Terrace towards the Claremont train station and then turned
right at the post office and walked along to the park on the right-hand side
of Gugeri Street, heading towards Subiaco. They were walking in that
direction hoping to find a taxi that was travelling to Claremont from the
city.449
622 When they got to a park they sat down and Mr Robinson fell asleep.
He identified the park as being opposite an underpass and next to some
tennis courts. Sometime later Ms Woods woke him up and told him that
she had got them a lift so he got into the back of a white station wagon,
either a Ford Falcon or a Holden Commodore, with a Telecom sign on the
bottom side of one of the doors. The vehicle was facing south and the
logo was on the passenger side of the car. He got into the back seat and
sat behind the passenger, Mr Nylund sat in the back seat behind the driver
and Ms Woods sat in the front passenger seat. He is six foot two and a
half and recalled feeling cramped in the back seat. The driver of the
vehicle took them to Mr Robinson's house in Shenton Park.450
623 The driver was a male. Mr Robinson was not able to describe him.451
Conclusions – propensity evidence – Telstra Living Witness Project

624 I accept that each of the incidents referred to by the witnesses
occurred. In each case the witnesses described a frightening or unusual
experience that they had good reason to remember. I also accept that the
witnesses have honestly endeavoured to give the best possible account of
the events as they can. However, there were a number of factors that
448
ts 1718 - 9.
449
ts 1719 - 2.
450
ts 1723 - 4.
451
ts 1724.
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made it difficult for them to provide detailed descriptions, particularly of

the driver concerned. First, most of the incidents occurred at night and
there was either no opportunity to see the driver or the opportunity was a
limited one in a dark vehicle. Second, most of the incidents were
relatively brief in duration. Third, some of the witnesses had been
drinking alcohol prior to the incident and the possibility that this affected
their ability to accurately observe and recall what occurred cannot be
discounted. Fourth, there was usually a gap of months before the
witnesses realised that the incident may be of some relevance and reported
it to the police. Fifth, when giving evidence the witnesses were trying to
recall events which occurred more than 20 years ago.
625 There were significant differences between the witnesses as to their

descriptions of the car and the driver, in some cases even in respect of
witnesses who were present at the same time. In particular, in regard to
incident 1 Ms Keamy referred to a small, white station wagon with no
markings and her description of the driver is not consistent with the
accused. In respect of incident 2, Ms Jones gave varying information
regarding the appearance of the driver and the description that she gave in
a statement (that she accepted was correct) was not consistent with the
accused. Furthermore, she referred to a van, not a station wagon of the
type the accused was then assigned as a work vehicle. In respect of
incident 3, Ms Johnstone referred to a white sedan with a Telstra logo, but
her description of the driver is not consistent with the accused. The
identikit she produced does not bear any resemblance to the accused. In
respect of incident 4, Ms Miller refers to a white station wagon with no
markings and she did not see the driver. In respect of incident 5,
Ms Bushell and Ms Smith are inconsistent as to the nature of the vehicle,
Ms Bushell describing it as a white station wagon with a Telstra logo, but
Ms Smith describing it as a van with shelving. They were both only able
to give a very general description of the driver. In regard to incident 6,
whilst both Ms Clements and Ms Morse describe a white station wagon
with a Telstra logo and a ladder on the roof, neither was able to see the
driver sufficiently well to give a description. In regard to incident 7,
Ms Ouvaroff describes a white station wagon with a Telstra logo, but her
description of the driver is not specific enough to identify the accused
(and Mr Robinson was unable to give any description other than to say the
driver was male).
626 When the dates of the incidents are compared with the information
regarding work vehicles allocated to the accused, there are a number of
discrepancies. As regards incident 1, the accused was allocated the white
Camry station wagon at that time, but it almost certainly would have been
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marked with Telstra logos, a feature not recalled by Ms Keamy. As

regards incident 2, the accused still had the Camry at this time, which is
not consistent with the vehicle described by Ms Jones (albeit that he may
have had access to vans from the Telstra pool). As regards incident 3, the
accused still had the Camry at this time, but it was a station wagon not a
sedan as described by Ms Johnstone. As regards incident 4, the accused
still had the Camry at this time, not an unmarked Ford or Holden as
described by Ms Miller. As regards incident 5, the accused was allocated
the white Commodore station wagon at this time, which accords with the
evidence of Ms Bushell but not the van described by Ms Smith. As
regards incidents 6 and 7, the accused still had the Commodore at this
time and this is consistent with the description of the witnesses. The
accused may have had access to other vehicles from the pool, but whether
he used any such vehicles at or around any of these times is unknown.
627 The prosecution only relies on incidents 3, 5, 6 and 7.452 The reason
these are chosen is that in each incident there is some evidence that the
vehicle had a Telstra logo. This, it is said, (particularly when taken with
the evidence of counts 7 and 8, if proven) enables a conclusion to be
drawn that the accused was the driver and that he was driving around the
Claremont and Cottesloe area offering lifts to young women.453 They say
that the incidents that they do not rely on are neutral and do not weaken
the inference that they suggest should be drawn, because they say it may
well be that some other person is involved (or at least that possibility is
open).454
628 There are a number of difficulties with the prosecution reasoning.
First, by excluding incidents that do not fit their case theory the State fails
to accord appropriate weight to that evidence. Dismissing incidents that
do not fit the pattern as being possibly someone else does not allow for
the fact that these other incidents weaken the inference that the
prosecution advances. When taken as a whole this evidence presents a
confused picture that does not clearly identify anyone. The prosecution
argument fails to give appropriate weight to the possibility that if there
was another person (or persons) acting in this way that must cast doubt on
the possibility that any of the drivers was the accused.
452
ts 10156 - 7; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, Telstra Living Witness Evidence, 250 [15], [20], 252 [21],
254 [22], 258 [23].
453
ts 10157; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, Telstra Living Witness Evidence, 247 [2], 250 [15], [18].
454
ts 10171, 10173, 10497 - 8, 10501; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, Telstra Living Witness Evidence,
265 [34.9], 268 [34.19].
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629 Second, by focusing only on those incidents where a Telstra logo

was referred to there is an assumption that this is an indisputable fact.
This aspect of the evidence is treated as overcoming whatever
unreliability may be thought to arise in other respects. For example, the
prosecution says that incident 3 is the accused because Ms Johnstone saw
a Telstra logo, even though she says that the car was a sedan not a station
wagon and that her description of the driver does not fit the accused.455 It
is not immediately apparent why evidence of markings on a car must be
reliable when other parts of the evidence of the same witness are said not
to be. Furthermore, as the defence points out, even if Ms Johnstone was
correct about the logo the totality of her evidence could suggest that the
driver was someone other than the accused.456 The possibility that she
saw another man driving a Telstra vehicle cannot be discounted.
630 Third, inconsistencies within the evidence of witnesses or between

witnesses present at the same time have been minimised or downplayed.
For instance in respect of incident 5 the State relies on Ms Bushell but
dismisses Ms Smith entirely. The justification for this is said to be that
Ms Smith was more heavily intoxicated, but they had both been drinking
and degrees of intoxication do not necessarily justify a conclusion that one
witness is completely reliable and the other is completely unreliable.
631 Fourth, some aspects of the evidence are not consistent with the
prosecution theory – for example, incident 3 occurred at about 1.00 am on
27 January 1996, that is, the night following Ms Spiers' disappearance.
For the accused to have been responsible for Ms Spiers' abduction and
murder between 2.00 am and 8.00 am the previous day, to have
undertaken a 10.5 hour work shift at Dumas House and then be in
Claremont at 1.00 am, he would have had no realistic opportunity to sleep
for some 30 hours or more. The response of the prosecution is to assert
that he may be a man with unusual stamina.457 That may or may not be
so, but consideration must be given to whether this chronology diminishes
the likelihood that the driver in incident 3 was the accused. The evidence
cannot be viewed selectively so as to remove or dismiss parts that are
unhelpful or contrary to the prosecution case.
632 Fifth, the prosecution has sought to put all of the incidents on which
they rely as being in a category of 'prowling'. Essentially this is intended
to mean driving around the Claremont and Cottesloe areas offering lifts to
455
ts 1699, 1701 - 3, 1708, 10158 - 61; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, Telstra Living Witness Evidence,
251 - 2 [20.5] - [20.10].
456
ts 10581 - 2; Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, Telstra Living Witness Project, 8 [33].
457
ts 10159.
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lone females. However, the incidents do not in fact demonstrate that

tendency. Incident 3 does not involve Ms Johnstone being offered a lift or
being followed by a vehicle. Incident 5 does not involve a lone female.
Incident 6 does not involve a lone female and does not involve any offer
of a lift. Incident 7 does not involve a lone female and Ms Ouvaroff and
her male friends were taken to their destination. Insofar as Ms Ouvaroff
might have initially appeared to be alone it is noteworthy that when she
asked the driver to stop so she could get her shoes, he did. None of the
incidents involved any violence or attempt to restrain.
633 Sixth, there is a real danger that incidents that are unrelated to the
accused or to the disappearance of the three victims will be thought to
have a connection simply because they happened in the same general area
and at around the same general period of time. It is entirely
understandable that witnesses might think that there was some connection
and, for that reason, report the matter to the police. But it does not follow
that the connection is a real one. Not every frightening, disturbing or
merely unusual incident involving a vehicle and young woman in this area
at around this time is necessarily connected to the alleged offences.
634 This evidence is not capable of supporting a conclusion that the same
driver or vehicle was involved in all of the incidents, let alone that any
such driver was the accused. Nor does it support a conclusion that the
accused was the driver in the incidents that the prosecution relies on.
Further, the evidence is not capable of establishing that the accused was
the driver for any of the individual incidents when looked at separately.
The evidence does not enable a reliable identification of the driver on any
occasion.
635 The State seeks to use the Telstra Living Witness Project incidents
that it relies on as propensity evidence. That is, as evidence which reveals
a tendency on the part of the accused to 'prowl' in the Cottesloe and
Claremont areas after dark in a Telstra vehicle offering lone young
women a lift. This, it is said, makes it more likely that he is the person
who abducted the three victims.458 In order to be capable of being used in
this way there must be evidence which is capable of establishing that the
driver in respect of each of those incidents was the accused. As I have
said, the evidence is incapable of supporting such a conclusion. Even if it
was suspected that the driver, if there was only one, involved in these
incidents was the person who abducted the victims, there is no probative
evidence as to the identity of that driver. The possibility that a Telstra
458
ts 10157, 10185 - 7; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, Telstra Living Witness Evidence, 270 [30].
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vehicle, like that allocated to the accused at the time, was involved in at
least some of these incidents is not in itself sufficient to identify the
accused as the driver. In these circumstances the evidence falling into this
category provides no assistance in determining the identity of the
perpetrator of the offences. I have, therefore, put this evidence aside and
not taken it into account in deciding whether the accused is guilty of any
of the offences.
636 The defence suggested that far from assisting the prosecution this
evidence is in fact capable of supporting an inference consistent with the
innocence of the accused, namely that some person other than him was
engaging in this conduct. For example, the description and identikit
picture prepared in relation to incident 3 are not only inconsistent with the
appearance of the accused but suggest that the driver in that incident was
another man. If that is so, it is submitted that it could support the
possibility that some other man (also driving a Telstra vehicle) was
engaged in prowling type behaviour.459 I do not accept this course of
reasoning, essentially for the sixth of the reasons I have given above.
That is, however unusual or disturbing the witnesses to each incident may
have found it, it is not possible to conclude that any of those incidents are
likely to involve the same person who abducted and killed the alleged
victims of the murders. There is nothing distinctive in the circumstances
of those incidents that enables a link to be drawn between them and the
murders. The incidents do not make it either more or less likely that the
accused is the murderer of any of the victims.
637 I have given consideration to whether this evidence is affected if
counts 7 and 8 are first proven. That is, if it is proven that the accused is
guilty of counts 7 and 8 (without any reliance on this evidence) and the
evidence of those offences is used as propensity evidence does that enable
an inference to be drawn that the accused was the driver in respect of any
of the incidents? If such an inference could be drawn this would become
relevant in the consideration of count 6. In my view, whilst proof of
counts 7 and 8 would establish a propensity that includes the abduction of
young women at night from the Claremont area and the likely use of a
Telstra vehicle to do so, that would not serve to improve the inherent
weaknesses in this evidence. Even if counts 7 and 8 are proven I am not
satisfied that it is possible to conclude that the accused was the driver in
any of the incidents I have referred to. Thus there is no scope for the
evidence to be used only in respect of count 6.
459
ts 10506, Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, Telstra Living Witness Project, 30 [150].
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Sarah Spiers – circumstances of her disappearance
Amanda Spiers – evidence summary

638 Amanda Spiers is Sarah Spiers's older sister. On 31 January 1996
she gave a statement to police. That statement was read in to evidence.460
639 Amanda and Sarah are both from Darkan and both went to school at
Iona Presentation College, where they were boarders. From 1993 they
were living together in South Perth. Sarah completed school in November
1994. In 1996 Sarah was employed as a secretary with BSD Consultants
in Subiaco. Amanda has never known Sarah to have a boyfriend.461
640 On the evening of Friday 26 January 1996 Sarah was at the OBH
with Emma McCormack. Amanda went to the OBH at approximately
9.00 pm that night and saw Sarah and Ms McCormack and other friends.
Over the course of the evening Amanda visited a friend and drove some
friends to Claremont and then returned to the OBH at approximately
11.30 pm.462
641 Amanda stayed at the OBH until midnight and then drove Sarah,
Ms McCormack, Ann Donnelly and Greg Mayfield to Club Bayview. She
dropped them in Church Lane at about 12.15 am. Sarah asked her if she
could drop her near an ATM so she could get some money, but
Ms McCormack said to her that there was an EFTPOS machine inside the
club. The passengers got out of the car. Sarah walked around to
Amanda's window, put her arm through the window, gave Amanda a hug
and kiss and said 'Goodbye'.463
642 Amanda said that Sarah was drunk when she dropped her off but she
seemed okay; she was not stumbling. Sarah had her driver's licence and
her National Australia Bank FlexiCard with her. Amanda did not think
Sarah had any money with her. Sarah was wearing a light-coloured t-shirt
and a pair of Portmans beige-coloured tailored shorts, which came to just
above her knee. She was wearing size 8, Miss Shop, beige suede shoes
with a silver buckle going over the top of the shoe and a pattern of a
flower cut out at the front. She also had a long-sleeved black denim
jacket tied around her waist. She was wearing a pair of 9 carat, plain gold
460
ts 1760, 1764.
461
ts 1760 - 1.
462
ts 1761.
463
ts 1762.
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hoop earrings and a Guess analogue men's watch with a grey and black
leather band and a silver buckle.464
643 Sarah had made plans with two friends to go to the Sky Show on
28 January 1996. Amanda has not seen Sarah since she dropped her off at
Club Bayview. On 31 January 1996 Amanda completed a missing
persons report in relation to Sarah. A photograph of Sarah was tendered
by consent.465
Emma Wates (McCormack) – evidence summary

644 Emma Wates was previously known as Emma McCormack. In 1996
she was 18 years old and was a friend of Sarah Spiers. They met in
Year 8 at Iona and were boarders in the same school year together. They
left school in 1994 and continued to socialise in similar circles. They
went out on the weekend in the Cottesloe, Claremont area, often to the
OBH, The Continental and Club Bayview.466
645 On Australia Day 1996 Ms Wates went to Ms Spiers's house at about
5.20 pm and met up with some other friends, Kirsty Notley, Gavin
Hodgkinson and Darren Wates. They then went together to Kings Park.
Ms Wates drove her car and Ms Spiers went in a car with Ms Notley and
Mr Hodgkinson. They had a picnic in the park. They stayed
approximately an hour and then some of them went to the OBH.
Ms Wates, Ms Spiers and Mr Wates drove to the OBH and arrived there at
about 8.00 pm. They met some friends and stayed at the OBH until it
closed at midnight.467
646 Ms Wates saw that Ms Spiers was drinking at the OBH; she
described her as happy and talking with friends. Ms Spiers was wearing
beige linen shorts, a white or light-coloured shirt, a black jacket that she
had tied around her waist and light-coloured shoes.468
647 At midnight Ms Wates and her friends left the OBH and went to
Club Bayview. She got a lift with Amanda Spiers, along with Sarah
Spiers, Ann Donnelly and Greg Mayfield. They arrived at Club Bayview
at about 12.30 am; there was a line to get in and they had to wait for a
little while before they went in.469
464
ts 1762.
465
ts 1763 - 4; exhibit 15288.
466
ts 1767.
467
ts 1768 - 9.
468
ts 1769 - 70.
469
ts 1770.
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648 Ms Wates recalled being on the dancefloor at about 1.30 am and

Sarah Spiers came up to her; Ms Wates could not hear her well but
thought that she said that she was leaving. Ms Wates went off the
dancefloor to talk to Ms Spiers, who told her that she was going to leave.
Ms Wates said to her 'Look, why don't – look, do you want to stay and
then, you know, we can go a bit later with Darren and another friend'.
Ms Spiers said 'No, that's fine. I'm ready to go now. I'm just going to
catch a taxi.' Ms Wates said 'Okay'. Ms Spiers walked out the door that
leads to the stairs. Ms Wates said that Ms Spiers was speaking clearly,
she was not upset, she seemed normal, there was nothing unusual.470
649 Ms Wates and Mr Wates left Club Bayview at about 2.15 am and
withdrew money from the ATM on Bay View Terrace. She caught a taxi
home to Mount Pleasant.471
Chelsea Palmer – evidence summary

650 In January 1996 Chelsea Palmer was 17 years old and had just
finished school. She had known Sarah Spiers for five years because they
were both boarders at Iona Presentation College and they were family
friends.472
651 On Australia Day 1996 she was at Club Bayview with Melanie
Polain and Ms Polain's friend Daniel. She arrived there at about 11.30 pm
and stayed for three hours. She saw Ms Spiers inside Club Bayview and
they had a conversation. She recalled that she said goodbye to Ms Spiers
as Ms Spiers was on her way out of Club Bayview. Ms Palmer and her
friends left at about 2.30 am and Ms Spiers had left about half an hour to
an hour before them.473
652 After Ms Palmer left Club Bayview she went down the stairs and got
straight into a Swan taxi. She said there was more than one taxi in the
rank at the time. She sat in the front seat of the taxi and Ms Polain and
Daniel sat in the back. She recalled that the taxi driver was a Caucasian
man aged between 40 and 50.474
653 The taxi took them to Ms Polain's house in Mosman Park. She
recalled the route that they took; they came out of the street that Club
470
ts 1771 - 2.
471
ts 1771 - 2.
472
ts 2065.
473
ts 2065 - 7, 2072.
474
ts 2068 - 75.
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Bayview is on and then turned left to come to a set of lights and then
turned right onto Stirling Highway.475
654 Ms Palmer said that when the taxi got to the intersection of Stirling
Road and Stirling Highway the traffic lights were green. She was looking
around the area while she was in the taxi. She observed the phone booth
on the right-hand side of the road. She did not see anyone in the area.476
655 Ms Palmer estimated that they arrived at Ms Polain's house in the

taxi at 2.30 am and that it was a five to seven minute journey. The three
of them got straight into Ms Polain's car and drove to Daniel's house in
Scarborough to drop him home. She and Ms Polain then drove straight
back to Ms Polain's house. When she came back she looked at the clock
and it was exactly 3.00 am. She said the trip between Scarborough and
Mosman Park is about 15 minutes each way at that time of night.477
Melanie Polain – evidence summary

656 In January 1996 Melanie Polain was 21 years old and lived at
3C Monument Street, Mosman Park.478
657 On Friday 26 January 1996 she went out with friends; they went first
to the Cottesloe Hotel at approximately 7.30 pm. She stayed there for two
or two and a half hours and at around 11.00 or 11.30 pm went to Club
Bayview.479
658 At about 2.15 am Ms Polain left Club Bayview with Chelsea Palmer
and Daniel McGill. They walked downstairs and out onto St Quentin
Avenue and got into a taxi that was going past as they came out.
Ms Polain recalled that the taxi driver was oldish and foreign looking.
Ms Palmer got into the front seat of the taxi and Ms Polain sat in the back
seat with Mr McGill; she was seated on the left-hand side.480
659 The taxi drove along St Quentin Avenue and turned left onto Stirling
Road and then stopped at the traffic lights at the intersection of Stirling
Road and Stirling Highway before turning right onto Stirling Highway.
The taxi was in the left-hand lane and was stationary for a minute or a
minute and a half at the lights. There were no cars in front or behind the
taxi. She looked around as the taxi was waiting at the lights; there was no
475
ts 2068 - 9, 2071, 2074 - 5.
476
ts 2071 - 2.
477
ts 2068, 2073 - 5.
478
ts 1791.
479
ts 1791 - 2.
480
ts 1793 - 4.
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one around. She looked at the area in which the telephone box was
located and there was nobody there.481
660 When the lights turned green the taxi continued towards Ms Polain's
home in Mosman Park. The drive took about seven minutes and she
arrived home at about 2.25 am. When they arrived at Ms Polain's home,
Ms Polain, Ms Palmer and Mr McGill stayed up for about an hour before
going to sleep. Ms Polain did not hear anything that night after arriving
home at Monument Street.482
Christine Hams – evidence summary

661 Christine Hams lived in Baring Street, Mosman Park in January 1996
with her husband and two of her children. She knew Sarah Spiers well
because Ms Spiers and Ms Hams' daughter, Annabelle, were boarders
together at Iona from the age of 12. Ms Spiers stayed over at Ms Hams'
house fairly regularly, mostly on weekends.483
662 On Australia day 1996 Ms Spiers went to Ms Hams' house and they
had lunch together; Ms Spiers stayed for two or three hours and they
chatted. Ms Spiers told Ms Hams that she was going out that evening
with her friend Emma and then they were going to meet up with
Annabelle and some other friends at the OBH. Ms Hams said to
Ms Spiers that she was welcome to come back and stay if she wished;
Ms Spiers smiled and said she knew she was welcome. Ms Spiers left the
Hams' house at about 3.00 pm. Ms Hams described Ms Spiers at that time
as 'happy, chatty, normal Sarah'.484
663 That evening Ms Hams and her husband went out for an early meal
and returned home at about 9.00 pm. She did not recall the precise time
she went to bed but estimated that it was around 11.00 pm. She did not
leave any lights on in the house and said that she 'probably' would have
left an exterior light on. She said that both of her children were out that
evening and that both of them had planned to stay elsewhere that night.
Ms Hams woke when her son called at around 2.00 am to 2.45 am to
confirm that he was not coming home because he was staying with
friends. Ms Hams then went back to bed and did not wake for the rest of
the night.485
481
ts 1794 - 5.
482
ts 1795 - 6.
483
ts 1714 - 5.
484
ts 1715 - 6.
485
ts 1716 - 7.
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Priscilla Key (Pei) – evidence summary

664 Priscilla Key made a statement on 20 February 1996. That statement
was read in to evidence.486
665 On Friday 26 January 1996 Ms Key was employed by Swan Taxis as
a telephonist. Her rostered hours were 7.00 pm to 3.00 am the following
day. At 2.06 am Ms Key took a call from a female who requested a taxi
to the corner of Stirling Highway and Stirling Street, Claremont. The
caller identified herself as 'Spiers' and said that she was going to Mosman
Park. Ms Key transcribed the booking of the job into the computer to be
dispatched to a vehicle.487
666 The phone booking record shows that the booking was made at
2.06 am and that car 232 was dispatched almost immediately. The
pick-up location is recorded as a telephone booth on 'Stirling & Stirling
Rd', Claremont. The name of the passenger is recorded as 'Spears' and the
destination as 'Mosman Park'.488
667 All incoming calls are recorded. On Tuesday 20 February 1996
police played a recording of the call to Ms Key and showed her a
transcript of the call. She confirmed that the recording and the transcript
are a correct record of the call that she had with the caller Ms Spiers. In
the recording and the transcript her usual initial response is missing; she
usually says 'Good morning Swan Taxis. Can I help you?' The recording
and the transcript were tendered and confirm the details in the phone
booking record. Ms Spiers speaks clearly and does not sound
489
distressed.
Jaroslav Krupnik – evidence summary

668 Jaroslav Krupnik was driving a taxi on Friday 26 January 1996. The
taxi he drove was number 232; a Falcon station wagon that was operated
through Swan Taxis. He commenced working at 6.00 pm and his shift
finished at 6.00 am the following day.490
669 On that evening Mr Krupnik was working in the western suburbs.

He recalled that at about 2.00 am he responded to a request for a taxi. He
got the request on his taxi computer and accepted a fare from the corner of
Stirling Highway and Stirling Road in Claremont to Mosman Park. He
486
ts 1765.
487
ts 1765 - 6.
488
ts 1765 - 6; exhibit 01330.
489
490
ts 1678, 1682.
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does not recall the name attached to the fare. It took him about two
minutes to drive from Cottesloe along Stirling Highway to the corner.491
670 In examination-in-chief Mr Krupnik said that he stopped at a red

light at the intersection of Stirling Highway and Stirling Road. He looked
to the left and did not see any people or vehicles. In cross-examination he
agreed that he was travelling at 60 or 65 km an hour as he approached the
intersection of Stirling Highway and Stirling Road. It was put to him that
when he spoke to police, shortly after the incident and about a year after
it, he said that there was a green light facing him at the intersection. He
agreed that his memory of the night was better at the time he made the
statements than at the time he gave evidence. He said he did not look at
the intersection for long; he glanced towards the telephone box on Stirling
Street and did not look further along the side of the street because it was
very dark. He did not look at the other corner at all.492
671 After driving through the intersection with Stirling Street,
Mr Krupnik kept driving along Stirling Highway, turned left into
Bay View Terrace and then turned left into St Quentin Avenue towards
Club Bayview. Five minutes later he picked up a fare at Club Bayview;
two women and one man got into the taxi. He travelled along St Quentin
Avenue and then turned left onto Stirling Road and then right onto
Stirling Highway.493
672 When Mr Krupnik got to the intersection of Stirling Road and

Stirling Highway there was a red light so he stopped for a very short time,
perhaps a minute. He noticed that the fare that he had been dispatched for
earlier was not there. He drove to Monument Street, Mosman Park and
dropped off the two women and one man. When he got to Monument
Street his attention was not drawn by anything.494
Mark Laidman – evidence summary

673 On Australia Day 1996 Mark Laidman went out in the evening with
his friends Alec Pannall and David Bramley. They went to the
Leederville Hotel from about 6.00 pm to midnight and then they went to
Club Bayview in Claremont. Mr Bramley drove Mr Laidman and
Mr Pannall from Leederville to Claremont in his Toyota Corolla Seca
491
ts 1679 - 80.
492
ts 1680 - 3, 1686.
493
ts 1680 - 2, 1684.
494
ts 1682 - 5, 1687.
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hatch. They arrived at Claremont at about 12.30 am and parked in

St Quentin Avenue.495
674 Mr Laidman and his friends went in to Club Bayview for an hour or
so. He recalled that it was around 2.00 am when they left. They walked
to Mr Bramley's car. Mr Laidman sat in the front passenger seat of the
car, Mr Bramley was in the driver's seat and Mr Pannall sat in the back
seat. They drove down St Quentin Avenue and then turned left onto
Stirling Road, then to the traffic lights at Stirling Highway. He said that
the corner was reasonably well lit. He said that when they turned left onto
Stirling Road they were in the right-hand lane to turn right into Stirling
Highway.496
675 As they came around the corner he noticed a woman leaning, or

half-sitting, half-standing, up against a bollard that was on the footpath.
She was on the left-hand side of the street, between St Quentin Avenue
and Stirling Highway. She was opposite the phone box on the other side
of Stirling Road. He said that the woman appeared to be about 20 years
old, around five foot four inches, slight or slim build, light brown
shoulder-length hair. She had a white top and light-coloured shorts and a
jacket or jumper tied around her waist. It looked like she was waiting for
someone. She glanced at them as they went past. Where she was
standing was well-lit.497
676 When they got to the traffic lights they were red so they stopped.
They were waiting for the lights to change for 10 or 15 seconds. There
were no other vehicles around. They had driven past the woman before
they stopped at the lights. While they were sitting at the lights
Mr Laidman noticed that the dash lit up with headlights from a car behind
them and he looked back and saw headlights and the shape of a car. The
car was coming over a crest in Stirling Road, 150 - 200 m behind. He had
the impression that the car was similar to a car that a friend of his owned
at the time, a Mazda 808.498
677 Once the lights changed they turned right onto Stirling Highway and
drove towards Cottesloe. Mr Laidman looked back again and did not see
the car come through the lights. He said he would have expected the car
495
ts 1775 - 6.
496
ts 1776 - 80.
497
ts 1780 - 1, 1784 - 6, 1789.
498
ts 1785 - 8, 1790.
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to come through, given the timing. They drove up Stirling Highway and
he had another look behind him and did not see the car.499
Alec Pannall – evidence summary

678 In early 1996 Alec Pannall was living in Cottesloe. On Australia
Day 1996, he went out with some friends, Mark Laidman and David
Bramley, in Claremont to The Continental Hotel and Club Bayview.500
679 Mr Pannall and his friends left Club Bayview at around 2.00 am and
walked to Mr Bramley's car. They got into the car: Mr Bramley was
driving; Mr Laidman was in the front passenger seat; and Mr Pannall was
in the backseat, and drove down St Quentin Avenue. They then turned
left into Stirling Road towards Stirling Highway. The traffic lights at the
intersection of Stirling Road and Stirling Highway were red so they
stopped to wait for them to turn green.501
680 While they were at the intersection Mr Laidman said to the other two
men something along the lines of 'have a look at her'. Mr Pannall turned
to his left and saw a female who was 3 m away. He described her as
probably 20 years old with a slim build, and that she was leaning against a
telecommunications inspection post with her arms crossed and looking
around as if she was waiting for someone or expecting someone.502
681 Mr Pannall said there was at least one vehicle in front of the car he
was in. They were at the lights for probably 15 or 20 seconds before the
light turned green and they turned right onto Stirling Highway and drove
to his house, which was located on Stirling Highway in Cottesloe.503
John Daniell – evidence summary

682 A statement made by John Daniell was read in to evidence. At the
time of making the statement he was employed as a manager at the NAB
and was responsible for law enforcement compliance. He produced
records relating to transactions on an account in the name of Ms Spiers.504
683 The NAB records show that on 26 January 1996, $30 was withdrawn
from Ms Spiers' account at 23.29.59 hours at the Ocean Beach Hotel. A
499
ts 1788 - 9.
500
ts 1689.
501
ts 1690 - 1.
502
ts 1691 - 2.
503
ts 1691, 1693.
504
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further withdrawal of $40 was made at 00.33.47 hours at Club

Bayview.505
Steven Cummings – evidence summary

684 A statement made by Steven Cummings was read in to evidence. At
the time of making the statement he was the surveillance coordinator for
the City of Perth; he has been employed by the City of Perth for
23 years.506
685 Mr Cummings was requested by police to confirm from City of Perth

records the date of the 1996 Australia Day Sky Show event held in Perth.
As a result of the request by police Mr Cummings liaised with the City's
records team and obtained electronic copies of two documents.507
686 The first document is an internal City of Perth memorandum dated

21 December 1995 from the Manager, Compliance Services to the
Director of Service Units. This is a two-page memorandum about access
contracts for food vendors operating on the Perth Foreshore as part of the
Australia Day Lotto Skyworks event to be held on Sunday 28 January
1996.508
687 The second document is entitled '1996 Australia Day Celebrations

Three-Day Program' and provides details of events to be held on Friday
26 January, Saturday 27 January and Sunday 28 January 1996. This
document records that the Lotto Fireworks were scheduled for 8.00 pm on
Sunday 28 January 1996.509
Simon Yelland – evidence summary

688 A statement made by Simon Yelland on 2 January 2013 was read in
to evidence. At the time he made the statement Mr Yelland was an officer
of the Border Operations Support Section of the Department of
Immigration and Citizenship. The Border Operations Support Section has
responsibility for the retrieval of information from incoming and outgoing
passenger cards.510
505
ts 2614; exhibit 01381, exhibit 01382.
506
ts 2621 - 2.
507
ts 2621.
508
ts 2621.
509
ts 2621.
510
ts 2616, 2618.
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689 Passengers entering or leaving Australia are required to present their

passports and a passenger card to an officer of the department. The
information from the passenger cards is recorded.511
690 On 30 November 2012 the Border Operations Support Section
received a request from WA Police to produce documents relating to the
international movements at Australian ports for Sarah Ellen Spiers born
12 September 1977 for the period 25 January 1996 to 2 November
2012.512
691 On 2 January 2013 a search was conducted in the department's

records for that information. No records were found under the name
Sarah Ellen Spiers born 12 September 1977.513
Mosman Park screams
Judith Borrett (Garton-Smith) – evidence summary

692 In 1996 Judith Borrett was known as Judith Garton-Smith. As at
Australia Day 1996 she was living at 45B Fairlight Street, Mosman Park.
Fairlight Street starts at Stirling Highway and ends at Monument Street.
As you travel from Stirling Highway down Fairlight Street 45B is on the
left side of the street, almost at Monument Street: there is little park, then
a duplex, then a triplex, then Ms Borrett's triplex. Ms Borrett lived in the
middle villa, which she bought in 1992.514
693 Ms Borrett said that on 26 January 1996 she was at a
50th anniversary party for some family friends in Leake Street,
Peppermint Grove. Her father drove her home from the party. She got
home at about 11.00 pm and went to bed shortly after that. She is a light
sleeper. Early in the morning, she thinks it was about 3.00 am, she was
either awake or was awoken by screams. She thinks she heard about three
screams, which she described as very high-pitched, desperate,
bloodcurdling, terrible screams. The screams came from a woman and
did not last very long, maybe a second.515
694 The area was a quiet one, both now and in 1996. Ms Borrett had her
window wide open because it was a hot night. She thought that the
screams were very close to her. She drew a map showing her unit, her
bedroom window and where she thought that the screams came from.
511
ts 2616 - 7.
512
ts 2618.
513
ts 2618.
514
ts 1829 - 30; exhibit 01312.
515
ts 1828, 1830 - 2.
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After the screams she did not hear anything. The direction of the screams
as marked on the map is in the direction of Fairlight Street (which is in the
opposite direction to St Leonards Street).516
695 Ms Borrett did not hear other such sounds on any night in this period.
She telephoned the police on 5 February 1996. The note taken by the
police officer she spoke to records that she said 'I'm not sure if it was on
the morning of the 27th of the first, '96. I think it was. But at around
3am, I was awoken by the sounds of a girl screaming'. Ms Borrett was
asked whether she was unsure of the date and replied that she was sure
now because she had looked at her diary.517
Robyn Peters (Drexel) – evidence summary

696 Robyn Peters was previously known as Robyn Drexel. In January
1996 she was living at 30 Palmerston Street, Mosman Park with her
husband Mark Drexel and her two young daughters.518
697 Ms Peters said that on the Australia Day weekend in 1996 she went
out for drinks on the Friday night with her husband; her daughters were at
home with a babysitter. She recalled that she and her husband had both
been drinking that evening and that they got home at around 2.00 am. Her
husband was very drunk and went straight to bed. Her youngest daughter
woke up when they got home. Ms Peters chatted to the babysitter and
spent some time settling her daughter down before she went to bed.519
698 Ms Peters said that at around 2.30 am she had only just got to bed
and was not fully asleep when she heard three really loud screams. It
sounded like a female and the gaps between the screams were quite short.
Ms Peters jumped up and ran out and stood on her balcony to see if she
could hear or see what was going on. At the time, it was her habit to leave
her front wooden door open and her security screen door closed. She
went inside and woke her husband, who was very intoxicated. She went
back outside and it was silent. She did not hear any other sounds or
cars.520
699 Ms Peters went back to bed and lay there thinking about what had
happened. She said that the screams were different from other screams
516
ts 1830 - 3; exhibit 01354.
517
ts 1834 - 5.
518
ts 2076.
519
ts 2076 - 8.
520
ts 2078 - 9, 2084.
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that she had heard from around that area; they were not like girls having
fun screaming. She described them as 'horrific'.521
700 Ms Peters said that she sensed that the screams came from across the
road, maybe somewhere in the park across the road from her house
(Memorial Park), or over towards the river (which is in the opposite
direction to Monument Street). She thought that they were too close to
have been near Mead's restaurant, which is near a jetty on the river. She
said it was quite 'echoey' in that area. Ms Peters was shown a page from
the street directory showing Mosman Park, and she marked with an X
where her house was located and made another mark showing where she
thought that the screams had come from.522
701 On the Saturday night of the Australia Day weekend 1996 she and
her husband went to a housewarming party at Adam Davey's house, which
was in Nedlands opposite the Rose Gardens. About 20 of her fairly close
friends were also at the party. Her daughters stayed at home with their
babysitter. She thought that she got home after the party at about 1.30 am
but was not sure.523
702 Ms Peters first spoke to police when she called Crime Stoppers on
4 February 1996. She told Crime Stoppers that on Saturday 27 January
somewhere around 3.00 am she heard three screams in the direction of
Council Gardens. In her evidence she confirmed that her memory was
better when she made that call to Crime Stoppers than at the time she gave
evidence. She was asked in cross-examination whether she meant
Saturday night going into Sunday morning or Friday night going into
Saturday morning. She said that she meant Friday night going into
Saturday morning. She was shown her statement signed on 5 September
2019 and read out paragraph 12 of that statement in which she said 'if I
reported to Crime Stoppers that it was Saturday at 3.00 am I would mean
that it would be Saturday night going into Sunday morning not Friday
night going into Saturday morning'.524
703 In cross-examination Ms Peters was taken to a statement she made to

the police on 9 October 2018 in which she stated that she heard the
screams on the night that she went to Adam Davey's party and that his
party was on the Friday night. She said in her evidence that she had since
spoken to friends about the night of the party, though she believed that
521
ts 2079 - 81.
522
ts 2079 - 80, 2084; exhibit 01372.
523
ts 2081.
524
ts 2085 - 6, 2090 - 1.
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they were mistaken. She also said in her statements to police in 2018 that
she doubted that she would have gone out on both the Friday and Saturday
nights. She said that there was some confusion about the night of the
party; she had thought that it was on the Friday night at the time of
making a statement to police. She said that there was only one party at
Adam Davey's house that weekend. She remembers seeing Julie-Anne
Johnstone at the party. She only heard screams on one night of the
Australia Day weekend.525
704 In 2000 she had a serious accident and had to spend three months in
hospital; that accident affected her short term memory.526
Jesse-Marie Munro – evidence summary

705 In 1996 Jesse-Marie Munro was staying at her fiancé Wayne
Stewart's unit at 9/32 St Leonards Street, Mosman Park. As at Australia
Day 1996 she was a private with the Australian Defence Force and was
working at the SAS on guard duty for the long-weekend. She recalled
that she was at work that day, then went for drinks at the mess after work
and then back to Mr Stewart's unit.527
706 Ms Munro said that night she and Mr Stewart slept in the main
bedroom of the unit. She woke up at around 3.00 am in the morning. She
said that she sat upright in bed because she heard a blood-curdling scream
that woke her up. She felt her heart pounding. Then she heard another
scream. She woke Mr Stewart after the first scream and before the second
one. Mr Stewart ran out onto the balcony. Ms Munro stood on the bed to
look out the window because it sounded like the screaming was coming
from 'the street area'.528
707 Ms Munro looked out the small window on the side of the unit, not
the window facing the street. She heard two car doors slam and saw a
glow of red lights, like tail lights, as she was looking down the street. She
marked where she saw the red lights on an aerial map, near the units
opposite them on St Leonard's Street.529
708 Ms Munro recalled that in 1996 there were no really big trees at the
front of the unit. There was a bougainvillea downstairs growing up,
which had been hedged off. She recalled that there was a street light
525
ts 2082 - 3, 2088 - 90.
526
ts 2085, 2092 - 3.
527
ts 1837, 1842.
528
ts 1843 - 5, 1847.
529
ts 1845 - 7.
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because she sewed some curtains to block out the light from in front of the
unit.530
709 Ms Munro was familiar with the telephone box on Monument Street
because she used it every Sunday night to speak for a couple of hours to
her family. She said that it was quite dark in the area, but that the
telephone box was the main thing that was lit up, and that there was a
street light to the right of the phone box. Mr Stewart used to sit on the
balcony and see her from the unit while she was in the phone box. She
also recalled that there was a time when a nearby carpark was being
renovated and either the street light or the phone box were moved and
Mr Stewart had to come with her and sit while she spoke because it was
quite late when she rang her parents.531
710 Ms Munro said that when you stand on the balcony and look towards
the phone box you could see the streetlight and phone box lit up. You
could clearly see the units across the road. There was a house next door
but the units were situated forward of the house. There was nothing to
obscure the view from the balcony to the phone box.532
711 Ms Munro was cross-examined about her contact with police. On

3 February 1996 she telephoned Crime Stoppers and told the police what
she had seen and heard and what Mr Stewart had seen. Sometime later
the police came to see her and Mr Stewart at his unit and took a statement
from her but she did not sign a statement on that occasion. In 1998 some
police officers visited her in Atwell, she could not remember if she signed
a statement or not on that occasion. On 23 May 2017 she signed a
statement. There is also an undated statement that she has signed; she
says in the statement that she is 31 years old and includes the words 'I was
previously known as Jesse Marie Munro (sic) until I married on 4 April
1998', so it must have been made after 1998.533
712 Ms Munro did not say that she had seen tail lights in the undated
statement, in her call to Crime Stoppers on 3 February, or in the May
2017 signed statement. She was asked in cross-examination whether she
had left out this detail on purpose and she said she had not. She was
asked whether she might have forgotten it and she replied that she may
have done because she has been through chemotherapy.534
530
ts 1839.
531
ts 1839 - 40.
532
ts 1842, 1849.
533
ts 1850 - 5.
534
ts 1855 - 7.
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Wayne Stewart – evidence summary

713 In January 1996 Wayne Stewart was living at 9/32 St Leonards
Street, Mosman Park. He gave evidence about an incident that occurred
on the Australia Day long-weekend in 1996. He had been living at the
unit for a year or a bit less and at the time he was living there with his
fiancée, Jesse-Marie Munro.535
714 In the early hours of Sunday morning Mr Stewart was woken by

Ms Munro sometime between 1.00 am and 4.00 am. They were both
asleep in bed in the main bedroom of the unit. Ms Munro said 'There's
something going on outside. I heard a – a loud scream – a woman
scream.' He said 'are you sure?' and she said 'yes' and he got up and went
out of the bedroom, down a small hallway into the living area and
unlocked the screen door on the way to the balcony to see if he could see
anything.536
715 When he was unlocking the balcony door Mr Stewart heard a woman
scream very loudly. He was either opening the door or at the point of
stepping out. The scream was not very long but was very loud and very
distressing. He either heard one scream or two screams fairly close
together. It was a quiet and still night and it sounded close by.537
716 From the balcony of his unit Mr Stewart looked around for the
person who had screamed, he looked left and right along St Leonards
Street. He heard two car doors slam within a five or 10 second period.
He looked to his right and saw a vehicle 1m or 2 m to the north of the
telephone box on Monument Street, near the t-junction intersection with
St Leonards Street. The vehicle had its lights on; he could see the tail
lights and the licence plate light. Mr Stewart said that the vehicle
appeared to him to be facing against the traffic; that is, it was on the
wrong side of the road, facing north. The vehicle was on the right-hand
side of the street, closest to the shopping centre. He could not recall
seeing the car drive away but he said he knew that in the time he was
there on the balcony the car left. He did not hear any other screams that
night or on that weekend.538
717 Mr Stewart is a qualified mechanic. From where he was standing on
the balcony he could see the back quarter of the vehicle, at about a
45 degree angle. He said that the vehicle was a light-colour or cream and
535
ts 1802.
536
ts 1803.
537
ts 1804, 1808.
538
ts 1804 - 5, 1807 - 9, 1825.
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an average size. He thought it was a wagon because the licence plate

lamp was quite high. He explained that if it was a sedan the light could
not have been that high because of the location of the boot, whereas with a
wagon the structure of the car is higher and to him the light looked higher
than where it is positioned on a sedan.539
718 Mr Stewart said he believed the vehicle was a Toyota Corona

because it had what he described as a slightly concave tail light assembly;
that is, that the structure of the tail light curved around the rear quarter of
the car a little bit. He is familiar with Toyota Coronas because he has
family members who have owned them; he has owned a Toyota Corolla,
and although it is not the same car they are fairly similar in their structure.
He said that kind of wraparound tail light is found in sedans and station
wagons.540
719 When Mr Stewart went back inside the unit he spoke to Ms Munro
about what he had seen. He knew that Ms Munro called the police after
that night. Police officers came and spoke to him at his unit a short time
after the incident but he was not asked to read or sign a statement. He
showed the police the balcony where he was standing when he heard the
scream, but he does not recall the police taking photographs.541
720 Mr Stewart next spoke to police in 2002 when he was living in New
South Wales. He had some difficulty remembering this phone call. It was
put to him that he said to the police in 2002 that he and Ms Munro heard
screams but did not see any vehicle; he said he did not recall saying that in
the phone call, but that it was possible.542
721 The police contacted Mr Stewart again in 2018. He agreed that when
police made contact with him again and showed him a draft statement that
he had made years before his memory was refreshed after reading the
draft statement. In the draft statement he states that the car he saw
resembled a Toyota Corona.543
722 Mr Stewart was shown a photograph taken from the footpath of the
unit block; he identified that his unit was the top left in the block. The
window in the main bedroom faced north and can be seen in the
photograph to have slatted blinds. The unit had a verandah with big glass
windows. A person standing on the balcony and looking directly out over
539
ts 1805 - 6, 1810 - 11, 1815 - 6, 1824 - 5.
540
ts 1806 - 7, 1816.
541
ts 1813.
542
ts 1813 - 4.
543
ts 1812 - 5.
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HALL J
St Leonards Street would be facing north. He estimated that the phone

box was about 100 m from his unit. He recalled that the phone box on
Monument Street was visible at night either from the phone box or from
street lighting. He was shown a series of photographs taken in 2018 that
show trees next to the unit. He said the trees were there in 1996 but they
were smaller. In photographs taken from the balcony the phone box is
obscured by vegetation, but Mr Stewart said he believed that in 1996 the
vegetation was different. He said that in 1996 the foliage did not prevent
him from seeing what he saw on the night. He recalled there were always
trees in the street but that when he lived there he had a view of the block
of units and he recalled being able to see up and down the street
reasonably well.544
Conclusions – time and cause of death of Sarah Spiers

723 Sarah Spiers made a telephone call for a taxi at 2.06 am on the
morning of 27 January 1996. At that time she was at the telephone box in
Stirling Road. She was not seen by the taxi driver, Mr Krupnik, when he
passed by a few minutes later. However, Mr Krupnik's opportunity to
view the area was limited because he did not drive into Stirling Road,
only briefly looking down that road as he drove past. Furthermore,
Mr Laidman and Mr Pannall saw a woman who is very likely to have
been Ms Spiers at around this time leaning on a bollard on the other side
of the road. She was no longer there when Ms Polain and Ms Palmer
drove past sometime around 2.15 am. Although Ms Polain and
Ms Palmer are inconsistent as to whether they stopped at the lights,
I accept that their evidence is otherwise reliable. There are no other
sightings of Ms Spiers after this time. It is unlikely she would have
walked away from the area so soon after calling for a taxi. The only
reasonable inference that can be drawn is that Ms Spiers was taken from
Claremont by a passing vehicle sometime between 2.06 am and about
2.15 am.
724 Mr Laidman refers to headlights coming up behind the car he was in

and to not seeing that car follow them when the lights turned green. This
raises the possibility that that car stopped for Ms Spiers. If so, it would
not be consistent with the accused driving a Telstra vehicle as
Mr Laidman thought it looked like a Mazda. I am unable to place any
reliance on this evidence. Mr Laidman's opportunity to see the car was
very limited, he did not see it stop where Ms Spiers was standing and
there may be other reasons why that car did not follow them through the
544
ts 1802, 1808 - 9, 1816, 1825 - 6.
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lights. Even if that car did stop near Ms Spiers it does not follow that it
was the car in which she was abducted.
725 In the call for the taxi Ms Spiers gave her destination as Mosman
Park. That is consistent with her having indicated to Ms Hams that she
knew she was welcome to spend the night at Ms Hams' home that night.
The prosecution case is that the screams heard some time later in Mosman
Park must be those of Ms Spiers. This is essentially based on the timing
of those screams, that Ms Spiers went missing that night and that Mosman
Park was her intended destination.545 The broad time frames given for the
screams are such that it is possible that if Ms Spiers was driven to
Mosman Park it could have been her screaming. That would, of course,
assume that she got into the car willingly, told the driver that her
destination was Mosman Park and that some pretence of taking her there
was maintained for almost all of the journey. That scenario would
exclude a sudden attack like that in the Karrakatta incident.
726 According to Mr Stewart the screams were heard by him before he
got outside. He said that once outside on his balcony he looked around
and saw the lights of a car near the telephone box on Monument Street.
That location is not near the home of Ms Hams, which was in Baring
Street. Ms Munro saw lights of a car in a different place as she looked
through a bedroom window. Significantly, neither of them was able to
say that the screams came from any occupant of the car. The fact that
Ms Munro and Mr Stewart heard two sounds of a car door closing is at
least as consistent with an innocent explanation, such as the occupant of
the car using the public telephone, as it is with any explanation advanced
by the prosecution.
727 Other witnesses who heard screams are not consistent as to the
direction from which they came or the date on which they were heard. In
the case of Ms Borrett, she thought that screams she heard came from the
opposite direction to the location of the car seen by Mr Stewart. This puts
into doubt that she heard the same screams or that the car was the source
of the screams. In the case of Ms Peters, she has given different accounts
of the date of the screams and, in any event, was unable to say with any
certainty from where they were coming. To the extent that she was able
to give any indication of the source it was from the direction of the river
or a park near her home, which is not consistent with the location of the
car seen by Mr Stewart.
545
ts 10200 - 1; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, Count 6 - Sarah Spiers, 288 - 9 [77] - [78].
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728 Whilst it is possible that the screams were Ms Spiers, it is not

possible to draw a firm conclusion in that regard. The evidence does not
link the screams with Ms Spiers with any degree of certainty. The
reasoning process necessary to attribute the screams to Ms Spiers requires
a series of assumptions to be made that are merely possible not probable.
They include that Ms Spiers got into the car willingly and was taken near
to her intended destination, that she was taken to Monument Street though
there was no evidence that she wanted to go there specifically or knew
anyone who lived very close by, that all of the witnesses heard the same
screams at the same time and that the screams came from the car seen on
Monument Street notwithstanding conflicting evidence as to the direction
of the screams. It is also relevant to note that other witnesses who were in
Monument Street at or around this time, namely Ms Palmer, Ms Polain
and Mr Krupnik, heard nothing noteworthy. The evidence does not
present a consistent picture and it does not point clearly to Ms Spiers
being the source of the screams.
729 As to the suggested significance of the observations of the car made
by Mr Stewart,546 this is based on an assumption that the car was the
source of the screams. As I have noted, that is an assumption that is not
well supported by the evidence. There is a danger that two things that
may be unrelated, the screams and the presence of the car, will seem to be
so merely because they were heard and seen close in time to each other.
The fact that the car was parked close to a public telephone box at least
raises the possibility that it was there for an innocent purpose.
Furthermore, the observations of Mr Stewart were from some distance, at
night and relate almost entirely to the appearance and position of rear
lights. The best he was able to do was say that the shape and position of
the lights was like that of a Toyota Corona station wagon and that the
vehicle was cream or light-coloured. This description is clearly not
sufficient to support a conclusion that the vehicle was a white Toyota
Camry station wagon, far less that it was the work vehicle allocated to the
accused at that time.
730 Ms Spiers has not been seen since that night. She has made no
contact with her family and not travelled out of the country. She did not
attend the Sky Show on 28 January 1996 as arranged with friends and did
not attend her workplace after 26 January 1996. She was from a loving
family and would have no reason not to contact them if she was alive.
Her body has not been located. The only reasonable inference is that she
is dead. The circumstances in which she went missing and the absence of
546
ts 10195; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, Count 6 - Sarah Spiers, 285 [67].
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HALL J
a body necessarily lead to the conclusion that she was killed by someone
and that her body has been concealed. As to exactly how she was taken
and how she was killed, it is impossible to say.
731 The gender and age of Ms Spiers raises the possibility of a sexual
motivation. However, the absence of any other evidence to support this
possibility means that it is not a conclusion that can be reached with the
necessary degree of certainty.
Jane Rimmer – circumstances of her disappearance

Jennifer Rimmer – evidence summary
732 Jennifer Rimmer is Jane Rimmer's mother. Two statements made by
Jennifer Rimmer were read in to evidence. The first statement was signed
by her on 14 June 1996 and the second on 9 February 2016. As at 1996
she lived on Keightley Road, Shenton Park with her husband Trevor.
Their three children, Lee, Adam and Jane, were not living at home at that
time. Jane was born on 12 October 1972 and lived at 5/276 Cambridge
Street, Wembley.547
733 On Saturday 8 June 1996 Jane went to her mother's house at about
9.30 am to wash some clothes. At about 9.50 am she left to go to her
hairdressers, Déjà Vu on Onslow Road, and came back at about 10.45 am
to put on another load of washing. She left again at about 11.20 am and
returned at 12.30 pm to have lunch with her mother. She had some
difficulty starting her car so Trevor Rimmer came home at about 2.00 pm
and started her car for her. Jane left her mother's house some time later
that afternoon.548
734 Later that evening Jennifer Rimmer went to the Shenton Park Hotel.
While she was there Jane came in to the bar and sat with her mother and
her mother's friend for about half an hour. Jane was wearing blue denim
jeans, a navy blue sweatshirt, a dark navy corduroy jacket, black boots
and had a small handbag with a silver clasp. Jane left the Shenton Park
Hotel at about 7.40 pm. She had with her a packet of Stradbroke Extra
Mild cigarettes, her Ventolin and a can of beer in her hand. She was
behaving normally and seemed happy.549
735 Jennifer Rimmer has not seen Jane since then. On Sunday 9 June
1996 she started to get concerned about Jane. She went to Jane's unit and
547
ts 1920 - 3.
548
ts 1920 - 1.
549
ts 1921.
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HALL J
got in using a key that Jane had given her. She noticed that Jane's car was
parked at the units, that her bed was made and she could not find the
clothes that Jane had been wearing when she saw her the day before. She
then called the police.550
Trevor Rimmer – evidence summary

736 Trevor Rimmer is Jane Rimmer's father. His statement dated 23 June
1996 was read in to evidence. In June 1996 Jane had been living in a unit
on her own at 5/276 Cambridge Street, Wembley for about six months. In
about March 1996 Jane purchased a silver Mazda coupe.551
737 On Saturday 8 June 1996 at about 9.45 am Mr Rimmer was about to

leave home to go to work when Jane arrived at the house. She put some
washing on then drove to the hairdresser at about the same time he left for
work. He arrived home at about 2.00 pm. When he arrived home his wife
and Jane were both there and Jane's car would not start. He cleaned the
terminals in the car and it started. He had some lunch and Jane left in her
car sometime later.552
738 At 6.50 pm that evening Jane telephoned her father and asked him to
pick her up and drive her to the Shenton Park Hotel. Mr Rimmer drove to
Jane's unit in Wembley and she came out to the car. She was wearing
jeans, a dark jacket, and had a small handbag with her. He drove Jane to
the Shenton Park Hotel and dropped her outside at about 7.15 pm. During
the drive they talked and Jane seemed happy.553
739 Mr Rimmer went home, cooked dinner and watched a video with his
wife. The next morning he got up late and prepared lunch for his wife to
cook. He was expecting Jane to come for lunch but she did not arrive. He
became concerned about Jane. He stayed home while his wife went to
Jane's unit at about 8.00 pm. When his wife got home they rang the police
and reported Jane missing.554
Ellen Magditch – evidence summary

740 A statement made by Ellen Magditch on 21 June 1996 was read in to
evidence. At the time she made the statement Ms Magditch worked part
550
ts 1921 - 2.
551
ts 1925.
552
ts 1924.
553
ts 1924.
554
ts 1924.
Page 209
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HALL J
time at the Shenton Park Hotel and had known the Rimmer family for at
least 20 years.555
741 On Saturday, 8 June 1996 Ms Magditch was at the hotel from about
5.10 pm. At about 5.30 pm Jennifer Rimmer came to the hotel and joined
her for a drink in the saloon bar. Sometime later Jane Rimmer joined
them.556
742 Ms Magditch said that Jane was wearing a dark corduroy jacket,
jeans and a dark coloured shirt and seemed quite happy. They talked and
then Jane left the saloon bar for a few minutes to see if any of her friends
were in the public bar. When she came back she said that she was going
to the Lacrosse Club at Rosalie Park in Shenton Park. Jane left the hotel
by herself. Ms Magditch has not seen her since then.557
Clare McGuirk (Humphreys) – evidence summary

743 Clare McGuirk was previously known as Clare Humphreys. In June
1996 she was 23 years old and was working at Telstra as a customer
service representative during the week and on Saturday mornings at a
hairdressing salon called Déjà Vu on Onslow Road, Shenton Park.558
744 On Saturday 8 June 1996 Ms McGuirk worked at the hairdressing

salon. She started work at roughly 9.00 am and her 10.00 am client was
Jane Rimmer. She recalled that Ms Rimmer had shoulder-length hair and
had a basic haircut.559
745 Ms McGuirk was asked to describe step by step what she did when
cutting Ms Rimmer's hair. She said that she put a gown on Ms Rimmer
and a towel around the back of her neck. The towels that were placed
around her neck were changed between each customer. She said there
were two types of gowns used: one for cutting and one for chemical
work. She described the gowns as 'typical hairdressing gowns', made of a
waterproof fabric; she thought the fabric was nylon but she was not sure.
The gowns used for customers having a haircut were kept on a rack. The
cutting gowns may not be changed between each customer. After a
haircut the gowns were placed back on the rack and might be used for the
next customer having a haircut.560
555
ts 2619.
556
ts 2619.
557
ts 2619.
558
ts 1925.
559
ts 1926.
560
ts 1927 - 30.
Page 210
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HALL J
746 Ms McGuirk said that the usual procedure was to brush Ms Rimmer's
hair quite well to make sure that there were no knots or tangles. She used
a water spray to wet her hair before cutting it; she started at the bottom of
her hair and cut it in centimetre sections. She combed Ms Rimmer's hair
at the same time to make sure that it was straight and even. Then she
would blow dry the hair. She could not recall whether she had ever
washed Ms Rimmer's hair. The haircut took roughly half an hour.561
747 Ms McGuirk brought her equipment with her to the salon on

Saturdays and when she arrived she sterilised her equipment in jars of
blue sterilising liquid. After each client she put her combs into the
sterilising liquid, and would also do this if she dropped her comb during
the haircut. She cleaned her scissors, combs and brushes between cuts.562
748 When she worked at Telstra during the week she did not wear a
uniform. She worked as a customer service representative, which
involved answering telephone calls from customers.563
Sharon McColl – evidence summary

749 A statement made by Sharon McColl on 16 June 1996 was read in to
evidence. At the time she made the statement she resided in Shenton Park
and was the secretary of the Subiaco Lacrosse Club.564
750 On the evening of Saturday 8 June 1996 she was in her lounge room
watching television. Her son, Peter, had gone out. At about 9.00 pm she
heard a knock at her door. She opened the security panel on her door and
saw a woman with blonde, shiny hair. Ms McColl said 'Hello'. The
woman asked her 'Is Peter there?' Ms McColl said 'No, I'm sorry. Who
are you?' The woman said 'Jane Rimmer'. She recognised Ms Rimmer's
name because her family are members of the lacrosse club. She said
'Jane, was Peter meant to meet you somewhere?' She said 'Oh no, I just
called to see if he was here'.565
751 Ms McColl said that Ms Rimmer looked very dressed up, she was
wearing earrings with pearls and diamantes, a dark jacket and a dark navy
blue dress. She asked Ms Rimmer if she was okay. Ms Rimmer replied
that she was and then left. She wrote out a note for her son and continued
561
ts 1927 - 8.
562
ts 1927 - 9.
563
ts 1928.
564
ts 2919 - 20.
565
ts 2619 - 20.
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HALL J
to watch television. The note states that Ms Rimmer's visit was on

Saturday 8 June 1996.566
Sian Chapman – evidence summary

752 In June 1996 Sian Chapman was 25 years old and often went out
with Jane Rimmer. She met Ms Rimmer through Lynda Donovan; she
had known her for about 18 months as at June 1996.567
753 On 8 June 1996 Ms Chapman went out with Ms Donovan, Ben

Rundell and Christine Loxton. They went to the OBH in Cottesloe at
about 7.00 pm to have dinner. At about 8.00 pm Ms Rimmer joined them
as they finished dinner. The group sat at the table together for 10 or
15 minutes and then went into the main bar area. They stayed there for
half an hour to an hour and had another drink. Ms Rimmer was wearing a
blue top, jeans, a corduroy jacket and a bag over her shoulder.
Ms Chapman described her as happy.568
754 At about 8.30 or 9.00 pm the group left the OBH. They walked
outside the hotel and looked for a taxi. They did not have to wait long
before a taxi arrived and they all got in. She recalled that the taxi was a
white sedan and that she sat in the front seat. She remembered the interior
of the taxi being brown vinyl. In cross-examination she accepted that her
description of the taxi could well be not correct. The taxi took 10 minutes
to get from the OBH to the taxi rank on Gugeri Street, across the road
from The Continental Hotel.569
755 They went into the lower bar area of The Continental Hotel to start
with. That area was quite busy so they went upstairs and out onto the
balcony. Everyone was drinking at that time, including Ms Rimmer.
Ms Chapman was shown some security camera footage from the hotel
starting at 21.55.35 hours and identified herself and Ms Donovan as they
first entered.570
756 At one point in the evening Ms Chapman noticed that Ms Rimmer
was upset. Ms Rimmer and Ms Donovan went away from the group and
had a conversation for about five or 10 minutes. Ms Chapman saw that
Ms Rimmer had been crying. Ms Chapman, Ms Loxton and Mr Rundell
stayed out on the balcony in the upstairs area while they were gone. After
566
ts 2620.
567
ts 2283.
568
ts 2283 - 4.
569
ts 2285 - 6, 2298 - 300.
570
ts 2287 - 90; exhibit 15372.
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HALL J
Ms Rimmer and Ms Donovan came back to where the others were

standing the group stayed upstairs and danced for a while.571
757 Ms Chapman said that at about 11.30 pm they decided to go to Club

Bayview. She recalled that Ms Loxton went to Club Bayview about five
or 10 minutes before the rest of them. She was shown security camera
footage from the hotel starting at 23.40.17 hours in which Ms Chapman
can be seen waiting out the front of the hotel and then walking away with
Ms Donovan and Ms Rimmer. She was also shown footage from Club
Bayview starting at 23.49.10 hours, which shows Ms Chapman,
Mr Rundell and Ms Rimmer at the front of the club.572
758 When they arrived at Club Bayview Ms Chapman stayed at the front
of the club with Ms Rimmer and Mr Rundell while Ms Donovan went in
to find Ms Loxton. Ms Donovan was inside for around five minutes.
During that time Mr Rundell and Ms Chapman were standing together and
Ms Rimmer was leaning on a car a few metres from them.573
759 When Ms Loxton and Ms Donovan came back downstairs they had a
discussion and then all walked back towards The Continental, the same
way that they had come. Ms Chapman was shown footage starting at
23.56.07 hours from the camera at the front entrance of The Continental.
Ms Chapman recognised herself, Ms Loxton, Ms Donovan and
Mr Rundell, who can be seen walking away from Club Bayview.
Ms Rimmer is walking a little behind them. The group walked back past
The Continental Hotel. Ms Chapman was shown footage from the front
of The Continental starting at 23.53.12 hours. The footage shows
Ms Chapman, Ms Loxton and Ms Donovan walking past the entrance to
the hotel and then Mr Rundell and Ms Rimmer behind them.574
760 The group went to the taxi rank on Gugeri Street. The five of them
waited for a taxi for about 10 minutes. A couple of taxis went past but did
not stop or had people in them. Ms Chapman said that Ms Rimmer was
waiting with them to start with and then she walked back to The
Continental Hotel. A taxi came and Ms Chapman, Ms Donovan,
Mr Rundell and Ms Loxton got into it. They were intending to go to
Ms Chapman's home in City Beach.575
571
ts 2288.
572
573
ts 2290 - 1.
574
575
ts 2295.
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HALL J
761 The taxi pulled around the corner into Bay View Terrace and slowed
down as they went past The Continental; Ms Donovan leaned out of the
window to tell Ms Rimmer that they were leaving and that she should
come with them. Ms Rimmer was leaning against a pole outside the front
doors of The Continental Hotel. Ms Chapman said that Ms Rimmer was
'sort of … waiting' and that she waved them off. The taxi took them to
Ms Chapman's house in City Beach. Ms Chapman did not see
576
Ms Rimmer again.
Lynda Donovan – evidence summary

762 In 1996 Lynda Donovan was 26 years old and was a friend of Jane
Rimmer. They worked together at the Nedlands Child Care Centre. They
were both child care assistants and started working at the centre at about
the same time. They also lived in the same block of units on Cambridge
Street, Wembley. Ms Rimmer lived downstairs and Ms Donovan lived
upstairs. Ms Donovan estimated that Ms Rimmer had lived there for three
months as at June 1996.577
763 On 8 June 1996 Ms Donovan saw Ms Rimmer during the afternoon
and told her that she was going out with friends that evening and
Ms Rimmer was welcome to join them. Ms Donovan went out for dinner
to the OBH in Cottesloe with her friends, Sian Chapman, Ben Rundell and
Christine Loxton. She and her friends were finishing their dinner when
Ms Rimmer arrived by herself at around 7.00 pm. Ms Rimmer was
wearing jeans and a black, long-sleeved shirt and black jacket. She had
pull-on boots and a black bag that came across her body. She was
wearing a silver bracelet and a silver Guess brand watch and a chain with
an amethyst crystal on it. Ms Rimmer appeared to be happy at this
point.578
764 Ms Rimmer sat with the group until they finished dinner and then
they all moved into the public bar and had some drinks and talked.
Ms Donovan said that she was probably drinking beer and that
Ms Rimmer was also drinking beer. They stayed at the OBH until about
11.00 pm. The group left the OBH by taxi and went to The Continental
Hotel. The five of them all went in the same taxi. Ms Donovan recalled
that the taxi was a white sedan.579
576
ts 2296.
577
ts 2261 - 2.
578
ts 2262 - 4; exhibit 01405.
579
ts 2264 - 5, 2279.
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HALL J
765 Ms Donovan was shown the hotel security footage starting at

21.55.35 hours and identified herself and Ms Chapman walking into The
Continental. Ms Donovan was wearing a striped top and a black vest.
She said that once they arrived the group went to the bar downstairs to get
a drink and then went upstairs. She said that she and Ms Rimmer
continued drinking alcohol. She described Ms Rimmer as affected by
alcohol.580
766 At some point in the evening Ms Donovan and Ms Rimmer went

outside to talk and remained outside for about 15 or 20 minutes. She was
shown footage that starts at 22.39.06 hours and identified herself and
Ms Rimmer as they walked outside. She was also shown footage starting
at 22.44.33 hours and identified herself and Ms Rimmer outside talking.
She said that Ms Rimmer was upset and 'really sad' and was saying that
she was ugly and fat. Ms Donovan was trying to comfort her and say it
was not true. After the conversation she and Ms Rimmer went back
inside the hotel and met up with their friends.581
767 Ms Donovan estimated that they stayed at the hotel for an hour and a
half. She said that she left The Continental with Ms Loxton first, left the
others behind and went to Club Bayview. She was shown footage starting
at 23.40.17 hours which shows Ms Rimmer coming down the internal
stairs at The Continental, then shows Ms Chapman standing outside as
Ms Donovan walks outside with Ms Rimmer behind her. She was shown
footage from Club Bayview starting at 23.48.55 hours, which shows
Ms Donovan arriving at the club. She said that when she arrived at Club
Bayview she talked to Ms Loxton. She was shown footage starting at
23.49.24 hours and recognised herself talking to Ms Loxton on the stairs
on the way up to Club Bayview.582
768 Ms Donovan said she then left Club Bayview and met up with
Ms Chapman, Mr Rundell and Ms Rimmer who were waiting downstairs
on the street. They all waited for Ms Loxton to come back out of the club.
At this point they had decided that they did not want to go to Club
Bayview and planned to go home.583
769 Ms Donovan, Ms Loxton, Ms Chapman, Mr Rundell and
Ms Rimmer walked to the taxi rank on Gugeri Street near the train station.
They walked back past The Continental and across the road to the taxi
580
ts 2267.
581
ts 2269 - 71; exhibit 15405.
582
ts 2267, 2273 - 4; exhibit 15392.
583
ts 2274.
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HALL J
rank. She was shown footage from The Continental that starts at 23.53.12
hours and shows Ms Donovan, Ms Chapman and Ms Loxton walking past
the front entrance of the hotel with Mr Rundell and Ms Rimmer behind
them.584
770 After the group got to the taxi rank, Ms Donovan said that
Ms Rimmer walked back across the road. She had a conversation with
Ms Rimmer and recalled that Ms Rimmer said that she was not going to
go home, that she wanted to stay out. Ms Donovan got into a taxi with
Ms Chapman, Mr Rundell and Ms Loxton. She sat behind the passenger
seat on the left-hand side. She said that the taxi pulled around the corner
onto Bay View Terrace. The taxi was directly in front of the hotel and she
saw Ms Rimmer leaning against a pole. She was shown footage which
starts at 00.03.41 hours and said that Ms Rimmer can be seen where she
was when she saw her from the taxi.585
771 Ms Donovan said they wound down the windows and called out to
Ms Rimmer 'Get in the taxi' and 'come on, let's go' and Ms Rimmer shook
her head and turned away. They said to the taxi driver 'All right. Well,
let's just go then'. The taxi took them to Ms Chapman's house in
City Beach. She did not recall what time she got home. Ms Donovan did
not see Ms Rimmer again.586
772 Ms Donovan gave evidence that Ms Rimmer was drunk by the end of
the evening; she was at times unsteady on her feet, held onto people to
steady herself and bumped into people on the dancefloor.587
Jarrod Turner – evidence summary

773 Jarrod Turner was employed as a bar manager at the OBH in
Cottesloe from January 1996 to March 2007. The hotel was licenced to
close at midnight and they would endeavour to get the clients to leave
within half an hour before cleaning up, locking up and going home. 588
774 Mr Turner was working on Saturday 8 June 1996. He started his
shift at 4.00 pm. He saw Jane Rimmer that evening; she was with a group
of people. Mr Turner was good friends with a couple of people in the
584
ts 2275 - 6, 2278.
585
ts 2276 - 8.
586
ts 2277.
587
ts 2280 - 1.
588
ts 2257.
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HALL J
group, including Christine Loxton. He had been introduced to

Ms Rimmer about six months earlier.589
775 On that evening Ms Loxton asked Mr Turner to call her a taxi to go

to Claremont. He recalled that he asked the taxi service to send a large taxi
because they all wanted to travel together. He thought that there were six
people in the group. The hotel usually used Swan Taxis; he did not recall
any details about the taxi that arrived apart from that it was white. He saw
the taxi arrive, saw the group into the taxi and waved goodbye.590
David Kluwen – evidence summary

776 David Kluwen has been a taxi driver with Swan Taxis on and off
since 1989. His taxi driver ID was 2586.591
777 On 8 June 1996 Mr Kluwen was driving a taxi, a Ford Falcon station
wagon that was a few years old. He believes that it was white and had
Swan Taxi signage on it. He did not own the taxi, he was the night driver,
and there was also a day driver.592
778 Mr Kluwen received a notification of a fare in the name of 'Jane'
from opposite Karrakatta Cemetery on Smyth Road; he recalled that it
was from a phone box. At that time the notification of fares was not
computerised, so he would have received the notification via the radio.593
779 Mr Kluwen picked up a woman from near the phone box on Smyth
Road. He described her as having blonde hair, a medium build and
wearing blue jeans, a dark coloured jacket and black shoes. She was of a
friendly disposition; she was happy, confident and sober. Mr Kluwen
drove the woman to the OBH. The journey took around 10 minutes and
the fare was roughly $12.594
Adam Rimmer – evidence summary

780 Adam Rimmer is the brother of Jane Rimmer. At the time that Jane
disappeared he was 27 years old. Jane had a close relationship with her
parents and was a regular visitor to their house at 157 Keightley Road,
Shenton Park.595
589
ts 2258 - 9.
590
ts 2259 - 60.
591
ts 1931.
592
ts 1932.
593
ts 1932 - 3.
594
ts 1933 - 4.
595
ts 1882.
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781 Mr Rimmer and Jane were also close and she had lived with him for
eight or nine months before he got married. Jane then moved to
5/276 Cambridge Street, Wembley. She was working as a child care
worker at the Nedlands School of Early Learning. Mr Rimmer and Jane
would talk about general life things; she had not spoken to Mr Rimmer
about any concerns that she had and he was not aware of her having a
boyfriend. Mr Rimmer last spoke to Jane in the mid-afternoon of
Saturday 8 June 1996. They spoke on the telephone and she appeared to
be fine.596
782 Mr Rimmer recalled that Jane wore a silver Guess brand watch and
he identified a photograph of a watch as her watch (this is the watch found
at the Wellard scene). Jane also wore rings on some fingers but not all the
time.597
783 In June 1996 Mr Rimmer's father, Trevor, had a blue Ford Falcon
sedan and his mother, Jennifer, drove a blue Ford Laser hatch. Jane drove
a silver four-door sedan, perhaps a Mazda. In June 1996 none of the
family members owned or drove a Holden Commodore VS series I or II
station wagon or a Toyota Lexcen Series T4 or T5 station wagon. None
of their family members worked for Telstra or wore a Telstra technician's
blue uniform and none of them drove a Telstra vehicle or had any reason
to drive a Telstra vehicle. In cross-examination Mr Rimmer agreed that
Jane did not tell him all of the cars that she travelled in, or tell him all of
the people that she met, or tell him the occupations of the people that she
met as a matter of routine.598
Wellard screams
Kenneth Mitchell – evidence summary

784 In 1996 Kenneth Mitchell lived with his wife on a three-and-a-half
acre property on Johnson Road, Wellard. He gave evidence about what
he heard from his house on the night of 8 and 9 June 1996.599
785 Mr Mitchell said in 1996 the area around his home was quiet with
little traffic. His was the third property along from the corner of the
intersection of Johnson Road and Millar Road. The house was set back
from the road. In front of the house there was a circular garden with a
driveway around it. The driveway went up the centre of the property and
596
ts 1881 - 4.
597
ts 1883 - 4.
598
ts 1881, 1884 - 5.
599
ts 2307 - 8.
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was 124 m long. The frontage of the property was approximately 300 m.
Mr Mitchell had planted olive trees on the left-hand side of the driveway
and natives on the right. Across the road there was low scrub with sand
tracks. Next door to his property on the right-hand side (facing Johnson
Road) there was a house being built and then a well-established house,
which was on the corner of Millar Road and Johnson Road. There was a
roundabout at the intersection of Millar Road and Johnson Road. If you
turned left into Millar Road from Johnson Road and went up Millar Road
there was one old house and a riding school. Beyond that the only road
off Millar Road was Mortimer Road. That part of Mortimer Road was not
sealed at that time.600
786 Mr Mitchell recalled that 8 June 1996 was a Saturday and it was four
days before his birthday on 12 June. He recalled the day because he had
played golf at Kwinana Golf Course with his son-in-law who was in the
Navy and was heading overseas. There was a function at the Mitchell's
house that evening; Mr Mitchell's daughter and son-in-law left at about
11.00 pm. Mr Mitchell and his wife went to bed close to midnight.601
787 The bedroom of the house was located at the front of the house, with
windows facing Johnson Road. Looking at his house from Johnson Road
the bedroom was located on the left-hand side of the house. Mr Mitchell
slept with the windows open and described himself as a very light
sleeper.602
788 Mr Mitchell said that he had only been asleep for a short time when
he was awoken by the voice of a woman. His wife woke shortly
afterwards. He heard a woman's voice and it went on for a while; he
described it as high-pitched and traumatic. He heard words to the effect
of 'leave me alone' and 'let me out of here'. It was plain and clear and
lasted for five or 10 minutes, maybe longer.603
789 Mr Mitchell got out of bed very quickly and had a look but he could
not see through the scrub on the other side of Johnson Road where it
appeared to come from. He said the sound came from past the end of his
driveway. He pointed out on the aerial photograph a section of scrub
across the road where there is a circular, light-coloured area from which
he believed the sounds came. He did not see anything. He heard the
600
ts 2309 - 11, 2313, 2315, 2323.
601
ts 2318, 2324.
602
ts 2318 - 9.
603
ts 2319, 2321, 2324 - 5.
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noise again, briefly. He heard a woman say 'Leave me alone. Stop' and
then there was silence.604
790 Mr Mitchell then heard a car come out of somewhere in that area.
The car went south towards Millar Road. He described the sound of the
vehicle; he said it was not a loud vehicle. It made a relatively soft, quiet
noise. It did 'rev up a bit' as it went around the corner. He did not believe
it was a car with a diesel engine.605
791 Mr Mitchell could see the reflection of the lights of the vehicle; he
could see the area that the vehicle lights were lighting up in front of it. He
could not see the actual lights. He saw the reflection of the lights as the
car went down Johnson and turned left into Millar Road. Once the car got
to Millar Road he could not see it. There is a structure of some kind on
the corner of Millar Road and Johnson that he could not see past. It was a
reasonably dark night and there were no street lights.606 He estimated that
the car was around 150 m from where he was in his bedroom.607
792 When Mr Mitchell heard about the discovery of Ms Rimmer's body
in the Wellard area he contacted the police. This was the only night in
this period on which he was awoken by sounds of this kind.608
Judith Mitchell – evidence summary

793 In 1996 Judith Mitchell was living with her husband in Johnson
Road, Wellard. The Mitchell's house was on the third block along from
the intersection. The house was about 120 m from the road. There was a
circular driveway with a roundabout where the house was; so that you
could drive off Johnson Road, down the driveway, go around and then
back down the same driveway to Johnson Road. The main bedroom of
the house was on the front corner of the house on the right-hand side if
you are standing on the verandah looking out at Johnson Road. Across
the road from their property was vacant bushland.609
794 Ms Mitchell recalled an incident that happened in June 1996 in the
early hours of the morning. It would have been around the date of her
husband's birthday, which is on 12 June. She believes it was after a day
when her husband played golf, which was on a Saturday. She said that
probably around 2.00 am one Saturday night going into Sunday morning
604
ts 2319 - 21, 2325.
605
ts 2321, 2323.
606
ts 2321 - 3.
607
ts 2324, 2326.
608
ts 2324, 2326.
609
ts 2327 - 31; exhibit 11726.
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she woke up to the sound of a vehicle and someone yelling and

screaming. She thought 'they are agitated and having an argument'. She
is a heavy sleeper. When she woke up her husband was already awake.610
795 Ms Mitchell got up and listened and had a look out the window. She
could vaguely see the shadow of a car. She saw only the top of the
vehicle, it looked like a sedan. It was hard to see because it was dark.
She also thought she saw the shadow of a person walk behind a bush or
shrub on the other side of Johnson Road in the vacant block on the corner
opposite where she lived.611
796 Ms Mitchell said that the noise carried on for a while, about five
minutes, and that it was quite loud and seemed to get louder. It was a
female arguing with someone. She heard a female voice, but it could have
been two voices. She did not hear a male voice. She described the voice
as very agitated. Ms Mitchell said she thought to herself 'oh well
someone is having a row in there'. She went back to bed. She then heard
a car door slam shut and the car went; she did not know what direction the
car went in.612
797 When she heard on the news that the police were looking for any
information from the area she thought she had better advise the police
about the incident.613
Ian Sturcke – evidence summary

798 In mid-1996 Ian Sturke was living on a five-acre property at
25 Arundel Drive, Wellard with his wife and daughter. His main access
route to his property was via Mortimer Road, then into Woolcoot Road,
and then into Arundel Drive. Arundel Drive was a bitumen road. A
portion of Woolcoot Road was bitumen and then it was limestone. His
property was 200 m from Woolcoot Road. Further along Woolcoot Road
there was an intersection with Millar Road and a riding school. From his
property to the corner of Woolcoot Road and Millar Road is between
600 m and 800 m as the crow flies. There was a lot of vacant land in the
area at the time. The blocks were large, mainly five acre blocks, with
fairly sparse vegetation. There were a few trees here and there and a lot
of swampy areas.614
610
ts 2333 - 4, 2338.
611
ts 2334 - 8.
612
ts 2334 - 5, 2337 - 8.
613
ts 2335.
614
ts 2340 - 1, 2344 - 5, 2350.
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799 Mr Sturcke recalled one night that he was awoken by a very loud
scream. He said he is a reasonably heavy sleeper and it woke him up.
The scream stopped mid-scream after about three to five seconds. His
wife was in bed with him. The scream was very high-pitched or shrill.
He had gone to bed at 10.00 pm and did not hear any other abnormal
noises. The area was very quiet. It was a still, cold night. He said that he
had never heard a scream of that magnitude before in his life.615
800 Mr Sturcke indicated on a map the direction the scream came from.
He said it was a south-westerly direction from his house. His bedroom
was in the left-hand corner of the house, which is the Woolcoot Road end
of the house. He put an arrow on the map to indicate the direction that it
came from.616
801 Mr Sturke did not recall what time he heard the scream but believed
that it was probably after midnight. He thought it was a Saturday because
he did not work the next day and he did not work on Sundays.617
Cheryl Sturcke – evidence summary

802 In June 1996 Cheryl Sturke was living on Arundel Drive, Wellard
with her husband and children. Their daughter lived with them full time
and their sons lived there on and off. The house had four bedrooms.
Looking at the house from Arundel Drive her bedroom was at the front on
the right-hand side.618
803 Ms Sturcke gave evidence about an incident that she recalled in June
1996. She had gone to bed and had been asleep for a short time. She
usually went to sleep at 10.00 or 10.30 pm. She is a light sleeper. She
always had the windows open and fans on. At approximately 2.00 am,
maybe a bit later, Ms Sturcke heard a terrible, blood-curdling scream. It
stopped mid-scream. She estimated that the scream lasted for five
seconds or a little longer. She said it woke both her and her husband. She
got out of bed and stood by the window to see if she could hear anything
else. There was no other noise after that. She said that she had never
heard a scream like that before in her life.619
804 Ms Sturcke's bedroom window faced Woolcoot Road. She said that
the scream came from near the riding school. She said that there were no
615
ts 2346 - 8.
616
ts 2346 - 51; exhibit 11727.
617
ts 2347, 2351 - 2.
618
ts 2352 - 4.
619
ts 2355 - 6, 2358, 2360.
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other houses all the way down to Woolcoot Road apart from the riding
school. She was pretty sure that it was Saturday night or early Sunday
morning when she heard the scream because the next day her husband
slept in and Sunday was the only day that he slept in. She was not able to
recall the date.620
805 Ms Sturcke gave evidence that she visited her mother in Mandurah
two or three times a week. She recalled that when she drove to Mandurah
from her house she drove from Arundel Drive to Woolcoot Road, and
then along Woolcoot Road to Millar Road. Woolcoot Road was a
limestone track at that time. She recalled that at around this time she
noticed a smell as she was driving along this route through Woolcoot
Road and Millar Road. She thought that there was a dead animal in the
bush. She marked on a map where she noticed the smell. She recalled
that the scream came before the smell; she said it was probably two or
three weeks before.621
806 On the Saturday afternoon in early August 1996 when Ms Rimmer's
body was discovered she realised that something had happened. The
police came to her property on the Sunday morning after that and did a
search of the property and said if she had seen or heard anything to go to
the local hall, which she did. When she spoke to police she told them that
she thought that the scream was roughly four to six weeks earlier.622
Jane Rimmer – finding of her body

Tammy van Raalte–Evans – evidence summary
807 In August 1996 Tammy van Raalte-Evans was living in
Rockingham. She and her husband, Michael Evans, also owned a 10 acre
property on Casuarina Road, Wellard. On Saturday 3 August 1996
Ms van Raalte-Evans and her family went to the property in the morning
and spent a few hours there. Her husband drove their Mitsubishi and they
took four children (two of their own and two friends).623
808 They left the property at about 2.00 pm. Their route home took them
along Woolcoot Road heading to Millar Road. As they were driving
down Woolcoot Road in the direction of Millar Road a chicken or a
rooster ran in front of their vehicle. They all screamed and Mr Evans
620
ts 2355 - 8, 2360.
621
ts 2354, 2357 - 9; exhibit 11727.
622
Exhibit 11727.
623
ts 2682 - 4.
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stopped the vehicle. Mr Evans and the children all got out of the car to
chase the chicken.624
809 Ms van Raalte-Evans initially stayed in the car, facing Millar Road.
On the right-hand side of the car she saw some 'death lilies'. She got out
of the car and picked two of the lilies. Something caught her eye and she
went to where she thought she saw it, she looked left and saw a very large
lily in a bush area. She ducked her head down under branches and went
into a clearing area that she described as like a cocoon. It was about 2 m
or 3 m from the road. She stood there and looked at the lily and then
looked around where she was standing. She estimates that she was in the
clearing for a couple of minutes.625
810 As Ms van Raalte-Evans was standing in that area she felt what she
thought was a stick touching the back of her calf. She turned to her side
to see what it was and looked down. At first, she did not register what she
was looking at. She said that she followed with her eyes from a foot to a
head and realised that she was looking at a woman's body. The woman's
bottom half was naked, she was lying on her stomach, it looked like there
was something over her torso and Ms van Raalte-Evans could see her hair
was matted.626
811 Ms van Raalte-Evans did not touch anything and took two steps out
of the area and screamed to her husband, who ran over to where she was.
She said to her husband 'There's a – she's in there. Her body's in there'.
Mr Evans went in to have a look and came out and said 'It's got to be a
sheep'. She said 'It's not. Look at her foot. She's got a tiny foot.'
Mr Evans looked in again and then said 'get in the car'. She did not look
at her husband when he went into the bush. She was not sure if he went
only halfway in when he came out and said it had to be a sheep. He was
not gone for very long when he looked in. She was not sure if he went in
to the cleared area once or twice.627
812 Ms van Raalte-Evans yelled at the children to get in the car.

Mr Evans and the children got into the car. Mr Evans said to Ms van
Raalte-Evans 'you've got to come'. She said 'I'm not coming. Give me my
dog' and then said 'I'll have my dog'. Ms van Raalte-Evans threw the
flowers she had picked; she was not sure if she threw them in the car or
624
ts 2683 - 4.
625
ts 2686 - 90, 2694.
626
ts 2689, 2695.
627
ts 2690 - 1, 2693, 2696.
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outside. She grabbed her dog and went back and stood there and her
husband and the children left in the vehicle.628
813 While she was standing there two people came along on horses.
Ms van Raalte-Evans said to them 'don't come down here'. The woman
did not get off her horse. Ms van Raalte-Evans said to the man 'Don't go
in'. The man did go into the bush. She thought he just stuck his head in;
he was not too long. The man was not in her vision the whole time he
was in the bush area. The woman said to Ms van Raalte-Evans 'are you
ok?' and she said 'yeah. I'll be fine'.629
814 Mr Evans returned with another person and then the two people on
the horses and that person went away. Ms van Raalte-Evans and her
husband remained there until the police arrived about 20 minutes or half
an hour later.630
Michael Evans – evidence summary

815 On Saturday 3 August 1996 Michael Evans visited his block of land
at Casuarina Road, Wellard with his wife Tammy, four children and their
dog. They left the block at around 2.00 pm in their Mitsubishi van. They
drove down Woolcoot Road in the direction of Millar Road. They saw a
rooster and stopped the vehicle, the children got out and started chasing it.
Mr Evans stayed in the vehicle.631
816 Mr Evans said that his wife got out of the vehicle to pick flowers.
He got out of the vehicle when the children chased the rooster through a
fence and his wife came out of the bushes and called out to him. His wife
instructed the children to get into the car. She then told him that she had
found a body in the bush. He recalled that she told him to go in and have
a look. He estimated that he went 1 m to 1.5 m through an opening into
the bush.632
817 When Mr Evans went into the bush area he could see something. He
thought it was an animal at first. The closest he got was 30 cm. He was
there for five or seven seconds, 10 at the most. He said he went back out
because he was unsure of what he had seen. His wife said to him 'go back
and have a good look'. About 20 seconds later he went back in a second
time. He was the same distance away as on the first occasion. He was
628
ts 2691 - 2, 2696.
629
ts 2691 - 3, 2697.
630
ts 2693 - 4, 2697.
631
ts 2698 - 9, 2702.
632
ts 2699 - 700, 2705.
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there for a little longer: 15 or 20 seconds. His wife said to him 'Look at
the feet'. He then realised that he was looking at a human body.
Mr Evans did not touch the body on either occasion.633
818 Once Mr Evans came out the second time he got into the car to go
and call the police. He took the four children with him. His wife
remained at the scene with the dog. He went to Greenacre Riding School
on the corner of Millar Road and Woolcoot Road and asked if he could
use the telephone. He told a man and woman who worked there that he
wanted to call 000 because he had found a body in the bush.634
819 Mr Evans telephoned 000 and then went back to where his wife was
with a man from Greenacre. When he got back to his wife there was a
man called Steven and a woman there as well, they also had a dog. Then
the man from Greenacre, Steven and the woman all walked back to
Greenacre. He and his wife stayed at the scene with the children until the
police arrived.635
820 From the time Mr Evans first saw the body until the police arrived he
did not touch the body, nor did he see anyone else touch the body. 636
821 Mr Evans was familiar with the Woolcoot Road area, he had driven
down the road a number of times including a week-and-a-half before this
day. He recalled that on the previous time he had driven down the road it
was rough and pot-holed and that on this day it had been graded. It was
an unsealed road.637
Paul Langenbach – evidence summary

822 In June 1996 Paul Langenbach was a member of The Royal
Australian Navy. His girlfriend at the time, Kathryne Owen, worked at
Greenacre Riding School in Wellard and from time-to-time he visited the
riding school and helped out. He said that in 1996 the roads in the area
were very quiet and he took horses from the riding school out riding up
and down the roads in the area without coming across vehicles very
frequently.638
823 On Sunday morning 9 June 1996 Mr Langenbach went to the riding

school with Ms Owen; she was working and he was helping out. It was a
633
ts 2700 - 2.
634
ts 2702 - 3.
635
ts 2703 - 4.
636
ts 2704.
637
ts 2704 - 5.
638
ts 2242, 2244.
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perk of helping out at the riding school that he could on occasion take the
horses out for a ride.639
824 That afternoon Mr Langenbach and Tiffany Hughes took two horses
from the school for a ride. The route they took was out the main gate and
then along the school boundary and Millar Road and left up Woolcoot
Road. A few hundred metres up Woolcoot Road Mr Langenbach's horse
bucked him off and he was dragged along for a little way. The horse took
off up the road.640
825 Once he got to his feet Mr Langenbach found a watch. He described

the watch as a small silver, ladies' Guess brand watch with a silver metal
band. It had a round face with a couple of scratches on it. He was shown
a photograph of the watch that he found on Woolcoot Road that day.641
826 Ms Hughes rounded the horse up and brought it back to

Mr Langenbach. He showed Ms Hughes the watch he had found and then
they went to the riding school. They went back to the school by the same
route; down Woolcoot Road, along Millar Road and then in the front gate.
When he got back to the riding school he showed the watch to Ms Owen
and the riding school groundskeeper, Steven Daventhoren. He put the
watch into his pocket and took it home.642
827 Mr Langenbach later learned that a woman's body had been found on
Woolcoot Road in August 1996. There was a cross erected on the road at
about the spot where her body had been found. He went past the cross
and it prompted him to recall that he had found the watch a couple of
metres from the location of the cross in June. He did not recall when he
made the connection, he thought it was in August.643
828 Mr Langenbach contacted the police straight away, who came to see
him and took the watch. The next day he gave his first witness statement,
which is dated 12 August 1996. When he was first interviewed by police
he said that he found the watch on 16 June. He knew it was a Sunday.
Once he went home and had the chance to refer to a notebook that
recorded Ms Owen's work hours he realised that the date was incorrect
and contacted the police to notify them of the correct date. He signed a
subsequent statement on 15 August 1996. He was asked to accompany a
police officer back to Woolcoot Road and showed the officer where he
639
ts 2245.
640
ts 2245.
641
ts 2246 - 7; exhibit 08357.
642
ts 2246 - 7.
643
ts 2247 - 8, 2252.
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found the watch. He was photographed pointing to the road at the

location that he found the watch.644
Kathryne O'Shea (Owen) – evidence summary

829 Kathryne O'Shea was previously known as Kathryne Owen. In 1996
she was living in Perth and working at Greenacre Riding School in
Wellard. She started working full time at the riding school in early June
1996. Her partner at the time was Paul Langenbach.645
830 Mr Langenbach visited Ms O'Shea at the riding school quite often

and occasionally rode the horses. She recalled a particular occasion on
which Mr Langenbach went riding at the riding school and when he came
back he was on foot and was dirty and dusty. He showed her a watch.
She described the watch as a small, silver, analogue watch. He gave her
the watch. She recalled that this incident occurred on Sunday 9 June
1996. In her first statement to police she said that it was 16 June when the
watch was given to her. A week or two later she made another statement
and said that it was 9 June. This was after she had consulted a book in
which she kept a record of the hours that she worked.646
831 Ms O'Shea recalled that sometime after this incident she noticed
there were a lot of police around when she arrived at work. She later
handed the watch to the police.647
Jane Rimmer – post-mortem examination

Karin Margolius – evidence summary
832 Karin Margolius, a forensic pathologist, attended the scene in
Wellard on 3 August 1996. Dr Margolius is deceased and her statements
and annexed reports were read in to evidence. At the scene she noted that
the body was that of an adult Caucasian female who was naked. The body
was prone and slightly on the left, with the head away from the road. The
backs of the buttocks and legs were visible.648
833 Several exposed areas of the body showed defects in the skin which
appeared to be caused by animal predation. The right arm was visible and
to the side, the palm out at approximately waist level. There appeared to
be animal destruction of the hand. The bare feet were also visible. Dead
644
ts 2248 - 51, 2253 - 5; exhibit 08085, exhibit 08086, exhibit 08088, exhibit 08089, exhibit 08090.
645
ts 2418 - 20.
646
ts 2420 - 4.
647
ts 2421 - 2.
648
ts 4336, 4338.
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branches covered the back of the right lower leg. There was a large defect
visible in the back upper thigh. The edges of this defect were irregular
and resembled artefactual changes due to animal activity. The back of the
left leg was visible, with a small amount of dead vegetation over the thigh
region, and the toes appeared to show damage from animal activity. The
right shoulder was also visible and showed post-mortem artefactual
change. The left arm was covered by vegetation and not clearly visible.
The head was under arum lilies, amongst small trunks and covered by
twigs. The vegetation was removed and the body was placed into a body
bag for transport to the State Mortuary.649
834 A post-mortem examination was conducted on the body of

Ms Rimmer at the State Mortuary on 4 August 1996. Dr Margolius
conducted the examination, with the assistance of Dr Gerard Cadden.650 I
will summarise the relevant findings and conclusions of Dr Margolius.
835 The body was naked and in an advanced state of decomposition. The
deceased was found to be wearing several items of jewellery, which were
intact and undamaged. X-rays of the body showed no broken bones and
no evidence of projectiles. Lividity (that is, settling of the blood within
the body by force of gravity following death) was present on the left-hand
side and was consistent with the position of the body when found.
Dr Margolius considered that there was a high possibility that the
deceased was placed into that position prior to rigor mortis setting in.
This could indicate that she was placed into that position within six hours
of her death.651
836 There were no apparent ligature marks, bruising, scratches, grazes,
lacerations or 'incisor' wounds. Internal organs had badly decomposed
and become infested with insects. There was no gross injury to the vagina
or anal regions. Due to decomposition it was not possible to say whether
any person had engaged in sexual activity with the deceased either before
or after death.652
837 Examination of the head structure showed that there had been no
fracturing of the skull. The brain was decomposed. The throat was found
to be gaping and extremely decomposed. A large defect in the skin,
measuring 17 cm x 9 cm was present over the right scapula region,
extending from the spine towards the shoulder and exposing the scapula
649
ts 4336 - 8; exhibit 14264.
650
ts 4326, 4335; exhibit 14264.
651
ts 4326 - 7, 4330, 4334, 4339 - 40; exhibit 14264.
652
ts 4327, 4345; exhibit 14263.
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bone. The edges of this defect were ragged and in some areas serrated.
Vegetation and maggots were noted in this defect. The subcutaneous
tissue, including the muscle, was absent. Several items from the throat
structure were missing, including the hyoid and thyroid bones (though a
small fragment of hyoid bone was later identified). Without those
structures it was not possible to tell if the deceased had been strangled.
There were signs of animal predation and this could account for the
missing bones.653
838 Defects on both legs and damage to the toes were observed. Again
some of the damage was consistent with animal activity. The right arm
was dislocated at the shoulder and most of the skin of the upper arm was
missing, except for a bridge of skin linking the shoulder and elbow joints.
There was damage to the fingers consistent with animal activity. The left
arm showed extensive change, including from animal activity and there
was a dislocation at the wrist.654
839 The state of decomposition was consistent with the time Ms Rimmer
had been missing. At the conclusion of the examination on 4 August
1996 Dr Margolius concluded that the cause of death was 'undetermined
pending investigation'. Further examinations were undertaken on 6 and
7 August 1996. Following receipt of further tests Dr Margolius formed
the opinion on 7 March 1997 that the cause of death was
'unascertainable'.655
840 In June or July of 2009 Dr Margolius reviewed the post-mortem
records and noted that the body displayed many artefactual changes,
including to the neck, arms, hands, fingers, legs and toes. In regard to
most of these changes she considered that they had occurred post-death.
However, she could not totally exclude the possibility that they had
occurred prior to death. In particular, there was a possibility that the
defects masked a previous injury, such as an incised wound.656
841 The other defects on the body were on parts that had been exposed
and were subject to animal interference. Those defects alone, even if they
did mask a previous injury, are unlikely to have been the cause of death.
If these defects were masking a previous injury more advanced
decomposition at those sites would be expected. However, the neck
defect was more protected and the front of the body was mostly intact.
653
654
ts 4340 - 2; exhibit 14264.
655
ts 4328, 4330, 4334; exhibit 14263, exhibit 14264.
656
ts 4329 - 30.
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The tissue in that area showed more advanced decompositional changes

than in surrounding protected areas. The neck defect was 'extensive',
involving 'a good proportion' of the unexposed parts of the neck.657
842 Dr Margolius concluded that Ms Rimmer did not die from any
obvious organic illness. Further, toxicological analysis of samples taken
from the body excluded any toxin as contributory to her death.
Dr Margolius stated that whilst her report had listed the cause of death as
unascertainable, she could not exclude the possibility that death was the
result of a neck injury.658
Clive Cooke – evidence summary

843 Clive Cooke is also a forensic pathologist with PathWest. He
commenced in that role in 1988, and was the Chief Forensic Pathologist
between 1991 and 2017. He attended at the Wellard scene in 1996 to
support and give advice to Dr Margolius. He was asked to review the
records, including the reports of Dr Margolius and the video recordings of
the examinations at the Wellard scene and at the State Mortuary. 659 He
also gave expert evidence regarding the possible cause of death and
possible injuries to the body.
844 Dr Cooke noted the large neck defect at the Wellard scene. He said
that it followed the surface of the jawline and came down in an
approximately diamond shape to the top of the collarbone and followed
the lines of the collarbones to the top of the breastbone. It was a large,
open defect which exposed the bones of the underlying spine, most of the
soft underlying tissues being absent. He said this was on the front part of
the body that was protected by being against the ground, unlike the back
of the body which evidenced post-mortem scavenging.660
845 Dr Cooke said that the position of the left arm was very unusual, as
most people who die have their arms alongside their torso. In this case the
arm was by the head extending upwards. A 'really unusual feature' was
the way the wrist was hyperextended, that is, turned back on itself.661
846 Dr Cooke said that there was a lot of post-mortem degenerative

change to the body. This was a combination of mummification and
adipocere. Mummification is essentially where tissue dries out and takes
657
ts 4330.
658
ts 4330.
659
ts 4366 - 70.
660
ts 4378, 4387, 4400 - 1, 4410; exhibit 07831.
661
ts 4375 - 6, 4378, 4388, 4393; exhibit 11622.
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on a leathery consistency, a change most likely to occur where the body is

exposed to the drying effects of the environment. Adipocere is where the
skin and fat become soap-like in their consistency, a change most likely to
occur where the body is in contact with a moist environment.662
847 Dr Cooke said that the pink staining to the front of the body could be
lividity, as proposed by Dr Margolius, but his own view was that he could
not be certain of that because a variety of colour changes may occur due
to post-mortem decomposition change. That is another possible
explanation for the observation. Other possible explanations for the
colour, such as cyanide poisoning or carbon monoxide toxicity, were
excluded by toxicological tests. If the colouring was caused by lividity,
this takes several hours to develop and becomes fixed over the next 12 to
24 hours.663
848 Dr Cooke referred to the left wrist and said that he had subsequently
reviewed that region with Dr Alana Buck, a forensic anthropologist.
Observations were made of the unusual hyperextension of the wrist which
is suggestive of a release of the tendons which flex the hand and the
fingers; the more advanced decomposition change of the hand and wrist
region compared to the right hand and wrist; and the acute angle formed
in the skin. The significance of the second observation is that where there
is a pre-existing defect in the skin, that will often result in more advanced
post-mortem decomposition because it allows access for insect infestation.
The third observation was significant because it had the appearance of a
possible slicing-type cut to the skin. It was not consistent with animal
activity, which would be expected to produce a more scalloped
appearance on the margins. The conclusion was that there was a
possibility, indeed a likelihood, of a pre-existing cut to the region of the
left wrist, but this was not something which could be determined with
certainty. That is a classic location for a self-defence injury. People who
are defending themselves from an assault will often assume a boxing-type
position to protect themselves, thereby exposing the ulna side (little-finger
side) of the hand, wrist and forearm. The injury is consistent with having
been caused by a sharp instrument, such as a knife.664
849 As regards the neck defect, Dr Cooke observed that there was a
raggedness to the edges and that the underlying tissues had been lost to
decomposition. This included the hyoid bone and the thyroid cartilage,
though part of the hyoid bone was later found in the hair mass. He said
662
ts 4379, 4387, 4588 - 91.
663
ts 4388 - 93; exhibit 07825.
664
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that the defect to the neck was most likely a combination of both
ante-mortem and post-mortem damage. This was because the degree of
decomposition change as compared to other parts of the body was
suggestive of a pre-existing breach of the skin. Such a breach would be a
sharp-force injury of some type, that is, a cut. This could have been either
an incised wound (slice) or a penetrating wound (stab). The exact nature,
extent or number of breaches constituting the original injury could not be
determined due to the extent of the subsequent decomposition change.
The raggedness of the skin margins was consistent with animal predation.
An injury to the neck is a possible cause of death.665
850 Dr Cooke noted that a histopathology report had been prepared by

Dr Margolius in relation to various samples of body tissue. There were no
indications of disease in these samples. There was a finding of red blood
cells in the major bronchi (airways) of the lungs. Dr Cooke said the usual
mechanism by which red blood cells came to be in the lungs was an
injury, either to the lungs, the airways or the face (by the inhalation of
blood). In 2019 Dr Cooke had reviewed the lung sections and had a
further six sections cut from the original blocks of tissue. He saw some
material in the airways, but it was either bacteria, fungi or of a
non-specific nature. He could not make a certain conclusion that it
included red blood cells. He accepted that his opinion differed from that
of Dr Margolius in this respect. If there was blood in the lungs this could
be consistent with a neck injury, as long as there was penetration of the
main airways.666
851 A toxicology report was obtained that showed that there were no
indications of carbon monoxide, cannabis or opiates.667
852 There was no evidence of natural disease, skeletal injury or sexual

penetration. As to the latter, there was no obvious injury to the vaginal
tissues or the anorectal region and the skin in that area was relatively well
preserved. However, absence of injury does not exclude the possibility of
sexual penetration.668
853 The state of decomposition of Ms Rimmer's body imposes some

limitations as to what can be said about the cause of her death and the
665
ts 4401 - 6, 4460, 4463; exhibit 07889.
666
ts 4453 - 7, 4463; exhibit 14280.
667
ts 4457 - 8; exhibit 14280.
668
ts 4463, 4466.
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injuries that she may have suffered before she died. For example,
asphyxiation cannot be excluded.669
854 In cross-examination Dr Cooke agreed that the best he could say is

that one of the possible causes of death was that something caused a
defect to the neck. He could not say how any such injury was inflicted,
other than it with a sharp object. In re-examination he said that the neck
area contains major arteries and veins that if cut can result in significant
bleeding and death. It was possible for an injury cutting the major blood
vessels to occur without causing bone damage.670
Alana Buck – evidence summary

855 Alana Buck is a forensic anthropologist and medical scientist with
PathWest. She has worked in that capacity since the early 1990s, initially
part time and became full time in the mid-2000s. Amongst her
qualifications is a PhD in structural anatomy and anthropology. Her role
at PathWest is to assist the forensic pathologists in the examination of
human remains that are skeletalised, badly decomposed or
dismembered.671
856 Dr Buck was requested by Dr Margolius to conduct an examination

of bones of the cervical spine and the hyoid bone of Ms Rimmer. The
spine was unremarkable and only one part of the hyoid bone was
recovered. There were no indications of injury or defect to the part of the
hyoid that she saw.672
857 In February 2014 Dr Buck was requested by the police to review a
defect to the left forearm and wrist region of Ms Rimmer. That review
was undertaken using photographs, a video recording and reports from the
original post-mortem examination. She said that one of the most notable
features was the different type and degree of decomposition in the hand
and left wrist as compared to the right. There was also a V-shaped defect
to the wrist and the hand was hyper-flexed. The angle of the wrist was
not easily explained by the position of the body as found. This was highly
suggestive that tendons in the wrist had been severed. She was not able to
identify any injury to the bony structures, but she was limited by the
available images.673
669
ts 4468.
670
ts 4596, 4601 - 2.
671
ts 4610 - 1, 4630.
672
ts 4613.
673
ts 4614 - 7.
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858 The observations referred to, together with the fact that this is a
location which is a common site for defence injuries, raises the possibility
of a pre-existing injury.674
Conclusions – time and cause of death of Jane Rimmer

859 Jane Rimmer was last seen alive outside The Continental Hotel just
after midnight on the early morning of 9 June 1996. The screams heard in
Wellard by Mr and Ms Sturke later that morning must, given the direction
of the screams as compared to the location of the body, have been those of
Ms Rimmer. The loud arguing heard by Mr and Ms Mitchell is less
clearly relevant as they placed the sounds as coming from an area
opposite their home and some distance from where Ms Rimmer's body
was later found. It is possible that the Mitchells heard an earlier
altercation involving Ms Rimmer at a different location, but I make no
finding in that regard.
860 It was suggested in the defence closing that the evidence of the
Sturkes may be unreliable as to the date because the Mitchells did not hear
screams.675 I do not accept this contention. The sound of screams was an
unusual thing to hear in the area and the direction given by the Sturkes
coincides with the location where the body was later found. The
Mitchells did not live in the same direction as the Sturkes and, whilst the
distance of both from the positon of the body was about the same, there
may be other factors that could affect how sound travels. I accept the
evidence of Mr and Ms Sturke as being reliable, both as to what they
heard and the timing of it.
861 As I am satisfied that the screams were those of Jane Rimmer, then
clearly she was alive at that time. This must have been shortly before she
was killed. Based on the evidence I conclude that she was killed in the
early hours of the morning of 9 June 1996 in Wellard. This is also
consistent with Ms Rimmer's watch being found by Mr Langenbach on
Woolcoot Road later that day. It follows that Ms Rimmer was killed at
that location and that her clothes must have been removed by her killer
before her body was deposited and concealed in the clearing.
862 The circumstances in which Ms Rimmer went missing and the
circumstances in which her body was found exclude any possibility that
her death was accidental or self-inflicted. The only reasonable inference
available is that she was killed by some person.
674
ts 4617.
675
ts 10616; Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, Jane Rimmer, 22 [65] - [66].
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863 Determining the cause of death is complicated by the advanced state

of decomposition of the body when found, some 55 days later. The
evidence does, however, support a conclusion that death was caused by a
sharp-force injury to the neck. The evidence in this regard is the large
defect to the neck and the fact that this defect is to a part of the body that
was relatively protected from the elements and animal activity. There is
no doubt that a sharp-force injury to the neck is capable of causing death
and of causing it relatively quickly. This possibility is also supported by
the existence of what I find to be a defensive injury to the left wrist: an
injury that must also have been caused by a sharp instrument. Taking all
of these factors into account, I am satisfied that Ms Rimmer died as a
result of receiving an incised or penetrating wound or wounds to the neck,
caused by a sharp instrument. The defensive wound to the wrist supports
a conclusion that Ms Rimmer made an effort to protect herself from the
person who attacked her with a sharp instrument. Clearly her efforts
failed.
864 The location in which the body was found and the partial covering
with vegetation from the surrounding area supports a conclusion that the
person who killed Ms Rimmer tried to conceal her body. The manner of
deposition and concealment is significant. Ms Rimmer's body was not
buried, rather she was placed on the ground, prone and slightly on her left,
amongst scrubby bush. Vegetation was apparently gathered from the
immediately surrounding bushes or the ground and placed over the body.
The location was in a semi-rural area in what was then the outer fringe of
the Perth metropolitan area.
865 The fact that Ms Rimmer was naked and that no clothing was found
after extensive searches of the surrounding area means that her clothes
must have been removed and taken from the scene by her killer. This is
also consistent with the finding of the watch on the road nearby, which
must have been inadvertently dropped. When this is put together with the
gender and age of Ms Rimmer it strongly supports a conclusion that her
abduction and killing was sexually motivated, or at least had a sexual
component. The absence of evidence of genital injury at post-mortem
does not exclude a sexual motivation because decomposition may have
masked bruising and a sexual assault can occur without injury. Other
possible explanations for the absence of clothing, such as an attempt to
remove any identifying trace evidence, are not credible and to some extent
speculative. In my view a sexual motivation is the only reasonable
explanation for the missing clothes.
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Telstra knife
Steven Daventhoren – evidence summary

866 Two statements made by Steven Daventhoren were read in to
evidence. The first statement was made on 3 August 1996 and the second
statement was made on 6 August 1996. At the time of making the
statements he lived and worked at Greenacre Riding School in Millar
Road, Wellard.676
867 On Saturday 3 August 1996 at about 11.00 am Mr Daventhoren went

for a ride with Tracey Bell and her dog. They went for a long ride
through the property and then in a northerly direction. They rode back
down Woolcoot Road at about 2.30 pm.677
868 While he was riding he saw an open, brown, wooden-handled

pocketknife on the side of the road. It was near a real estate sign on the
eastern side of Woolcoot Road near Mortimer Road. He described the
knife as being in good condition and that it appeared to have only been
there a short time.678
869 Near the southern end of Woolcoot Road he saw a woman with a dog
standing on the road. As he approached the woman she told them to call
their dog back, which they did. Ms Bell stayed with her dog and he rode
on to see the woman. The woman told him that there was a dead body in
the bushes. He took two or three steps into the bushes and saw exposed
parts of a human body and that the body was naked. He did not touch
anything or look further and he went back onto the road. The woman
asked him if it was the body of a girl and he looked back in briefly but
could not see.679
870 Chris Ferreira, Ms Bell's partner, arrived with the woman's husband
in the husband's vehicle. They did not go near the body. Mr Daventhoren
left the woman and her husband on Woolcoot Road and walked the horse
back to the stables with Ms Bell and Mr Ferreira. When the police arrived
he gave them directions and walked through the paddock to Woolcoot
Road to assist them.680
871 When Mr Daventhoren was looking at the body he noticed that there
was a patch of crushed grass. He had not noticed any changes to the bush
676
ts 2448 - 9.
677
ts 2448, 2450.
678
ts 2450.
679
ts 2448 - 50.
680
ts 2449 - 50.
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in that part of Woolcoot Road since Optus put in cables on the inside of
the fence in about December 1995. He stated that there are quite a lot of
feral cats and foxes in the area and several dogs that roam freely.681
Tracey Bell – evidence summary

872 On the morning of Saturday 3 August 1996 Tracey Bell went to the
Greenacre Riding School with her partner at the time, Chris Ferreira. She
was teaching riding occasionally at the school on weekends. At about
11.20 am she left the riding school to go for a ride on her horse with
Steven Daventhoren, who was at that time the caretaker of the riding
school and who lived in a caravan on the property. She also took her dog
with her.682
873 Ms Bell gave evidence about the route that she and Mr Daventhoren
took on their horses. They cut through the riding school property and the
next property before they exited onto Woolcoot Road and then rode
roughly north along Woolcoot Road up to Arundel Drive. They then took
Park Way and went approximately north until they got to a t-junction with
a track. They then reached Mortimer Road, which was the main
thoroughfare and ran east west, they rode along that road until the junction
of Mortimer Road and Woolcoot Road and then began to ride home. She
recalled that they were riding on sand tracks and that at the time the area
was undeveloped bushland and the roadside verges were quite dense with
native vegetation. When you were on the road looking at the verge it
appeared to be thick bushland.683
874 While they were riding Ms Bell saw an item on the verge on the side
of the road. She could not recall if she saw it first or if Mr Daventhoren
did. At the time when she saw the item, she knew what the item was.
This item is not mentioned in the statement that she signed on 3 August
1996. She said that she could not recall whether she mentioned it to
police or not. When Ms Bell spoke to police 20 years later she could not
recall what the item was, just that she saw something and that it was
significant. She gave evidence that in an interview a knife was mentioned
and that she recalled that she had said in a statement that she had a vague
recollection that it was a knife. She does not recall what happened to the
item. Her best recollection is that they found the item somewhere on
Mortimer Road.684
681
ts 2450.
682
ts 2450 - 2, 2454.
683
684
ts 2459 - 62, 2470, 2472 - 4.
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875 As they were heading towards Millar Road at about 2.15 pm Ms Bell
saw a woman standing at the end of Woolcoot Road yelling something
out. It sounded like she was saying 'Don't come down. Don't come down
here'. Ms Bell got off her horse and held on to her dog. Mr Daventhoren
rode down towards the woman. The woman told Ms Bell that she went
into the bushes to pick arum lilies and saw a foot. Ms Bell saw
Mr Daventhoren go into the bush on the verge. He went about 3 or 4 m
in, Ms Bell could see him walk into the bush but when he got into the
verge it became more dense so it was more difficult to see him.
Mr Daventhoren took about 30 seconds and then came out. She said in
cross-examination that he went into the bush area twice. Ms Bell did not
see the body.685
876 About 4 or 5 m behind the dense vegetation on the verge there was a
boundary fence for the riding school. You could not see the fence from
the road. Ms Bell recalled that the body was found on the left-hand, or
west, side of Woolcoot Road. The woman told Ms Bell that her husband
had gone to the riding school to find someone to call the police. The
woman said that she did not want to leave the deceased woman alone.
Ms Bell said that she would stay there as well. When the police arrived
she told them what she had seen.686
877 Ms Bell passed several times the location when she had been jogging
between about 8 June and 3 August 1996. She did not notice anything out
of the ordinary. She is familiar with the area. In cross-examination she
agreed that the distance from the corner of Mortimer Road and Woolcoot
Road to the corner of Millar Road and Woolcoot Road is 2.4 km.687
Alexander Angus – evidence summary

878 Statements made by Alexander Angus on 14 March 2017 and
7 November 2018 were read in to evidence. At the time of making the
statements Mr Angus was the managing director of Sheldon and
Hammond Pty Ltd. Sheldon and Hammond is a marketing and
distribution company based in Asquith, New South Wales. The company
imports consignments of goods, it does not manufacture any products. He
was previously in sales before he became the director of purchasing in
1990 and then managing director in 1995.688
685
ts 2463 - 9, 2472; exhibit 01593.
686
ts 2465 - 6, 2469, 2471 - 2; exhibit 11646.
687
ts 2469 - 71; exhibit 15636.
688
ts 2783, 2785, 2788.
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879 In the 1990s the company had contracts to supply specific knives to
certain clients. Typically, if Sheldon and Hammond commissioned a
knife for a client they would have the blade stamped with the word
'Shelham' during the construction process to show the company's
association with that knife. The knife construction process was always
outsourced overseas, typically to Japan.689
880 Mr Angus recalled that in the early 1990s when he was the director
of purchasing, Telecom Australia had a requirement for a pocketknife that
they wanted to issue to their linesmen and technicians. Telecom later
produced a tender document specifying the design features and
dimensions that were required, along with the shape of the blade and the
material that could be used. This tender document was produced after
Telecom Australia liaised directly with Sheldon and Hammond and
assessed what could be made available in their budget. Mr Angus
prepared a proposal for that tender that he signed on 16 July 1992, which
included costing information, supply times and a technical drawing of the
knife based on the tender requirements.690
881 Sheldon and Hammond was later advised by Telecom that their
proposal had been successful and they received a contract to supply the
knife, which was known as the Miscellaneous Lineman's Tool. The knife
was produced to Sheldon and Hammond's specifications by Ace Cutlery
Corporation in Japan. The production process included having the word
'Shelham' stamped on the blade and the Telecom corporate symbol
embossed on the wooden handle. A few pre-production knives were sent
in advance for testing and evaluation by Telecom. Telecom gave its
approval to the knife and to proceed with the bulk order. Telecom did not
request any changes, alterations or refinements to be incorporated into the
production version of the knife. It was identical to the pre-production
samples.691
882 The knives were constructed, stamped, embossed and packaged in

Japan before being shipped to Sheldon and Hammond's warehouse in
New South Wales. Once at the warehouse, the order was checked and
inspected before being broken down and transported to Telecom
distribution centres throughout Australia. The records show that Sheldon
and Hammond dispatched the first set of 11,300 production knives to
Telecom depots in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South
Australia and Western Australia on 24 June 1993. Telecom reordered the
689
ts 2783 - 4.
690
ts 2784.
691
ts 2784.
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knife seven times between 1993 and 1996; every order was a separate
supply contract.692
883 Mr Angus stated that to the best of his knowledge the actual
construction of the knife did not vary during the production cycle even
though the client's name changed from Telecom to Telstra. There was
some correspondence between Telecom and Sheldon and Hammond about
changing the embossed logo from the Telecom symbol to the Telstra
symbol but this did not actually happen. In February 1997 Telstra
cancelled the contract.693
884 According to Sheldon and Hammond dispatch records they supplied
58,900 production knives to Telecom and Telstra between 1993 and 1996.
Of that number, 4,200 were dispatched to a supply depot at 31 Miles Road
Kewdale, Western Australia. The last consignment of knives was split up
and sent to Western Australia in two separate shipments; the first of which
was dispatched on 30 August 1996 and the final shipment sent on
9 October 1996. Every consignment of that knife that Sheldon and
Hammond received was delivered to a Telecom or Telstra depot. They
did not produce any copies of the knife to sell separately or
independently.694
885 On 23 October 2017 and 5 November 2018 Mr Angus received
emails from the Cold Case Homicide Squad with five photographs
attached of a folding knife in its folded position, in the open position and
deconstructed to its component parts. The photographs were of the knife
found by Mr Daventhoren in Wellard. Mr Angus looked at the
photographs and confirmed that the knife was one of those produced by
Sheldon and Hammond on behalf of Telecom Australia. The knife bears a
trademark: the word 'Shelham' at the bolster of the blade in stamp format.
It also has the Telecom corporate symbol on the wooden handle. On the
reverse side at the bolster of the blade is the stamp 'Stainless Japan'. This
indicates the material the blade was constructed of and where the knife
was manufactured.695
David Minchin – evidence summary

886 Two statements made by David Minchin in 2017 were read in to
evidence. At the time of making the statements Mr Minchin was an
692
ts 2784 - 5.
693
ts 2785.
694
ts 2785.
695
ts 2786.
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electronics technician at Curtin University and had been working there

since 2013. He had formerly worked for Telecom.696
887 On 28 January 1986 Mr Minchin and 23 others started a

telecommunication technician apprenticeship with Telecom. The accused
was one of the other apprentices. Mr Minchin recalled that the accused
was probably 17 years old when they started the apprenticeship. The
apprenticeship was for four years. It consisted of two years of common
core training in classrooms at the Manning Training Centre with some
field work, followed by two years in a final posting where they
specialised.697
888 In the early days of the apprenticeship they were issued with a blue
tool box with various tools. One of the items they were issued with was a
green, folding, lock-blade knife that had a sharp point at the tip of the
blade.698 A photograph was tendered of a knife that Mr Minchin found on
the internet in 2017, that he said looks exactly like the knife that was
issued to him in 1986.699
889 About six to eight weeks later the apprentices were required to hand
back the green-handled knife to their instructor and in exchange they were
issued with a brown-handled replacement knife that had a rounded tip.
The instructor came around to each of the apprentices in turn.
Mr Minchin recalled that the accused said that he had lost his
green-handled knife. The instructor gave the accused a new knife. 700 The
new knife was also a folding, locked-blade knife. It had a brown wooden
handle and a stainless steel blade that was rounded at the end. The knife
was 11 cm long when in the folded position and 18.5 cm long with the
blade locked open. The word 'Rostfrei' was stamped into the base of the
blade on one side. The other side was blank. On one side of the wooden
handle there is a Telecom logo: a 'T' in a circle.701 Three photographs of
the knife that was issued to Mr Minchin in 1986 were produced.
890 In around 1988 Mr Minchin went to a field posting in the broadcast

division of Telecom; at this time he was issued with another toolkit that
also contained a brown, wooden-handled knife, which was slightly
different to the first. This second brown, wooden-handled knife had the
word 'Shelham' stamped into the base of the blade and the words
696
ts 2598.
697
ts 2598.
698
ts 2599.
699
ts 2599 - 600; exhibit 00197.
700
ts 2599 - 601.
701
ts 2601.
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'Stainless. Japan' on the other side. Neither of the wooden-handled

knives had a serial number stamped into it. 702 The accused was not sent
to the same field posting as Mr Minchin.703
Robert Scully – evidence summary

891 Two statements made by Robert Scully were read in to evidence, one
signed on 5 October 2018 and one signed on 8 January 2019. Mr Scully
worked at Telstra for 27 years before his retirement in 2001. When he
first started working for the organisation it was called PMG, then Telecom
and then Telstra.704
892 In 1996 when Ms Rimmer's body was discovered in Wellard

Mr Scully was working at the depot on Crompton Road, Rockingham.
The depot received a request for an officer from Telstra to meet police at
the scene. Mr Scully went out to the site at Woolcoot Road with a
colleague. He recalled that two uniformed officers were managing access
to the scene.705
893 Mr Scully recalled that Woolcoot Road was an unsealed track. There
was rural-type property on the west side with scrub between the edge of
the gravel road and property boundary. The east side was also scrub.706
He spoke to two plain clothes detectives. The detectives asked him if any
telephone lines had been installed in the area recently. He told them that
there were no new lines, the Telstra lines that were there had been there
for a long time, years. He had knowledge of the works done in the area
because of his role at the depot. At the time, he was involved in the
distribution and scheduling of all work to individual households.707
894 The staff who worked with Mr Scully at the Rockingham depot were
linesman who worked with external plant.708 External plant refers to
physical cabling and supporting infrastructure such as conduits, cabinets,
towers or poles and any associated hardware.709 Internal plant work is
carried out by technicians, who worked out of the Rockingham exchange:
he has no knowledge of the daily work plans of those employees.710
702
ts 2601.
703
ts 2601.
704
ts 2602, 2604, 2606.
705
ts 2602 - 3.
706
ts 2603.
707
ts 2604.
708
ts 2606.
709
ts 2604.
710
ts 2606.
Page 243
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895 Mr Scully stated that if a household had a fault in the phone line it
would be reported directly to Telstra, not to his depot. Once reported, the
Bentley Fault Centre would organise for a Telstra technician, referred to
as a 'faultsman', to attend the address to rectify the problem. These
Telstra employees worked out of the same depot as Mr Scully, but he was
not made aware of the jobs they were assigned.711 He said that if a
faultsman was investigating a fault, the faultsman would open the pit,
which consisted of a concrete lid on the footpath, and check the cable
associated with the service to the house.712 The faultsmen worked alone
and had a limited time to fix the fault. If the fault was not able to be fixed
in that time, the job would be referred to him to organise a linesman to
attend to the fault. If a linesman was not required he would not be
notified and would not be aware that a Telstra employee had been
working in the area.713 He did not recall being given any jobs at around
that time as a result of a faultsman being unable to fix an issue in the
Woolcoot Road vicinity.714 He was not sure if there were any pits on
Woolcoot Road, he said they were more likely to be on Millar Road.715
896 All Telstra external plant is recorded on plans. Distribution plans are
drawn from official survey plans showing, among other things, block lot
numbers or street numbers, pit locations, measurements between pits and
details of the cables. Copies of these plans were transferred to microfiche.
The faultsmen had copies of the microfiche. Local councils also had
plans showing block measurements which faultsmen could use as
necessary. 716 At the time, Wellard consisted of large blocks and hobby
farms that had been there for some time. There was no construction
happening in the area, which is why the depot was not working in the
area.717
897 The protocols for other carriers and agencies was to inform the
Telstra office of primary works and use the plans to explain the work.
Mr Scully stated that he would also have told police that Telstra did not
do any digging; the power authority at the time, SEC, dug the trenches
and Telstra laid the lines on top. He later became aware that Optus had
some new lines in the area. He realised this when he saw some Optus
warning signs and cable markers; his recollection is that the signs and
markers were in the paddock inside the property line. The signs were not
711
ts 2604.
712
ts 2604.
713
ts 2605.
714
ts 2605.
715
ts 2604.
716
ts 2604 - 5.
717
ts 2605.
Page 244
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HALL J
recent because the area around them was grown over. He first noticed the
signs and markers some months after meeting with detectives on
Woolcoot Road. He is not able to say whether the signs and markers were
there when he spoke to police and he had not noticed them. He recalled
that Optus contractors at the time were ploughing in optic fibre cables
using large plant, like bulldozers. An Optus representative should have
notified the Rockingham Telstra depot of any proposed Optus work. This
notification should have been forwarded to him; he was not aware of any
notifications from Optus around the time that he spoke to police.718
Conclusions – Telstra knife

898 The knife found in Wellard bears markings that support a conclusion
that it was one of those produced for Telstra and distributed to technicians
between 1993 and 1996. A large number of these knives were produced
and some 4,200 were dispatched to a depot in Western Australia. There
are no serial numbers on the knives and no records as to who received
such a knife.
899 The evidence of Mr Minchin establishes only that the accused
received two other knives of a different type. Mr Minchin states that he
received a knife of this type in around 1988, though he must be mistaken
as to the date, and that raises a possibility that the accused may also have
been issued with such a knife. However, the knife found in Wellard
cannot be proven to be his. It has no distinctive markings that would
establish possession by the accused and there were no results from
forensic testing that would link it to the accused. Furthermore, the very
large number of such knives issued to technicians and the absence of any
system for tracing them makes it impossible to draw any inference as to
the person who lost or disposed of the knife.
900 The location at which the knife was found was on Woolcoot Road,
but some distance from the place where Ms Rimmer's body was found.
The road is a through-road, in the sense that traffic can pass along it to
gain access to other roads. Accordingly access to the disposal site can be
reached from either direction and does not require passage along the part
of the road where the knife was found. It cannot be inferred that the killer
of Ms Rimmer must have passed by that spot. Nor was the road isolated
or disused. It was in a semi-rural area, but not secluded. Thus it cannot
be said that there is necessarily any likelihood that the person who killed
Ms Rimmer must have disposed of the knife.
718
ts 2603, 2605 - 6.
Page 245
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901 It is also relevant to take into account that the knife was not found
until 3 August 1996, the same day that Ms Rimmer's body was found.
Exactly how long it had been in that position is not known.
Mr Daventhoren thought the knife had been disposed of recently, but he
does not explain in his statement what he means by this or why he thinks
so. When examined by PathWest it did show some signs of corrosion that
are consistent with it being exposed to the elements. None of that allows
a conclusion to be drawn that the knife must have been disposed of close
in time to the death of Ms Rimmer. The fact that the knife was found on
the same day as Ms Rimmer's body was discovered has no significance,
even on the State case this can only be a coincidence.719
902 The post-mortem examination of Ms Rimmer's body supports an

inference that she was killed using a sharp-edged instrument, but the
injuries do not establish that the instrument was necessarily a knife, or
specifically the Telstra knife. The forensic testing of the knife did not
establish any link to Ms Rimmer.
903 There was some evidence as to the lack of any Telstra work in the
area in recent years. This evidence would go to the issue of whether it is
possible for the knife to have been lost by some other Telstra worker in
the course of regular work. That could narrow the possibilities as to how
the knife may have got there. But the evidence of Mr Scully was not
comprehensive and left open, for example, that work was done by
technicians at residential properties in the area that was not reported to
him because it was completed within the time allowed and did not require
the attendance of a linesman. Accordingly, the possibility that Telstra
employees attended the Wellard area for legitimate work and had
equipment with them, including a knife of this type, cannot be excluded.
904 Taking all of the evidence together it is not open to conclude that the
knife was the murder weapon. Nor is it possible to conclude that it was
discarded or inadvertently dropped by the person who killed Ms Rimmer
and disposed of her body. There is a beguiling quality to the knife; that is
because it is a Telstra issued knife and there is other evidence to suggest
that the killer had a link to Telstra, it might be too easily assumed that it
must have some connection to the killer of Jane Rimmer. That connection
might also be too readily made because the knife was located on the same
day as Ms Rimmer's body was found. However, the very real possibility
that the finding of the knife is a mere coincidence with no probative value
cannot be discounted. The finding of the knife provides no support for the
719
ts 6374 - 5, 10142 - 4; exhibit 16420.
Page 246
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HALL J
accused being the killer of Ms Rimmer. Accordingly, I have disregarded

that evidence in coming to my conclusions.
Ciara Glennon – circumstances of her disappearance

Denis Glennon – evidence summary
905 Denis Glennon is the father of Ciara Glennon. His statements signed
on 28 May 2016 and 5 November 2019 were both read in to evidence.720
906 In early 1996 Ciara took a 12-month break from her employment as a
solicitor with Blake Dawson Waldron to travel. She returned to Perth on
1 March 1997 and moved back into the family home in Mosman Park. On
10 March 1997 Ciara resumed her employment with the same firm at 221
St Georges Terrace, Perth.721
907 On Friday 14 March 1997 Ciara went to work. She was wearing a
black suit with a skirt that sat above her knees, a white t-shirt with a faint
outline of pink flowers under her jacket and black heeled shoes. She was
wearing a Claddagh brooch on her jacket and earrings. She was carrying
a black briefcase-type bag with a shoulder strap. Mr Glennon spoke to
Ciara at about 3.30 pm while she was at work. He said that she seemed
fine and he expected to see her that evening.722
908 Mr Glennon woke early Saturday morning 15 March 1997 for a trip
to Rottnest.723 He noticed that Ciara had not returned home. During the
morning of 15 March 1997 his wife telephoned him several times because
she was concerned about Ciara's absence. They decided to call a number
of Ciara's friends to see if she had stayed overnight with one of them. He
later found out that Ciara and some of her work colleagues had been
driven by Neil Fearis (a partner at Blake Dawson Waldron) to The
Continental Hotel in Claremont the previous night.724 Mr Glennon
returned home and reported Ciara's absence to the police.
909 Later that day the police attended the Glennon home and Ciara was
reported as a missing person. Mr Glennon provided the police with a
photograph of Ciara. At the time she was 27 years old, approximately
152 cm tall with a slim build, a fair but tanned complexion and dark
brown hair. Several days later Mr Glennon located another photograph of
Ciara taken more recently than the first photograph. The second
720
ts 2365, 2368.
721
ts 2364.
722
ts 2364, 2366 - 7.
723
ts 2364 - 5.
724
ts 2365.
Page 247
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
photograph shows Ciara's hair appearing a lighter shade of brown.

Mr Glennon also provided this photograph to the police.725
910 After Ciara returned from travelling she used her sister's car, a 1978
white Mazda sedan. In March 1997 Mr Glennon drove a 1994 silver
Mercedes Benz C180 sedan. It is possible that in the two weeks she was
back in Perth that Ciara had been a passenger in this car; he recalled
dropping her off at a bus station on one occasion. His wife drove a white
Mercedes Benz sedan. No member of the Glennon family owned or had
access to a Holden Commodore VS series I or series II station wagon or
Toyota Lexcen series T4 or series T5 station wagon at this time.726
911 No member of the Glennon family in the time immediately before

Ciara's disappearance worked for Telstra, did any work for Telstra or had
access to any Telstra uniforms. In the two weeks that she was in Perth
Ciara did not have any connection to Telstra that Mr Glennon is aware of
and he is not aware that she would have been in any Telstra vehicles or
had any contact with a Telstra employee.727
Caitriona Una Glennon – evidence summary

912 Caitriona Una Glennon is the mother of Ciara Glennon. Her
statement signed on 28 May 2016 was read in to evidence.728
913 On 20 November 1969 Ms Glennon gave birth to Ciara in Zambia.

She gave police a copy of Ciara's birth certificate. From 1993 Ciara was
employed by Blake Dawson Waldron. In 1996 she took a break from her
employment to travel. On 1 March 1997 she returned home. On
10 March 1997 she resumed work as a solicitor with Blake Dawson
Waldron at 221 St Georges Terrace, Perth.729
914 In March 1997 Ciara was living with her mother and father at the
family home. On Friday 14 March 1997 at about 7.45 am Ms Glennon
dropped Ciara off near a bus stop outside Hungry Jack's in Claremont.
Ciara was catching a bus into the city to work. At about 4.45 pm that
afternoon she spoke to Ciara on the telephone to find out how she was
getting home. She expected to see Ciara at home later that evening. By
the time she went to bed Ciara had not returned home.730
725
ts 2365, 2367; exhibit 15281, exhibit 15282.
726
ts 2366.
727
ts 2366 - 7.
728
ts 2369.
729
ts 2368.
730
ts 2368.
Page 248
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HALL J
915 Ms Glennon woke at approximately 3.00 am and went to Ciara's

room and noted that she had not returned home. The next morning her
husband left the house to sail to Rottnest. At 10.00 am she tried to call
Ciara's friends. One person told her that Ciara and two of her work
colleagues had been dropped off at The Continental Hotel in Claremont
by Neil Fearis, a partner at Blake Dawson Waldron. She spoke to her
husband several times during the morning and he said he would return
from Rottnest. She telephoned the police. An officer attended their home
and took a statement. A second officer arrived later and while he was
there Mr Glennon returned home.731
Neil Fearis – evidence summary

916 In March 1997 Neil Fearis was a senior partner in the law firm Blake
Dawson Waldron. When Ms Glennon started her articled clerkship at the
firm in 1993 he was her principal. The address of the firm was
221 St Georges Terrace, Perth and it occupied the 16th and 17th floors of
the building.732
917 In March 1996 Ms Glennon resigned from her employment with
Blake Dawson Waldron in order to travel. When she returned about
12 months later she recommenced working for the firm and her first day
back was Monday 10 March 1997.733
918 On Friday 14 March 1997 Mr Fearis returned from a trip to

Singapore and arrived at the office at about 3.30 pm. That evening, at
around 9.30 pm, Ms Glennon came to see him in his office on the
17th floor.734
919 At approximately 10.15 pm Mr Fearis went to the boardroom bar

area on the 16th floor and saw Ms Glennon, who was there with Abigail
Davies, Stephen Davies, Michael Young and Sue Sym. He joined the
group in the bar for about 40 minutes and had two drinks. He recalled
that Ms Glennon was drinking wine and that she had had a fair bit to
drink. It was suggested that the group go to The Continental. Mr Fearis
offered to drive them. Mr Davies went home and Mr Fearis drove
Ms Glennon, Ms Davies, Mr Young and Ms Sym to Claremont in his car,
a 1990 Holden Barina sedan.735
731
ts 2368 - 9.
732
ts 2430 - 2.
733
ts 2431 - 2.
734
ts 2432 - 3.
735
ts 2433 - 4.
Page 249
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
920 They arrived in Claremont between 11.30 pm and 11.40 pm and

Mr Fearis parked in the angled car bays on Gugeri Street opposite the
bottle shop that is part of The Continental. The group walked across the
road to The Continental. Before they got to the Bay View Terrace
entrance to the hotel Ms Glennon stopped to talk to some women who
were sitting at a table on the verandah. He estimated that was at about
11.40 pm.736
921 Mr Fearis entered the hotel through the Bay View Terrace entrance.
He did not see Ms Glennon again. Once inside he went up to the bar.
Ms Sym bought him a drink and they stood at the bar. He said that
Ms Davies and Mr Young separated from the group and he was not sure
where they went. He and Ms Sym stood together chatting for about five
minutes. Mr Fearis then made his way to the door of the hotel that faces
Bay View Terrace and Gugeri Street, finished his drink, put the bottle
down on a table, walked out of the door, crossed the road, got into his car
and drove home.737
Abigail Davies (Webster) – evidence summary

922 In 1994 Abigail Davies was employed by Blake Dawson Waldron.
Her name was Abigail Webster at that time. She met Ciara Glennon when
she started work at the firm and they became friends. In April 1996
Ms Glennon took leave of absence from the firm to travel, she returned to
Perth and started back at Blake Dawson Waldron on Monday 10 March
1997.738
923 After Ms Glennon's return she and Ms Davies saw each other every
day. On Friday 14 March 1997 at 5.45 pm Ms Davies went to the
16th floor of the firm's office for drinks. She had earlier arranged to see
Ms Glennon there. There were about 40 people there and initially
Ms Davies was talking with other people. At about 6.30 pm Ms Davies
began talking to Ms Glennon. She described Ms Glennon as relaxed and
happy and drinking champagne. They spent time talking about
Ms Glennon's sister's wedding. They later joined a group of six to 10
people who were standing near the bar. The group included Neal Fearis,
Michael Wood, Mick Young, Sue Sym, Alan Tan, Stephen Davies and
Cathy Cipro.739
736
ts 2435 - 6; exhibit 15496.
737
ts 2435 - 6.
738
ts 2369 - 71.
739
ts 2371 - 3.
Page 250
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
924 The group stayed until a bit before 11.00 pm when Mr Davies went
home. The others discussed going on to The Continental and Mr Fearis
offered to drive them. Ms Davies went down the lift to the basement
carpark and got into Mr Fearis's car with Ms Glennon, Mr Young and
Ms Sym. Mr Fearis drove; Mr Young was in the front passenger seat and
the three women were in the back. Mr Fearis drove them directly to The
Continental and parked across the road near the train station. The group
crossed the road to walk up Gugeri Street and then to Bay View Terrace.
Ms Davies estimated that they arrived at the hotel at about 11.15 pm.740
925 Ms Davies said that Ms Glennon was wearing a work suit; a black
skirt and jacket, a floral shirt and black high heels. She was not wearing
stockings. Her hair was dark brown and curly and she wore it out and
around her face and down her back. She was shown photographs of
Ms Glennon and said that the length and volume of her hair on that
evening was similar to her hair in those photographs. She was also shown
two stills taken from security camera footage from the front of The
Continental (taken at 23.38.01 hours and 23.38.04 hours); these images
show the back of Ms Glennon's hair as she walked into the hotel.741
926 When they arrived at The Continental Mr Fearis, Ms Sym and

Mr Young were ahead of Ms Davies and Ms Glennon. Before they
entered the hotel Ms Davies and Ms Glennon stopped to talk to
Ms Davies' friend Martine O'Neill, who was sitting on the balcony just
before the entrance. They then walked slightly south along Bay View
Terrace and entered the front entrance. They walked in together and
joined hands in order to walk through the crowd and looked for the rest of
their group. Ms Davies was shown footage from The Continental Hotel
starting at 23.06.05 hours. She identified Mr Fearis and Ms Sym walking
into the hotel and then Mr Young; after them Ms Davies and Ms Glennon
walked in together.742
927 Once they were inside Ms Davies and Ms Glennon walked to a point
on the ground floor of the hotel. She met a friend, who she stopped and
talked to. As she talked she saw Ms Glennon walk off in a northerly
direction out of the balcony doors on the ground floor. On her way out to
the balcony Ms Glennon threw her jacket underneath a bench. She said a
male friend of Ms Glennon's picked the jacket up and said 'Don't do that
to your jacket'. She thought that Ms Glennon carried the jacket with her
740
ts 2373 - 4.
741
ts 2374 - 5, 2377, 2389 - 90; exhibit 15632, exhibit 13649.
742
ts 2375, 2378 - 9; exhibit 15475.
Page 251
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
after it was picked up off the floor. She did not recall the type of flooring,
except to say that it was 'sticky'.743
928 When Ms Glennon went out onto the balcony she was out of
Ms Davies' sight. After about 20 minutes she saw Ms Glennon again
when she rejoined the group from Blakes and stood about a metre away
from Ms Davies. She appeared to have been talking to another group of
people on the balcony. They stood in the same group for a short time.
Ms Glennon then said to Ms Davies 'I'm going'. Ms Davies estimated that
she saw Ms Glennon leave at 11.45 pm. Ms Glennon walked east towards
the front of The Continental on Bay View Terrace and Ms Davies lost
sight of her.744
929 Ms Davies did not see Ms Glennon have a drink at The Continental.
Ms Davies had a spirit that she thinks was Southern Comfort. After
Ms Glennon left, the other members of the group stayed at the hotel for a
little while and just before closing time they left The Continental and went
to Club Bayview. She was shown footage taken outside Club Bayview
starting at 00.04.31 hours and identified herself and Ms Sym. She was
also shown a photograph showing herself, Ms Sym and Mr Young at the
front of Club Bayview. The photograph is a still taken from CCTV at
00.08.45 hours and Ms Davies said that this was when they were arriving
at Club Bayview. She was shown footage recorded at Club Bayview at
00.09.29 hours and identified herself in the footage along with Ms Sym,
Mr Young and Kelvin Tan. She said that Club Bayview opened at
midnight and that they stayed there for about an hour before going
home.745
Michael Young – evidence summary

930 A statement made by Michael Young on 17 March 1997 was read in
to evidence. At the time he made the statement Mr Young was employed
as a solicitor with Blake Dawson Waldron. He had known Ciara Glennon
for 10 years and first met her at university. He said that Ms Glennon had
returned from overseas to work at Blake Dawson Waldron on Monday
10 March 1997 and was working in the adjoining office to his. He saw
her in the days following 10 March and they chatted occasionally.746
931 On Friday 13 March 1997 Ms Glennon asked Mr Young to go with

her to buy some novelty gifts for her sister's upcoming hen's night. They
743
ts 2379 - 80, 2391, 2396 - 7.
744
ts 2380, 2382; exhibit 01703.
745
ts 2382, 2384 - 6; exhibit 15467, exhibit 15472, exhibit 15628.
746
ts 2779, 2782.
Page 252
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
then had lunch together and returned to work. While they were having
lunch they talked about a work function that was on that evening.
Ms Glennon told him that she did not intend to stay long because she had
a hair appointment the following morning.747
932 At the end of that day the office held a themed function in the
boardroom. Mr Young recalled that Ms Glennon spoke to him at about
5.15 pm and asked him if he was going. He told her that he had a few
things to complete and would be there shortly. At about 5.45 pm he went
to the boardroom and joined about 35 other people. He drank three to
four cans of Guinness and a couple of Baileys. He recalled that
Ms Glennon was drinking champagne and that she also had some glasses
of white wine.748
933 During the evening various people left the function. Prior to
11.00 pm there were only a few people left and they decided to go to The
Continental Hotel for drinks. Neil Fearis drove Abigail Davies, Sue Sym,
Ms Glennon and Mr Young to the hotel. Mr Fearis parked his car in
Gugeri Street, approximately 50 - 100 m west of the hotel. As he
approached the main doors of The Continental, he saw Ms Webster and
Ms Glennon stop to talk to some women sitting behind the barrier rails at
the hotel. He needed some money so he walked to Bankwest and
withdrew $50 from the ATM. The receipt from the machine gave the
time of withdrawal as 11.37 pm.749
934 When Mr Young returned to the hotel he entered through the main
doors. He recalled that it was not so crowded that you had to fight to get
to the bar. He bought a Southern Comfort and then walked over to
Ms Davies and Ms Sym who were standing to the right side of the bar.
They spoke for a few minutes and then decided to look for Ms Glennon
and Mr Fearis. He did not see Mr Fearis again that night. He saw
Ms Glennon talking to a group of people that she appeared to know and
who appeared to be a little younger than Ms Glennon. At the time he saw
Ms Glennon he was with Ms Sym and Ms Davies. They stood nearby
Ms Glennon who turned and said 'I'm leaving' or 'I've had enough'.
Ms Glennon then turned and he assumed that she walked off.750
935 Mr Young did not see the path that Ms Glennon took to leave the
hotel but he said that moments later he looked to see if she had left. He
747
ts 2780.
748
ts 2780, 2790.
749
ts 2780.
750
ts 2780 - 1; exhibit 01691.
Page 253
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
said that at the time she left Ms Glennon appeared to be normal, apart
from being affected to some degree from the alcohol that she had drunk
that evening. He said that there was nothing abnormal about her
emotionally or in the manner in which she left the hotel.751
936 Mr Young walked to the corner doors of the hotel and looked down
the street to see if he could see Mr Fearis's car. He could not say whether
it was there or not. He then looked down Bay View Terrace looking for
Ms Glennon but could not see her. He went back to Ms Davies and
Ms Sym and then they went to Club Bayview. At Club Bayview they
waited a few minutes in line and then went up the stairs where he met a
few friends. He went into the members' bar and stayed there for about one
hour. While he was at Club Bayview he did not see Ms Glennon.752
Martine O'Neill – evidence summary

937 Martine O'Neill is now a medical specialist who lives in Sydney. In
1997 she was in the second year of medical school. On Friday 14 March
1997 she went out with a group of friends; they went to dinner at a
restaurant on Bay View Terrace, Claremont and then after dinner walked
across the road to The Continental Hotel. She estimates that they arrived
after 9.45 am. She recalled that the group entered The Continental Hotel
from the door on Bay View Terrace.753
938 At some point in the evening, Dr O'Neill recalled that it was about
11.00 pm, the group moved outside and sat in an area on the ground floor
of the hotel on the Bay View Terrace side of the hotel. She drank a
couple of glasses of wine with her dinner; after dinner she drank water or
soft drink. While sitting outside the hotel she saw a friend from
university, Abigail Davies, walking down Bay View Terrace from the
Gugeri Street end. Ms Davies was with another woman who she did not
know; as they walked past they stopped and stood on the other side of the
railing to talk to her. Ms Davies introduced her to Ms Glennon and told
her that she was a work colleague. She had a conversation with
Ms Davies and Ms Glennon stood slightly behind Ms Davies.754
939 Dr O'Neill said she had a clear recollection of thinking that

Ms Glennon had been drinking. She recalled that she was wearing a suit:
black skirt, a white shirt and a black jacket, and that her hair was down
around her face. The conversation with Ms Davies went on for around 10
751
ts 2781 - 2.
752
ts 2782.
753
ts 2398 - 9.
754
ts 2401, 2403 - 4.
Page 254
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
or 15 minutes. Then she saw Ms Davies and Ms Glennon walk into the
entrance of the hotel on Bay View Terrace. She saw Ms Davies later in
the night; she did not see Ms Glennon again. She left the hotel after
midnight.755
Monique O'Neill – evidence summary

940 On the evening of 14 March 1997 Monique O'Neill went to The
Continental Hotel at about 11.00pm and joined her sister, Martine O'Neill,
and some of her sister's friends inside the hotel. At some point in the
evening the group moved outside the hotel and sat on a balcony. She was
sitting on the Bay View Terrace side of the hotel on a little balcony with
rows of tables and chairs and a railing; she was sitting between the hotel
and the railing.756
941 While Ms O'Neill was sitting outside the hotel two women
approached the group that she was sitting with. The women came from
the direction of the train station. She was introduced to the two women as
Ciara and Abigail. She observed the conversation between the group of
women she was sitting with and Ms Glennon and Ms Davies. She
recalled that the conversation between Ms Glennon and Ms Davies and
the group on the balcony lasted about five or 10 minutes.757
942 Ms O'Neill described Ms Glennon as not very tall, with a petite build
and curly hair that was longer than shoulder-length and worn down. She
was wearing a black skirt and jacket with a white top underneath and
black shoes; she had a black satchel with the strap worn across her
body.758
943 About 40 minutes later Ms O'Neill saw Ms Glennon again.759 She

was still seated at the outside table at the time and saw Ms Glennon walk
past her on Bay View Terrace and in the direction of Stirling Highway.
She watched her for about five paces. Ms Glennon appeared to be on her
own. She recalled that at that time Ms Glennon had her jacket tied around
her waist. Ms O'Neill left the hotel before it closed at around midnight.760
755
ts 2404 - 7.
756
ts 2411 - 2; exhibit 15494.
757
ts 2413 - 6
758
ts 2414 - 5.
759
ts 2416.
760
ts 2416 - 7.
Page 255
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James Connor – evidence summary

944 James Connor is now a doctor at Peel Health Campus. In 1997 he
knew Ms Glennon from university.761
945 On Friday 14 March 1997 Dr Connor went to The Continental Hotel
with friends. He arrived at the hotel at about 10.15 pm and entered
through the main doors on Bay View Terrace. Once he was inside he
mainly spent time on the ground floor on the railway side not far from the
corner of Gugeri Street and Bay View Terrace.762
946 Dr Connor saw Ms Glennon at The Continental that evening not long
after 11.30 pm. She was on her own when she joined the group of people
he was with. She was wearing a loose fitting light-coloured top, perhaps
cream coloured, a dark skirt that came past her knees and a dark cardigan.
In cross-examination he agreed that the cardigan could have been a
loose-fitting jacket.763
947 It was very hot so Ms Glennon took the cardigan off. Dr Connor
said that Ms Glennon threw the cardigan onto the ground near a table and
he quickly picked it up because he did not want it to get dirty. He said it
was on the ground for between zero and two seconds. He wrapped the
arms of the cardigan around his waist. About 10 minutes later
Ms Glennon came and took the cardigan off him. He had the impression
that she was leaving because it was closing time and she looked tired.764
948 Dr Connor said that Ms Glennon appeared to him like someone who
had had a long day and it was hot; she had probably had a few drinks but
she was talking fine. He did not see her again after he returned the
cardigan to her. He left the hotel at about midnight with a friend. He was
shown security footage from The Continental starting at 12.12.21 hours.
The footage shows himself and his friend walking out of the hotel. After
they left the hotel they walked down Bay View Terrace to the Astoria,
another café bar further down Bay View Terrace. They walked past
St Quentin Avenue to get there. The walk took five minutes.765
Jonathon Goyder – evidence summary

949 Jonathon Goyder was in Claremont on the evening of Friday
14 March 1997. He was 27 or 28 years old at the time. He had been at a
761
ts 2440.
762
ts 2438 - 40.
763
ts 2440, 2446.
764
ts 2441 - 3.
765
ts 2443 - 6; exhibit 15445.
Page 256
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HALL J
party at a restaurant in Subiaco and arrived at Claremont a couple of

minutes before or after midnight. He was aware of the time because as he
went past The Continental it was just closing; the lights were on and
people were leaving.766
950 Mr Goyder was a passenger in a car with four women, including the
driver. They turned left onto Bay View Terrace so that The Continental
was on their right, there was not a lot of traffic. They parked on the
left-hand side of Bay View Terrace, out the front of the Picnic store. He
got out of the front passenger side of the car. He was waiting for the
women to get ready. He walked across to the other side of the road and
stood out the front of the Commonwealth Bank on the kerb, on the corner
of St Quentin Avenue and Bay View Terrace on the same side of the road
as The Continental. He was waiting there for about five minutes while his
friends got organised. As he was waiting he was looking around,
scanning to see what was happening and looking back towards where the
car was parked.767
951 While Mr Goyder was standing there he noticed a woman standing
by herself slightly to his right on the other side of St Quentin Avenue, on
the Picnic side of the road. She was about 20 - 30 m away from him on a
slight diagonal, the width of the road or intersection, and about 10 m away
to the south from where the car was parked. She was opposite the
St Quentin Avenue intersection. The light in the area was quite dim but
he could clearly make out that she was female and see the contrast of her
dark, wavy, flowing hair against a lighter coloured, slightly fitted top.
Her hair came to just below her shoulders. He said that her hair caught
his eye. She had darker clothing on her bottom half; he could not say if it
was pants or a dress or skirt. He described her as fair skinned, medium
height with a slight build and aged between 25 and 30 years old. She was
carrying a handbag that was tucked under her arm; she may have had a
phone in one hand. He did not see the woman arrive there and he did not
see her leave.768
952 Mr Goyder tired of waiting for his friends and walked to Club
Bayview. The woman was still standing across the road when he walked
off. He walked along the right-hand side of St Quentin Avenue and then
crossed over in a reasonably long cross, down the street to the entrance of
Club Bayview. During the time that Mr Goyder saw the woman he did
766
ts 2498 - 9, 2503.
767
ts 2499 - 500, 2503 - 4.
768
ts 2550 - 7; exhibit 01858.
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HALL J
not see anyone approach her and she did not move. He believed that she
had a phone and looked as if she was waiting.769
953 Mr Goyder said that he had had four or five beers and most likely a
couple of wines at the restaurant between 7.00 pm and when he left. He
was not heavily intoxicated; he was not good enough to drive but not
drunk by any means.770
954 Mr Goyder spoke to police by telephone on 3 April 1997. It was put

to him in cross-examination that he told police at that time that he saw a
woman standing west of Bay View Terrace outside Challenge Bank. He
said that his present recollection is that the woman he saw was on the east
side, not the west side. It was also put to him that he described the
woman as being five foot eight to five foot nine in height. He said that
remains his recollection, that she was medium height, which in his view is
five foot eight to five foot nine.771
Margaret Rogers – evidence summary

955 Margaret Rogers' statement signed on 9 April 1997 was read in to
evidence. At the time the statement was made she lived in Claremont and
was employed as a nurse at Bethesda Hospital.772
956 On Friday 14 March 1997 Ms Rogers arrived home from work at

about 10.00 pm or just after. At about 11.50 pm to 11.55 pm she went to
Fresh Provisions supermarket in Claremont to get some milk. She had a
look around the shop for about five or 10 minutes. She then left the shop
and drove through the laneway that leads to Bay View Terrace; it comes
out between Friendlies Chemist and Liberty Liquors and directly across
the road from the Challenge Bank.773
957 At about 12.08 am Ms Rogers moved slowly out of the laneway onto
the footpath and stopped to let anyone walk past. A woman walked in
front of her car. The area was well-lit: her headlights were on and the
streetlights as well. She described the woman as in her twenties, 25 years
and above, quite short, about five foot one, with a slight build and
below-shoulder curly hair, which was dark but appeared slightly reddish
and a light-colour in the light. The woman was wearing a white
short-sleeved collarless close-fitting top tucked into a black skirt. The
769
ts 2503 - 4, 2506 - 7.
770
ts 2507.
771
ts 2508 - 9.
772
ts 2513, 2515.
773
ts 2514.
Page 258
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HALL J
skirt was straight and above the knee. She stated that the woman was
'ambling along' and appeared relaxed.774
958 Ms Rogers recalled thinking at the time that the woman appeared to
have wide hips. However, after viewing a televised re-enactment of
Ms Glennon's movements, she believes that the woman may have had a
jacket tied around her waist.775
959 Ms Rogers stated that as the woman passed she edged forward in her
car and a man walked across the front of her car travelling about 2 - 3 m
behind the woman and going in the same direction. She described the
man as about 25 years old, six foot to six foot one and a lean build. He
had dark brown short cropped hair at the back and was wearing dark
dress-pants style trousers and a white long-sleeved business shirt. He
appeared to be on an angle as if he was going to cross the road.776
960 Ms Rogers looked across to Astoria Café and noted that there was no
one there. She looked in the direction of the woman and saw that she was
still walking towards Stirling Highway. She saw the man and said he
looked as if he was going to cross the road. She pulled out onto Bay View
Terrace and then turned left into St Quentin Avenue and drove along the
street past Club Bayview. Just outside Club Bayview she saw a man
standing off to the left of the road waving his arms, she drove past him
and then looked into her rear vision mirror and saw the headlights of a
vehicle pull into the kerb. She continued down to Stirling Road and to her
home.777
Patricia Mullan (McNeill) – evidence summary

961 Patricia Mullan was known as Patricia McNeill in 1997. On Friday
14 March 1997 she went out with two friends. They went first to
Gloucester Park at about 9.00 pm and then to the casino at about 9.30 or
10.00 pm. After that they went to Fremantle and arrived there at about
10.30 or 11.00 pm. They had a look at a couple of clubs and went for a
drive around. She had two or three beers in the course of the evening.778
962 At 11.45 pm they left Fremantle to drive home to Maddington. One

of her friends was driving and Ms Mullan was in the front passenger seat.
They drove along Victoria Parade towards the Stirling Bridge and then
774
ts 2514.
775
ts 2514.
776
ts 2514.
777
ts 2515.
778
ts 2515 - 7.
Page 259
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HALL J
onto Stirling Highway towards Perth. As they drove through Mosman

Park at about midnight Ms Mullan pointed out where she used to live to
her friends. They drove down Glyde Street then they went back onto
Stirling Highway.779
963 Ms Mullan recalled that they stopped at the traffic lights at Bay View
Terrace and Stirling Highway. She estimates that it was between
12.00 am and 12.30 am. She noticed two men 'mucking around' across on
the right-hand side of the road at a bus stop. They were on the Perth side
of Bay View Terrace. She recalled that one of them had dark hair and
was pretty good looking. She said that they were pretty well dressed. She
said that it was pretty well lit, there were street lights and traffic lights and
shops either side of the highway.780
964 While they were at the lights Ms Mullan saw a young woman
standing on her own on the corner of Bay View Terrace and Stirling
Highway on the Perth side of the intersection, on the left-hand side as you
are going towards Perth. Ms Mullan described the woman as early to
mid-twenties, Caucasian, medium build, about five foot two to five foot
four, darkish brown hair with lighter streaks, maybe a little longer than
shoulder-length hair with loose curls. The woman was wearing a black
skirt that was a couple of inches above the knee, a white top and a black
jacket on the top and dark shoes. She had a handbag with a chain strap,
which was the size of an A4 notebook. She liked the length of the chain
and commented on it to her friends. The woman was just standing there
looking up and down the road and left and right. She stayed in one
spot.781
965 They were at the traffic lights for a change of the traffic lights; she
thought it could have been a couple of minutes because they had stopped
on the amber light. The woman was on the opposite corner to Ms Mullan
but the same side of the street. They were the first car at the intersection
so there was nothing between Ms Mullan and the woman while she was
observing her, apart from the occasional car through the intersection.
When the light changed to green they moved forward and as they drove
past the woman Ms Mullan yelled at her.782
966 In cross-examination parts of the statement Ms Mullan made on

22 March 1997 were put to her. She agreed that the events were clearer in
779
ts 2517 - 8.
780
ts 2519 - 21.
781
ts 2521 - 3, 2525.
782
ts 2523, 2525 - 6.
Page 260
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HALL J
her mind at that time. In her statement she said that they left Fremantle at
about 12.10 am; she agreed that was probably more accurate than the
evidence she had given in examination-in-chief. She also said in her
statement that they went through Mosman Park at 12.20 am; she accepted
that she was at the Bay View Terrace intersection at closer to 12.30 am
than 12.00 am.783
Ann Kennerly – evidence summary

967 On Friday 14 March 1997 Ann Kennerly was living in Mosman
Park. Her then fiancé, Anthony Carlyon, was working that night at
Stephanies Restaurant in Steves Hotel in Nedlands. Just before midnight
Ms Kennerly picked him up and they left in her car at 12.05 am.784
968 Ms Kennerly drove along Princess Road and turned right onto
Bay View Terrace. At the lights of the intersection with Stirling Highway
she was in the left-hand lane. She estimated that she passed through that
intersection at about 12.15 am.785
969 As Ms Kennerly turned onto Stirling Highway she saw a woman
halfway across the right-hand lane of the road heading in the direction of
the median strip in the middle of Stirling Highway. She had a side view
of the woman. She first saw her as she turned left, there is a bit of an
upslope at the intersection and a building on the corner. There were no
other cars on the same side of the intersection.786
970 Ms Kennerly described the woman as about five foot two or three,
medium build and wearing dark clothes: a top, a jacket and a skirt and
dark coloured shoes. She had a little bit longer than shoulder-length, light
brown hair with a bit of a curl to it. She was carrying a dark coloured,
medium or large carry bag on her right shoulder. She was Caucasian and
in her mid-twenties. She saw the woman for a few seconds before she
drove past her and then she looked into her rear view mirror at her as well.
She probably looked at the woman for 10 or 12 seconds in total.787
971 When Ms Kennerly looked back in her rear-view mirror she saw the
woman go back to the same side of the road as the Thai restaurant on the
left-hand side of the road, a bit further towards the corner. She described
783
ts 2527 - 9.
784
ts 2559 - 60.
785
ts 2560, 2565.
786
ts 2561, 2565.
787
ts 2561 - 2.
Page 261
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HALL J
the woman as a little unsteady on her feet, apparently affected by

alcohol.788
Caroline Ellison – evidence summary

972 In March 1997 Caroline Ellison was living in Claremont with her
husband.789
973 On Friday 14 March 1997 Ms Ellison's husband had been out and he
called her at 11.00 pm to come and pick him up. She picked him up from
the river end of Bay View Terrace and drove him home, returning at about
11.15 or 11.20 pm.790
974 Later that evening Mr and Ms Ellison received a call from friends
who were in Peppermint Grove and who had just arrived in Perth after
driving from Carnarvon. Mr and Ms Ellison left their home at
approximately 11.45 am; Ms Ellison was driving and her husband was in
the front passenger seat. She drove down her street, George Avenue, and
turned right onto Princess Road heading towards Bay View Terrace. She
then turned right into Bay View Terrace going up to the lights at Stirling
Highway and indicated to turn left onto Stirling Highway. The time was
about midnight. She recalled that it was a very clear summer evening and
there was no traffic. She was the first car at the intersection and there
were no cars in front of her or next to her or behind her. The only people
that she saw were a young man and a young woman on the median
strip.791
975 As Ms Ellison was turning left onto Stirling Highway, a young man
crossed in front of her so she stopped her vehicle to let him cross. He
walked across Stirling Highway and down Bay View Terrace towards
Council House and the park. She described him as fair-haired and clean
cut with a short neat hairstyle. He was around the same age as the
woman, possibly younger. He was around five foot eight with a slight or
slender build.792
976 The woman stayed on the median strip waiting for Ms Ellison to
pass. She described the woman as approximately five foot five or five
foot four, with wavy brown shoulder-length hair. The woman was
dressed smartly in a dark skirt suit and she had a white collarless shirt
788
ts 2563.
789
ts 2531.
790
ts 2532.
791
ts 2533, 2535.
792
ts 2533, 2535.
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HALL J
underneath. She had a slender build and was in her mid to late twenties.
She recalled that the woman was wearing a necklace. She looked at the
woman's eyes as she passed because she was quite close; she said it did
look like the woman had been drinking but she was not hugely
intoxicated.793
977 Ms Ellison was fearful that the woman was also going to walk in
front of her car so she had a good look at her. She also looked in the rear
vision mirror to see that the woman crossed over to where a shop called
Richard's Electrical was on Stirling Highway. She saw that the woman
was walking up Stirling Highway towards Peppermint Grove and
Mosman Park.794
Lynette Steenholdt – evidence summary

978 In 1997 Lynette Steenholdt was working as a merchandising
representative for a pharmaceutical company. At the time she was living
on Fairlight Street, Mosman Park.795
979 On 14 March 1997 Ms Steenholdt was at the Captain Stirling Hotel
on Stirling Highway, Nedlands where she attended a party. A friend came
to pick her up and take her home at around 12.20 am. She had not been
drinking alcohol. They took what she described as the normal route along
Stirling Highway, through Claremont to Mosman Park. They did not have
to stop at the traffic lights at Bay View Terrace.796
980 Ms Steenholdt said that she saw five or six people standing on the
left side of the road just past the Assemblies of God Church. There was a
Retravision shop on the corner, a few shops and then the church. She also
saw a couple of vehicles parked in front of the Assemblies of God
Church.797
981 With some prompting Ms Steenholdt said that she saw a woman on
her own standing on the corner of Stirling Highway outside Retravision
holding up her hand. It appeared that the woman was trying to hail a taxi.
She described the woman as having longish hair a little below her
shoulders, dressed in a work suit (which she thought was grey), aged
about 20 or 25, a couple of inches taller than Ms Steenholdt, who is five
foot two, with a normal build, carrying a bag, no stockings and wearing
793
ts 2533 - 4, 2539 - 40.
794
ts 2534 - 5.
795
ts 2542 - 3.
796
ts 2542 - 4.
797
ts 2547 - 50.
Page 263
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HALL J
shoes with a 5 or 6 cm heel. She said that the woman was Ciara Glennon,
but there was no suggestion that she knew Ms Glennon and this appeared
to be simply a conclusion that she had reached.798
982 Ms Steenholdt was asked in cross-examination about the time that
she saw the woman. She said that it was about five minutes after she left
the Captain Stirling Hotel and that she left the hotel at 12.20 am. She said
it could not have been after 12.30 am.799
983 Ms Steenholdt gave her evidence in a very hesitant manner. There

were occasions when she clearly did not understand the question put to
her. She appeared at times to be confused and had difficulty explaining
what she wished to say. This left me with some doubt as to the reliability
of her recollection.
Angela Rainbow – evidence summary

984 On Friday 14 March 1997 Angela Rainbow went out with her
boyfriend, Neil Kaplan, and his friend to Steves Hotel in Nedlands. They
arrived there at 11.00 pm and stayed until closing time. She drank water
while she was there. She drove Mr Kaplan home to his house in
Archdeacon Street, Nedlands. She parked in the driveway and they had a
chat for about three to five minutes. She then drove home to Marine
Parade, Cottesloe.800
985 Ms Rainbow drove along Princess Road and then turned right at the
end of Princess Road into the street that becomes Bay View Terrace.
When she arrived at the intersection of Bay View Terrace and Stirling
Highway the traffic lights were red so she had to stop. She was the first
car at the lights. She was there for about 30 seconds. There were a few
people standing outside a coffee shop on the north eastern corner of the
Bay View Terrace and Stirling Highway intersection.801
986 When the lights turned green Ms Rainbow turned left into Stirling
Highway. She noticed a couple who were on the footpath out the front of
the Taste of Thai restaurant and were walking towards where she was
driving. She said one person had an arm around the other and they were
talking together. She recalled that the lights were on in the restaurant.
798
ts 2553 - 6.
799
ts 2558.
800
ts 2570 - 1.
801
ts 2572 - 3, 2580; exhibit 15640.
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She was driving quite slowly because she had just taken off from the
traffic lights.802
987 As Ms Rainbow travelled along Stirling Highway in the left lane she
saw a woman walking on the footpath on the left-hand side of the road.
The woman was facing away from her and was walking in a westerly
direction towards Mosman Park. The woman was about 2 m, or 1.5 m,
away from her. She described the woman as wearing a black skirt above
the knee, a fitted black jacket and high heel shoes. She saw a thick black
strap going across her back. She estimated that the woman was in her
mid-twenties to 30, she was not particularly tall, with a petite build. She
had curly brown hair that came down to the middle of her back. She
observed her for about five or seven seconds. She said that the woman
was walking at a brisk pace, in a straight line. After she drove past the
woman she did not look back. When Ms Rainbow saw her she was
standing near quite a high brick wall with a hibiscus jutting out over the
top.803
Phetchara Mombao – evidence summary

988 A statement made by Phetchara Mombao on 15 April 1997 was read
in to evidence. On that date she was employed as a cook at the Taste of
Thai restaurant, which was situated at 324 Stirling Highway,
Claremont.804
989 On Friday 14 March 1997 Ms Mombao arrived at work with her
husband, Nantharat Mombao, at about midday. She stopped cooking at
about 10.00 pm that night and then cleaned up the kitchen. She, along
with Mr Mombao and three others, left the restaurant at about 12.10 am to
go home. She went out of the back door of the restaurant that leads to the
carpark. She got into the front passenger seat of a car driven by Aramsri
Lennie, who was driving Ms Mombao and her husband. The other two
restaurant employees got into another car. Ms Lennie drove out of the
carpark into the laneway that runs behind the restaurant and then drove
onto Bay View Terrace.805
990 When they got to the intersection of Bay View Terrace and Stirling
Highway they stopped at a red light. Ms Mombao looked at her watch
and noticed that it was 12.15 am. They were in the left-hand lane to turn
left into Stirling Highway. The car with the other employees was in the
802
ts 2573 - 4, 2579.
803
ts 2574 - 8; exhibit 01779.
804
ts 2567, 2569.
805
ts 2567 - 8.
Page 265
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HALL J
lane next to them to continue straight up Bay View Terrace. As the light
turned green they slowly turned into Stirling Highway and as they did so
Ms Mombao looked towards the restaurant; she always looks to check that
all the lights are off and the doors are secure. Ms Lennie pointed out that
there was a woman standing outside the front of the computer store near
the restaurant. Ms Mombao turned to her left and saw a woman standing
near a sign, not more than 5 m away.806
991 Ms Mombao described the woman as 24 to 25 years of age, a little

bit taller than Ms Mombao (who is 150 cm); she was slim with a good
figure, tanned skin and permed, shoulder-length dark hair that was uneven
in colour, some dark and some light. She was wearing a tight white top
with a low-cut wide neck and short sleeves and a short black skirt that was
above the knee by about 8 cm. The woman had her arms folded across
her chest and something black tied around her waist; Ms Mombao could
see a large knot that hung just below her waist. The streetlights were on,
the lighting was good and the woman was clearly visible. There was no
one else near her.807
992 Ms Mombao looked towards the restaurant and saw three people that
were walking past the restaurant towards Bay View Terrace; they were
slightly separated with a man and a woman together and another man just
behind them. She then looked towards Hungry Jack's and noticed a man
running across the street towards the church. He was about 30 years old,
of slim build and about 182 cm tall. He was wearing a black business suit
and he did not have much hair, which was slicked back.808
Troy Bond – evidence summary

993 In March 1997 Troy Bond was aged 22 years old and living in Balga.
On Friday 14 March 1997 he went to The Continental Hotel with his
friends Frank McElroy and Brandon Gray. He had been there three or
four times before, but this was the first time with Mr McElroy and
Mr Gray. Mr Gray drove to the hotel in a silver, four-door Hyundai.
They arrived in Claremont at approximately 8.30 pm to 9.30 pm, parked
the vehicle and walked to The Continental Hotel.809
994 Mr Bond was shown security footage from inside The Continental
Hotel and recognised himself, Mr Gray and Mr McElroy. They stayed
until closing time and did not talk to anyone else while they were there.
806
ts 2568.
807
ts 2568 - 9.
808
ts 2568 - 9.
809
ts 2635 - 6.
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While he was at The Continental Hotel he was drinking beer; he had about
six or seven middies of full-strength beer and felt affected by alcohol.
Mr Gray was also affected by alcohol and he described Mr McElroy as
intoxicated. He said he thought he was the least intoxicated of the three of
them. None of them was in a fit state to drive and they later caught a taxi
home.810
995 After they left The Continental Hotel they felt hungry and walked to
Hungry Jack's to get something to eat. He estimated that it took
10 minutes to walk there. He was also shown still photographs and
security footage from Club Bayview and recognised Mr Gray,
Mr McElroy and himself walking past on the footpath on St Quentin
Avenue. He estimated that they were in Hungry Jack's for 10 minutes
while they ordered and obtained their food. He and his friends then went
outside and ate their burgers sitting at a bus stop on Stirling Highway. 811
996 They were sitting at the bus stop facing towards Stirling Highway
with Hungry Jack's behind them. Mr Bond saw a woman walking alone
in the direction of Fremantle up Stirling Highway on the other side of the
road. When he first saw her she was to his left. He believed that she was
on the road close to the footpath. He described her as five foot six, shorter
than him and he is almost 5 foot 10, she was between 20 and 30, with a
slim build, and was Caucasian. She was wearing a white blouse.812
997 As the woman was walking along Mr Gray said to her 'You are
stupid for hitchhiking'. Mr Bond told Mr Gray to be quiet and let it go.
The woman stuck her finger up at the three of them and kept walking. He
was asked if he saw the woman hitchhiking; he said that he saw the
woman walking, he did not see her hitchhiking. The woman continued to
walk in the direction of Fremantle. She was about 5 m away from him.
After the exchange he continued to eat his burger.813
998 A little bit later Mr Bond looked up Stirling Highway towards
Fremantle and saw someone leaning over a stopped car. He said 'I saw
her – well someone – leaning over a car talking to someone'. This was on
the other side of the road. When he was asked if he could still see the
woman he had seen walking in front of the bus stop he said 'Well, there
was – there was no one else on the street, so it must have been her'. He
said that the woman he could see near the car had a white blouse on. She
810
ts 2631, 2636 - 9, 2640, 2642, 2659; exhibit 01826, exhibit 15452.
811
ts 2640, 2643 - 5; exhibit 01826.
812
ts 2645 - 8, 2651.
813
ts 2649 - 50.
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HALL J
was on the left-hand side of the car. The distance from the bus stop to
where he saw the woman talking to someone in a car was between
100 and 150 m. It was before the next set of traffic lights to the right.814
999 Mr Bond said that the car was a white VS Holden Commodore
station wagon that was in good condition. The car had stopped and he
saw the red tail lights.815
1000 Mr Bond estimated that he watched the person leaning over into the
car apparently talking for about a minute. There was a big lamp post light
in the area; the vehicle was on the other side of it heading towards
Fremantle. Other than the woman that he saw walking past the bus stop
and the person he saw talking to someone in the car he did not see anyone
else in the area. He did not see what happened to the car because they left
not long after that. He estimated that they stayed at the bus stop for five
minutes finishing their burgers and then left. They were at the bus stop
for about 20 minutes in total. They then walked along Stirling Highway
towards Perth for about 40 minutes before they got a taxi.816
Brandon Gray – evidence summary

1001 In March 1997 Brandon Gray was 23 years old and was living in
Balga. On Friday 14 March 1997 he went to The Continental Hotel with
two friends, Troy Bond and Frank McElroy. He drove them to Claremont
in his Hyundai Excel vehicle. He parked in the Coles carpark and walked
to The Continental Hotel.817
1002 Mr Gray recalled that they arrived at around 9.30 or 10.00 pm and
stayed until closing time, around midnight, when the crowds started to
disperse. He drank beer and bourbon and coke while he was there; he
estimated that he had eight drinks. He was not able to drive home and left
his car in the Coles carpark that night.818
1003 After leaving The Continental Hotel they were hungry and walked to
Hungry Jack's. They left the hotel and walked towards Stirling Highway,
went past Club Bayview and then left down a laneway that led to Hungry
Jack's. He recalled that Hungry Jack's was quite busy and very brightly
lit, so after they got their food they went outside to eat it. He estimated
that it took no more than 10 minutes for them to walk into Hungry Jack's,
814
ts 2650 - 3.
815
ts 2653 - 5.
816
ts 2657 - 9.
817
ts 2662 - 4.
818
ts 2662 - 5.
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order their food, receive their food and leave. They went to a bus stop
that was directly in front of Hungry Jack's. They sat down at the bus stop
to eat.819
1004 Mr Gray said that there were no other people around and it was a lot
darker than at the restaurant. There was minimal or sporadic traffic. He
thought that he was sitting to the left with Mr Bond and Mr McElroy to
his right. He was facing Stirling Highway. He estimated that it was about
12.30 am.820
1005 While Mr Gray was sitting at the bus stop he saw a woman walking
on the opposite side of the road. She was on the road or the footpath. His
view was partly obscured by a partition at the bus stop. The woman came
into his vision on an angle from the left-hand side. He thought there
might have been a computer store near where he saw her. The Taste of
Thai restaurant was directly opposite where he was seated. She appeared
to be putting on a jacket or a handbag; 'sort of neatening herself up'. She
was walking in the direction of Fremantle and had her arm extended. He
recognised the gesture as a sign of hitchhiking. She was directly in front
of where he was sitting and there was nothing between them impeding his
view other than 'the odd random car'. He made a comment towards the
woman and she gestured to him in a backhanded waving motion. He said
she 'sort of like brushed it off' and kept walking.821
1006 Mr Gray described the woman as mid to late twenties, not quite
average height, average build, fair skin and dark wavy hair. She was
wearing a dark coloured skirt to her knees and a matching jacket, with a
white top and he thought she had a dark coloured handbag. The skirt and
jacket were navy blue to black. She also had dark coloured shoes. He
said that she was walking like she was possibly intoxicated.822
1007 Mr Gray then noticed a vehicle on Stirling Highway also heading

towards Fremantle. It was also on the opposite side of the road to him.
The vehicle was moving but at a slow pace. He noticed the vehicle first
when it was directly opposite him; it was going a lot slower than the speed
limit. The vehicle caught his attention because at the time he was
interested in Commodores. Mr Gray said that the vehicle was a white
Holden Commodore station wagon. It was quite current possibly a VR or
VS model Commodore. He said that it had colour-coded bumpers. The
819
ts 2665 - 6.
820
ts 2667.
821
ts 2667 - 9; exhibit 08115.
822
ts 2669 - 71.
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HALL J
bumpers are at the front and the back of the car at the bottom of the
vehicle, in the vicinity of where the number plate is mounted, under and
around the tail lights. He said that previous models (for example, the VN)
had a grey bumper and this vehicle had a white bumper so it did not seem
like the basic model to him.823
1008 In cross-examination Mr Gray was asked about the colour-coded

bumpers. He said that the 'upmarket version' of the VP model (the
Berlina) quite possibly had colour-coded bumpers. He was not sure
whether all VR and VS models had colour-coded bumpers or only some
models. He did not know about the VT model; that model came a bit later
and he had stopped paying attention. He said he did not think that this car
was a VN model; it was highly unlikely to be a VP model, it could
possibly have been a VR and was quite likely a VS. It could have been a
series I or series II of either of those models.824
1009 Mr Gray also observed that the hubcaps were fluted; they had a
teardrop pattern in them. He said he would only expect to see that style of
hubcap on a Commodore. He said that as he observed the hubcaps the
vehicle was moving and there was an optical illusion so that the hubcap
had the appearance of being stationary as the wheel turned. He was
shown a photograph of a hubcap with the teardrop or fluting shape.825 He
said that the hubcaps in the exhibit are very close to, if not identical to, the
hubcaps on the vehicle he saw.826
1010 Mr Gray said he could not see inside the vehicle, so he would say
that the windows were tinted. He was not able to see who was driving the
car or how many people were in it.827
1011 Mr Gray said that apart from badges (a Holden Commodore badge or
something like that) that the vehicle was a plain white, late model, run of
the mill Commodore station wagon. He could not recall seeing any pin
striping. He saw no taxi markings. He said that 'there was nothing that
caught my eye other than it was a late model white Commodore station
wagon'.828
1012 Mr Gray said when he first saw the vehicle it was moving slowly and
the woman that he first saw was in front of the vehicle, further down
823
ts 2672 - 3.
824
ts 2681.
825
Exhibit 01830.
826
ts 2674 - 5.
827
ts 2678.
828
ts 2678 - 9.
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HALL J
Stirling Highway heading towards Fremantle. After the vehicle had

passed a brake light caught his eye at about the same place as where the
woman would have been. He said that the brake light was in the centre of
the rear window and was a bright and intense light. He said that the
vehicle slowed down; he did not recall seeing it stop. He could not see
the woman at that point.829
1013 After that Mr Gray did not give the vehicle any further attention. He
did not recall it driving back past them and believed that it continued
towards Fremantle. The last time he saw the woman she was in the
vicinity of where he last saw the car. He estimated that the distance from
where he was sitting to where he saw the brake lights of the car was
probably 200 - 300 m.830
Craig Porritt – evidence summary

1014 Craig Porritt has worked with General Motors Holden since 1996.
He gave evidence that principally dealt with the interior trim of Holden
vehicles; that is summarised later in the section of these reasons dealing
with the fibre evidence. However, he also gave some evidence regarding
the bumpers of Holden vehicles.831
1015 Mr Porritt said it was standard for a VS Holden Commodore station

wagon to have bumpers that were painted the same colour as the body of
the vehicle. He pointed out the location of the bumpers and that at the
back the bumper extended toward the wheel. He said that the colour
applied to the bumpers at both the rear and front of the vehicle, which
were constructed of plastic.832
1016 The models that immediately preceded the VS were the VN, VP and
VR. The VN had grey plastic polypropylene fascia on the bumpers of the
lower series vehicles. However, the medium level vehicles had a different
paint treatment that looked similar to the photograph he was shown (of a
VS model). The VP had a painted bumper but with a different moulding
to the VS. The VR had bumpers that were painted in the vehicle body
colour.833
829
ts 2676 - 7.
830
ts 2677, 2680.
831
ts 7843 - 4.
832
ts 7844.
833
ts 7844.
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Susan Robinson (Hurst) – evidence summary

1017 In 1997 Susan Robinson's last name was Hurst. On Friday 14 March
1997 she and her husband, William Hurst, had been to see a movie in
Perth. The movie finished at about 11.20 or 11.30 pm. After the movie
they walked back to their vehicle which was parked a 10 or 15 minute
walk away.834
1018 Mr Hurst drove back towards Fremantle along Stirling Highway. It

took them about 20 minutes to reach Claremont. Ms Robinson observed
that there were a lot of people in the area. She was in the passenger seat
of the car. They were travelling in the left-hand lane of Stirling Highway
towards Fremantle. After they left the lights at the intersection of
Bay View Terrace and Stirling Highway she saw a light-coloured sedan
parked on the road. Her husband had to move into the right-hand lane to
go around it. They were driving quite slowly at the time because they had
stopped at the traffic lights and were accelerating away from them. As
they drew level with the car she saw a woman talking to someone in the
vehicle.835
1019 The person nearest to Ms Robinson was the driver; he was about a
metre or two away from her at the closest point. He was sitting in the
driver's seat. Ms Robinson described him as having light brown or
brownish hair that went past his ears, fair skin and was in his twenties or
maybe early thirties. She observed him for a few seconds from side-on
and from the front as well. She could see that the man was talking to the
woman. She said that she did not think that there was light on in the
vehicle, but that there must have been some light because she saw the man
clearly. She could not tell if the light was coming from the inside of the
car or from a street light. She observed the man for a few seconds. She
did not see anyone else in the car.836
1020 Ms Robinson described the woman as being in her early twenties
with fair skin, a slight build and long fair hair just past her shoulders. She
was about the same height as Ms Robinson (who is five foot four and a
half). The woman was wearing a light-coloured blouse and a dark, knee
length skirt and was carrying a dark coloured shoulder bag. She was on
the footpath and leaning towards the vehicle talking, more towards the
back door than the front door. Ms Robinson observed the woman for less
than a minute. Her view of the woman was at first obstructed by the car
834
ts 2585.
835
ts 2588, 2595.
836
ts 2589 - 90, 2593, 2595.
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and she could see the man better; but as she came past the woman came
into view beyond the car. She saw her in the front windows of the car and
also turned back to see her talking to the man in the car. She was about
3 m away from the woman.837
1021 They continued driving home and arrived about 20 minutes later;
Ms Robinson thought it was about 12.45 am when they got home.838
1022 On 10 April 1997 Ms Robinson spoke to police and provided a

description of the man to a sketch artist. She was shown two sketches
(front view and right profile) and said that they accorded with her
recollection of what the man looked like; she said that the one on the left
(the right profile) looks more like him because of the squarer chin.839 The
sketches do not bear any noticeable similarity to the accused.
Lisa Mighall – evidence summary

1023 A statement signed by Lisa Mighall on 1 May 1997 was read in to
evidence. At that time she lived in Mosman Park.840
1024 On Friday 14 March 1997 Ms Mighall was at home with her
husband, Ian Stanford, and his work friend Aaron Yates. Mr Stanford and
Mr Yates were having a few drinks and watching football on television.
After the football finished they listened to CDs for about 15 or
20 minutes. Mr Yates and Mr Stanford were drinking beer and had earlier
shared a bottle of Scotch while they watched the football. Ms Mighall did
not consume any alcohol that night. She recalled that she was tired and
that at about 11.45 pm she told Mr Yates that it was time for him to
leave.841
1025 Ms Mighall drove Mr Yates home. She was driving a white Barina
Swing which they had while their vehicle was being repaired.
Mr Stanford sat in the front passenger seat of the vehicle and Mr Yates sat
in the back. She drove down Manning Street and onto Bay View Terrace
which continues to the Esplanade. She then turned into Osborne Parade
and then onto Stirling Highway heading towards Perth. For most of the
journey she was in the left hand lane.842
837
ts 2590 - 2, 2596.
838
ts 2592.
839
ts 2592 - 3; exhibit 01806.
840
ts 2582, 2584.
841
ts 2582.
842
ts 2582 - 3.
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1026 While she was driving through Claremont near the Spur Steakhouse
Ms Mighall saw a white vehicle that looked similar to a Commodore; she
was not sure if it was a station wagon or a ute. The car was stationary
facing Mosman Park in the kerbside lane between the Claremont Baptist
Church and Freshwater Parade. The vehicle was positioned where a small
wall runs parallel with Stirling Highway and meets with a larger brick
wall near a lamp post. Directly behind the vehicle was a Claremont
Baptist Church sign. The front of the vehicle looked similar to a
Commodore; it had big headlights. It looked in good condition and
seemed to be a late model.843
1027 As they drove past the vehicle Ms Mighall saw a woman. She had a
slim build and was wearing a black coloured jacket with something white
underneath. She recalled seeing long hair. The woman was bent over as
though she was getting into the car. She does not recall seeing the door
open but she does recall that the woman was near the middle of the car on
the passenger side. Ms Mighall recalled looking at the clock in the car
when she saw the woman and that it was between midnight and 12.30 am.
She also recalled seeing a man and a woman standing on the southern side
of Stirling Highway outside the Retravision store.844
1028 Ms Mighall dropped Mr Yates at home and then she and Mr Stanford
drove back home.845
Ian Stanford – evidence summary

1029 Ian Stanford is employed as a parts interpreter for a Ford dealership.
In March 1997 he was married to Lisa Stanford (Mighall) and lived in
Mosman Park.846
1030 On Friday 14 March 1997 Mr Stanford was at home with his wife
and his friend Aaron Yates. They were watching football on television,
drinking beer and socialising. He recalled that he and Mr Yates started
drinking at about 5.00 or 6.00 pm. Over the course of the evening he
estimated that he drank seven cans of full-strength beer and ate some
potato chips. His wife was not drinking alcohol that evening.847
1031 Mr Stanford recalled looking at the clock at some stage and seeing
that it was 11.30 pm. He thought that they left the house about 20 minutes
843
ts 2583.
844
ts 2583.
845
ts 2583 - 4.
846
ts 2626 - 7.
847
ts 2627.
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later to take Mr Yates home to his house in Balga. His wife was driving a
white Barina with him in the passenger seat and Mr Yates in the back.848
1032 Mr Stanford recalled that they drove down Manning Street and then
onto Stirling Highway. They were driving in the left lane (the footpath
side) of Stirling Highway heading in the direction of Perth. About
10 minutes after they left home they passed through Claremont and he
saw a car parked across the road from Hungry Jack's, a little bit towards
Perth but after the lights at Bay View Terrace. It was parked on the
opposite side of the road facing in the Fremantle direction, they were
driving towards it. It had its headlights on.849
1033 Mr Stanford described the car as a white Ford Falcon FX, maybe
XG, ute with a canopy on the back, not a panel van. He said it was in
reasonable condition and there was no writing on the side of it. It had
standard steel, not mag, wheels and the number plates were yellow and
black. He was able to see the front and the right-hand side of the vehicle.
Mr Stanford is a Ford enthusiast and works for a Ford dealership so he is
confident about the make of the vehicle and that it was a ute with a
canopy. He said he observed the vehicle for about 20 - 25 seconds from
the front to the back.850
1034 As they were driving past Mr Stanford did not see anyone in the
front of the car. He recalled that as they came past the back of the car the
tailgate was up and there was a person holding it up. He recalled that a
woman with a white shirt and black skirt was in the process of getting in
the back. The woman had reasonably long hair that came to just below
the shoulder and white skin. He looked back at her over his shoulder as
they went past. He estimated that he did not observe the woman for any
longer than 10 seconds. The car was travelling at about 50 km per hour at
the time and the area was quite well lit.851
1035 Mr Stanford recalled saying to his wife 'After what's gone on in this
area, I can't understand why someone would do that'. He said that the
man was on the footpath at the rear of the vehicle holding up the tailgate
glass on the canopy. His view of the man was from the back.852 When
asked about the man's height he said that he was 'head height to the
canopy of the car'. He could not make out any facial features.
848
ts 2627 - 8.
849
ts 2628 - 9, 2632.
850
ts 2628 - 9, 2632, 2634 - 5.
851
ts 2629 - 31.
852
ts 2631.
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1036 About 45 minutes later they reached Mr Yates's house. Mr Stanford

and his wife then drove straight home.853
Karen Mabbott – evidence summary

1037 As at March 1997 Karen Mabbott was working for a professor of
urology at the Urological Research Centre at QE II and lived in
Kinross.854
1038 On the evening of Friday 14 March 1997 Ms Mabbott went to a

progressive dinner in Mosman Park. The dinner started at around
6.00 pm. At 11.46 pm she telephoned her husband to tell him that she
was coming home. Her boss asked her if she would mind dropping him at
his home, which was a couple of minutes' drive from where the last part of
the dinner was. She dropped her boss off at about 12.05 am and was then
in the vehicle by herself. She said that she came out on Bay View Terrace
where it connects with Stirling Highway and travelled towards the city.
She was asked about whether she recalled the street she came out on was
Bay View Terrace and said that she had a pretty bad sense of direction
with roads and did not recall what road it was that she took when she first
turned right onto Stirling Highway. She said it was towards Mosman Park
rather than Cottesloe or Claremont.855
1039 Ms Mabbott recalled that it was fairly light and that the visibility was
good. She agreed in cross-examination when defence counsel suggested
that she was tired and keen to get home. She does not drink alcohol and
described herself as hyper-vigilant about what was going on around her.
Her husband was a police officer at the time so she was adhering to the
speed limit on Stirling Highway.856
1040 After Ms Mabbott had travelled along Stirling Highway for five to
seven minutes she saw a young woman walking along the footpath near
Christ Church Grammar School. She was on the same side of the road
that Ms Mabbott was travelling and she was walking towards Mosman
Park. She estimates that the time would have been about 12.15 or
12.20 am. When the woman first drew Ms Mabbott's attention she was
about 50 or 60 m away. The woman did not look like she was in a
particular hurry, just like she was trying to get home.857
853
ts 2631.
854
ts 2475.
855
ts 2475 - 6, 2483. Although not clarified in evidence, it should be noted that there are two distinct streets
called Bay View Terrace – one that passes through Claremont and one in Mosman Park.
856
ts 2476, 2485 - 6.
857
ts 2476 - 9, 2483.
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1041 Ms Mabbott described the woman as about five foot two tall, with
shoulder-length, fairly light toned curly hair and wearing a white t-shirt
top, a black jacket and a black skirt. The woman was of a slim to medium
build and Ms Mabbott estimated that the woman was in her
mid-twenties.858
1042 As Ms Mabbott went past the intersection of Stirling Highway and

Dean Street she noticed a man standing at the back of a light-coloured car.
The car was pointing away from Stirling Highway facing up Dean Street
on the left-hand side of the road. The man was standing behind the
vehicle closer to Stirling Highway. She described the man as close to six
foot tall with dark hair. He was wearing a t-shirt type top and a pair of
trousers. He did not have glasses on and had olive skin and a medium
build. His hair was cut in a short back and sides style. He was standing
staring out at the roadway and facing straight onto where she was driving
past.859
1043 Ms Mabbott said that the vehicle was about 40 m away from the
intersection. When she was asked in cross-examination about this estimate
of distance she said that it was possible that the car was much closer to
Stirling Highway and that her sense of distance is not good.860
1044 Ms Mabbott continued to drive along Stirling Highway and then
slowed down and stopped at the lights at the intersection with Stirling
Road because the lights had turned red. She arrived home at close to
1.00 am.861
1045 Ms Mabbott first made a handwritten statement to police on 22 April
1997 and then signed the typed version on 29 April 1997. She made these
statements after Ms Glennon's body had been found and a re-enactment of
Ms Glennon's movements had been shown on television. In the statement
of 29 April 1997 she said that when she first saw the woman she was
about 50 - 60 m in front of her and that it appeared to her as if she had just
crossed some type of roadway or driveway because of the way that she
was walking. There is no mention in her first two statements that there
was a man next to the vehicle. The statement says 'The lights weren't on.
I didn't see anyone in the vehicle and I can't remember the make of the
car.' When this was put to her she said in her evidence that she told police
858
ts 2477.
859
ts 2479 - 81.
860
ts 2479, 2487.
861
ts 2481.
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that there was someone standing behind the car and they left that out of
the statement.862
1046 Ms Mabbott recalled that she was spoken to by police again about
18 months later and shown a photoboard; she told police that she did not
recognise any of the faces. However she told police that there was a male
person standing outside the vehicle towards the rear. The description that
she gave at that time was that the person was of slim to medium build,
about 175 cm tall and that the vehicle was a sedan. In re-examination she
said that she was certain about what the man looked like. She said that
she may have got the height wrong in her later description to police, but it
was the general features and the face that she could remember. 863 When
she was shown the photoboard she did not recognise the person that she
had seen. She said the man was relatively tall and relatively slim to
medium build with dark Mediterranean looks.864
Conclusions – Ciara Glennon's movements and the car that took her
1047 I accept that Ms Glennon left The Continental Hotel some time
shortly before midnight and walked along Bay View Terrace to Stirling
Highway. She then crossed the road, turned right and continued to walk
along Stirling Highway in the direction of Fremantle. The witnesses who
gave evidence as to her movements to this point are largely consistent as
to their description of the woman that they saw and I accept that their
evidence is reliable (with the exceptions I will shortly mention). The
timing is also consistent with the time Ms Glennon is known to have left
The Continental Hotel. Although the times extend from just after
midnight to about 12.30 am this can be accounted for both by the fact that
the witnesses are often giving estimates and that some of the evidence
suggests that Ms Glennon lingered at the Bay View Terrace and Stirling
Highway intersection looking for a taxi.
1048 The defence point to some suggested weaknesses or inconsistencies
in the evidence. It is suggested that Mr Goyder's description is very
general and is inconsistent with Ms Glennon insofar as he says that the
woman he saw was of average height. These factors do not cause me to
doubt that the woman seen by Mr Goyder was Ms Glennon. His
description is otherwise accurate and assessments of height can be
subjective. Furthermore, his evidence should not be viewed in isolation.
When seen in the context of other evidence it is probable that the woman
862
ts 2483 - 4, 2487, 2490.
863
ts 2494.
864
ts 2495.
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seen by Mr Goyder was Ms Glennon and that she had paused in order to
consider how best to get home.
1049 It is suggested that Ms Rogers' description of the woman may have

been influenced by the fact that she had seen the re-enactment by the time
she made her statement. This is certainly true as regards whether the
woman had big hips or had a jacket wrapped around her waist. I also
accept that the opportunity to test how much of her recollection is an
independent memory has now been lost. However Ms Rogers' evidence
must be viewed in the context of other witnesses, who described
Ms Glennon at points both before and after the point at which Ms Rogers
saw the woman she describes. In that light I am satisfied that Ms Rogers
evidence is reliable and that the woman she saw was Ms Glennon. A
suggestion that it is more likely that Ms Glennon would have been
walking on the other side of the road as it would afford better
opportunities to flag down a taxi coming from Stirling Highway seems to
me to be arguable and of slight significance.
1050 It is suggested that Ms Mullan's evidence is inconsistent in that she
refers to the woman she saw as having a bag with a chain strap and that
the timing of her sighting, being closer to 12.30 than 12.00 am, would
mean a lapse of as much as 30 minutes after Ms Glennon left The
Continental. The chain strap is not consistent with any other evidence as
to the bag that Ms Glennon was carrying. This might seem a small detail,
particularly given that other aspects of the description are consistent with
Ms Glennon, however Ms Mullan said that she was sure about this detail.
The timing is based on a passage in Ms Mullan's statement in which she
recalled looking at her watch when she was in Mosman Park and seeing
that it was 12.20 am. She accepted the correctness of this passage when it
was put to her. I accept that there is a real possibility that the woman seen
by Ms Mullan was not Ms Glennon and for that reason do not rely on it,
but this is of little consequence in the light of the evidence of the other
witnesses.
1051 It is suggested that Ms Steenholdt and Ms Ellison must have seen

different people given their respective descriptions of the woman they saw
and the discrepancy in the times. Ms Ellison said that she drove through
the Bay View Terrace/Stirling Highway intersection at about midnight,
though this was clearly only an estimate. Ms Steenholdt said that she left
the Captain Stirling Hotel at 12.20 am and passed through the intersection
before 12.30 am. The difference in time may not be significant and I have
already made some comments about the reliability of Ms Steenholdt's
evidence. The differences in the description are, in my view, minor and
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can be readily accounted for by the limited opportunity to observe the

person and the fact that it was night. I accept that Ms Ellison saw
Ms Glennon at the intersection and Ms Steenholdt's evidence does not
detract from this. Ms Steenholdt may also have seen Ms Glennon, but her
evidence is unnecessary and adds nothing of significance to what is
proven by other evidence.
1052 It is suggested that Ms Kennerly cannot have been at the intersection

at the same time as Ms Ellison given that she saw no other car going
through the intersection at the same time. From this it is said that it can be
concluded that they did not see the same woman. As against any
suggestion that they saw different women, the descriptions that each of
them gave of the woman are remarkably similar. Whether or not they are
both correct about the presence of other cars at the traffic lights, I have no
doubt that they both saw Ms Glennon crossing to the south side of Stirling
Highway. Again, I take into account the evidence of sightings of other
witnesses, both before and after this time.
1053 It is suggested that Ms Mombao's evidence is inconsistent with that
of other witnesses in that she says that the woman that she saw was
standing (rather than walking) and that she saw what looked like a jacket
tied around the woman's waist. I do not consider either of these to be
factors of great significance. It is entirely possible that Ms Glennon may
have paused after crossing to the south side of the street and taken her
jacket off (or still had it off before putting it on again). The timing of
12.15 am and the location are consistent with the movements of
Ms Glennon as observed by other witnesses. Ms Mombao referred to
seeing photographs of Ms Glennon before she made her statement (though
she stated that she had not seen the re-enactment) and I have taken into
account that it was not possible to test whether this may have influenced
her evidence.
1054 It is suggested that Ms Rainbow's estimate of the time may be open

to doubt because she said that the lights at the Thai restaurant were still
on. Ms Rainbow's estimate was that she passed through Claremont at
about 12.20 am, but there was evidence that the lights at the restaurant
were off by 12.10 am at the latest. The discrepancy is small and in any
event it is possible that Ms Rainbow is mistaken about the lights. The
12.20 am time is consistent with other evidence as to the movements of
Ms Glennon. Ms Rainbow also says that there were no other cars at the
intersection when she came through it, but this is not necessarily
inconsistent with Ms Ellison and Ms Kennerly as it is entirely possible
that she passed through the intersection at a later change of the lights.
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1055 The importance of the evidence as to Ms Glennon's movements is

that it places into context the evidence of the witnesses who follow. That
is, it being established that Ms Glennon walked to Stirling Highway and
then turned right in the direction of Mosman Park in the period between
12.00 am and 12.30 am, then it is likely that the woman seen by other
witnesses near a car on Stirling Highway in this time frame and fitting her
description was Ms Glennon. It is then necessary to consider the
witnesses who saw a car.
1056 There are a number of witnesses who give differing accounts of

seeing a woman meeting the description of Ms Glennon either near to or
getting into a car. Some of the differences between these witnesses are
irreconcilable; that is, they cannot all be correct (if any of them are). The
witnesses in question are Ms Robinson, Ms Mighall, Mr Stanford,
Mr Bond, Mr Gray and Ms Mabbott.
1057 Ms Robinson saw a woman fitting the description of Ms Glennon
speaking to a man in a light-coloured sedan. Her opportunity to observe
the woman and the car was very brief as she and her husband approached
in a car from behind. She accepted in cross-examination that it was no
more than a few seconds. Her description of the woman and the man
contain some details, but the description of the car is very general. She
did express some certainty that the car was not a station wagon or a ute,
but the reliability of that observation may be doubted given the
circumstances and limited time to make it. Whilst it is possible that the
woman seen by Ms Robinson was Ms Glennon, I am unable to place any
reliance on that or on the fact that she said that the car was a sedan. There
is a real possibility that she may be wrong in either or both respects.
1058 At around the same time, Ms Mighall and Mr Stanford saw a woman
fitting the description of Ms Glennon getting into a vehicle in the same
area. They were approaching from the opposite direction. Ms Mighall
describes the vehicle as a white utility or station wagon, possibly a
Commodore. However, Mr Stanford says that the vehicle was a Ford
utility. Mr Stanford has a knowledge of Ford vehicles and expressed his
view of the type of car with some degree of certainty, but he had been
drinking alcohol that night. I also note that the opportunity for both
Ms Mighall and Mr Stanford to see the car was very brief. Again, whilst
it is possible that the woman seen was Ms Glennon, I am unable to place
any reliance on the descriptions of the car given the inconsistency in that
regard.
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1059 Mr Bond and Mr Gray were seated at the bus stop in front of Hungry
Jack's when they saw a woman fitting the description of Ms Glennon
walking along Stirling Highway on the other side of the road. Mr Gray
called out, in effect telling Ms Glennon not to hitchhike, but she made a
dismissive hand motion. Mr Gray saw a white VS or VR Commodore
pass by, travelling in the same direction and stop further along the road at
about the point that Ms Glennon would have reached. Mr Bond also saw
the vehicle and described it as a white VS Commodore. He saw a figure,
which must have been the woman he had seen walking past, leaning into
the vehicle. Although both Mr Bond and Mr Gray had been drinking that
evening, they had a much better opportunity to observe the woman and
the car than any of the other witnesses. Mr Gray was able to describe
details that he observed about the car that supported his conclusion that it
was a VS Commodore. Importantly, the evidence of Mr Bond and
Mr Gray was consistent as to the matters that they saw.
1060 I found the evidence of Mr Bond and Mr Gray convincing and
reliable. They impressed me as honest witnesses who gave their evidence
in simple and clear terms, without exaggeration or embellishment. There
was no suggestion that they had ever said anything that was inconsistent
with their evidence. Mr Bond was not cross-examined and Mr Gray was
not significantly challenged as to the accuracy of his account. Their
descriptions and the time of their observations enable me to conclude that
the woman they saw was Ms Glennon. Although they did not see her get
into the car, the absence of any other person nearby supports a conclusion
that the car stopped near her.
1061 Mr Gray said that he saw no logo or signage on the car, but I do not
consider that this excludes the possibility that there was a Telstra logo. If
there were logos on the car, the one that would most likely have been
visible from where Mr Gray was sitting would have been on the driver's
door. The opportunity to see that logo would have been only relatively
brief as the car passed by. That is a detail that may well not have been
noticed. It is noteworthy that the features of the car specifically
remembered by Mr Gray, namely the rear bumper and the hubcaps, were
not ones that required a continuous side-on view of the car and were not
features that could only be seen if a logo was also in view. It was
apparent that his particular interest was in the make and model of the car.
Mr Bond only had his attention drawn to the car after it had passed by and
this may explain why he did not see any logo (if it was there).
1062 I conclude that the woman seen by Mr Bond and Mr Gray was
Ms Glennon and that as she was walking along Stirling Highway, a white
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VS Commodore station wagon stopped in her near vicinity. Given the

absence of any reliable sighting of Ms Glennon after this point865
I conclude that it is likely that she was taken from the area in the car seen
by Mr Bond and Mr Gray.
1063 The defence submit that it is significant that none of the five
witnesses who saw a woman fitting the description of Ms Glennon near a
white car saw any Telstra logo on that car. It is suggested that this
supports an inference that Ms Glennon may have been taken from the area
in a car other than that of the accused; that is, that she was taken by
someone else. This, it is said, not only detracts from the prosecution case,
it strengthens the likelihood of an alternative inference that is consistent
with the innocence of the accused. For the reasons I have given, I do not
consider that the failure of the witnesses to see a Telstra logo on the car is
reliable evidence that there was not one present and does not exclude the
possibility that the car was that of the accused. Furthermore, this
evidence has to be viewed in the context of other evidence that supports a
conclusion that Ms Glennon got into the car of the accused, in particular
the DNA and fibre evidence. Whatever doubt that could be raised by the
fact that none of the witnesses saw a Telstra logo on the car is resolved by
that other evidence.
1064 At around the same time Ms Mabbott saw a woman, fitting the
description of Ms Glennon, walking along Stirling Highway in the
direction of Fremantle, but on the opposite side of the road and at a point
that is further along the highway than where Ms Glennon was last seen by
Mr Bond and Mr Gray. She also saw a light-coloured car parked in Dean
Street and a man standing near that car. The opportunity for Ms Mabbott
to see this car and the man must have been fleeting as she was driving
past. I also take into account that the man was not referred to in
Ms Mabbott's first police statement (though she insists it was mentioned
by her at the time to the officer who took the statement). It is also
unlikely that Ms Glennon would have crossed to the north side of the road
if she was walking to Mosman Park (being the opposite side of the road to
any passing cars or taxis that would be travelling in the direction she
wanted to go). Though I do not doubt the honesty of Ms Mabbott, the
circumstances in which she made her observations and the general nature
of them leaves open a real possibility that the woman seen by her was not
Ms Glennon and no conclusion as to the identity of the man is possible.
I am unable to place any reliance on her evidence.
865
Ms Mabbott's evidence will be dealt with shortly.
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Ciara Glennon – finding of her body
Jason Atkinson – evidence summary

1065 In April 1997 Jason Atkinson was living in Clarkson with his then
fiancé Vanessa Sandie. He was working as a plasterer and Ms Sandie was
working picking tomatoes in Carabooda.866
1066 On 3 April 1997 Ms Sandie went to work sometime between 7.00 am

and 9.00 am. Mr Atkinson was not working that day. He went to the
Pipidinny Road area, which is in Eglinton or Alkimos. It took him about
25 minutes to drive there. He was familiar with the area and had been
there before to go bushwalking, fishing and to look for cannabis. On this
day he decided to go to the area to look for cannabis.867
1067 The route that Mr Atkinson took to get to Pipidinny Road was via
Hester Avenue or Quinns Road, Wanneroo Road and then Pipidinny
Road. As he travelled from Wanneroo Road along Pipidinny Road he was
travelling towards the ocean.868
1068 Mr Atkinson had been out walking in the area for more than an hour
and was in an area that was between 1 and 2 km along the road from the
Wanneroo Road intersection. His attention was drawn to what he
described as a 'severely rotting stench'. He estimated that it was
somewhere between 9.00 am and 10.30 am when this happened. He was
shown an aerial photograph and marked on the map where he was when
he noticed the smell. He was roughly about 50 m off the road at the time
in an area of low-lying bush.869
1069 Mr Atkinson went to have a look where the smell was coming from;
he thought it might be a dead kangaroo and explained that if he sees a
dead kangaroo he checks the pouch. He saw a pile of vegetation that
seemed to be where the smell was coming from. He pulled back some
bush and could see something but was unsure what it was. He pulled back
a little more bush and could see that it was a human body. He was not
able to see whether the body was clothed but could see a 'bit of cloth' on
the lower half. He did not get closer than two feet away and did not touch
the body. In the area around the body there were a few older, shorter
banksia trees and grass trees.870
866
ts 2707 - 8.
867
ts 2708 - 9.
868
ts 2709.
869
ts 2709 - 12; exhibit 15619.
870
ts 2711, 2713 - 4.
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1070 Mr Atkinson dropped the bush, ran to his car and drove to
Ms Sandie's work, which was about three or four minutes' drive way. He
asked the ladies in the office there to call the police. He said that about 10
or 15 minutes later two uniformed officers arrived at Ms Sandie's
workplace. He went with them to where the body was located.871
1071 Mr Atkinson went back to the bush area and got within 5 or 6 m of
the body. He pointed out the location of the body to the detectives who
had arrived at the scene. He then went back to the car.872
Edward Besson – evidence summary

1072 Edward Besson is a custodial services security officer employed by
Broadspectrum. In April 1997 he was a detective senior constable with
WA Police attached to Joondalup Detectives Office. He and Detective
Sergeant Carver were the first detectives on the scene at Pipidinny Road,
Eglinton on 3 April 1997.873
1073 Mr Besson recalled that on 3 April 1997 he was on duty with Det Sgt
Carver and they were contacted by radio or telephone at about 9.00 or
9.30 am and told to go to a location in Eglinton. He said they went in an
unmarked police vehicle, either a Commodore or Ford sedan. They met
Mr Atkinson off Pipidinny Road in the Eglinton area. They were about
750 m from the intersection of Pipidinny Road and Wanneroo Road.
Mr Atkinson was next to a police van with some uniformed officers.874
1074 Mr Besson said that he and Det Sgt Carver had a conversation with
Mr Atkinson and he told them that he wanted to show them something
that he had found in the bush that smelled. They went into the bush area
for a little way and then when the smell was strong they asked
Mr Atkinson to point them in the right direction and asked him to stay
where he was. Mr Besson and Det Sgt Carver continued to walk into the
bush in the direction that Mr Atkinson had pointed. Mr Besson said they
were walking on the saltbush because they wanted to keep the scene
pristine.875
1075 Mr Besson said he saw a deceased person from about 15 - 20 feet

away. He said from where he and Det Sgt Carver were he could see that
the person had what appeared to be long fair-coloured hair, possibly
871
ts 2711 - 2, 2714.
872
ts 2712.
873
ts 3020 - 1.
874
ts 3021 - 3, 3033.
875
ts 3022 - 4, 3034 - 5.
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HALL J
blonde or possibly light brown. He could also see an item of black

clothing, which he thought was a skirt pulled up or a top. He said he
believed it was a female item of clothing. He said from the roadway to
where the body was located was about 75 - 100 m as the crow flies. The
body was not in dense bush.876
Charles Carver – evidence summary

1076 Charles Carver is the state manager of the Australian Criminal
Intelligence Commission in Queensland. He left the WA Police after
33 years in 2015 and moved to Queensland. At the time he left
WA Police he had attained the rank of Detective Superintendent.877
1077 On 3 April 1997 he was an acting detective sergeant and the officer
in charge of Joondalup Detectives. He was on duty that day working with
Det SC Besson. He and Det SC Besson arrived at the Eglinton scene and
met with Mr Atkinson. Mr Atkinson told Mr Carver that he had located a
deceased person in the bush area while he was looking for cannabis
plants. Mr Carver asked Mr Atkinson to point out roughly where the
body was located.878
1078 Mr Carver recalled a limestone track that went into the area. He did
not walk on the track because he did not want to leave any footprints so
he, Det SC Besson and Mr Atkinson walked across the saltbushes to the
area. They walked along in single file with Det SC Besson at the front,
then Det Sgt Carver then Mr Atkinson.879
1079 As they approached the area, Mr Atkinson said he did not want to go
any further. Mr Atkinson pointed in the direction of the body from
roughly 50 m from where the body was located. Det Sgt Carver and
Det SC Besson went closer to the source of the smell that they could
smell. He said that the body was located on the left-hand side of the track,
after the track that runs parallel to the road and about 20 - 30 m into the
scrub.880
1080 Det Sgt Carver said that he first saw a vegetation covered outline.
He saw that it was a decomposing body that appeared to be female. The
closest that he got to the body was 10, 15 or 20 feet. The body was
876
ts 3024 - 5, 3036 - 7.
877
ts 2945.
878
ts 2945 - 7.
879
ts 2947, 2978.
880
ts 2947, 2952.
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HALL J
covered over a little bit with foliage. He was a metre or so behind

Det SC Besson.881
Robert Hemelaar – evidence summary

1081 Robert Hemelaar is a retired police officer. He joined WA Police in
1977 and retired in 2014 at the rank of sergeant. He joined the forensic
division in 1978, when it was known as the Scientific Bureau. He left the
forensic division and performed general duties between 2000 and 2004
before returning to the forensic division until his retirement. He attended
both the Wellard and Eglinton scenes as well as undertaking other
enquiries relevant to this case, about which he gave evidence. One of the
things he did at the Eglinton scene was examine the vegetation
surrounding where the body was located.882
1082 Mr Hemelaar said that at the scene he saw that twigs or branches had
been torn off trees and there was bark missing. Photographs of him
holding a 2 m measuring stick and trees near the location where the
deceased was found were tendered. These photographs show damage to
the limbs of the trees. In one photograph Sgt Hemelaar is indicating to an
area of damage on a tree; he said that the height of the damaged area is
approximately 1.7 m.883
Ciara Glennon – was her hair cut during an attack (RH17)

1083 In closing submissions the State submitted that a piece of
Ms Glennon's hair collected at the scene was later found to be cut at both
ends. This was relied on to support an inference that the piece of hair had
been cut by a sharp instrument during the fatal attack upon her. The
sample in question is RH17 which is also relevant for other reasons
relating to fibres later found amongst it.884
1084 This was not a matter that was clearly opened on by the State and
I queried the fairness of raising it for the first time in closing. It is
unnecessary to determine the fairness question because in my view the
evidence relied on does not support the contention that the hair was
already cut when found. A summary of that evidence follows.885
881
ts 2957, 2985.
882
ts 3105.
883
884
ts 10009, 10015, 10020 - 1; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The Fibre Evidence, 111 [80], [99].
885
ts 10020 - 1.
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Barry Mott – evidence summary

1085 On 3 April 1997 Barry Mott was a sergeant in the scenes of crime
unit of the WA Police. He went to the bushland area at Pipidinny Road,
Eglinton. He recalled that Sgt Hemelaar told him that a body had been
found and they then put their team together and drove out to the
location.886
1086 When he arrived at the scene Mr Mott met with Detective Besson.
The first time he saw where the body was located was after a safe
pathway had been established by Sgt Hemelaar and Officers Wells and
Teraci. They went into the scene to establish access and to record the
scene prior to anyone else going in there. He was not part of the original
group. He entered the scene with Dr Margolius once the first group had
come back.887
1087 Mr Mott's role at the examination of the scene was to collect

entomology samples from the deceased and the area. He said that the
containers that they placed the items into came from the forensic trailer.
Once he had collected an item he put it into the yellow top containers and
put the lid on. Sgt Hemelaar handed the containers to him and then he
handed the containers back to Sgt Hemelaar who was recording and
writing on the container and making an exhibit list of those specimens.
Sgt Hemelaar assigned the numbers to the items collected.888
1088 Mr Mott said that the items collected on this day were given an
RH identifier because they were given the number by Sgt Hemelaar.
They were also given a chronological number. He recalled collecting a
number of entomology exhibits and samples of hair and pubic hair. The
scene was video recorded by Officer Teraci. Mr Mott watched the
recording and said that he can be seen in the footage collecting items. The
video does not record the collection of RH17 (and Mr Teraci gave
evidence that it may have been turned off for a short time to change the
film). However, the video does record the collection of the items
immediately before and after RH17.889
1089 Mr Mott noted some items from the exhibit list prepared at the time
would have been put into yellow top containers. This included RH17,
which is described on the list as a 'hair sample from head'. He said that
this specimen was seized from the deceased's head; he could not say
886
ts 3419 - 20.
887
ts 3421 - 2.
888
ts 3422.
889
ts 3423 - 34; exhibit 02996.
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HALL J
exactly what part of the head. He recalled Dr Margolius finding it and he

said that they 'scooped on it fairly quickly' so that they did not lose that
sample. He thought that the deceased was still in the same place as where
she was found when this item was collected.890
Aleksander Bagdonavicius – evidence summary

1090 Aleksander Bagdonavicius is a scientist with PathWest. He gave
evidence in respect of the DNA and that evidence will be dealt with later
in these reasons. He also conducted an examination of RH17.891
1091 Mr Bagdonavicius has no independent recollection of undertaking

this examination. All he was able to do was produce an examination
record and explain what was recorded on it. The record states that it
relates to the examination of a clump of hairs (greater than 200) in a
sterile container and labelled RH17. The examination involved the
removal of 12 hairs, the placing of those hairs onto microscope slides and
a record made of the length, width, colour and other characteristics.892
1092 A number of comments are recorded about individual hairs. In
regard to hair three in the section headed 'root', Mr Bagdonavicius has
written '? broken ? cut'. He said that this meant that he could not tell
whether the hair root was broken or cut. In the section headed shape, he
has written 'cut at an angle and compressed'. He said that by 'cut' he was
drawing a distinction with weathering and that this meant that the hair had
been cut with some sort of instrument. In regard to hair four in the root
section he has written 'sl. compressed & irregular cut'. He said that this
meant that the root appeared to be slightly compressed, was irregular and
was cut. In the shape section, he has written 'compressed, crimped and
cut at angle'. In regard to hair five in the root section he has written
'fractured at an angle'. A comment in the shape section has been crossed
out because he was unsure whether the hair had been cut. In regard to
hair six in the root section he has written 'straight cut at sl. angle. sl.
frayed. sl. compressed'. In the shape section he has written 'cut at an
angle and broken'. The notes in respect of the other hairs make no
reference to being cut.893
890
ts 3426 - 7.
891
ts 5308 - 10.
892
893
ts 5314 - 8.
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Conclusions – was Ciara Glennon's hair cut during an attack (RH17)

1093 The evidence as to the collection of RH17 does not establish whether
it was loose or was removed in some way from the rest of the hair.
Mr Mott only recalls that the hair was 'scooped on'. The only other
evidence of relevance came from Mr Hemelaar who gave very general
evidence that no scissors were used in the collection of exhibits at the
scene.894 Of course even if this lock of hair was loose that does not
necessarily mean that it was cut. Other possibilities, such as that the
clump of hair was torn out or had become detached as part of the process
of decomposition or as a result of the removal of vegetation, were not
dealt with or excluded.
1094 The evidence of the examination was essentially a reconstruction

rather than being based on production of the hairs or on any actual
recollection by Mr Bagdonavicius. Reference to the hairs being cut does
not in itself suggest that they were cut in the course of an attack. The
possibility that the non-root end of a hair could appear to be cut because it
was cut in some other way, such as hairdressing, was not excluded.
Indeed it was only in respect of one or two of the hairs (hairs three and
four) that Mr Bagdonavicius said that there was an appearance of being
cut with a sharp instrument at the root end. That is to be contrasted with
the other hairs from RH17 that were also examined.
1095 I am not satisfied that this evidence permits an inference to be drawn

that RH17 was cut by a sharp instrument in the course of an attack upon
Ms Glennon. It may have been, but the evidence is simply too vague and
uncertain for such a conclusion to be drawn. That does not, of course,
detract from other evidence that supports an inference that an attack with
a sharp instrument occurred.
Ciara Glennon – post–mortem examination

Karin Margolius – evidence summary
1096 As with the post-mortem examination of Ms Rimmer, the statements
and reports of Dr Margolius regarding the post-mortem examination of
Ms Glennon were read in to evidence by consent. She was called to
attend the Eglinton scene and observed that the body was that of a slightly
built, adult Caucasian female. The body was above ground and, when
894
ts 3214.
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first seen, completely covered by dried vegetation, including what

appeared to be branches from nearby trees and bushes.895
1097 The body was lying semi-prone and slightly on her right side. The
right shoulder rested on the ground and the left shoulder was higher and
exposed. About 5 cm of the back was exposed and this showed
decomposition changes including insect infestation. The deceased was
clothed. The right arm was bent slightly backwards and by the side of the
body with the forearm under the body at the level of the waist. The left
arm was at the side with the palm slightly open. The nails of this hand
were long and apparently well-cared for. The nails and fingers were intact
but the thumbnail appeared to have been torn at the tip.896
1098 The t-shirt on the deceased was pulled away revealing a large defect
to the neck extending from the right side of the neck, over the back and
onto the left side. The almost horizontal defect in the skin was gaping and
appeared to join an almost vertical defect in the skin at the back of the
head. Closer examination of this area revealed decomposition changes far
in advance of the other areas that could be seen at that stage. The skin
defect showed V-shaped skin tags and parts of the skin edges showed
unabraded distinct edges. There was apparent shelving of the skin over
the left side of the neck. There appeared to be a skin tag over the top of
the spine together with an irregular skin defect extending over onto the
right side of the front of the neck. There also appeared to be an inverted
V-shaped skin defect over the upper gaping edge of the neck to the left of
the midline at the back of the neck. The only part of the neck skin that
remained intact was a 7 cm section over part of the left side. The defect
exposed underlying bones. The t-shirt was intact but bloodstained around
the neck. Bloodstaining of the hair and bra were also noted. Whilst there
was decomposition change and insect infestation, there was no apparent
scavenger damage to the body.897
1099 Examination of the right hand revealed a broken nail on the right ring
finger, but the remaining nails on that hand were intact. Leathery changes
of the fingers of both hands were noted. Degloving of the skin was seen
on the back of both hands as well as the palms. In a later statement made
on 2 July 2009, Dr Margolius expressed the view that the damage to both
the left thumbnail and right ring fingernail was recent (to the time of
895
ts 4348 - 50; exhibit 14265.
896
ts 4349; exhibit 14265.
897
ts 4349, 4353 - 4; exhibit 14265.
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HALL J
death). This was because the edges were irregular, shredded, torn,
disrupted, not rounded and inconsistent with the remaining nails.898
1100 When the body was moved Dr Margolius was able to see a large
defect in the right arm, involving both upper and lower parts, including
the elbow joint with that joint being exposed. The muscles and tendons of
the arm were exposed and the edges were infested with maggots.899
1101 On 4 April 1997 Dr Margolius conducted a post-mortem

examination of the body of Ms Glennon (identity being confirmed by a
comparison with dental records). Ms Glennon was wearing a short black
skirt that was crumpled up around her waist exposing the lining. The skirt
was twisted with the back seam off-centre. The zip was incompletely
closed with the first 2 cm open. The lining and a seam at the base of the
skirt were torn. The right and left seams of the skirt were twisted.900
1102 The t-shirt referred to earlier was on the upper torso and was
crumpled around the waist and slightly around the neck. There was no
obvious damage to the t-shirt, but it was extensively stained. There was
what was described as a 'distinct tide line' on the garment, where the
staining extended from the middle of the top of the back of the left
shoulder and ran down towards the middle of the left side of the back.
This produced a diagonal line beyond which there was no continuous
staining. The bra was similarly stained.901
1103 Examination of the body revealed a moderate state of decomposition,
more advanced in some areas than others. Lividity appeared to be in the
front of the body.902
1104 The neck defect was examined in more detail and was found to be
12 cm from the top of the skull to below the jaw, joining with the
horizontal section. The horizontal aspect extended from the right side of
the neck, at the back of the head and to the left side of the neck and
measured 21 cm. The edges of the defect were irregular, but appeared to
show evidence of inverted V-shapes. The upper edges of the defect had
joined up with the vertical aspect producing a gap in the neck which was
8 cm wide. The left side of this defect showed 'shelving', with the shelved
area 1.7 cm wide but involving 8 cm of the edge of the defect over the left
shoulder region. In a later statement made on 2 July 2009, Dr Margolius
898
ts 4350, 4352 - 3; exhibit 14265.
899
ts 4332, 4354; exhibit 14265.
900
ts 4328, 4331, 4348, 4351 - 2, 4355 - 6; exhibit 14265.
901
ts 4351, 4353, 4357 - 8; exhibit 14265.
902
ts 4358; exhibit 14265.
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said that the V-shapes indicate an incised wound and that the angle of
withdrawal is different to the angle of insertion. There could also have
been multiple incised wounds in the area.903
1105 The right arm defect was also examined in more detail. It extended
from the middle of the forearm, over the elbow to the lower third of the
right upper arm. There was disarticulation of the elbow joint,
decomposition and maggot infestation. Both long edges of this defect
were ragged with areas showing inverted V-shape skin tagging. The
defect measured 20 cm in length and had a maximum width of 8 cm.
There were no definite injuries to the underlying bone but the tendons
showed 'somewhat distinct free edges'. In a later statement made on
2 July 2009 Dr Margolius said that the V-shaped characteristics of this
defect also suggest that it is an incised wound and that the angle of
withdrawal is different to the angle of insertion. The appearance could
also suggest multiple incised wounds to the area. The distinct edges of
the tendons suggest that they were cut.904
1106 The remaining parts of the body were also examined, but with no
findings that are significant to the determination of the cause of death.
Reflexion of the skin from the forehead and left cheek revealed red
staining of the subcutaneous tissue that was consistent with bruising.
There was no other evidence of injury or organic disease. Dr Margolius
concluded that the cause of death to be 'consistent with neck injury'. 905
1107 Dr Margolius noted what she believed to be a depressed fracture of
the skull. She drew some conclusions as the likely cause of such a
fracture and the effect that it might have on the subject.906 I will not refer
further to those conclusions as subsequent examination suggests that this
was not, in fact, a fracture but a natural defect in the bone called a
wormian. This will be dealt with in the summaries of the evidence of
Dr Buck and Dr Cooke.
Clive Cooke – evidence summary

1108 Clive Cooke was in attendance at the Eglinton scene and the
post-mortem examination at the State Mortuary. He reviewed the
post-mortem file in relation to Ms Glennon. He generally agreed with
903
ts 4332, 4359 - 60; exhibit 14265.
904
ts 4332, 4362; exhibit 14265.
905
ts 4328, 4331, 4348, 4361; exhibit 14265.
906
ts 4331.
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Dr Margolius' descriptions, with some exceptions, which I will refer to

shortly.907
1109 As to the torn left thumbnail, Dr Cooke said that 'as far as you can
tell, yes, it looked like a recent defect at the edge of … the nail'.908 Later
in his evidence he said that the appearance of the nail was consistent with
it being recently torn.909
1110 As to the tideline on the t-shirt, he said that whilst this was consistent
with lying in blood, staining similar to this can also be caused by
decomposition fluid which can seep away from the body after death. In
his view, the amount of staining was excessive for it to be only
decomposition fluid and said that it could be such fluid and blood
together. Later in his evidence he said that this tideline was consistent
with Ms Glennon bleeding whilst in the position that she was found; fluid
soaking into the clothing in a capillary action. If the neck defect was
caused by a cutting motion whilst Ms Glennon was standing, the tideline
would not be expected as bleeding would flow down.910
1111 As to the neck defect itself, Dr Cooke said that cutting with a knife
can cause an angulated defect in the skin due to the angle of the knife
changing as it is inside the body or as it penetrates. There can also be a
sawing action in which the knife changes direction which may produce
the same effect. This is what Dr Margolius was describing as V-shapes in
the skin margin. Where a knife instead of passing through the skin at 90
degrees slices at an angle, it can produce an effect known as shelving,
where the layers of skin and underlying flesh are exposed in a stratified
way.911
1112 As to lividity, Dr Cooke said Dr Margolius could be right about this,

but he was not sure because discolouration can occur as a phenomenon of
decomposition. He said that if the colour observed was lividity then it
indicated that Ms Glennon had been in a face-down position and stayed in
that position for about 24 hours after death.912
1113 As to the right arm, the disarticulation of the elbow is a post-mortem

change; that is, it has not been caused by trauma. Softening of the tissues
907
ts 4468 - 9, 4486.
908
ts 4471.
909
ts 4513; exhibit 08247. I should note that the relevant photograph of this nail shows that a portion of the nail
remains, notwithstanding the damage. The right ring fingernail presented more difficulty when being cut,
because it was so short.
910
911
ts 4475 - 6, 4483, 4496; exhibit 08280, exhibit 13509, exhibit 14283.
912
ts 4512.
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has allowed the bones to separate. The lower end of the humerus displays
a small defect of 2 - 3 mm length which is transversely oriented, though
this was later discounted as an injury. However, there were other defects
that Dr Cooke considered more significant. These are two possible cuts to
the ulna and possible cuts to the tendons of the arm. He said that these
were 'strongly suspicious of being cuts'. A cut to the ulna in this area is
consistent with sharp-force injury incurred when defensive action is taken.
He suggested that two such injuries were indicated by the marks to the
bone, given that there are separate cut marks about 3 - 3.5 cm apart. He
said that the more advanced state of decomposition of the right arm is also
suggestive of pre-existing injury. The flexed position of the wrist could
be explained by the tendons being cut.913
1114 After reviewing the post-mortem video, Dr Cooke said that the
shelving at the edges of the neck defect did not show signs of abrasion.
He said that that was a feature of a sharp cut and not a laceration (or tear).
Whilst post-mortem changes had distorted the appearance of the neck
area, it was his opinion that there was an ante-mortem injury to this
region. The state of decomposition and staining to the t-shirt and bra are
consistent with that conclusion. Features of the skin edges are consistent
with injury being caused by a sharp instrument. He said that
Dr Margolius' conclusion that the cause of death was consistent with a
neck injury was a fair assessment. More conservatively this would be put
as 'unascertained (consistent with neck injury)'.914
1115 As to the possible skull fracture, Dr Cooke said that the relevant part
of the skull had been reassessed by himself and Dr Buck in 2013 using a
stereomicroscope and a scanning electron microscope. It was observed
that the margins of the defect were not sharply cut, but were rounded and
smooth in appearance. Furthermore, there were no micro-fractures that
would be consistent with an injury. In light of this, Dr Cooke's current
view is that this is a naturally occurring defect known as a wormian.
Because this was an incomplete wormian, in that it involved only the
outer layer of bone, it had come away leaving a depression that was
initially interpreted as a fracture.915
1116 As to the red staining to the tissues of the forehead and left cheek,
Dr Cooke said he could not pass comment as to whether this was bruising.
It may be lividity or post-mortem colour change. He had not seen any
913
ts 4492 - 3, 4511 - 2, 4520 - 4; exhibit 08252, exhibit 08263, exhibit 08290.
914
ts 4534 - 5, 4558, 4590.
915
ts 4537 - 8, 4543, 4597; exhibit 08244, exhibit 23509.
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photographs or video of that area and was relying on Dr Margolius's

report.916
1117 As to the internal organs, whilst there were decomposition changes,

the organs appeared to be normal. There was no evidence of disease that
could have contributed to death. There were no other bony injuries, other
than those referred to. Histopathology does not reveal any significant
abnormalities. Toxicology revealed nothing that could have contributed
to death. There were no injuries indicative of sexual penetration, but the
decomposition of that area of the body affected the ability to draw a
conclusion about that one way or the other.917
1118 Dr Cooke agreed that both Ms Glennon and Ms Rimmer had neck
defects consistent with having been caused by ante-mortem incised or
penetrating injuries to the neck. Such injuries could be the cause of death
in both cases. Further, both women had injuries to their arms consistent
with having been caused by a sharp instrument such as a knife. In the
case of Ms Glennon the appearance is 'strongly suggestive' of that
conclusion and in the case of Ms Rimmer that was described as a
'likelihood' or 'possibility'. Those injuries could be explained by both
women defending themselves against an attack with a knife or similar
cutting instrument.918
1119 In cross-examination Dr Cooke said that it would be uncommon to

see damage from a scavenging animal that simulates a cut. He agreed that
damage to bones was useful in determining whether there has been a cut
with a knife, but it was not the only way to determine if a cut had
occurred. He agreed that damage to clothing can also be useful in making
this determination. He agreed that it is not possible to put a timeframe on
damage to fingernails. He agreed that, whilst he could say that each of the
women had a breach to the skin around the neck, he could not say how
large that breach was initially, where exactly in the area of the defect it
occurred, whether it was a single or multiple breaches, or how the breach
was inflicted (other than it was something sharp). He could not think of
another viable explanation for the breach other than a cut. He accepted
that there were no cuts to the bones in the neck area of either woman and
that there were no cuts to Ms Glennon's t-shirt.919
916
ts 4545 - 6.
917
ts 4547 - 9, 4558; exhibit 14281.
918
ts 4559 - 60.
919
ts 4592 - 5.
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Alana Buck – evidence summary

1120 Alana Buck attended the post-mortem examination on 4 April 1997.
Her role was to assist Dr Margolius with any questions regarding possible
bony injuries.920 She was asked about the right arm and, in particular, a
feature at the end of the humerus bone. There was a small indentation in
that area and a question was raised as to whether it was naturally
occurring. Dr Buck's view was that it was a naturally occurring defect
and not something that was introduced.921
1121 Dr Buck also examined the ulna bone at the time of the post-mortem
and noted at least one linear defect in the bone. In a photograph of the
bone she was able to identify two such defects. There were also two
free-lying tendon ends that were in proximity to the defects on the ulna.
The accelerated decomposition in the area of the defect on the right arm
was 'very notable' when compared to other parts of the body, including the
upper arm and shoulder. In a review of photographs of the arm
undertaken in 2013, the presence of the defects in the bone were able to be
again identified, as were the free tendon ends. She concluded that the
features observed were not naturally occurring and were consistent with a
defensive injury caused by a knife or some other sharp edged
instrument.922
1122 The only other relevant observation made at the time of the
post-mortem was an apparent defect in the skull. A review of this portion
of bone was undertaken in 2013 with Dr Cooke. This review involved
examining the bone with a high-powered microscope and a scanning
electron microscope. There was no discontinuity around the edges of the
defect, it had not breached the internal structure and there was no micro
fracturing. As a consequence, Dr Buck concluded that this was a
naturally occurring feature: a wormian bone.923
Conclusions – time and cause of death of Ciara Glennon

1123 Ciara Glennon was last seen alive by those who knew her at shortly
after midnight on 14 March 1997 to 15 March 1997. There are several
sightings of a young woman fitting the description of Ms Glennon in the
following 15 - 30 minutes. There are some inconsistencies in these
observations and some of the witnesses may be mistaken. However, I am
satisfied that she walked along Bay View Terrace to Stirling Highway and
920
ts 4618.
921
922
923
ts 4625 - 6; exhibit 08244.
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then west along the highway. She was last seen near to a white
VS Holden Commodore station wagon that stopped near to her on Stirling
Highway. I am satisfied that she was abducted at or around 12.30 am on
15 March 1997.
1124 Ms Glennon's body was found on 3 April 1997. The exact date of
death cannot be determined. However, it must have been earlier in the
intervening period having regard to the state of decomposition of her
body. Given that she was wearing the clothes and jewellery that she had
on when last seen, it is likely that her death occurred a relatively short
time after she went missing.
1125 As to the cause of death, the evidence is not consistent with accident
or self-inflicted injury. The circumstances of her disappearance, the
manner in which her body was concealed and the findings of the
post-mortem examination admit of only one reasonable inference:
Ms Glennon was killed by another person.
1126 As with Ms Rimmer, determining the cause of death is complicated
by the state of decomposition of the body when found, though the
decomposition was not as advanced as in the case of Ms Rimmer. The
evidence supports a conclusion that death was caused by a sharp-force
injury to the neck. The evidence in this regard includes the large defect to
the neck and the fact that this defect is to a part of the body that was
relatively protected from the elements. There is no doubt that a
sharp-force injury to the neck is capable of causing death and of causing it
relatively quickly. This possibility is also supported by the existence of
what I find to be a defensive injury to the right arm – an injury that must
also have been caused by a sharp instrument. Taking all of these factors
into account, I am satisfied that Ms Glennon died as a result of receiving
an incised or penetrating wound or wounds to the neck caused by a sharp
instrument.
1127 The blood staining pattern on Ms Glennon's clothes is consistent

with her bleeding whilst in the position she was found. There was no
staining that suggests that bleeding occurred whilst she was standing.
This supports a conclusion that she was wounded at the Eglinton site and
whilst in the position she was found, or very shortly before being placed
into that position.
1128 The defensive injury to the right arm supports a conclusion that
Ms Glennon made an effort to protect herself from the person who
attacked her with a sharp instrument. This is a feature that was also
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present in the case of Ms Rimmer. There is other evidence of a struggle,

namely broken nails on both the left and right hands. As was the case
with Ms Rimmer, clearly, Ms Glennon's efforts failed.
1129 The location in which the body was found and the covering with
vegetation from the surrounding area supports a conclusion that the
person who killed Ms Glennon tried to conceal her body. The manner of
deposition and concealment are significant. Ms Glennon's body was not
buried; rather she was placed on the ground, semi-prone and slightly on
her right side amongst scrubby bush. Vegetation was apparently gathered
from the immediately surrounding bushes and trees or the ground and
placed over the body. The location was in a semi-rural area in what was
then the outer fringe of the metropolitan area.
1130 The prosecution also relies on the fact that there is damage to some
of the surrounding trees at a height which is consistent with a tall person
having caused the damage. This, it is said, is consistent with the accused
given that there is evidence that his height is 185 cm.924 I accept that the
damage to the trees appears to be recent and consistent with branches
having been broken off to be placed over Ms Glennon's body. Some of
the damage is at 1.7 m and this may suggest that the person who broke off
the branches was reasonably tall. This is, however, a relatively small
piece of evidence which has only slight significance.
1131 Ms Glennon's gender and age raise the possibility that there was a
sexual motivation or sexual component to her abduction and killing.
There was no evidence of genital injury at post-mortem, but that does not
exclude a sexual motivation because decomposition may have masked
bruising and a sexual assault can occur without injury. There were some
items missing, including a handbag, jacket, brooch and shoes, but
Ms Glennon was otherwise fully clothed when found. There was a
suggestion by the State that the skirt showed some signs of being
moved,925 but this was at least as consistent with the body having being
carried or dragged to the deposition location. In the absence of any other
evidence to support the possibility of sexual motivation or a sexual
component it is not a conclusion that can be reached with the necessary
degree of certainty.
924
ts 1449, Dr John Philpott; also State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, Counts 7 and 8, 238 [62].
925
ts 10079.
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Surveillance footage from Claremont
Justin Geary – evidence summary

1132 Detective Sergeant Justin Geary is currently stationed at the Cold
Case Homicide Squad. He joined that squad on 14 September 2015.926
1133 In October 2015 Det Sgt Geary conducted a review of the

closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage, audio surveillance, media,
re-enactments and legacy material (such as floppy discs) held by police in
relation to Operation Macro. A spreadsheet was created to document the
audit and the items in police holdings. In 2017 a review of CCTV footage
was carried out by Detective Senior Sergeant Tony Rosenberg.927
1134 In July 2019 Det Sgt Geary reviewed the footage in police holdings
for particular periods of time linked to the following offences or charges:
the break and enter in Huntingdale on 15 February 1988; the assault on
WD at Hollywood Hospital on 7 May 1990; the abduction and sexual
assault of KJG on 12 February 1995; and the disappearance of Ms Spiers,
Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. The review also included the Telstra
Living Witness Project and the use by the accused of a Bankwest ATM on
Bay View Terrace, Claremont.928
1135 There was no footage located in respect of the Huntingdale offence,

the Hollywood Hospital offence, the Karrakatta offences and the
disappearance of Ms Spiers.929
1136 There was footage located in respect of the disappearance of
Ms Rimmer, the disappearance of Ms Glennon, the Telstra Living
Witness Project and the use of the ATM in Claremont.930
1137 Det Sgt Geary reviewed the footage to look for the accused,
Ms Rimmer, Ms Glennon and any vehicles associated with the accused,
including Telstra vehicles, a white Holden Commodore station wagon
9GP-082 associated with the accused, a red Rover sedan 9EE-640
associated with the accused's father, and a white Holden Camira sedan
6MJ-482 associated with the accused's mother.931
926
ts 2163.
927
ts 2164 - 5.
928
ts 2165 - 6.
929
ts 2166.
930
ts 2166.
931
ts 2166 - 7.
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1138 Det Sgt Geary's evidence is a compilation of work that has been
carried out by him and a number of his colleagues. The footage was
annotated by the inclusion of a red circle around relevant people in the
recordings. The annotations are based on what Det Sgt Geary is aware
that the witnesses have said and the work done by the police. Many
people in the footage have not been identified.932
1139 A covert camera was placed in the window of the Picnic store at
38 Bay View Terrace for a period of eight months between 24 October
1996 and 22 June 1997. It operated between those dates from 8.00 pm on
Thursday to the early hours of Monday morning. It took images of the
traffic along Bay View Terrace, mainly vehicles turning into St Quentin
Avenue. As the vehicles turned into St Quentin Avenue the registration
plate at the rear of the vehicle was recorded by the camera. The camera
pointed directly out across the road towards St Quentin Avenue in the
direction of the intersection; it did not point up the street to the ATM.
The camera also took images of people as they walked past the shop.
There are slight variations to the angle of the camera because of the
changing of tapes and changes to the shop window itself; at times there is
a different angle facing in a more northerly direction and images that
include the Commonwealth Bank.933
1140 There is footage in police holdings recorded at six locations in the

Claremont, Nedlands and Cottesloe areas on 8 and 9 June 1996. Those
locations are the OBH, The Continental Hotel, Club Bayview, Fresh
Provisions located at 303 Stirling Highway Claremont, BP Rose Gardens
at 129 Stirling Highway, Nedlands and the Shell service station at
269 Stirling Highway Claremont. There was no footage available before
11.30 pm on 8 June 1996 at the OBH.934
1141 There is footage available from four cameras at The Continental

Hotel for the night of 8 June going into 9 June 1996. Camera one
recorded the Bay View Terrace entrance; camera two recorded that
entrance from a different angle; camera three recorded the rear carpark
and service area; and camera four; was the only internal camera and
recorded just inside the entrance and pointed half onto the stairwell and
half onto the main ground floor bar area. Each camera did not
continuously record what happened at each location. Each camera
recorded for about 13 seconds before the recording moved to the next
camera. The footage takes 53 seconds to rotate through all four cameras.
932
ts 2167, 2239.
933
934
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Sometimes, as the footage changes from one camera to the next, it takes
one or two seconds to readjust and refocus. The footage is in black and
white. Det Sgt Geary described it as of poor to average quality for that
time period. There were a number of flashing lights at the hotel that
interfered with the viewing quality. That the footage was taken at night
also affects its quality. The cameras were mounted at an angle 3 or 4 m
off the ground so that the footage only shows part of the faces of the
people who walked underneath.935
1142 There is footage available from seven cameras at Club Bayview on

the night of 8 and 9 June 1996: camera one was at the exterior ground
floor pointed at the stairwell; camera two was on the stairway pointed
towards the reception area; camera three was on the balcony footpath area
outside the club upstairs; camera four was pointed towards a stairwell
mainly used by staff, camera five was an external camera at footpath level
on St Quentin Avenue pointing towards Church Lane; camera six was also
an external camera at footpath level pointing towards Bay View Terrace;
and camera seven was mounted underneath the lobby pointed towards the
stairs. The Club Bayview footage was not checked for accuracy as to
time. The footage recorded at Club Bayview was recorded continuously
and did not split between cameras like the footage from The Continental
Hotel.936
1143 Det Sgt Geary and his colleagues put together the footage from 8 and
9 June 1996 from both The Continental Hotel and Club Bayview in
chronological order. The recordings were tendered and played during
Det Sgt Geary's evidence. A red circle is used to highlight the relevant
people in the footage. The times are the start times for the clips of
footage. The recordings show the following:937
1. 21.52.42 hours on 8 June 1996 – Ms Rimmer enters The

Continental Hotel.
2. 21.55.33 hours – Lynda Donovan and Sian Chapman enter the

hotel.
3. 22.39.06 hours – Ms Rimmer and Ms Donovan leave the hotel and

stand outside.
935
ts 2174 - 7; exhibit 15295.
936
ts 2177 - 80, 2187, 2193, 2240; exhibit 15297.
937
ts 2180 - 93; exhibit 15310, exhibit 15311, exhibit 15312, exhibit 15313, exhibit 15314, exhibit 15315,
exhibit 15316, exhibit 15317, exhibit 15318, exhibit 15319, exhibit 15392, exhibit 15393, exhibit 15394.
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4. 22.40.07 hours – Ms Rimmer and Ms Donovan are still standing

outside the hotel.
5. 23.40.17 hours – Ms Rimmer walks down the stairs inside the

hotel and leaves the hotel along with Ms Donovan.
6. 23.41.22 hours – Ms Rimmer is outside the hotel with Ben

Rundle, Ms Chapman and Ms Donovan.
7. 23.48.53 hours – Ms Donovan is at the entrance to Club Bayview.
8. 23.49.23 hours – Ms Donovan is on the stairs with Christine

Loxton (Meade).
9. 23.52.04 hours – Ms Donovan walks down the stairs at Club

Bayview out onto the footpath.
10. 23.49.38 hours – Ms Rimmer walks towards Club Bayview,

standing outside the club for a period of time and then walking
away.
11. 23.50.46 hours – Ms Rimmer talks to a Club Bayview employee,
Matthew Klopper, who is wearing a hat and coat.
12. 23.52.12 hours – Ms Rimmer walks towards The Continental

Hotel.
13. 23.58.20 hours – Ms Rimmer standing outside the hotel. She is

last seen in that footage at about 00.04.22.
1144 The accused was not positively identified on any of that footage. No
vehicles associated with the accused were seen in the footage, nor any
vehicles with Telstra logos.938
1145 Det Sgt Geary undertook an examination of the footage from the
Picnic camera to determine how many vehicles passed and on how many
of those a full registration plate could be seen. The results of that analysis
are as follows:939
1. On 1 December 1996, 170 vehicles passed the camera of which

55 had full registration plates that could be identified (being 32%).
938
ts 2193, 2222.
939
ts 2222 - 4.
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2. Between 13 and 14 December 1996, 360 vehicles passed the

camera of which 174 had full registration plates that could be
identified (48%).
3. Between 19 and 22 December 1996, 1,025 vehicles passed the
identified (38%).
4. Between 26 and 29 December 1996, 786 vehicles passed the

identified (40%).
5. Between 14 and 15 March 1997, 380 vehicles passed the camera

of which 115 had full registration plates that could be identified
(30%).
1146 Det Sgt Geary said that there were a number of factors that affected
whether it was possible to identify the number plates of vehicles from the
Picnic camera footage. They include: the lighting; the angle of the
vehicle as it turned; the camera location on a particular night; whether
there was lighting at the rear of the vehicle; and that on some occasions
there were people walking past the Picnic store who blocked the view.940
1147 Det Sgt Geary examined footage from The Continental Hotel and
Club Bayview for the evening of 14 and 15 March 1997. The recordings
were again tendered and played during his evidence. A red circle was
again used to highlight the relevant people in the footage. The times are
the start times for the clips of footage. The recordings show the
following:941
1. 21.45.15 hours – Mr Gray, Mr Bond and their friend Frank

McElroy are seen at The Continental Hotel.
2. 23.36.05 hours on 14 March 1997 – Mr Fearis and Ms Sym and a

man in a suit believed to be Mr Young enter The Continental
through the main entrance on Bay View Terrace, followed later by
Ms Glennon and Ms Davies. There is no footage showing
Ms Glennon leaving.
3. 00.02.50 hours – Ms Davies and Ms Sym are seen standing

outside The Continental Hotel.
940
ts 2224.
941
ts 2203 - 5, 2196 - 201; exhibit 15445, exhibit 15450, exhibit 15451, exhibit 15452, exhibit 15467, exhibit
15471, exhibit 15472, exhibit 15475, exhibit 15478, exhibit 15479.
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4. 00.04.31 hours – Ms Davies, Ms Sym and Mr Young are seen

outside The Continental.
5. 00.09.29 hours – Ms Davies, Ms Sym and Mr Young are seen at

Club Bayview.
6. 00.12.51 hours – Mr Connor leaves The Continental.
7. 00.05.09 hours – Mr Goyder walks past the entrance to Club

Bayview.
8. 00.05.01 hours – Mr Goyder can be seen at the front of Club

Bayview from a different camera.
9. 00.12.10 hours – Mr Gray, Mr Bond and Mr McElroy walk past

Club Bayview.
10. 00.12.28 hours – Mr Gray, Mr Bond and Mr McElroy walk

towards Church Lane.
1148 There are slight differences between the footage taken on 14 and
15 March 1997 and the footage taken on 8 and 9 June 1996. At The
Continental, the camera three view of the rear carpark was altered slightly
and camera four had been adjusted so that the bar area is visible.942
1149 At Club Bayview two cameras were added between June 1996 and
March 1997. There were nine cameras recording on the night of 14 and
15 March 1997: the same seven cameras from the previous footage;
camera eight in the members bar area; and camera nine in the adjacent bar
area and dancefloor.943
1150 Police were not able to identify the accused in any of the footage
taken on 14 or 15 March 1997. No vehicles associated with the accused
were seen in any of the footage.944
1151 Footage from the BP Rose Gardens service station in Nedlands on

14 March 1997 was also produced. The footage starts at 19.06.34 hours
and shows two males; one is the service station employee and one is the
customer. The customer was not identified. There was a suggestion that
what could be seen of the customer was not inconsistent with the accused.
942
ts 2195 - 6.
943
ts 2178, 2180, 2196; exhibit 15297.
944
ts 2205, 2222 - 4.
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This evidence has no probative value and I have not taken it into
account.945
1152 Det Sgt Geary gave evidence that the footage from The Continental
on 8 and 9 June 1996 was checked for accuracy and found to be within
30 seconds of the correct time. This time check was not carried out by
him; he reviewed police information about the check. The information is
a phone call made by Detective Brandham to a day manager at The
Continental on 11 June 1996. The police officer asked the day manager if
the time was accurate and was told that the video recorder was within
30 seconds of Telecom recorded time. He is not aware of whether there
has been any independent technical check of the time on the footage. The
Club Bayview recordings from 8 and 9 June 1996 were not checked for
accuracy.946
1153 Det Sgt Geary also gave evidence that the time of the footage
recorded on 14 and 15 March 1997 was checked and it was found to be
accurate at both The Continental Hotel and Club Bayview. He was asked
in cross-examination about the process of checking the times and said as
best he knows it was by police contacting someone at the relevant place
and asking them if the times were accurate. In re-examination he was
asked what he meant by 'found to be accurate' and said that 'they're
believed to be by Telecom time'.947 I accept the accuracy of the times and
have used the CCTV evidence to confirm the times and sequence of
events referred to by witnesses who were in attendance on the relevant
nights.
DNA evidence
What the prosecution relies on

1154 The prosecution relies on the results of DNA testing undertaken in
2008 on samples retained from 1997. The relevant sample was produced
by combining two other samples, AJM40 and 42, being nail clippings or
associated debris from the left hand of Ms Glennon. The testing in 2008
produced a mixed profile that was consistent with being from two
contributors, Ms Glennon and a then unknown male person. This other
945
ts 2224.
946
ts 2193, 2234 - 5, 2240.
947
ts 2221, 2240 - 1.
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HALL J
contributor was a match for the male DNA obtained from the intimate
samples taken from KJG, the victim of the Karrakatta offences.948
1155 When the accused was identified as a suspect in 2016 his DNA was
compared to the male component from the mixed profile from AJM40 and
42. It was found to match that profile, such that it was 80 million times
more likely that the profile was that of the accused and Ms Glennon than
of some unknown unrelated Australian Caucasian male person and
Ms Glennon.949 It is the prosecution case that it can be inferred that the
DNA of the accused was under the nail or nails of Ms Glennon at the time
of her death and that it got there in the course of her defending herself
from the person who attacked and killed her.950
Nature of the DNA evidence

1156 The DNA evidence relied on by the State consists of a profile
produced by using a technique known as Low Copy Number (LCN)
analysis. This is a technique that was used where the amount of DNA was
known, or believed, to be small. The difference between this technique
and standard analysis is in the amplification process. The amplification
process involves the amplification of DNA using the polymerase chain
reaction (PCR) method to replicate the DNA. Amplification will be done
for a number of cycles, each cycle effectively doubling the amount of
DNA present. LCN has more cycles than standard DNA analysis.951 Any
particular risks arising from this technique and the reliability of the results
obtained will be canvassed later in these reasons.
1157 No other DNA of the accused was found on the body of either
Ms Rimmer or Ms Glennon. There may be possible explanations for that,
which will also be canvassed later. What this means is that the
prosecution relies on a single sample of DNA, tested long after the
relevant events and not matched to the accused for many more years. For
these reasons the provenance and handling of the relevant samples are of
particular importance. Lengthy and detailed evidence in these respects
was led at the trial.
1158 Although no formal admission was made that the DNA found in the
2008 testing was that of the accused, that was not an issue that, by the end
of the trial, was subject to any significant challenge. The focus of the
948
ts 9878, 9880, 9882, 9885, 9889 - 90; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The DNA Evidence, 6 [1], 10
[10.6], 16 [15].
949
ts 9886 - 7, 9889; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The DNA Evidence, 15 [14.8].
950
ts 9892 - 3, 9902; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The DNA Evidence, 18 [25] - [26].
951
ts 5211, 6964, 9882; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The DNA Evidence, 6 - 7 [4] - [4.1].
Page 307
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defence submissions was on whether it had been established that the DNA
was from the fingernails of Ms Glennon. The possibility that the DNA
had been transferred into the containers marked AJM40 and 42 (or one of
them) was raised. That is, that the presence of the DNA was due to some
contamination event.952
1159 In particular, the prosecution was required to exclude the possibility

that the DNA of the accused had been transferred inadvertently from other
samples that contained his DNA and that were held at PathWest at some
time. The possible sources of contamination were a kimono relating to
the Huntingdale offences and samples relating to the Karrakatta offences
(KJG). Evidence regarding the storage, movement and testing of the
possible sources and AJM40 and 42 was adduced to determine whether
any possible opportunity and mechanism for transfer existed.
Collection of the relevant DNA samples (AJM40 and 42)
Adam McCulloch – evidence summary

1160 On 4 April 1997 Adam McCulloch was the exhibits officer at the
post-mortem examination of Ms Glennon's body. This means he was the
collection point for all the exhibits. He did not physically collect all the
exhibits but he was responsible for the packaging and labelling, secure
storage and later distribution of the exhibits. Each exhibit was recorded as
AJM (his initials) followed by a number.953
1161 Sgt McCulloch collected all the nails from the left and right hands of
the deceased. His role was to hold open the yellow top containers under
each nail. He collected all 10 fingernails. The left thumbnail is AJM40,
left index finger is AJM41, the middle finger AJM42, the ring finger
AJM43 and the little finger is AJM44.954
1162 The yellow top containers were retrieved from the mortuary room.
Yellow top containers used for this purpose were new, never second hand.
The yellow top container was handed to him by someone, he cannot recall
who it was. The lid was already removed. There was a label on each of
the containers with the details of the deceased and the job details. He was
not sure who applied the labels.955
952
ts 10308; Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, DNA Evidence, 40 [145].
953
ts 4110 - 1.
954
ts 4139 - 40, 4144 - 6.
955
ts 4140, 4256.
Page 308
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1163 They started with the left thumb. Mr Macdermid, a mortuary

technician, held the left thumb directly over the yellow top container that
Sgt McCulloch was holding. Mr Macdermid cut the fingernail as much as
he could and the end of the fingernail dropped directly into the container.
Sgt McCulloch then received the yellow top and screwed the yellow top
onto the container firmly. He saw that part of the fingernail went into the
yellow top container.956
1164 Sgt McCulloch was shown a photo of the yellow top container that is
labelled AJM40.957 He noted that it has a forensic register barcode; these
were not in existence in 1997 and were not in use until some years later.
There is also a large white label with C97-00436 typed on it. He said that
was produced on the day of the post-mortem. It is not a police label.
There is some writing on the label. Sgt McCulloch wrote AJM40 in blue
on the top right-hand corner of the label. There is also writing in black
ink 'L. THUMB FNS'. He said that he did not recognise that writing. In
large red print there is 97R155. He said that is not his writing and he does
not know anything about that writing or that referencing.958
1165 Sgt McCulloch had refreshed his memory by looking at notes and
viewing the video recording of the post-mortem. He said that after the
fingernail was collected and the yellow top screwed on he had used a blue
pen to write AJM40 as soon as the top went on. He said he would have
checked with the scribe that AJM40 was the next number. He said that he
was working together with the scribe in compiling an exhibit list. The
yellow top container was placed at the end of the mortuary table at the top
of the deceased's head.959
1166 The process was the same for each subsequent nail. Sgt McCulloch
was handed the yellow top container with the lid off and for each finger
he put the container under the deceased's finger, Mr Macdermid cut the
nail and then he put the lid on the container. Each of the yellow top
containers was then put over to the left-hand side with AJM40.960
1167 Sgt McCulloch touched the left hand of the deceased during a brief
interval between collecting the nails. He said that he thought that it was
after the left middle nail was collected. He touched the left index finger
and thumb to see if those nails were actually removed and in preparation
for the next yellow top container for the left ring finger and to make sure
956
ts 4139 - 40.
957
ts 4140; exhibit 11445.
958
ts 4141 - 2; exhibit 11445.
959
ts 4142 - 3.
960
ts 4144 - 5.
Page 309
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HALL J
that they were not mixing up containers. The samples had been taken
from those fingers and the containers sealed and marked and he was
moving on to the left ring finger to see whether the nails had been
properly removed or not.961
Robert Macdermid – evidence summary

1168 Robert Macdermid was a mortuary technician at the State Mortuary
and was the mortuary manager for 18 years. He undertook a course at
Leederville Technical School and qualified in about 1983. He joined the
mortuary shortly after qualifying as a technician. The role of a mortuary
technician is to assist with post-mortem examinations, ensure the theatre
is clean and liaise with funeral directors. He worked under the direction
of the forensic pathologists and the coroner. Over the course of his
employment he had observed or participated in thousands of post-mortem
examinations.962
1169 Mr Macdermid said that technicians would assist by getting the body
from the cool room and moving the body as directed. He would assist in
removal of organs and in taking any samples that were required. If the
case was a suspected homicide it would be usual for police officers to be
in attendance.963
1170 Mr Macdermid said that the cleaning regime at this time was that at
the end of each day all the trays and instruments were scrubbed and
disinfected and the floors washed with antiseptic. He said the theatre was
cleaned from 'top to bottom', all rubbish removed and all the linen and
towels were changed. Technicians wore overalls, personal gumboots,
gloves and aprons and caps were also available. The overalls were from
the hospital laundry and were stored in the change room. Gloves and
aprons were disposable. Boots and overalls were cleaned each day.964
1171 Mr Macdermid had no independent memory of participating in the

post-mortem examination of Ms Glennon, but had seen the video and
could confirm that he appeared on it. He said that where a body is in a
state of decomposition it can be very greasy due to the breakdown of cells
and this meant that it was necessary for him to rinse his hands constantly.
He would dry his hands on the hospital towels provided.965
961
ts 4145.
962
ts 3802 - 3.
963
ts 3804 - 5.
964
ts 3806 - 9.
965
ts 3806, 3809 - 10, 3819, 3831.
Page 310
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HALL J
1172 Specimen containers were available in the mortuary in various sizes,

in particular yellow top containers, which came in cartons of 500. For
each post-mortem examination a bread bin full of these containers would
be obtained from the store and put on the bench in the theatre. He said the
cartons would be 'pristine' and had never been touched or used before.
The lids of unused containers were always on. The mortuary did not use
evidence tape, but he was aware that some forensic police officers used it
later in the time he worked there. The containers were labelled with
pre-prepared labels as they were used. The labels would have some
typewritten details of the case and the nature of the contents would be
handwritten.966
1173 In some cases specimens were sent off-site for testing, for example to
PathWest or the ChemCentre. The necessary documents to authorise the
transfer of the specimens had to be signed by the forensic pathologist
responsible for the case. Specimens that were kept in the mortuary would
be placed in a freezer if they were 'wet' specimens (as was the case here).
Each of the forensic pathologists had their own designated freezer.967
1174 After viewing the video Mr Macdermid said that he used curved
scissors to clip the fingernails. He had used those scissors previously
during the post-mortem, though they had been rinsed before being used on
the nails. He said he had washed his gloves at the same time. He
confirmed that he said 'too hard' and 'I can't cut it' and said that he was
speaking to Mr Laurance Webb about the left thumbnail. He said the
scissors were too big and the nail was cracked or split, but he went back
for another go. Whatever was cut fell into the container being held by a
police officer and someone else put the lid on. A different yellow top was
used for each nail. After cutting two or three nails he went to a drawer
and changed the scissors he was using. He said he was 'trying to get the
whole nail' in each case.968
1175 In cross-examination Mr Macdermid said that in 1997 he was aware

of DNA technology, but not completely aware of the degree of sensitivity
of it. He was aware that DNA testing became more sensitive after this
time. The increasing sensitivity resulted in changes to mortuary
procedure. In particular, masks were later required. In 1997 he was not
concerned with mortuary instruments transferring DNA from one place on
a body to another. However, care was taken not to touch a body or items
with bare hands or with dirty gloves. He said the practices as seen in the
966
ts 3813 - 6.
967
ts 3816 - 7.
968
ts 3838 - 44.
Page 311
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
video were typical of the time. He confirmed that the curved scissors
were used to cut Ms Glennon's clothing and that they were put onto a step
ladder, then moved to a bench, then placed on a green mortuary sheet near
Ms Glennon's head, before being used to cut more clothing. In
re-examination he said that after he had finished cutting the clothes he
washed his gloves and the scissors.969
Michael Teraci – evidence summary

1176 In 1996 and 1997 Michael Teraci was a police constable attached to
the Police Video Support Unit. His duties included making video
recordings of crime scenes and post-mortem examinations. He attended
both the Wellard and Eglinton crime scenes and made video recordings.
He also made recordings of the post-mortem examinations of Ms Rimmer
and Ms Glennon. Those recordings were tendered in evidence. Parts of
the Glennon post-mortem video were shown to Sgt McCulloch and
Mr Macdermid during their evidence.970
1177 At 11.57.33 Mr Macdermid can be seen with a pair of long scissors.
At 11.58.45 he takes the left thumb in his right hand and has the scissors
poised. Then Sgt McCulloch's right hand with a pen in it can be seen and
a yellow top container that he holds under the thumb as Mr Macdermid
makes several cuts to collect the fingernail material. Mr Macdermid stops
and Sgt McCulloch looks at the container, shakes it a little and puts it
back under the thumb. At 11.59.57 the person to the left of
Mr Macdermid is Mr Laurance Webb. It is clear that Mr Macdermid has
trouble obtaining this sample. He can be heard saying 'I can't cut it', 'Too
hard Laurie' and 'I can't get 'em Laurie'. He was addressing Mr Webb,
who was directing the process.971
1178 At 12.00.10 a hand is seen with the container and then to reach for
the lid from someone else, put the lid on and then go off left of shot and
put the container down somewhere off camera. This is the container that
was marked AJM40.972
1179 From 12.00.25 to 12.00.54 Mr Macdermid and Mr Webb have a

discussion after the collection of the index finger AJM41 and before the
collection of AJM42 the middle finger. Mr Webb is giving instructions to
Mr Macdermid about that process; he appears to be touching the ends of
the finger or pointing close to it with his hands (with gloves on). At
969
ts 3863, 3865 - 6, 3870 - 4.
970
ts 3056, 3065, 3073 - 4; exhibit 02995, exhibit 02997.
971
Exhibit 02997.
972
Exhibit 02997.
Page 312
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HALL J
12.01.14 the left middle fingernail is collected with what looks like one
snip of the scissors. Sgt McCulloch either obtains a yellow top container
or is handed one by someone, he screws the lid on and it is placed with the
others.973
1180 This process is repeated 10 times for the 10 nails. The same scissors
are used for the thumb and first two fingers of the left hand. The scissors
are then changed. A swab was used to take a sample from the right ring
finger.974
1181 There was not then a practice of photographing each exhibit

separately after its collection. Nor was there a process of recording the
collection on video in a specific as opposed to more general sense. No
photographs were taken of the exhibits in their containers as collected.975
1182 The defence submits that there is no photographic evidence of what

the contents of AJM40 and 42 looked like. Furthermore, no witness has
an independent recollection of what the samples looked like, though
Sgt McCulloch did give evidence that he saw part of the fingernail go into
each yellow top container. This is consistent with the collection process
that can be observed on the video – that is to say the process followed is
consistent with something falling into the container, whether it be cut nail
or debris from that location.976
History of AJM40 and AJM42 at PathWest

1183 Sgt McCulloch described the steps in the process of taking exhibits.
The first step is the authority of the pathologist to release the exhibit.
Before any exhibit can be given to anyone the pathologist had to sign off
on it. That was done on a Coroners Act form. He could not recall how
the form was created, but said that Dr Margolius signed the form. He
could not recall who gave it to him. He also signed it and gave it to
Mr Webb.977
1184 The relevant Coroners Act form has a copy of the exhibit list
attached to it. The front of the form records that a number of items were
provided to 'Forensic Biology'. Item 3 is '1 bag yellow tops (10)
fingernails'. Sgt McCulloch's name has been written into the section
973
Exhibit 02997.
974
Exhibit 02997.
975
ts 3097 - 8.
976
ts 10261 - 3; exhibit 02997; Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, DNA Evidence, 15 - 17 [63] - [69].
977
ts 4203 - 4.
Page 313
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
'courier' and Mr Webb's name has been written into the section 'recipient'.
Both have signed the form with a time and date of 4 April 1997 at 12.30
hours.978 The attached exhibit list has a number of items that are
highlighted in green, including AJM40 and 42. He said that the list of
exhibits on the right-hand side have been handed to him by Dr Margolius,
which he then handed to Mr Webb. He recognised his signature and date
and time on the form next to 'courier'.979
1185 Sgt McCulloch said that the form and the items highlighted in green
were handed by him to Mr Webb at 12.20 hours (this time is noted on the
exhibit list itself). Mr Webb wrote his initials next to each item he
received. Mr Webb has initialled AJM40 and 42. In cross-examination
Sgt McCulloch said that the handover of the items occurred at the
mortuary. He believes that they checked off each item from the list, but
he has no independent memory of this. Two of the highlighted items do
not have initials, AJM50 and RH17. He said that the entry for RH17 was
not in his handwriting and that he could not say whether AJM50 was one
of the items received by Mr Webb. The yellow top containers were
gathered up and placed into a plastic bag.980
1186 In 2019 Sgt McCulloch conducted an examination of the AJM40

container, at which time it appeared to be empty. He was asked in
cross-examination about marks on the side of the container, referred to as
scratch marks or striations. He could not recall whether these marks were
on the container when it was used in 1997.981
Laurance Webb – evidence summary

1187 Laurance Webb was unable to give evidence in person and it was
agreed that his statements could be read in to evidence. The statements
read were dated 11 June 2009, 21 August 2012, 7 February 2013, 5 July
2016 and 8 June 2017. The relevant statements in regard to AJM40 and
42 are the 2012, 2013 and 2017 statements.
1188 Mr Webb was a senior forensic scientist at PathWest. He states that

he attended the post-mortem examination of Ms Glennon on 3 April 1997.
His role was to provide advice with respect to the taking of biological
samples for the purpose of DNA analysis.982
978
ts 4204; exhibit 18803.
979
ts 4113 - 4, 4204; exhibit 18803.
980
ts 4115 - 7, 4203, 4205 - 7, 4234; exhibit 18803.
981
982
ts 5576.
Page 314
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HALL J
1189 Mr Webb states that at 12.20 pm on 3 April 1997 he received a

quantity of exhibits from Sgt McCulloch. The exhibits were recorded on
an exhibit list. He initialled next to each exhibit he received and signed
and dated the bottom of the page to acknowledge that he had taken
possession of the exhibits. His initials appear next to AJM40 and 42. The
list Mr Webb refers to actually has a date of 4 April 1997 next to his
signature. Mr Webb also signed the Coroners Act form, which is also
dated 4 April 1997. The discrepancy with the dates is clarified in the
2017 statement, in which he states that the samples were in fact received
by him on 4 April 1997.983
1190 Mr Webb states that the description 'yellow tops' on the Coroners Act
form refers to 50 mm sterile specimen jars with a yellow screw-on lid that
are used for the storage of biological exhibits. After receiving the items
he conveyed and deposited them in the Forensic Biology Laboratory,
which was then situated on the ground floor of J Block, Queen Elizabeth
II Medical Centre. The items were received by Forensic Biology property
staff who recorded them on three 'samples received' forms. The 10
fingernail samples marked AJM40 to 49 appear on the third page with a
description of each and an annotation at the side '10 yellow tops
fingernails'. Mr Webb states that he was not involved in the assessment of
AJM40 for its suitability for DNA analysis.984
1191 Mr Webb states that in August 2009985 he travelled to the United

Kingdom with Detective Sergeant Jim Stanbury of the Special Crime
Squad to deliver biological samples for specialist DNA testing. This
testing was to be undertaken at the FSS laboratory in Birmingham. On
Friday, 29 August 2008, together with Senior Sergeant George Paton, he
retrieved a number of samples from a PathWest secure evidence storage
freezer. The samples taken had been previously identified as being
suitable for specialist testing. He checked the PathWest and police
numbers and the integrity of the packaging. Snr Sgt Paton then sealed the
items into tamper proof police security movement envelopes. The items
included AJM40 and 42. The sealed items were then placed back in the
freezer.986
1192 On the following day, Saturday 30 August 2008, Mr Webb collected

the items and retained possession of them. The next day, Sunday
31 August 2008, he attended Perth International Airport and met with
983
984
ts 5577 - 8; exhibit 16815.
985
This appears to be an error as other evidence establishes that the year was 2008.
986
ts 5579 - 80.
Page 315
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HALL J
Det Sgt Stanbury. They flew together to London via Singapore, arriving
on Monday 1 September 2008. They maintained possession of the
samples throughout the journey.987
1193 On arriving in London Mr Webb and Det Sgt Stanbury delivered the
samples to the FSS laboratory in Lambeth. The items were checked off
against an FSS Submission of Work form by the FSS receiving officer
and the seals of the conveyance bags were checked to ensure they were
intact. The items were received by FSS at 2.21 pm Monday 1 September
2008. The Submission of Work form records that AJM40 and 42 were in
an exhibit bag marked SME72785, together with a number of other items.
Mr Webb and Det Sgt Stanbury later attended a meeting at the
FSS laboratory in Birmingham. He received the results of the testing of
AJM40 and 42 on 12 January 2009. He was then able to match the
possible male profile with the male profile taken from the Karrakatta
victim's high vaginal swab.988
Scott Egan – evidence summary

1194 Scott Egan is presently the acting scientist in charge of the Cold Case
Team at Forensic Biology at PathWest. He is the reporting scientist for
information regarding the present case. He has gathered and collated all
of the PathWest records relating to this matter. He also had some direct
involvement with some of the relevant samples.989
1195 In 1997 Mr Egan was a laboratory assistant at PathWest. On 4 April
1997 he completed the Samples Received forms recording the receipt of
samples, including AJM40 and 42. He obtained the information from the
police paperwork received with the samples (the Coroners Act form and
the attached list) and from labels on the samples. He recorded AJM40
and 42 as being in sterile containers, that is, 50 mm yellow top containers.
A number of the samples were packaged together. The case number
(97R155) was recorded on all of the exhibits received and they were then
processed. This meant they were either sent for chemical testing or placed
into the stores. Mr Egan said that at that time items received were also
recorded in the Forensic Biology receipt of exhibits book. He made an
entry in that book on 4 April 1997 showing the receipt of the items in
respect of the Glennon matter, 97R155.990
987
ts 5580.
988
ts 5580 - 4; exhibit 16802, exhibit 16803, exhibit 16804, exhibit 16808.
989
ts 6485.
990
ts 6485, 6605 - 9, 6611 - 2, 6782; exhibit 15693, exhibit 15696.
Page 316
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HALL J
1196 Mr Egan did the set-up for the presumptive chemical testing for
blood and semen that was done on some of the samples. This mostly
related to the intimate swabs. AJM40 and 42 were not subjected to
chemical testing.991
1197 Some of the samples were also selected for DNA testing. There was
a separate register to record samples sent to the DNA laboratory.
Mr Egan made an entry in the DNA register which records that on 7 April
1997 a number of samples relating to Ms Glennon were received in the
DNA laboratory. Mr Egan said that he did not have a role in choosing
which items should be tested, he would record what he had been
instructed to send to the DNA laboratory. The samples listed by him
include AJM40 and 42. They are shown as coming from batch eight of
the samples relating to Ms Glennon. An entry in the last column in the
register indicates that the extraction procedure was undertaken on 9 April
1997. There is an asterisk next to this date and also next to a number of
items on the list. He did not write the asterisks.992
1198 As Mr Egan made the entry in the DNA register it would have been
his responsibility to physically transfer of the exhibits. The fingernail
samples would ordinarily have been stored in either dry storage or a fridge
or freezer (depending on whether they were dry). The laboratory as a
whole was small at that time (as illustrated by a plan produced by
Mr Egan).993
1199 According to the records994 of PathWest there was no examination of
AJM40 between 4 April 1997 and 30 August 2008, at which time it left
the laboratory in the custody of Mr Webb and Det Sgt Stanbury. The
records show that AJM42 also came into the laboratory on 4 April 1997,
pieces of nail from the container were put into a centrifuge tube and sent
to ESR on 25 March 2004. The container remained at PathWest and the
pieces of nail did not return. The AJM42 yellow top container left the
laboratory on 30 August 2008 with Mr Webb and Det Sgt Stanbury.
Between 4 April 1997 and 30 August 2008 the records show that AJM42
was sampled for DNA in April 1997 and that a further follow up analysis
was done in 2001. The 2001 analysis was done on an extract created in
1997 and did not require the opening of AJM42.995
991
ts 6612 - 5.
992
ts 6638 - 42; exhibit 23453.
993
ts 6493, 6506, 6642 - 3; exhibit 23893.
994
ts 6822; the records comprised 70 - 80 lever arch files separated into cases relating to each victim.
995
ts 6656, 6670 - 1, 6678; exhibit 23948, exhibit 23950.
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1200 Mr Egan said that the records showed that as at the time AJM40 and
42 were received in the laboratory in 1997 the only other source of
biological material in the laboratory that had DNA later found to match
the accused were samples from the Karrakatta case. There is no record of
AJM40 being examined prior to 2008.996 The only times that AJM42 was
taken out of storage and opened in the period between receipt and 2008
was on 7 April 1997 and 23 March 2004. At those times the Karrakatta
samples were in storage. Based on the times that the samples were
examined he could not see any viable opportunity for contamination to
occur. Whilst he could not say that contamination into AJM42 was
impossible (because that is not a word he would use in his work), it was
highly unlikely.997
Anna–Marie Ashley – evidence summary

1201 Anna-Marie Ashley is currently the scientist in charge of reporting at
PathWest. She has worked at PathWest since 1994. As at 1997 PathWest
was located in the same building as the State Mortuary, but two floors up.
1202 On 4 April 1997 Ms Ashley received some samples that had been
taken at the post-mortem examination of Ms Glennon. These were in
addition to the samples received by Mr Webb. She received these
samples at 3.00 or 3.05 pm and the receipt was noted on another copy of
the exhibit list attached to a further Coroners Act form.998
1203 Ms Ashley said that some of the samples that both she and Mr Webb
received were subjected to chemical screening tests for blood and semen.
She participated in this testing, but it did not include AJM40 and 42. The
samples not subjected to screening tests would have been put into secure
storage. This could be either dry storage or a freezer, depending on the
nature of the sample. Dry storage was a locked room within the
laboratory. The freezers were also in a secure area. Although she has no
independent recollection of where the fingernail samples were stored, in
general items of that type would be stored at room temperature in the dry
storage room. Samples in dry storage relating to the same case would be
kept together in a plastic bag or a box and not allowed to mix with
samples from other cases.999
1204 Ms Ashley was shown the DNA register and said that the asterisks
indicated the samples from which an extraction of DNA would be done.
996
ts 6656.
997
ts 6735 - 8, 6951 - 2; exhibit 23950.
998
ts 4638 - 9, 4768 - 9, 4777 - 80; exhibit 15694, exhibit 15695.
999
ts 4783 - 9; exhibit 15697.
Page 318
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AJM42 is marked with an asterisk, but AJM40 is not. She said that this
meant that AJM40 was not selected for DNA testing at this time. It would
not have been opened.1000
1205 The extraction process for the selected samples was done in the DNA
laboratory on 9 April 1997. Ms Ashley took part in that process and her
initials appear on the DNA extraction worksheet. A number of samples
were processed in the DNA laboratory at the same time, including some
from other unrelated cases (though none that relate to the case of KJG).
One of the samples tested was AJM42.1001
1206 Ms Ashley cannot recall whether she personally did every step of the
process, but she was able to describe the steps that would occur. She said
that the extraction would be done in the DNA laboratory. The bench
would be cleaned and a clean piece of blotting paper placed on it. The
scientists involved would be wearing laboratory coats and gloves. All of
the samples to be tested would be placed on the bench. A container would
then be opened and any fingernail within it was swabbed with a clean
sterile swab. The swab would be first removed from its casing and
moistened with sterile water. The nail would not be removed from the
container for this part of the process. The swab would then be placed
back into its casing and the lid replaced on the yellow top container with
the fingernail. A new scalpel blade is then used to cut off the head of the
swab, which is transferred to a clean labelled microcentrifuge tube. The
remaining part of the swab is then discarded into a bin. The tube is closed
and placed in the next space on a tray to be used for this extraction run.
The labels on the tube are written on prior to starting the process. 1002
1207 The extraction worksheet shows that some of the samples (those
from intimate swabs) were subjected to differential extraction whereby
any sperm cells present are separated out from epithelial cells. This
would create two extracts for those samples. This was not the case with
the fingernail samples, for which only one sample was created in respect
of each sample. Mr Egan assisted with this extraction and his writing
appears on the worksheet. He would have checked that each tube was
properly labelled and the storage codes were correct. The AJM42 extract
had a storage code of 8N9. This meant that the tube was in freezer box 8
at position N9.1003
1000
ts 4791 - 3, 4795; exhibit 23453.
1001
ts 4796 - 8; exhibit 15699.
1002
ts 4797 - 800.
1003
ts 4800, 4802 - 5; exhibit 15699.
Page 319
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1208 Each extract was then subject to amplification. Ms Ashley did this
step. Amplification commenced on 9 April 1997 and was completed on
10 April 1997. Evaluation was done by Mr Egan on 11 April 1997. At
that time the DNA testing kits were limited to one or a few alleles only.
An amplification and evaluation was done using a kit for D1S80 and
another for DQAlpha and Polymarker. The results for AJM42 were not
clear, and the extract was referred for typing for the Polymarker test, but
not the other two. The negative blank on this run showed no sign of
contamination.1004
1209 On 5 May 1997 the typing of the AJM42 Polymarker results was
done by Mr Webb and checked by Ms Ashley the following day. Both
AJM42 and another extract, from AJM45, showed similar results from
what appeared to be a single contributor. These results correlated with a
Polymarker result for a reference sample for Ms Glennon. On the same
date a CTT Triplex and Amelogenin amplification was done on extracts,
including the extract from AJM42. The relevant worksheet shows that no
amplified DNA product was found to be present in this extract and,
accordingly, the results were not typed. Two other extracts (from AJM43
and 44) were typed on 12 May 1997 and produced results that were
consistent with having come from Ms Glennon, with no indication of a
second contributor.1005
1210 On 22 October 2001 another extraction process was undertaken for

samples, including AJM42. This involved a Qiagen purification, which is
used to purify and concentrate any DNA that might be present. The
Qiagen process does this by removing any inhibitors present in the
sample. This process did not require the original yellow top container to
opened, rather 100 microlitres of the extract created in 1997 was used. A
new extract was created with a storage code of 293J4QIA. This meant
that the Qiagen extract was stored in freezer box 293 at position J4. The
amplified extract was then tested using a newer multiplex DNA kit,
ProfilerPlus.1006
1211 The ProfilerPlus result was consistent with being a mixture from two
individuals. This was because at one of the 10 loci there were three allelic
peaks. The major contributor could be distinguished at this loci, meaning
that the additional peak (at D21) could be identified as a 30. Ms Ashley
said that this additional peak could be an artefact. This was the only
indication of a possible second contributor and it was at a level too low to
1004
ts 4715, 4805 - 10; exhibit 15700, exhibit 17501.
1005
ts 4810 - 2, 4844 - 7; exhibit 15702; exhibit 15704, exhibit 19432.
1006
ts 4815 - 6, 4819 - 20, 4850; exhibit 15706, exhibit 15707.
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interpret further. At the amelogenin loci there was only an X peak,

meaning that there was no indication of a male contributor. The major
component matched with Ms Glennon's reference sample. ProfilerPlus
tests on extracts from some other fingernail samples that were done at the
same time produced single source profiles consistent with that of
Ms Glennon.1007
1212 Ms Ashley had some contact with the KJG exhibits (this will be
referred to in a later section). However, she said that there was no point in
time when she was working on items relating to KJG at the same time as
she was working on items relating to Ms Glennon. She said that the
extraction in respect of KJG samples was done on 27 February 1996 and
the extraction in respect of AJM42 was done on 9 April 1997. The parent
exhibit AJM42 was only opened on that occasion. There were no
occasions when samples from the two cases were on the same run. The
closest in time the two samples came was CTT amplification, which
occurred two weeks apart in 1997, but involved AJM42 being tested first
in time. At all times other than when being tested the extracts from the
two cases were stored in separate freezer boxes. Ms Ashley had had no
contact with KJG samples for at least 12 months prior to having contact
with any Glennon samples.1008
1213 In cross-examination Ms Ashley agreed that the sensitivity of tests

had improved over time and that contamination minimisation had
improved. One aspect of this was the introduction of face masks not long
after ProfilerPlus was introduced. She said that the increased sensitivity
did not increase the risk of contamination but did increase the likelihood
of detection. Tamper-evident tape to seal exhibits was introduced in the
laboratory in about 1999.1009
1214 Ms Ashley accepted that without reference to documentation she

would not be able to recall having dealt with the fingernail exhibits. She
is entirely reliant on the contemporaneous documentation. She can recall
how processes were undertaken, but has to rely on the records as to
whether a process was undertaken in respect of a particular sample or
extract. She said that she had no reason to believe that she had not
followed correct procedure and was careful to do so. She accepted that
she can remember making mistakes in her work on some occasions, but
said that there were no errors in the relevant documents. In
1007
ts 4858 - 9, 4865, 4868; exhibit 15708, this allele is not consistent with the profile of the accused but was not
present at a level that was considered reliable – see ts 6677 (Scott Egan).
1008
ts 4887 - 8.
1009
ts 4912 - 4, 4917 - 8.
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re-examination she said that there was a system for recording errors in the
case file, in particular, instances of contamination. There was no
documentation concerning any contamination event in respect of
AJM42.1010

1215 Mr Bagdonavicius is currently the scientist in charge of intelligence
and database and information technology at PathWest. He has been
employed at PathWest since 1975.
1216 On 7 April 1997 Mr Bagdonavicius placed asterisks on the Coroners

Act form list of exhibits to indicate which items were to be referred to the
DNA laboratory for testing. Both AJM40 and 42 are marked with an
asterisk. This would mean that those items were taken to the DNA
laboratory. He said that he would have shown a laboratory assistant the
list and asked them to gather up the items and register them in the DNA
register. The items marked are recorded in the DNA register, with one
exception (AJM33). He said that this was an error and that the correct
item should have been AJM35 (which is in the register). The items
referred were essentially the intimate swabs and the fingernails.1011
1217 Some of the items listed in the DNA register are also marked with an
asterisk. Mr Bagdonavicius said that he placed those marks to indicate
which items should be examined; that is, that his recommendation is that
those items be tested. AJM42 is marked and AJM40 is not. He said that
in order to make this decision he would not have conducted a full
examination. He may simply have looked at the containers and the
amount of material that could be seen in them. Some of the yellow top
containers had pieces of nail in them and others did not. He said that he
did not open the containers and that there was no reason for him to do
so.1012
1218 In 2003 Mr Bagdonavicius was asked to undertake a review of
Operation Macro exhibits held at PathWest. The purpose was to identify
if there were opportunities for further testing. He created a document
which was referred to as a matrix and which recorded information
regarding various items and what testing had been done on them. The
accuracy of this document in its multiple iterations will be dealt with in
another section. He said that he initially created the document from
information on the case file and did not retrieve any of the items from
1010
ts 4934 - 6, 4962 - 3, 4965.
1011
ts 5242, 5333 - 4, 5336 - 7; exhibit 15693, exhibit 23453.
1012
ts 5341 - 2; exhibit 23453.
Page 322
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HALL J
storage. The matrix contains a description of AJM40 as being 'Debris

only. Not suitable for analysis'. He initially said that this was based on
one of his original observations of AJM40 that no actual nail could be
seen in the container.1013
1219 In the first version of the matrix the location of some of the items,
including AJM40, had not been ascertained. Mr Bagdonavicius said this
was because he was consulting a relatively new computer database which
was not complete. He later tasked an assistant to locate the items and this
information was included in a later version of the matrix. He said that he
visually inspected AJM40 at this time and included the description of
'debris only' after doing so. He said he did not take the top off the
container for this purpose. He said the description meant that he could see
some small pieces of material but that he could not identify any nails.1014
1220 One of the outcomes of the matrix was that AJM41, 46, 49 and 50
were recommended by Mr Bagdonavicius for testing. AJM41 and 46 had
not been previously sampled. An examination of those items was
conducted on 22 August 2003. The item examiner was Denise Downe.
The nail fragments in these containers were removed, photographed and
swabbed. LCN testing was done by PathWest on the extracts created.
Although PathWest was not accredited to do LCN testing, the purpose
was only to provide information for investigative purposes. Neither
AJM40 nor 42 were tested at this time.1015
1221 On 23 March 2004 a number of samples and extracts were sent to
ESR in New Zealand for further testing. Amongst them were the nail
fragments in AJM42. For this purpose the nail fragments were removed
and placed into another tube for transportation. Extracts that had been
previously prepared were also sent to ESR. Ms Downe was responsible
for packaging the items.1016
Denise Downe – evidence summary

1222 Denise Downe is a forensic scientist training officer at PathWest.
Between 2002 and 2005 she worked at PathWest as a medical scientist.
1223 In May 2003 Ms Downe undertook some work on Operation Macro

related exhibits. In particular, she performed an extraction procedure on
1013
1014
ts 5467 - 8, 5489, 5491; exhibit 23624.
1015
ts 5382 - 3, 5385 - 7, 5390, 5392, 5397 - 8, 5504 - 5; exhibit 16812, exhibit 16813, exhibit 19273, exhibit
19292, exhibit 23642.
1016
ts 5402 - 4, 5406 - 7, 5412; exhibit 15804, exhibit 16454.
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the fingernail sample AJM49 and the fingernail swab AJM50. In August
2003 she conducted an examination of AJM41 and AJM46. Swabs of
those items were obtained and an extraction procedure undertaken. DNA
testing was then done on these four extracts using both standard and LCN
techniques.1017
1224 In March 2004 Ms Downe was asked to prepare some samples for
transportation to ESR in New Zealand. This included AJM42 (but not
AJM40). She retrieved the relevant exhibits from storage, photographed
them and prepared subsamples by removing some of the material and
placing it into a microcentrifuge tube. She said that prior to the
examination she cleaned the bench top. She used PPE and clean
instruments to transfer the contents. In respect of AJM42 she used
surgical steel forceps to transfer the pieces of nail to a tube. The original
yellow top container was not swabbed. She cannot recall what, if
anything, was left in the container. The lid was then put back on the
container and it was returned to storage. Each item was dealt with
individually and different instruments were used for the transfer process.
She changed gloves between each item examination.1018
George Paton – evidence summary

1225 George Paton first became involved in the Macro investigation in
1998 when working at the Major Crime Squad. In 2002 he transferred to
the Forensic Crime Scene Unit. In 2006 he was seconded to the Special
Crime Squad, which had responsibility for unsolved homicides, including
the Macro investigation. In 2008 he commenced a review of the Macro
investigation and continued to work on that investigation until 2016.1019
1226 Snr Sgt Paton said that the purpose of the 2008 review was to
address 33 recommendations that had arisen from a previous review in
2004. One of the tasks was to create a unified exhibit log or unified
physical material list (as it is known now). During this process he
identified a number of fingernails (including AJM40 and AJM48) that he
believed to be pristine, meaning that they had never been examined since
being collected at the post-mortem on 4 April 1997. He had a discussion
with then Deputy Commissioner Chris Dawson on 22 August 2008 about
what he believed to be a significant forensic opportunity. Mr Dawson
requested that the testing be carried out as a matter of urgency. He
advised Deputy Commissioner Dawson that the technology was not
1017
ts 5597 - 8, 5603, 5605 - 6, 5634, 5590 - 1, 5594; exhibit 19292, exhibit 23668.
1018
ts 5635 - 8; exhibit 16453.
1019
ts 6132 - 3.
Page 324
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HALL J
available in Australia at the time and that the exhibits would have to go to
FSS in London, who were believed to be world leaders in the specialist
DNA technique known as low copy number (LCN).1020
1227 Later the same day Snr Sgt Paton had a meeting with Mr Webb at
PathWest. At the time he had identified through the unified exhibit list a
number of exhibits that they wanted to have tested using the specialist
DNA technique and confirmed that those exhibits were held at PathWest.
A stocktake was undertaken to confirm that the relevant exhibits were
there. He then returned to his office and forwarded a memo to Mr Webb
confirming that the exhibits were to be sent to the UK for testing and
asking that they be packaged for that purpose. There were a number of
items that were to go to FSS, among them were AJM40, AJM42, AJM46
and AJM48.1021
1228 On 29 August 2008 Snr Sgt Paton went to PathWest to assist

Mr Webb with packaging of the items. Mr Webb had already separated a
lot of the Macro exhibits out, as they had previously discussed. He
believes that he placed AJM40 and 48 into one bag and AJM42 and
46 into another bag. He then sealed the bags with evidence tape and they
were placed into a security movement envelope (SME) that was also
sealed and signed by Mr Webb. At no time during this process did he
open AJM40, 42, 46 or 48. Photographs of the items inside the plastic
bags were taken at the time and tendered as exhibits.1022
1229 A photograph of an SME with a reference number ending
WW00072785 was also tendered. This is the SME that contained the
exhibits going to FSS – AJM40, 42, 46 and 48, together with a number of
hairs. Snr Sgt Paton said that some of the writing on the envelope is his.
He also recognised the signature of Mr Webb and on the left-hand side the
writing of Det Sgt Stanbury. The writing and signature was put on the
envelope on the day of the packaging. He said that SMEs are now used
worldwide. They are tamper proof because they have what he described
as an 'integrity seal' so that it is obvious if they are opened.1023
1230 Snr Sgt Paton completed an FSS document with the heading
Submission of Work for Scientific Examination. This document was to
go with the items when they were transported to the UK. It has
Det Sgt Stanbury's name on it – he was the officer in charge and also the
1020
ts 7179 - 80.
1021
ts 7180 - 1.
1022
1023
ts 7184 - 5; exhibit 14402.
Page 325
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
senior investigating officer of Macro at the time. This document contains

a list of the items that went to FSS, which includes AJM40 and 42. The
document went to FSS with Det Sgt Stanbury and a copy was also
emailed to FSS.1024
James Stanbury – evidence summary

1231 Det Sgt Stanbury was the investigating officer assigned to the Macro
investigation in 2006 and remained part of the team with responsibility for
that matter until 2015. The investigation relating to the Karrakatta
offences was brought under the umbrella of the investigation in 2008. For
about 12 months from 2008 to early 2009 he held the role of senior
investigating officer.1025
1232 In 2008 Det Sgt Stanbury conducted a review of the physical

material collected from the crime scenes, together with Snr Sgt Paton.
This had been prompted by recommendations from an earlier review. A
meeting was held with Deputy Commissioner Dawson and instruction
given to proceed to seek out specialist DNA testing on some of the
items.1026
1233 Det Sgt Stanbury was involved in the preparation of paperwork for
the testing and in transporting the items to FSS in the UK. The decision
as to what items were sent was made by Snr Sgt Paton, Mr Webb and
Det Sgt Stanbury. He said that AJM40 was chosen because there had
been no previous testing of that item. He was not involved in the
packaging of the items. He met Mr Webb at Perth International Airport
on 31 August 2008 and they travelled together to London. The packaged
items were with Mr Webb in security movement envelopes. There were
items from other investigations also taken at the same time, but none that
related to KJG. He checked the items at the airport and wrote on the
envelopes, but did not open them. Mr Webb carried the items in his
carry-on luggage, which remained in the possession of Mr Webb and
himself throughout the trip to London, including during a delayed
stop-over in Singapore.1027
1234 Det Sgt Stanbury and Mr Webb arrived in London on 1 September

2008. They first went to their hotel in South Kensington and kept the
items with them. After showering and changing they went to the
FSS laboratory in London, taking the still sealed security envelopes with
1024
ts 7186 - 8; exhibit 12118.
1025
ts 6179 - 80.
1026
ts 6181.
1027
ts 6181 - 5, 6189; exhibit 14514.
Page 326
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
them. The items were there checked off by an FSS staff member, who
signed the accompanying Submission of Work form. The time of receipt
of the items at FSS is noted on the form as being 14.22 hours.1028
1235 On 3 September 2008 Det Sgt Stanbury and Mr Webb attended a
meeting with FSS staff at their Birmingham laboratory. Those also
present at the meeting included Dr Jonathan Whitaker and Carole Evans.
He and Mr Webb departed for Perth on 6 September 2008. On
23 October 2008 a telephone conference was held with FSS staff to
discuss what testing would be done. It was agreed that fingernail samples
from the left hand would be pooled together, as would samples from the
right hand and that LCN testing would be done on the pooled samples.1029
1236 Preliminary results of the testing were received on 17 December

2008 and a report on 7 January 2009. Relevantly, the results included the
finding of a mixed sample on the left hand sample, with a then unknown
male contributor. A search of the Western Australian DNA database
produced a match on 16 January 2009 to a male profile from the
Karrakatta offences. Because the samples had been tested in the UK
using the SGM Plus kit it was decided to send samples from the
Karrakatta case so that they could be analysed and then compared to the
results in relation to AJM40 and 42. These samples were sent in April
2009.1030
1237 The original samples, including AJM40 and 42, were collected from
FSS in May 2010 by Det Sgt Stanbury and Snr Sgt Paton and brought
back to Perth.1031
Renata Bardo – evidence summary

1238 A statement made by Renata Bardo was read in to evidence. She is a
resident of the UK and was employed by FSS between 2002 and 2011 in
the exhibit receipt and dispatch department at their laboratory in London.
Her duties included the receipt of exhibits.1032
1239 Having examined the relevant records Ms Bardo stated that on

1 September 2008 from 1421 to 1422 hours she took receipt of 15 exhibits
from Mr Webb and booked them in under laboratory reference number
300786438. She checked that each exhibit was present and secure and
1028
ts 6190, 6194; exhibit 14369.
1029
ts 6195 - 6, 6199.
1030
ts 6200 - 1, 6203 - 5; exhibit 14441.
1031
ts 6225 - 30; exhibit 02954.
1032
ts 6155 - 6.
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HALL J
that the exhibit number and exhibit bag number of each exhibit correlated
with those on the itemised list at the back of the supplied FSS submission
of work document before adding her name, stamp and signature to each
page.1033
Scott Payn – evidence summary

1240 A statement made by Scott Payn was read in to evidence. He is a
resident of the UK and in 2008 was employed as a senior assistant
forensic scientist at FSS at their laboratory in London.1034
1241 Having examined the relevant records Mr Payn stated that on

Monday 1 September 2008 he was tasked by his team leader, Phil Nisbett,
to separate some exhibits and repackage them with respect to their exhibit
type. This related to a file with case number 300786438 and order
number 401088837.1035 He said that he was handed a WA Police
evidence bag with the serial number WW00072785. This bag also
displayed FSS case file number 300786438.1036
1242 Mr Payn took the bag to an examination room where he opened it by
cutting along the bottom edge. The bag contained groups of glass slides
secured in cardboard trays which had then been sealed in plastic bags with
evidence tape, a small glass phial sealed in a plastic bag with evidence
tape and plastic pots with yellow lids also sealed in plastic bags with
evidence tape. He checked the packaging of the glass slides to ensure
they were secure and placed them back into the WA Police evidence bag
serial number WW00072785. He placed a label and then signed over the
cut he had made to access the contents of the bag and then sealed the bag
with the tape. He put the plastic bag containing the small glass phial into
a police evidence bag B3015888.1037
1243 There were another two plastic bags that were sealed with intact
signed evidence tape. One bag was labelled AJM42 fingernail scrapings
left middle finger ex-mortuary, lab ref 97R155.8. This bag contained two
plastic pots with yellow lids. He recorded these pots as item number
AJM42 and AJM46 on an FSS examination record. He signed and dated
this examination record. He placed this bag into police evidence bag
B3015890.1038
1033
ts 6156; exhibit 14369.
1034
ts 6156.
1035
ts 6157; exhibit 14433.
1036
ts 6157.
1037
ts 6157 - 8.
1038
ts 6158.
Page 328
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HALL J
1244 The label on the other bag was marked AJM40 fingernail scrapings
left thumb fingernail ex-mortuary, AJM48 right ring fingernail scrapings
ex-mortuary, lab ref 97R155. This bag contained two plastic pots with
yellow lids. He recorded these pots as item number AJM40 and AJM48
on the FSS examination record. He signed and dated this examination
record. He placed this bag into police evidence bag B3015890.1039
1245 During this process Mr Payn made eight pages of notes. He returned
the exhibits to Mr Nisbett at the conclusion of his procedure. At no time
did he open the inner seals of the exhibits.1040
Lucy Lemanski – evidence summary

1246 Lucy Lemanski is currently employed as a teaching fellow for the
Department of Security and Crime Science at University College London.
A statement from Dr Lemanski was read in to evidence. From July to
October 2008 she was employed as a service delivery coordinator in the
stores team of FSS in London. Part of her role was to transfer exhibits
from the London laboratory to other FSS laboratories.1041
1247 Having examined the relevant records relating to case number
300786438 order number 401088837 Dr Lemanski stated that on Tuesday
9 September 2008 she transferred the whole case, which would have
included the exhibits and the case file, via courier from FSS London to
FSS Trident Court, Birmingham.1042 The handwriting and signature on
the transfer-out section and the handwriting on the outward transfer
section of the relevant document is hers.1043
1248 Dr Lemanski recorded this as an outward transfer for the attention of
Carole Evans at the Specialist Case Work Unit. She has no independent
recollection of completing this transfer. However, the transfer process
was standardised and whilst working at FSS she ensured that she followed
correct procedure. According to the documents, she transferred
15 exhibits packaged into three bags. The first bag (dry) had continuity
tag A004976. The second bag (cold) had continuity tag A00497. The
third bag (frozen) had continuity tag A004972. The description on the
bags related to the storage conditions for those exhibits. She could not
1039
ts 6158.
1040
ts 6158 - 9; exhibit 14434.
1041
ts 6159.
1042
ts 6159.
1043
ts 6160; exhibit 14411.
Page 329
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HALL J
recall if she added or was present when the continuity tags were put on the
bags.1044
1249 Dr Lemanski recorded the transfer details on a standard FSS form

titled FSS Case File and Exhibit Transfer Form. She signed and dated the
form on 9 September 2008.1045 She also signed an FSS inter-lab transfer
form relating to continuity tag numbers A004976, A004971 and A004972.
The exhibits and case file would have then been picked up by the courier
for transfer to FSS Trident Court, Birmingham.1046
Andrea Lea – evidence summary

1250 Two statements made by Ms Lea were read in to evidence. From
May 2001 to December 2010 she worked at FSS as a DNA case support
officer at the Trident Court laboratory, Birmingham. Part of her role was
to receive exhibits that had been transferred to the FSS Trident Court from
other FSS laboratories. She worked in a team under the direction of
Carole Evans.1047
1251 Having examined the relevant records Ms Lea was able to identify
her handwriting on the front cover of the examination file relating to
FSS case number 300786438, order number 401088837.1048 The FSS case
file and exhibit transfer form relating to FSS case number 300786438,
order number 401088837 was used to transfer the whole case from
FSS London to FSS Trident Court. Her handwriting and signature is on
the receipt section of this document dated 10 September 2008. On the
same line as her signature under the heading Continuity Details she has
written, 'Received okay.' She has no independent recollection of what she
did. She stated that she normally would have been notified that items had
arrived at Trident Court and would have attended the stores to collect
them and receive them into the laboratory.
1252 The stores area was located within the same complex but in a
different building to her office and the laboratory. The stores area was
secure and could only be accessed using a swipe card with appropriate
security access. The offices and laboratories were also secured, with the
use of a swipe card to gain access.1049
1044
ts 6160; exhibit 14411.
1045
ts 6160; exhibit 14411.
1046
ts 6161; exhibit 14412.
1047
ts 6161 - 2.
1048
Exhibit 14396.
1049
ts 6162 - 3.
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HALL J
1253 Ms Lea states that when items were received from other laboratories
to Trident Court they were labelled with a case number and tagged. The
tags were used for tracking purposes with each tag having a unique serial
number for continuity. This number was recorded on the corresponding
transfer paperwork. On 10 September 2008 she received 15 items
packaged into three bags and the case file for case number 300786438,
order number 401088837. The first bag (dry) had continuity tag
A004976. The cold bag had continuity tag A004971 and the frozen bag
had continuity A004972. The description on the bag related to the storage
conditions for those exhibits. She cannot recall if she removed the
continuity tags following collection or whether they were removed by
someone else. After she collected the items from the stores she would
have conveyed them to her office for cross-checking against the
paperwork supplied. At no stage during this process would she have
opened the tamper proof evidence bags or broken the seals.1050
1254 Ms Lea states that she sent an email at 10.41 am on 10 September
2008 to the international sales coordinator for FSS and the Specialist Case
Work Unit. The email contained a list of items that were received at the
Specialised Case Work Unit, Trident Court on 10 September 2008 relating
to case number 300786438. The purpose of the email was to advise
others that the items had been received so that arrangements could be
made for commencement of the work. The copy of the email on the case
file has handwritten entries 'not received' against items RH25, AJM40,
AJM42 and AJM46 respectively. The entries are dated 18 September
2008 and are initialled. The handwriting and initials are those of Carole
Evans. However, another note in Ms Lea's writing notes that 'RH5,
AJM42, AJM46, AJM40 all received 19/9/08 located in fridge in
stores'.1051
1255 Ms Lea was shown other documents and photographs of the security
movement envelopes from which she concluded that exhibits AJM15, 25,
29, 33A to 33H, 34, 40, 42, 46, 48, MB 55 to 58 and RH25 (listed on the
outside of the WA Police security movement envelope TE72785) together
with TE72784 and TE72786, both of which contained reference samples,
were received by the FSS Trident Court from FSS London on
10 September 2008 by Annette Payne in the stores area of FSS Trident
Court. The stores area was a receival and secure storage area of Trident
Court that had both dry and cold (both fridges and freezers) storage. This
was in a separate building from the FSS Trident Court Specialist Case
1050
ts 6163 - 4.
1051
ts 6164 - 5; exhibit 14398.
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HALL J
Work Unit (SCU) laboratory but within the FSS Trident Court
complex.1052
1256 On or about 18 September 2008 Ms Lea received the note from

Carole Evans to the effect that items RH25, AJM40, 42 and 46 had not
been received in the laboratory. After receiving this notification she went
to locate those particular exhibits. On 19 September 2008 she located
RH25 in a sealed bag and AJM40, 42 and 46 in separate sealed bags in the
fridge in the stores area. She retrieved those exhibits from the fridge in
the stores area and took them to the SCU laboratory where she placed
them in appropriate storage. The exhibits were placed in 'merc 7'. This
was a fridge in the FSS SCU laboratory.1053
1257 Ms Lea believes that what happened is as follows. Scott Payn of the
FSS London laboratory separated out the exhibits for cold storage from
the items for dry storage that had previously been placed together in the
WA Police tamper-evident bag 72785. When the bags were received at
FSS Trident Court the cold storage exhibits were in separate
tamper-evident bags to the dry storage exhibits. When she collected the
bags from the stores area on 10 September 2008 she was not aware that
the cold storage exhibits had been separated out from the dry storage
exhibits and so did not collect the cold storage exhibits from the stores
fridge. At the time there was nothing obvious on the external notations on
bag 72785 that items had been separated from this bag. The exhibits
RH25, AJM42, AJM46 and AJM40 had been received by FSS Trident
Court but were being stored in one of the fridges, a different location
within the stores area to the rest of the exhibits listed.1054
1258 Ms Lea states that her belief is that when Ms Evans was initially
provided with the exhibit items these were limited to those exhibits that
had been stored in the dry area because all of the items Ms Evans noted as
being 'Not received' were the exhibits that had to be stored in the fridge.
The exhibits were always securely stored within FSS Trident Court but at
a different location to where Ms Evans believed the exhibits would be
located.1055
Samantha Underwood – evidence summary

1259 Samantha Underwood is a resident of the UK. She was employed
with FSS from 1995 to 2011 as an assistant forensic scientist at the
1052
ts 6172.
1053
ts 6174.
1054
ts 6174 - 5.
1055
ts 6175.
Page 332
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Birmingham laboratory. On 22 September 2008 she was involved in an

examination of AJM40, 42, 46 and 48.1056
1260 An examination record notes that it took place in examination room

G6 and that the PPE worn was a hairnet, facemask, gloves and a lab coat.
The bench was cleaned both before and after the examination.
Ms Underwood did the examination together with Carole Evans, who
wore the same PPE.1057 The note states that pots AJM42 and 46 were
covered with evidence tape across the lids. None of the four pots was
opened for the purposes of this examination, rather the contents were
observed through the sides of the pots. The contents of AJM40 was
described as 'several bits of debris on sides and bottom of pot varying
sizes < 0.1 – 0.5cm'. The contents of AJM42 was described as 'possible
debris on side of pot ~ 2mm x 0.5mm'.1058
Testing done at ESR
Sally-Anne Harbison – evidence summary

1261 Sally-Anne Harbison is a forensic scientist with the Institute of
Environmental Science and Research (ESR) in New Zealand. She has
been employed at ESR since 1988 and has specialised in DNA work since
1997. ESR has four laboratories in New Zealand, three of which
undertake forensic work. She works at the Mount Albert Science Centre,
which is in Auckland.1059 In 2004 she was involved in work done at the
request of PathWest and provided a report on that work.1060
1262 In 2004 ESR was using the SGM Plus multiplex DNA kit, which
tests 10 loci plus gender. Y-Plex 12 was also being used, which only tests
the Y chromosome. If male DNA is present this kit will produce a profile,
but if only female DNA is present there will only be an X marker result
with no other profile details. The Y-Plex 12 test was inherently more
sensitive because it used 30 cycles of PCR amplification rather than the
more usual 28. It is used where there is a possibility of low amounts of
male DNA. LCN testing with the SGM Plus kit was more sensitive again
as it used 34 cycles.1061
1263 On 26 March 2004 Dr Gavin Turbett from PathWest delivered a

number of samples for testing to ESR's Wellington offices. The samples
1056
ts 6287 - 90.
1057
ts 6291 - 2; exhibit 14510.
1058
ts 6295; exhibit 14510.
1059
ts 5145 - 6.
1060
ts 5148.
1061
ts 5145 - 52.
Page 333
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HALL J
included a large number of microcentrifuge tubes in a plastic box and a

number of petri dishes in a smaller cardboard box.1062 The boxes were not
opened at that time and were then sent to the Auckland laboratory by
courier on 29 March 2004.1063 In Auckland the tubes were unpacked and
checked against a list. They included DNA extracts, Qiagen purified
extracts and some original samples (in tubes). The latter included pieces
of fingernail from AJM41, 42, 46 and 49. There was also a swab from the
AJM50 sample.1064
1264 On 5 August 2004 testing was undertaken using Y STR only for the
extracts. The only results were that female DNA was detected in Qiagen
extracts of AJM41, AJM42 and AJM46. Because this was Y STR testing
only no other information about that DNA was available. No male DNA
was detected in any of the extracts.1065
1265 In regard to the original samples, the contents of the tubes were
removed, swabbed and photocopied. An extraction was then done using
the swabs.1066 The photocopy of the tube relating to AJM42 appears to
show one piece of nail and Dr Harbison said that the other things were
just something on the paper.1067 The piece of nail was returned to the tube
after being photocopied.1068 After amplification and analysis the results
for the extracts created from the original samples were as follows. Both
SGM Plus and Y STR (that is, Y-Plex 12) were used for the original
samples. LCN technique was not used. For the AJM41 extract a female
DNA profile was detected that corresponds to that of Ms Glennon, with a
trace of an additional DNA component, but no indication of male
DNA.1069 For the AJM42 extract a partial female DNA profile was
detected that corresponds to that of Ms Glennon and there was no
indication of male DNA.1070 For the AJM46 extract there was a trace
indication of female DNA only. The DNA detected showed signs of
being degraded. Degradation can occur through prolonged exposure to
the environment.1071
1266 After testing, the original samples and extracts sent from PathWest
and the extracts created by ESR were placed in cold storage. They
1062
ts 5152.
1063
ts 5154.
1064
ts 5158; exhibit 14732.
1065
ts 5162 - 4.
1066
ts 5172.
1067
ts 5173.
1068
ts 5173.
1069
ts 5200.
1070
ts 5201.
1071
ts 5201 - 3.
Page 334
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HALL J
remained there until they were all collected by a WA Police officer on

25 March 2009. The only things that remained at ESR were the amplified
DNA samples created there, which still remain at that laboratory.1072
1267 In cross-examination Dr Harbison said that the optimal amount of
DNA for standard SGM Plus testing was about a nanogram, but that full
profiles could be obtained from as little as 0.1 to 0.2 of a nanogram. The
optimal amount of DNA for Y-STR testing was 0.5 of a nanogram, but
full profiles could be obtained from as little as 0.1 of a nanogram. A
single DNA molecule weighs 6 picograms. A picogram is a thousandth of
a nanogram. Accordingly, 0.1 of a nanogram of DNA is about 20 DNA
molecules. She accepted that the sensitivity of tests had increased
significantly through the 1990s and that this had resulted in changes to
work practices, including the introduction of disposable lab coats, more
frequent changing of gloves and more stringent cleaning regimes.1073
1268 Dr Harbison confirmed that female DNA was detected by ESR in
four PathWest negative controls (one of which was a water control
referred to later as a Quality Issue at PathWest). There were 35 such
controls received of which 21 were tested. Because this DNA was
detected using Y-STR testing no profile of the DNA was generated
(because that test showed only that female DNA was present at the
amelogenin locus). That could indicate contamination, but she could not
determine the significance of it as she did not have the information as to
which samples the controls related to.1074
1269 Dr Harbison said that it was not unheard of to find DNA in blanks,
but not common. She said that at ESR this would now occur every couple
of months and represented an error rate of 1 - 2%. She thought that the
position would have been similar in 2004. As to the contamination
specifically by the DNA of staff members, she said that this now occurred
at a rate of less than 10 in 50,000 tests. On average staff DNA would be
found in samples or blanks perhaps once or twice a year. Whilst every
effort is made to reduce the risk of DNA contamination, it is expected that
it will occur from time to time and that is why detection mechanisms like
the use of negative blanks are used.1075
1072
ts 5207 - 8.
1073
ts 5212 - 9.
1074
ts 5224 - 9.
1075
ts 5229 - 33, 5241.
Page 335
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HALL J
Possible opportunities for contamination

1270 The possibility that DNA of the accused could have been introduced
under the nails of Ms Glennon's left hand at the Eglinton scene is
non-existent. There was no alternative source of the DNA of the accused
present at that scene and no evidence that any person there could have
transferred such DNA.
1271 Some points were made in cross-examination about the lack of

awareness of trace evidence at the time of the post-mortem and
deficiencies in the procedures. In particular, the scissors used to cut the
nails were put down on a ladder at one stage and were used for multiple
nails without being cleaned between each. However, whilst this may raise
the risk that DNA from one part of the body could contaminate another
part, it does not provide any explanation for the presence of the accused's
DNA on the body. There must be a source of contamination and no
source within the mortuary has been identified.
1272 The samples sent to ESR in New Zealand included extracts and nail
fragments from AJM42. AJM40 was not examined or sent. The nail
fragments from AJM42 were removed and placed into a microcentrifuge
tube for transportation. Those nail fragments did not return to the AJM42
container. The two yellow top containers sent to FSS in 2008 had never
been to ESR. Accordingly, contamination of those containers at ESR is
not possible.
1273 The only relevance of the samples sent to ESR is in regard to the
discovery of staff contamination of some of those samples, including a
water blank (control) and that testing of the AJM42 extracts did not
produce a profile. As to contamination, it does not directly impact on
AJM42 and will be dealt with later. As to the negative result it is
essentially neutral because it is not necessarily inconsistent with the
FSS results in 2008. This is because FSS combined AJM40 and 42 and
the DNA found may have come wholly from AJM40 and because the
LCN test used by FSS was more sensitive than that used by ESR in 2004.
1274 The samples were transported to the UK on 1 September 2008. As at

the date the samples were tested at FSS there was no possible source of
the DNA of the accused which was present there. KJG samples and
reference samples for the accused were sent only after the AJM40 and 42
combined sample had been tested. This is conceded by the defence.
Contamination at FSS is not available as an explanation for the DNA.
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HALL J
1275 This means that the only possible place that opportunities for
contamination could occur is at the PathWest laboratory. If the evidence
of the PathWest witnesses is accepted there was no opportunity for
AJM40 to be contaminated at the PathWest laboratory. There were only
two opportunities for AJM42 to be contaminated at the laboratory – when
that container was opened for extraction on 9 April 1997 and when it was
opened to remove the nail fragments for sending to ESR in March 2004.
1276 The only possible sources of the DNA of the accused present in the
laboratory between 1988 and 2016 were the kimono and the KJG exhibits.
The movement and storage of those exhibits will now be considered. The
kimono can be excluded as a possible source for reasons that will be
explained and the KJG exhibits are an unlikely source. The only other,
and only realistic, possible alternative source of the accused's DNA are
extracts prepared in the laboratory from the KJG swabs. Whether there
was in fact any opportunity for cross-contamination between those
extracts and AJM40 and 42 depends on when those extracts were
received, created, opened and tested.
Possible sources of contamination – the kimono

1277 The kimono was seized from the Huntingdale crime scene by police
and delivered to PathWest on 19 February 1988. Mr Egan gave evidence
as to what the records of PathWest show as regards testing and movement
of the kimono. This can be summarised as follows. It was examined on
1 March 1988, but no samples were submitted for analysis. On 30 March
1988 the kimono was returned to the police. It did not return to PathWest
until 16 November 2016.1076
1278 On 23 November 2016 the kimono was examined and subjected to

chemical testing for semen. DNA analysis was then undertaken and
extracts prepared from stains on the kimono. Initial testing resulted in no
DNA being detected. However, a profile was obtained from an extract on
28 November 2016. That profile was matched on 1 December 2016 to the
DNA profile of the perpetrator of the Karrakatta offences. Subsequently,
on 22 December 2016 PathWest received the reference DNA sample from
the buccal swab taken from the accused at the time of his arrest, which
matched both the kimono and Karrakatta profiles. None of this testing
involved AJM40 or 42. The kimono was returned to police on 10 May
2019.1077
1076
ts 6536 – 7.
1077
ts 6536 - 46.
Page 337
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HALL J
1279 Accordingly the kimono was not at PathWest between 30 March

1988 and 16 November 2016. In particular it was not there when AJM40
and 42 arrived in 1997 and did not return until after the 2008 testing of
those samples at FSS. There is no realistic possibility that DNA from the
kimono could have persisted in the laboratory for in excess of eight years.
It was not suggested by the defence that the kimono was a possible source
of contamination. For these reasons, the kimono can be excluded as a
possible source of contamination.
1280 No swabs were taken from the kimono until 2016. That was well
after testing of AJM40 and 42 had produced a match with the accused.
Those swabs can, therefore, also be excluded as a possible source of
contamination.
Collection, movement and testing of the KJG exhibits

1281 In order to disprove the possibility that the DNA in AJM40 and 42
was introduced as a result of a contamination event, the State led evidence
as to the collection, movement, testing and storage of the KJG exhibits
and DNA samples. I will summarise that evidence.

1282 Sgt McCulloch was one of the on-call forensic officers who attended
at Karrakatta Cemetery on 12 February 1995. He was a constable at that
time. He arrived at the scene at approximately 7.30 am. His role was to
collect exhibits. Amongst the items seized were a pair of shoes, a black
skirt (as he then believed it to be) and a pair of women's underpants. The
items were given numbers with his initials, AJM, as the prefix.1078
1283 The black skirt and the underpants were together when he found
them and they were placed into a single paper exhibit bag and marked
AJM2. He wrote the number and description of the contents on the
outside of the bag. Either at that time or back at headquarters he also
attached a forensic label with a folio number that relates to the Forensic
Branch Exhibit Register. The items taken from the scene were initially
secured in a police vehicle.1079
1284 A short time later Sgt McCulloch received a number of other items
from the investigating officer, DSS Emmett. These included a denim
jacket, a pair of hospital pants, a hospital gown and a white cord. These
items were received in four individual paper exhibit bags. These were
1078
ts 4092 - 8.
1079
ts 4099 - 102.
Page 338
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HALL J
labelled AJM4 to 7. He then took all of the items to his office at the
Fingerprint Bureau, then located on the third floor of police headquarters.
Usually such items would be placed in the Forensic Storage Office, but it
was not open after hours (this being a Sunday), so they were stored in the
laboratory at the Fingerprint Bureau. Access to the laboratory was by PIN
code.1080
1285 The following day the items were taken to the Forensic Storage
Office on the fourth floor of the headquarters building and recorded in the
Forensic Exhibit Register. Staff at the office received the items, entered
them in the register and placed them in storage.1081
Dianne Bickhoff – evidence summary

1286 Dianne Bickhoff is currently an officer with the Queensland Police.
Prior to that she was an officer with WA Police for 16 years; between
1991 and 1995 she was a forensic technician. In 1995 she was working as
a specialist photographer with the forensic branch. In this role she
attended crime scenes to take photographs and she was also trained in
collecting exhibits.1082
1287 On Sunday 12 February 1995 at about 7.00 am SC Bickhoff received

a call asking her to attend an area of Karrakatta Cemetery, on the corner
of Dalkeith Road and Carrington Street. Approximately half an hour later
she arrived at the scene. She recalled speaking to Detective Mark Emmett
from 79 division and KJG; she was not sure whether she waited until
other forensic officers arrived before she did so. She recalled that another
forensic officer, Sgt McCulloch, also attended.1083
1288 DSS Emmett provided a briefing to the forensic officers and

provided them with information about where they needed to collect
samples or exhibits from; it was agreed that SC Bickhoff was to be the
photographer and that Officer McCulloch would collect the exhibits. She
took a photograph of each exhibit in situ;1084 she recalled a pair of shoes
and a skirt or it may have been shorts. She also photographed drag marks
in the sand near some tombstones. She took close-up photographs of
where the offence occurred and then walked further into the distance to
1080
ts 4102 - 3.
1081
ts 4103 - 5; exhibit 15643.
1082
ts 2012 - 3.
1083
ts 2014 - 5.
1084
Exhibit 06184, exhibit 06186, exhibit 06187, exhibit 06188, exhibit 06191.
Page 339
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HALL J
take photographs so that the crime scene location could be seen from a
different angle.1085
1289 After the photographs were taken, Officer McCulloch collected the
exhibits. He filled out a crime scene report, which included what he
collected, the time, where he collected it from, his initials and a number.
The exhibit numbering system used the initials of the officer collecting the
exhibits. The exhibit number for the skirt or shorts is AJM2.
SC Bickhoff recalled that the exhibits were then placed in an exhibit
bag.1086
1290 SC Bickhoff said that she was shown a number of photographs by
police that she understood to be the photographs in relation to this
investigation. She has not been shown any photographs of the exhibits in
the places where they were found. She said that she recalls taking
photographs of the items in situ but was not shown photographs of this
kind. She said that when an exhibit is found it should be photographed
where it is found before it is collected.1087
1291 SC Bickhoff described what happened after the photographs were
taken. She completed a photo job form, which allocated a number to each
job. The film was taken out of the camera, the rolls of film were
processed and the negatives were developed and placed in an envelope for
that job. She labelled the envelope in which the negatives were stored.
The envelope was stored at the photography branch so when the
photographs were required for court they could be printed from the
negatives.1088
1292 The photo job form that records the job number (95/2319), the date,
the officer who took the photos and the offence type was tendered.
SC Bickhoff did not fill in this form at the time she took the photographs,
she filled it in on a day soon after. She filled out the form when she
logged the rolls of film. She did not develop the photographs or label
them. A different form was required to request that the photographs be
printed.1089
1293 SC Bickhoff said that some exhibits had been already collected at the
hospital. These exhibits were handed to Officer McCulloch. She recalled
seeing the exhibit list that Officer McCulloch had written and said she
1085
ts 2015 - 8, 2020.
1086
ts 2017 - 8, 2026; exhibit 06199.
1087
ts 2039 - 40, 2049.
1088
ts 2031 - 2, 2040 - 2; exhibit 06183.
1089
ts 2032, 2042, 2054; exhibit 06183.
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HALL J
reviewed the details and the list accorded with her recollection as to what
exhibits were seized from where and what number they were given.1090
1294 On the form the initials SHL means State Health Laboratories, where
the exhibits were taken for analysis. There is a note on the list that the
following items were collected from DSS Emmett, 79 division, at the
corner of Carrington and Dalkeith, Nedlands at 8.45 am: the denim jacket
AJM4, the hospital pants AJM5, hospital gown AJM6 and the white cord
AJM7. The exhibits were handled by Officer McCulloch and taken to the
forensics branch, items that were going to go to PathWest went to the
forensics branch to be secured because it was a Sunday and PathWest was
not open.1091
1295 A request for analysis was addressed to the director of PathWest,

QE II Medical Centre. The purpose of the form is to indicate what items
need to be analysed. It can be seen from the form that SC Bickhoff was
the officer who delivered the samples to PathWest and that Officer
McCulloch was the officer who collected the samples. SC Bickhoff does
not have an independent recollection of delivering the items.1092
Mark Emmett – evidence summary

1296 In 1995 Mark Emmett was a Detective First Class Constable attached
to the 79 division at Curtin House, Perth. The officers in 79 division
responded to serious incidents and carried out a preliminary investigation
before handing the matter over to detectives or specialist officers.1093
1297 On 12 February 1995 Detective Senior Sergeant Emmett was
working a nightshift with Sergeant Geoffrey Trinder. They attended
Hollywood Hospital at about 5.30 am and later conducted investigations
into the assault on KJG. When he and Sgt Trinder arrived at Hollywood
Hospital at about 6.05 am two uniformed officers were already there. At
about 7.00 am DSS Emmett, Sgt Trinder and KJG drove around the
Claremont area in the officers' dark blue Commodore sedan.1094
1298 The purpose of the drive was to identify the primary crime scene,
which they located in the north-eastern area of Karrakatta Cemetery.
During the drive KJG had a blanket wrapped around her and provided
directions to the police officers. Once they got to the corner of Dalkeith
1090
ts 2024 - 5.
1091
ts 2032 - 3; exhibit 06200.
1092
ts 2033 - 4; exhibit 06200.
1093
ts 1997, 2009.
1094
ts 1997 - 9.
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HALL J
Road and Carrington Street DSS Emmett had a look around; he looked at
the area on the side of Dalkeith Road along the tree line where the graves
are. He located two or three items; a pair of dark coloured skorts1095 and a
top, perhaps a denim jacket and some underwear. DSS Emmett called
forensic officers to attend. He recalled that Constable Bickhoff attended
the scene and took photographs of the items in situ (although he could not
remember if he was there when this occurred).1096
1299 DSS Emmett then left the scene and went back to Hollywood
Hospital with KJG. He recalled that he collected some clothes from KJG,
some hospital garments, and a piece of white or cream telephone cable.
He put the items into paper bags and gave them to Officer McCulloch. He
was asked if they went into one bag or more than one bag and said 'more
than one bag I would say'. He said he did not believe that he completed
packaging the items there, he gave them straight to Officer McCulloch.
DSS Emmett had an independent recollection of some exhibits being
found at the cemetery area, but he could not recall which exhibits were
taken from that area and which were taken from KJG at the hospital. He
said that it was the role of the forensic officers to keep a list of the items
that had been seized and to create exhibit numbers or identifiers. 1097
Amanda Barnard – evidence summary

1300 Amanda Barnard is a medical practitioner currently working as a
General Practitioner in New South Wales and as interim head of the
School of Rural Medicine at Charles Sturt University. Dr Barnard worked
at the SARC in Perth from approximately 1993 to 1996. SARC provided
a service to victims of sexual assault. The centre had a team of doctors on
call and counsellors.1098
1301 On 12 February 1995 Dr Barnard was on call. At 11.15 am on that

morning she examined KJG, who she understood had been sexually
assaulted at Karrakatta Cemetery. Dr Barnard said that she had some
limited independent memory of the examination. She said that the matter
stuck in her mind because it was a violent assault by a stranger, that KJG
had been hooded and restrained, the extent and painfulness of KJG's
injuries and the fact that KJG was young and a virgin.1099
1095
ts 2001.
1096
ts 2000 - 2.
1097
ts 2003 - 8.
1098
ts 3323 - 4.
1099
ts 3324 - 5.
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HALL J
1302 Dr Barnard wrote notes in the course of her examination and

provided a report for the purposes of this matter on 23 February 1995.
She had access to the report and her notes from the SARC file when she
gave evidence. She wrote the notes and diagrams at the time of the
examination; she wrote the report later based on the notes and her
recollection.1100
1303 Dr Barnard said that she first conducted an examination of KJG from
head to toe and took forensic samples where necessary. She documented
injuries or areas that KJG told her were painful on avatar diagrams of the
front and back of the body. In her examination of KJG's genital area
Dr Barnard noted that there were particles of sand, dirt and plant matter in
KJG's pubic hair, over her perineum and between her labia majora and
labia minora. Dr Barnard also noted a stickiness in her pubic hair from
secretions.1101
1304 Dr Barnard noted that KJG's vaginal entrance was extremely tender
and swollen and she had bruising at the internal entrance with clotted
blood visible and streaks of blood at the external opening of the vagina.
Dr Barnard said that the examination was particularly painful and difficult
for KJG; due to the pain and swelling Dr Barnard had to use a paediatric
speculum. She said that the injuries were consistent with forcible
penetration. She examined KJG's anal area and noted that there were
particles of sand and dirt around her anus and the perineal skin. KJG's
anus was tender and bruised. Dr Barnard said that this was consistent
with forcible penetration.1102
1305 Dr Barnard collected a number of samples from KJG's genital area,
both internal and external. She took the external samples first and used
gauze swabs to collect any foreign material from the external area, she
then used a speculum to collect the vaginal swabs. Printed sheets of
labels were filled in by Dr Barnard before the examination. The labels
recorded the patient's name, the doctor's name and the date. The labels
were affixed to the tube or jar that the samples were placed in.1103
1306 Dr Barnard explained that a swab is a sterile cotton tip bud that
comes pre-packaged in a tube with a medium in it. To use it, the doctor
breaks the seal on the tube and takes out the swab and then after it has
been used puts the swab back into the medium and seals it up. Dr Barnard
1100
ts 3325.
1101
1102
ts 3333 - 4.
1103
ts 3335, 3340.
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HALL J
said depending on what the swabs are being used for the tube might not
have a medium in it. The swabs used in this examination were part of a
kit provided by the government for SARC use. The swabs and specimen
containers were fresh, sterile and sealed and had not been used before.1104
1307 Dr Barnard made a record of the samples that she took at the
examination of KJG. She said her usual practice was to tick off the
samples from the list on the notes as she took them. She said that she
thought that the ticks on the form were made by her, they looked to her
like her sort of tick, but she could not be as clear as if she was identifying
her handwriting. If the item on the list is not ticked then Dr Barnard did
not take that sample; for example, item 16 to test KJG's blood for alcohol
or item 3 an oral swab. In describing these processes Dr Barnard gave
evidence about her usual practice because she did not recall taking each
individual sample. She said that there is no reason to think she did not
follow normal procedure in taking these samples.1105
1308 The form provides a place to note any other specimens or clothing
that are taken (apart from those on the printed list). Dr Barnard said that
she took KJG's bra and a white t-shirt and noted those on the form. She
also took some head hairs and plant matter that was entangled in KJG's
hair, pubic hair combings, pubic hair cuttings and a gauze swab that was
used to take samples from the vulva and the labia. She was asked in
cross-examination whether she was satisfied that those are the only other
items that she took from KJG. She said that she would assume so, and
that was her normal practice but that she did not have an independent
recollection.1106
1309 Dr Barnard was asked in cross-examination about a urine sample;

she was asked if there was a urine sample taken, would she expect that to
be noted on this form. She said that if a urine sample was taken as part of
the forensic samples (and if a police officer left with the sample) she
would expect it to be noted on that form. She also said that the form was
for forensic samples only; SARC ran a medical service so that at a later
stage she may have taken other samples, including urine, if she was
suspicious that KJG may have had a urinary tract infection.1107
1310 Dr Barnard took a low vaginal swab and smear after she had put the
speculum through. She said that she did this to prevent contamination
1104
ts 3336, 3358.
1105
ts 3338, 3348 - 9; exhibit 01293.
1106
ts 3339.
1107
ts 3355.
Page 344
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HALL J
when putting in the swab or taking it out. She passed the swab through
the open speculum and took a sample from the low vagina, a short
distance inside the entrance of the vagina, and created a smear. A high
vaginal swab was taken by putting a swab through the speculum and as a
high up in the vagina as she could. She used two swabs to cover the upper
vaginal areas and a third swab to create a smear. The use of the paediatric
speculum did not affect the way in which she took the high vaginal
swab.1108
1311 Dr Barnard said that after she had collected and sealed all the
individual samples in zip lock bags she placed them all into a large brown
paper bag and gave it to Detective Kurtis. She said that the large bags
used were brown with another colour stripe through them and they were
clearly labelled or pre-printed to show that it was a bag of forensic
samples. She said that she recalled sealing the bag and signing across it
with tape that you could write on. The bags and tape were part of the
SARC kit.1109
1312 Dr Barnard did not recall what bag the clothing was put into. She
said that she did not recall Detective Kurtis being present when she wrote
the checklist. She was asked in cross-examination if the second ticks next
to most of the items 1 - 17 is also her tick; Dr Barnard said that they may
be or they may have been the police officer checking them, she could not
be sure.1110
1313 A photograph of some of the swab tubes taken during the
examination of KJG was shown to Dr Barnard. At the bottom there is a
note 'labial smear' that has been crossed out and replaced with 'swab' and
the initials of Dr Barnard. She said that she thinks what happened is that
she was filling out the pre-printed forms and inadvertently put the smear
label onto the swab tube and realised her error and crossed it out; she said
it was easier to change the writing on the label than peel the label off.1111
Teresa Kurtis – evidence summary

1314 Teresa Kurtis was a police officer with WA Police from 1988 to
2017 and retired at the rank of Detective Senior Sergeant. Her regimental
number was 7651. Ms Kurtis interviewed KJG about the assault in
1108
ts 3341 - 2.
1109
ts 3343 - 4, 3354.
1110
ts 3344, 3348.
1111
ts 3345; exhibit 01299.
Page 345
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Karrakatta Cemetery and took her to the SARC for examination.

Ms Kurtis later took the exhibits collected at SARC to PathWest.1112
1315 In 1995 Ms Kurtis was a Detective First Class Constable attached to

City Detectives. She was one of a group of female detectives who had
expertise in obtaining evidence and dealing with victims of sexual assault.
On 12 February 1995 she was recalled to duty in order to speak to KJG
about the assault. She went into the Division 79 office in Curtin House to
conduct the interview. She spoke to KJG in detail about what had
happened and made notes of the conversation. She prepared a
handwritten seven-page statement that KJG signed.1113
1316 Ms Kurtis then took KJG to SARC. At SARC there was a medical
and forensic examination of KJG. Ms Kurtis was not present for the
examination. She returned later to pick up KJG and the evidence that had
been collected during the examination. Dr Barnard went through a
process of handing over to Ms Kurtis all the exhibits that she had
collected. Dr Barnard had a list and they went through it and ticked off
the items. Ms Kurtis looked at the tag or notification on the sample and
they ticked the list off as they went. She said because the list was a
pro-forma document not every item on the list had been collected.
Ms Kurtis recalled some swabs that came in a container and others that
were in long tubes. Once the samples were ticked off the list they were
put into a bag. The biological samples were put into a bag together and
the clothing was in paper bags. Ms Kurtis was not able to recall
independently all of the exhibits or samples that she was given. She
recalled that she signed a document that was a record of the exhibits that
were provided to her.1114
1317 Ms Kurtis noted that her name, regimental number and signature is
on the form; she said that she signed the form at the completion of the
exhibits being provided to her. She then left SARC with KJG and the
exhibits. She had three bags: one bag of biological specimens and two
bags with clothing in them. The biological samples were all contained in
one plastic bag and she was pretty certain that they were also in a
SARC-issued brown paper bag that was about a metre wide. She did not
believe that she put any writing on the outside of the bag and did not
recall anyone else writing on the outside of the bag. She recalled the use
of pre-printed stickers by SARC and WA Police; she said that there were
stickers on the individual samples. She said that she thought that there
1112
ts 3359.
1113
ts 3360.
1114
ts 3361 - 3; exhibit 01295.
Page 346
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HALL J
was also information on the plastic bag containing the biological

samples.1115
1318 Ms Kurtis took KJG home and took the three bags of exhibits to the
CIB duty sergeant at Curtin House. The exhibits were to be taken to
PathWest but because it was a Sunday she could not take them there
straight away. The biological exhibits needed to be refrigerated so all the
exhibits were placed in an exhibits fridge at the duty sergeant's office.
She took the exhibits to the CIB duty sergeant's fridge because she was
with City Detectives at the time. If any officer from her division had
collected samples on that day they would have been placed in the same
fridge. The CIB duty sergeant was available 24 hours a day seven days a
week. She said that all three bags went into the fridge. She did not recall
whether there were any other samples in the fridge at the same time.1116
1319 On the following day, Monday 13 February 1995, Ms Kurtis

completed the documentation that was used to take samples to PathWest.
She said that there was a standard form that was filled out to take samples
for forensic analysis. The form was on letterhead and the officers inserted
details of the case, where the exhibits were taken from and a list of the
exhibits.1117
1320 Ms Kurtis had no independent recollection of the document. She
was shown a photocopy of a CIB specimen register with the number
95/37/41. The document is in her handwriting and is addressed to
PathWest at QE II Medical Centre. The document is dated 13 February
1995 and she said that is the date that it was completed by her. She said
that she prepared the form from information in the document that
accompanied the samples from SARC. She completed the form on
13 February but did not take the samples until the next day. On that day
she took the items out of the fridge and took the three bags to
PathWest.1118
1321 Ms Kurtis said that Martin Blooms was the forensic scientist at
PathWest that she handed the exhibits to. She took out the bag of
biological samples and showed them to Mr Blooms. She said that the bag
was then opened so that they could check each item off. Each of the
individual tubes came out of the bag. They went through a similar
process as with Dr Barnard where Mr Blooms checked off the exhibits
1115
ts 3364, 3382 - 3; exhibit 01295.
1116
ts 3365, 3384 - 5.
1117
ts 3365; exhibit 02479.
1118
ts 3365 - 7; exhibit 02479.
Page 347
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that she had provided. She said that the ticks on the left-hand side of the
form were done by Mr Blooms. She noted that some of the items had
been given two ticks: the high vaginal and rectal swab and the blood
sample.1119
1322 Ms Kurtis was asked about the words 'no label' next to the word
'urine' in examination-in-chief. She said that all the other samples that she
received from Dr Barnard were labelled. In cross-examination she said
that because she wrote it down, she is sure she provided a yellow top
container of urine to Mr Blooms. She said that she did not have any
independent recollection of the fact that the container did not have a label
on it.1120
1323 The samples had been in the CIB office of the duty sergeant from the
time Ms Kurtis put them there on 12 February 1995 until she delivered
them to Mr Blooms on 14 February 1995. When she delivered the items
to Mr Blooms they appeared as she had left them. Once she dropped the
items off to PathWest they were then in the custody of that organisation
and she did not have anything further to do with them. 1121
1324 In 1998 Ms Kurtis was involved in the movement of the exhibits.

The transfer history shows that an officer with regimental number 4895
hand delivered the items on 12 October 1998 to Ms Kurtis at the Sex
Assault Squad. The received date, however, is shown as 17 June 1999.
She said that on 12 October 1998 she took custody of the exhibits and
took them to the Sex Assault Squad. She said that her memory is that she
went to Adelaide Terrace, to headquarters, to pick up the exhibits. She
said that it appears that the property tracing system (PTS) should have
been updated on 12 October 1998, but based on this record it was not.
Ms Kurtis said that she believed that the officer with regimental number
4895 is Keith Lesley at DECU in police headquarters in Adelaide Terrace.
She said that regardless of what it was called she recalled that he worked
in the exhibits office at Adelaide Terrace.1122
1325 In cross-examination Ms Kurtis said that she had a general memory

of collecting the exhibits and storing them where they would normally be
stored. She said that she did not open any of the bags to make sure that
1119
ts 3368 - 70, 3386.
1120
ts 3369, 3389.
1121
ts 3370.
1122
ts 3372 - 6, 3391, 3395 - 7; exhibit 02485.
Page 348
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HALL J
she had what was described on the PTS. She said that the exhibits were in
paper bags; she believed that they had descriptions on them.1123
John Ashworth – evidence summary

1326 John Ashworth was previously employed by WA Police as a forensic
exhibits officer. He was a public servant and worked under the
supervision of SC Keith Leslie. He worked with WA Police between
about 1991 and 2010. He started with the photographic section of the
forensic division and then after a year and a half moved to the Forensic
Exhibits Office, which at the time was situated on the third floor of police
headquarters. In 1995 he and SC Leslie were working in the Forensic
Exhibits Office. He described it as a depository for the storage of
exhibits, including long-term storage. Detectives or officers from any
area of WA Police would hand in crime scene exhibits in a sealed bag or
box.1124
1327 Mr Ashworth received exhibits from police officers into the Forensic
Exhibits Office. He was responsible for the safe and secure storage of the
exhibits. He was also responsible for collecting and transporting exhibits
to external agencies such as PathWest or the ChemCentre. The exhibits
would be delivered to the office by being handed over the counter with the
appropriate paperwork. When he started at the Forensic Exhibits Office
the records were paper based and they used folio books to record every
movement of property. That changed at some point to an electronic
system, called the Property Tracing System (PTS).1125
1328 Mr Ashworth was shown an entry in the register relating to KJG and
said that all items up to seven were written by him including the initial
receival and the notation of who delivered the items. He said that the
notation at the top in red is his handwriting and notes that all the items
were later collected by Detective Thompson. On the left-hand side of the
page he has written '77-95'. That was a folio number created in 1995. In
the folio book each entry was numbered; this is the 77th entry for 1995.
When he received exhibits he gave them the next folio number. He wrote
the details of the officer submitting, the offence, the address, and the
complainant. He was asked at what point in time he would have entered
this information. He noted that the items were collected at the scene on
12 February 1995. He said that the office was not open on the weekend
and said that the practice of the office was that if exhibits were seized
1123
ts 3393.
1124
ts 7271 - 2.
1125
ts 7272 - 3.
Page 349
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HALL J
over the weekend and could not be logged they would be stored in the
office until the following day, Monday morning or the following day.1126
1329 On 8 March 1995 Mr Ashworth was involved in the collection of

exhibits in the KJG matter. He was shown a PathWest file folder with a
stamp recording that exhibits were collected, which he signed on 8 March
1995 at 11.10 am. The PathWest exhibits register for the same date shows
his name next to the case reference 95R56 and the complainant KJG. The
time is recorded as 11.10 am. He said that once he had collected the
exhibits from PathWest he took them back to his office. He would then
go to the folio book or PTS system to transfer the items back to his office.
The Forensic Exhibits Office register notes the return of the exhibits in the
'exhibit in' column by the stamp 'SHL report' with 'rec' on 8 March 1995.
He said that SHL is the State Health Laboratory (now PathWest). This
notation means that that those exhibits had been received by the Forensic
Exhibits Office from PathWest on that date. The exhibits are recorded as
being stored in 'E5', which was a location within the forensic exhibit
office facility. He explained that at the back of the main office there was
a reasonably large storage area. Each section was given a letter and each
shelf was given a number.1127
1330 The forensic exhibit office was a secure facility. The storage area
was a locked area. There was only one door. It was alarmed. The only
people who could access the storage area were him and his supervisor or a
detective who may have been allocated a relief position when SC Leslie
was on leave. Officers from the forensic division could also access the
area.1128
1331 At no point did he open the exhibits. He was asked in

cross-examination about sealing of exhibit bags. He agreed that exhibit
tape was not used until the late 1990s. Prior to that he received items that
were sealed in some form, they were sealed in such a way that he could
not look inside the bag without breaking some sort of seal, possibly
Sellotape. He said that if an item came to him and was not sealed he
would give it back to the officer. It was his general practice when he
received an exhibit, either from a police officer or from an agency such as
the ChemCentre to check the sealing of the packaging. He said that he
would not accept an unsealed item.1129
1126
ts 7280 - 2; exhibit 15643.
1127
ts 7273 - 5, 7277 - 8; exhibit 05740.
1128
ts 7278 - 9.
1129
ts 7294, 7298.
Page 350
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HALL J
1332 On 7 October 1998 Mr Ashworth collected the KJG exhibits from

the ChemCentre and took them to his office. He said that once he was at
the Forensic Exhibit Office he would have placed them on the counter and
then transferred them to the appropriate location. If there were already
exhibits in relation to the same case in the storage area then they would be
placed together.1130
1333 In cross-examination Mr Ashworth was shown the PTS receipt and

asked why his movement of the exhibits does not appear on the PTS
movement record. He accepted that the movement record does not show
that he collected the exhibits but said that the fact that he had signed the
receipt meant that he had bought them back to the office.1131
Betty Jo Francis (Thompson) – evidence summary

1334 Betty Jo Francis was previously a member of WA Police and was at
that time known as Detective First Class Constable Thompson. She
joined the police in 1989 and left in January 1999. At the time she left she
was in the Sex Assault Squad.1132
1335 Shortly after Ms Francis joined the Sex Assault Squad on 10 June
1996 she was asked to conduct further investigations into the assault on
KJG. She and SC Paul Lydiate were assigned this task by their supervisor
on 12 June 1996. Ms Francis said they were required to gather evidence
about the offence and interview KJG in depth.1133
1336 Ms Francis recalled that she and Detective Lydiate were given the
offence report number and the name of the complainant and that at the
time they were given the job arrangements had already been made for
KJG to come in for an interview. She did a search on the computer
system that showed that there were photographs and that the exhibits for
the offence were being held at the central exhibits office in police
headquarters on Adelaide Terrace. She requested photographs of KJG
from SARC and photographs of the scene from forensic photography. On
14 June 1996 at 8.30 am she contacted the photography section of the
forensic branch and asked for all the photographs they had taken to be
developed.1134
1130
ts 7290, 7296 - 7.
1131
ts 7291.
1132
ts 2715 - 6.
1133
ts 2716.
1134
ts 2716 - 20.
Page 351
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HALL J
1337 Ms Francis went to the forensic photography office at approximately

11.30 am and collected the photographs. She made a note: 'only photogs
of cemetery area'. She did not recall seeing photographs of the exhibits
where they were found. She said she made enquiries with the forensic
photographer who attended the scene. Her notes record that she spoke to
Di Bickhoff, who had no information.1135
1338 On 14 June 1996 Ms Francis and Detective Lydiate went to

headquarters and collected all the exhibits; her recollection was that they
collected the clothing exhibits. She recalled collecting the bags. She said
that she did not look into the bags or tick off each item. She said she was
fairly certain that the bags were sealed. She said that at the time the
exhibits were seized there was a manual system to record exhibits; that is,
there was a handwritten book or folio in which items were given a number
and the book was kept at the exhibits office. She recalled that the exhibits
she collected included a pair of shoes, a pair of underpants, a pair of
shorts (labelled a skirt), a t-shirt, a jacket, hospital gown and pants and a
white cord.1136
1339 Ms Francis was shown the relevant pages from the Forensic Branch
Exhibit Register book. She identified the folio number 77/95, and the
details submitted by Officer McCulloch including the inquiry officer, the
address and the complainant's details. She signed the register and
recorded the date, 14 June 1996, as the date collected. She has written 'all
items on hand collected by Det Thompson 8263'.1137
1340 Ms Francis took the exhibits, which were in green and brown paper
exhibit bags, back to her office at the Sex Assault Squad at Curtin House
and put them in the exhibit room, which is a secure room. She said the
bags were sealed and she did not open the bags. She had custody of the
exhibits from the time she signed the register. When she got back to the
office Ms Francis noted in her running sheet that she had collected the
exhibits at about 9.15. The running sheet refers to a 'black skirt' and
'panties'.1138
1341 Ms Francis recalled interviewing KJG on 17 June 1996. She met

KJG at about 9.00 am and first went for a drive to the location of the
assault and then went back to Ms Francis's office. Ms Francis took the
statement alone. She recalled dropping KJG home at close to 6.00 pm and
1135
ts 2753 - 6.
1136
ts 2721 - 3, 2758 - 9.
1137
1138
ts 2726, 2731 - 2.
Page 352
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HALL J
that the statement was signed on a later day. Prior to meeting KJG she
had had access to the original statement taken from KJG.1139
1342 Ms Francis said that at this time the police had started a new
electronic system with respect to property management. The system was
known by the acronym PTS: property tracing system. On 26 June 1996
she entered the exhibits onto the PTS. A property tracing receipt has
Ms Francis's signature on the left and Detective Lydiate's signature on the
right and has a property receipt number – 1996 289064. She explained
that this receipt indicates that the property was taken into her possession
on 14 June 1996 at 1 Adelaide Terrace, Perth from the exhibits section. It
includes a list of items numbered 1 to 8; they are all listed as 'clothing'
apart from number 3 that is 'shoes'. Ms Francis was asked why there are
eight items on the property receipt when there were seven items in the
register book. She said that from looking back at her notes she believed
that there were two items that were written together (the 'black skirt' and
'pair of panties') that were actually in separate bags; she said she did not
open any of the bags.1140
1343 Ms Francis said by the time that she filled out the details on the PTS,
KJG had told her what she was wearing on the night of the offence. Part
of her duty as the officer entering the information was to provide a
description of each item. Once these details were entered in the system a
person accessing the PTS could learn what each item is by looking at
these screens. Her recollection is that each item was separately bagged;
she is confident that she did not open the bags to enter them into the
system. Item 7 is described as '1 x ladies black shorts worn by
complainant during assault'. Ms Francis changed the description from
'black skirt' (as in the Forensic Branch Exhibit book) to 'black shorts'.
This was because she had been told by KJG that she was wearing
shorts.1141
1344 It was put to Ms Francis in cross-examination that she had said in her
statement made in 2014 that 'At some point I must have removed the item
from its packaging and noted that they were shorts instead of a skirt'. In
her evidence she said that she changed the description because KJG told
her that she was wearing shorts and not a skirt.1142
1139
ts 2729 - 30.
1140
ts 2726 - 8, 2731 - 2, 2760; exhibit 02228.
1141
1142
ts 2763, 2767 - 8.
Page 353
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1345 Ms Francis said that she took the exhibits to the ChemCentre on
27 June 1996 for analysis of any fibres, paint material or hairs. The
process to complete before taking the items to the ChemCentre was
manual at that time. She created a request for analysis form with a list of
exhibits. There is a note: 'exhibits to be packaged and labelled and signed
individually'. Ms Francis was asked in cross-examination if this was a
request by her for the ChemCentre to put the exhibits into separate bags;
she said that she believed that she gave them eight bags in which the items
were already separately packaged. In the list the exhibits have been
grouped according to the nature of the testing that was requested.
Exhibits 1 - 3 (denim jacket, white t-shirt and white bra) are to be tested
for fibres from the bag over the head, paint from the vehicle and hairs.
Exhibits 4, 5 and 6 (black shorts, white underpants and black shoes) are to
be tested for fibres from the carpet in the vehicle, paint from the vehicle
and hairs. Exhibits 7 and 8 (hospital gown and hospital pants) are to be
tested for possible fibres or material picked up from the complainant's
body on the inside of the garments.1143
1346 Ms Francis recalled that before she left to go to the ChemCentre she
logged into the PTS that the property had been transferred to the
ChemCentre. A List of Transferred Items dated 27 June 1996 with her
regimental number and the time 13.36.55 shows that eight items were
transferred to 'WA Chemistry Centre'. When she got to the ChemCentre
and handed over the exhibits Ms Francis signed the request for analysis
form. The time recorded is 2.15 pm on 27 June 1996. The ChemCentre
then had custody of the exhibits. She did not have any further dealings
with the exhibits after she dropped them off at the ChemCentre.1144
1347 Ms Francis said that she did not open or examine the items in the
exhibit bags. She delivered the exhibits to the ChemCentre in the same
bags that she received them in. She said that in all the investigations she
had done she could not ever recall opening an exhibit bag that had been
sealed. The only exhibit bag that Ms Francis recalled opening was the
bag containing the white cord. She said that there was nothing that could
be obtained from it after analysis so she made enquiries to try to find out
who the manufacturer was and what type of cord it was.1145
1143
ts 2741 - 5, 2774 - 5; exhibit 02230.
1144
ts 2745 - 6; exhibit 02231.
1145
ts 2729, 2749, 2767.
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1348 After Ms Francis had completed her enquiries the file was given
back to the Homicide Squad, Macro investigation team. She said her
involvement was for a few weeks, possibly two months.1146
Martin Blooms – evidence summary

1349 Martin Blooms worked as a forensic scientist at PathWest between
1994 and 2012.
1350 Mr Blooms was shown an evidence movement log that records that
23 items relating to KJG were received by 'MB' at 10.40 am on
14 February 1995 from Detective Kurtis. He said that annotation is in
Michelle Fromm's handwriting. She was one of two laboratory assistants
working there at the time. Her role was to support the scientists, including
with clerical work. She received items and recorded them. There is also
an annotation that shows that a further six items were received later that
day by Aleks Bagdonavicius from Diane Bickhoff. Some intimate
samples from SARC were received by Mr Blooms that were in two bags
and were checked off against a list.1147
1351 Mr Blooms undertook chemical screening of the intimate samples for
blood and semen. The laboratory assistant performed the tests observed
by Mr Blooms, who wrote down the results. Tests of this type in sex
assault cases were usually done within half an hour to an hour of receipt.
The tests were AP (acid phosphatase) and KM (Kastle-Meyer). AP is a
screening test for semen and KM is a screening test for blood.1148
1352 These tests were performed in a special area that was devoted for that
purpose. The bench surface was impervious and easily able to be cleaned.
The surface was routinely cleaned and then wiped down with 70% alcohol
and chlorine bleach. A clean piece of blotting paper was then placed on
the bench and the tests performed on it. The tests were performed by
putting a drop of sterile water onto piece of filter paper or paper towel, the
swab was then taken from its tube and rubbed on the paper to dislodge
some of biological material that may be on it and then the swab would be
returned to its tube. Reagents would then be taken from a rack and drops
put onto the filter paper. A stopwatch would be started to time any
reaction. One reagent was used in the AP test and two in the KM test. He
1146
ts 2748.
1147
ts 4968 - 9, 4971 - 2, 4974; exhibit 15664.
1148
ts 4980 - 3.
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said it would be contrary to good practice to have more than one swab
open at a time.1149
1353 Mr Blooms said that the following swabs were subjected to screening
tests: high vaginal 1 (HV1), high vaginal 2 (HV2), low vaginal (LV),
labial, anal 1 and anal 2. Smears were made in the laboratory from three
other samples: urine, vulva and perineum. Both of the high vaginal
swabs were positive for semen and blood. The low vaginal and labial
swabs had a weak reaction for semen and were positive for blood. The
anal 1 swab had a weak reaction for semen and was negative for blood.
The anal 2 swab had weak reactions for both semen and blood. The urine
sample was negative for semen but positive for blood. The vulva sample
had a weak reaction for semen and was negative for blood. The perineum
sample had weak reaction for both semen and blood. Where there was a
positive result for the test for semen the sample could be examined under
a microscope to determine whether sperm were present. This was done
(on the same day) for the HV1, LV, labial and anal 1 samples and sperm
in various states was observed in each. After each individual screening
test is complete the piece of filter paper, gloves and anything on the bench
is discarded by being placed into a biohazard bag and the bench is then
cleaned.1150
1354 An annotation on the screening test results sheet indicates that the
following samples were sent for DNA testing on 16 February 1995: HV1,
HV2, LV, labial, anal 1 and anal 2. Mr Blooms said he was not involved
in that part of the testing because it was important to keep item
examination separate from DNA testing. The screening tests and
microscopy were done in the examination room whereas the DNA testing
was done in the DNA laboratory.1151
1355 Mr Blooms explained that because the swabs must be dry to preserve
any DNA they are placed in the drying oven at 50°C with the tops open a
centimetre to allow airflow. Typically, this occurs overnight. Once
drying is complete the swab tubes are closed and put back into biohazard
bags. To reduce the risk of cross-contamination the oven is routinely
cleaned and samples from different cases would not be mixed up (they
would be grouped together in the oven). Mr Blooms said he could not
imagine any mechanism by which DNA from one tube could pass over
into another tube, because, he said, 'things just don't fly about'. He was
asked 'Does DNA fly around a laboratory, that's what I want to know' and
1149
ts 4984 - 5.
1150
ts 4983, 4985 - 7.
1151
ts 4988, 4991 - 2.
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HALL J
he replied 'Not at all, no.' No issues with the drying technique used at
PathWest arose to his knowledge.1152

1356 Mr Bagdonavicius confirmed that on 14 February 1995 he received
6 items in respect of the KJG matter from Diane Bickhoff. This was in
addition to the 23 items in respect of that matter that had been received by
Mr Blooms earlier that day. Those items were a pair of black shoes, a
black skirt (or shorts), underpants, a denim jacket, hospital pants and a
hospital gown.1153 These items would have been boxed up and stored in
the exhibit room for later examination. This would not involve any
opening of the bags in which the items came.1154
1357 On 16 February 1995 Mr Bagdonavicius selected a number of the

swabs that had undergone screening testing for DNA testing. He noted
those that were selected on the screening test results sheet. He then
transcribed the details of those swabs, including the results of the
screening tests, into the DNA laboratory register. This register was used
to record those items referred to the DNA laboratory for DNA testing. He
said that he probably had the bag of swabs with him when he made the
entry in the register, but would have not have opened them at that time.
He would have left the bag of swabs in the DNA laboratory for those in
the laboratory to deal with and store.1155
1358 Mr Bagdonavicius also conducted an examination of some of the
clothing items. KJG's black shoes (AJM1) were examined by him on
16 February 1995. His examination notes record a description of the
shoes, including the colour, make, condition and size. He placed a
personal mark on the bag to record that he had examined the item. A later
photograph of the shoes and the bag shows his mark on a white exhibit
label.1156
1359 KJG's briefs and shorts (AJM2) were examined by
Mr Bagdonavicius on 15 February 1995. These two items were together
in a bag. His examination notes refer to a 'tape sealed paper bag' and the
description 'shorts' has been amended from 'skirt'. The examination was
conducted in the examination area, not the DNA laboratory. The standard
protocols were followed, including cleaning down the bench with bleach
1152
ts 4992.
1153
Exhibit 06200, exhibit 15664.
1154
ts 5252, 5266.
1155
ts 5259 - 62; exhibit 15665.
1156
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HALL J
and alcohol and the wearing of a lab coat and gloves. The items were
repackaged after the examination. He could not recall whether the bag
was resealed with tape.1157
1360 Mr Bagdonavicius also examined the denim jacket (AJM4) and the
hospital pants (AJM5). Nothing of significance was noted about the
jacket. The examination notes regarding the pants states that they were
examined on 16 February 1995 and were in a 'taped bag'. He conducted
AP and KM screening tests, which returned positive results for both blood
and semen in a stained part of the crotch area at the front and back of the
pants. He obtained a sample from this area by cutting out a portion of the
pants. He conducted an examination under the microscope that confirmed
the presence of both sperm cells and epithelial cells. The sample was then
submitted for DNA testing on the same day. The sample would have been
placed in either a petri dish or a tube and then gone to the DNA laboratory
together with the swabs.1158
1361 The hospital gown (AJM6) was examined by Mr Bagdonavicius on
16 February 1995. This item was inside two bags, the outermost of which
was a sealed paper bag. Two areas on the inside lower front of the gown
were stained and AP and KM testing of these stains returned positive
results. The stains were not examined microscopically and there is no
indication of samples being taken for DNA testing.1159
1362 A bra and a shirt belonging to KJG had been obtained by Dr Barnard
at the SARC examination. These items were also examined by
Mr Bagdonavicius on 16 February 1995. Nothing unusual was
1160
observed.
1363 On 27 June 1996 Mr Bagdonavicius entered the details of a male

DNA profile onto the unknown database. This was a database used to
record the details of profiles that did not match any known profiles. This
was the fourth entry made into that database. The profile had been
obtained from the sperm cell fraction of the HVS sample using HLA-DQ
Alpha and D1S80 testing kits. He received the profile details on a DNA
profile collation sheet that had been completed by either Mr Webb or
Ms Ashley (they were the two people who worked in the DNA laboratory
at that time).1161
1157
ts 5273 - 7; exhibit 17618.
1158
ts 5279 - 84; exhibit 17620, 17647.
1159
ts 5284 - 7; exhibit 17689.
1160
1161
ts 5292 - 5; exhibit 15686.
Page 358
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HALL J
1364 On 25 September 1999 the HVS sperm cell fraction extract was
amplified for testing using the ProfilerPlus kit. The relevant work sheet
shows that this procedure was done by Mr Webb. Mr Bagdonavicius said
that ordinarily this process would involve taking part of the extract,
diluting it and putting it into a well in a plate. The sub-extract is then put
through a thermocycler and then an analyser. The storage code for the
HVS sperm cell fraction noted on the worksheet is 11J7. The results of
that testing were checked by Mr Bagdonavicius and produced a full
unknown male profile that was entered onto the forensic case
management system, which was a searchable database.1162
Anna-Marie Ashley – evidence summary

1365 Ms Ashley said that when the first items relating to KJG were
received on 14 February 1995 the unique code 95R056 was allocated and
all exhibit bags would have been marked with that code. Intimate swabs
were usually subjected to screening tests immediately. If they could not
be tested immediately they would be placed in the freezer. In this case the
screening tests were done on the day of receipt.1163
1366 On 27 February 1996 Ms Ashley conducted the DNA extraction

process on the high vaginal swab and a reference sample from KJG. She
does not recall where the high vaginal swab was stored at that time, but
the normal process was for items of this nature to be stored in the freezer.
This swab and other KJG items are recorded in the DNA register as
having been received on 16 February 1995. Normally items relating to
the same case number would be received together in a plastic bag.1164
1367 The extraction process was done in the DNA laboratory. One of the
high vaginal swabs was used for extraction, the other high vaginal swab
remained in storage. This type of swab is in a sealed individual tube. The
process is to clean the bench area with bleach and alcohol and place down
a large piece of blotting paper. The label details are checked and the swab
is then taken from its container. A new sterile scalpel blade is used to cut
off a portion of the head of the swab and the swab is then returned to its
container and placed back into storage in the freezer. The small cut piece
of swab is picked up with clean tweezers and placed into a
microcentrifuge tube which has been labelled with the case number and
'HVS'. The microcentrifuge tubes are single use. The PPE used at this
1162
1163
ts 4642 - 6, 4649; exhibit 15664.
1164
ts 4664 - 8; exhibit 15671.
Page 359
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HALL J
time was a laboratory coat and gloves, but not glasses, masks or a hair
net.1165
1368 In the case of the HVS sample a differential extraction was

undertaken to separate any sperm cells from skin (epithelial) cells. This
was done in cases of alleged sexual assault in order to separate the cells of
the offender and the victim. Water was added to release any cellular
material and the contents of the tube were stirred with a small wooden
stick. The stick was then discarded. The piece of swab was transferred
into a small basket that sat in the top of the tube so that any residue falls
into the bottom of the tube. The solution at the bottom of the tube is
treated with chemicals that preferentially break open the epithelial cells.
The tube is then placed in a centrifuge and the intact sperm cells will
collect at the bottom of the tube. The top part of the extract (or
supernatant) containing the free DNA from the epithelial cells is removed
with a pipette and placed into a new tube. The basket with the part of the
swab is sealed in a tube and stored in the freezer.1166 The two extracts are
labelled, sperm and epithelial respectively and different chemicals are
then used to break open the sperm cells.1167
1369 An amplification process was done by Ms Ashely on the two extracts

on the same day. This was to amplify that part of the DNA which was the
focus of the HLA-DQ-Alpha test. At that time the tests available were
limited and the DQ Alpha test only provided results for a single locus. A
small portion of each extract was removed (a sub-extract) using a pipette
and transferred to an amplification tube together with a 'reaction mix' of
chemicals. Each tube is closed as the extract and chemicals are added.
The tubes are in a gridded pattern tray called a heat block, which is then
placed in a machine called a thermal cycler. Other extracts from unrelated
cases are in the same run. The thermal cycler goes through a cycle of
heating and cooling, each cycle effectively doubling the amount of DNA
in the tube. The original extracts are sealed and returned to the freezer in
a storage box.1168
1370 After the amplification process is complete the tubes are taken out of
the thermal cycler and tested using an evaluation gel. Ms Ashley also did
this part of the process. This is to determine whether DNA is present as
expected. It involves taking a small part of the amplified product and
placing it in a well composed of an agarose gel. If the DNA is present it
1165
ts 4669, 4671, 4675 - 8.
1166
ts 4765, Ms Ashley later said that the remnant swab was returned to the bag containing other intimate swabs.
1167
ts 4679 - 84.
1168
ts 4685 - 90.
Page 360
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
will migrate through the gel and create a band. The results sheet is ticked
if the DNA is indicated. The HVS sperm cell fraction is shown on the
results sheet as having amplified DNA present.1169
1371 The amplified extracts were then subjected to typing using
electrophoresis and the HLA-DQ-Alpha kit. Ms Ashely also did this part
of the process. It involved placing some of the amplified extract in a tray
with a wash buffer solution and a nylon strip. The targeted sequence will
bind to a corresponding allele type marked on the strip and appear as a
blue dot. A result was obtained for the HVS sperm cell fraction, being a
4/4 allele combination. The results for the reference sample for KJG and
the HVS epithelial cell fraction were the same, being a 1.1/3 allele
combination. The results were consistent with one contributor in each
case.1170
1372 On 29 February 1996 Ms Ashley did further work on the extracts,

including the HVS sperm cell fraction. This was testing using the
polymarker kit, which tested five loci (none of which are the same as that
tested with DQ-Alpha). The original sperm cell fraction extract created
on 27 February 1996 was subsampled for the purposes of the
amplification for this testing; it was not necessary to work from the
original swab. For this purpose the extract was removed from the freezer
and the same process as with DQ-Alpha was followed. After
amplification an evaluation was done, which showed that DNA was
present at each locus in the amplified sub-extract. Typing was done on
18 March 1996 by Ms Ashley and a similar process as that used for
DQ-Alpha was followed. This required the amplified sub-extract to be
taken from the freezer (where it would have been stored after the
amplification on 29 February 1996). The result for the HVS sperm cell
fraction was BB, AB, BB, AA and CC at the five relevant loci. The
results for the KJG reference sample and the HVS epithelial cell fraction
were the same, being AA, BB, AB, AA and AC. The results were
consistent with one contributor in each case.1171
1373 On 1 March 1996 Ms Ashley did further work on the extracts,

including the HVS sperm cell fraction. This was testing using the D1S80
kit, which tested a single locus (different to those tested by the other two
kits). The original sperm cell fraction extract was subsampled for the
purposes of the amplification for this testing; it was not necessary to work
from the original swab. For this purpose the extract was removed from
1169
ts 4690 - 1; exhibit 15676.
1170
1171
Page 361
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
the freezer and the same protocols, including those relating to cleaning
and PPE, were followed. The procedure was done in a biological hood
which has a glass screen and airflow that 'sucks away from you'. This
hood was decontaminated at night by putting on a UV light to destroy any
extraneous DNA1172. After amplification an evaluation was done, which
showed that DNA was present in the amplified sub-extract. Typing was
done on 7 March 1996 by Mr Webb and reviewed by Ms Ashley. The
result for the HVS sperm cell fraction was a 24/24 allele combination.
The results for the KJG reference sample was an 18/20 combination. The
results were consistent with one contributor in each case.1173
1374 All sub-extracts created for the DQ-Alpha, D1S80 and polymarker
tests were discarded once typing was completed. This means the tubes
were sealed and they were put in a bin in the laboratory. The contents of
the bin would have been burnt in the hospital incinerator. Ms Ashley
could not recall whether the bin was emptied daily in 1996, but that is
what currently happens. The results were entered on a database. In
particular, results for the HVS sperm cell fraction were entered as 'male 4'
in the 'unknown database' by Mr Bagdonavicius.1174
1375 Ms Ashley said that towards the end of 1996 PathWest started using
storage codes that related to the position of a tube in a freezer box. The
boxes were gridded so that each place had a unique code in a numbered
box. This became necessary because the number of samples being held
was getting bigger and it was necessary to be able to locate samples. The
storage code for the HVS sperm cell fraction was 11J7, which means box
11 position J7. The KJG reference sample was at 11J6 and the HVS
epithelial cell fraction was at 11J8. Those codes were allocated at least by
12 March 1997.1175
1376 In 1997 further work was done by Ms Ashley on the extracts using
the CTT Triplex and amelogenin kit. This kit tested four loci, including
the gender locus (amelogenin). In respect of the HVS sperm cell fraction
this testing was commenced on 19 May 1997. An amplification and
evaluation were conducted on that date on a sub-extract taken from the
extract located at 11J7. Typing was conducted on 21 May 1997. The
results were consistent with one male contributor, being 6/8, X/Y,
8/11 and 10/11. At the end of the process the sub-extract was discarded.
1172
ts 4751. Ms Ashley later clarified that this hood was used at the amplification stage for each of the tests that
were done.
1173
1174
ts 4728 - 31; exhibit 15686.
1175
Page 362
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
The loci tested in CTT Triplex are amongst those included in the currently
used kit, PowerPlex 21. The results from the CTT Triplex testing
correlate with a PP21 reference profile of the accused obtained in
2016.1176
1377 Ms Ashley said that there was no evidence of contamination in any

of the results that she referred to. There were no mixtures of DNA and
the positive and negative controls had performed as expected. She could
not recall there being anything abnormal about the differential extraction.
She had no reason to believe that the process was inappropriately or
improperly carried out. She is not aware any contamination event
concerning the HVS sperm cell fraction.1177
Laurance Webb – evidence summary

1378 Laurance Webb's involvement with the KJG samples was to perform
some of the DNA tests or to peer review tests undertaken by Ms Ashley.
On 28 February 1996 he peer reviewed the HLA- DQ-Alpha results on a
reference sample obtained from KJG and from testing of the HVS
epithelial and sperm cell fractions. On 7 March 1996 he performed the
D1S80 typing on the reference sample from KJG and the HVS sperm cell
fraction. On 18 March he peer reviewed the polymarker results from the
testing of the reference sample and HVS epithelial and sperm cell
fractions. On 22 May 1997 he reviewed the CTT Triplex and amelogenin
results from the testing of the HVS sperm cell fraction. On 24 September
1999 he commenced the ProfilerPlus testing on the HVS sperm cell
fraction, the results of which were uploaded onto the database on
25 September 1999.1178

1379 Mr Egan gathered all of the relevant PathWest files and gave
evidence as to what was recorded as regards the receipt, testing and
movement of the KJG exhibits. He prepared summaries in respect of each
exhibit and a spreadsheet consolidating all of the dates when testing was
done.1179
1380 Relevantly HVS11180 was subjected to testing on the dates referred to

by Ms Ashley. None of the other intimate KJG swabs were tested until
after January 2009. Though some of them were also found in that later
1176
1177
ts 4747, 4965.
1178
ts 5574 - 5; exhibit 16818, exhibit 16819, exhibit 16820, exhibit 16821, exhibit 16822.
1179
ts 6537.
1180
Exhibit 16846.
Page 363
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
testing to contain DNA that matched that of the accused there was no
opportunity for that DNA to escape prior to the testing. In particular,
HVS2, LVS, anal swab 2 and smear and a gauze vulva and foreign matter
sample, were all first tested on 13 March 2009 using Profiler Plus and a
single source profile (either full or partial) matching that of the accused
was recovered from sperm cell fractions that were created. Other intimate
samples were either not tested or produced no detectable DNA.1181
1381 The clothing of KJG, being a bra, white top, black shoes, shorts,
underpants, denim jacket, hospital pants and a hospital gown, was all
received at PathWest on 14 February 1995 and, after being examined, was
returned to the police on 8 March 1995. The clothing did not return to
PathWest until 25 February 2009. The only part of the clothing that
remained was a portion of the hospital pants that was cut out at the initial
examination on 16 February 1995 and retained. The cut sample of the
hospital pants was stored with the intimate samples. The cut portion of
the hospital pants was first DNA tested on 13 March 2009 using Profiler
Plus and a partial single source profile was recovered from a sperm cell
fraction that matched the profile of the accused.1182
1382 Mr Egan said that the only confirmed sources of DNA matching that
of the accused that were at the PathWest laboratory at any time prior to
29 August 2008 were the kimono, the KJG intimate samples, the KJG
hospital pants and AJM40 and 42. The kimono was received into the
laboratory on 19 February 1988, was returned to police on 30 March 1998
and did not come back to the laboratory until 16 November 2016. The
KJG intimate samples and clothes were received on 14 February 1995 and
were examined on 15 and 16 February 1995. Apart from the HVS1, those
items were not examined again until 29 August 2008. The HVS1 swab
was the only sample that was subjected to extraction prior to 29 August
2008 and the extract was stored with the code 11J7. The timeline for the
testing of that sample are as set out in the summary of Ms Ashley's
evidence.1183 The clothes were returned to the police, the extract was
stored in the freezer and the intimate swabs (and the cut sample of
hospital pants) were kept in the store together.1184
1383 Mr Egan said that on the two occasions that AJM42 was opened,
9 April 1997 and 23 March 2004, the HVS sperm cell fraction was in
storage in the freezer in box 11 position J7. Prior to April 1997 the last
1181
ts 6561 - 4.
1182
ts 6564 - 7.
1183
ts 6733 - 5.
1184
ts 6536.
Page 364
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
time that the HVS had been out of the freezer for testing was on 18 March
1996. Prior to 23 March 2004 the last time that the HVS had been out of
the freezer for testing was on 25 September 1999. Based on these
timeframes Mr Egan could not see any viable mechanism or opportunity
for contamination to occur. He had prepared timelines illustrating the
storage, examination and analysis of the KJG exhibits as compared to
AJM40 and 42.1185
Anti–contamination measures
1384 Each of the witnesses who conducted a relevant procedure was asked
about the cleaning procedure and PPE used. It is evident that those
procedures changed over time. The procedures used at PathWest were the
most relevant and they were conveniently summarised by Mr Egan.

1385 Mr Egan commenced working for PathWest in 1996 as a laboratory
assistant. He progressed to laboratory technician and then to the role of
scientist. He said that in order to maintain skills scientists at PathWest
undertake on-going training. Tests of proficiency are prepared by external
laboratories and are undertaken about six times a year. The tests are
submitted to an independent company and are designed to ensure that the
laboratory is maintaining accuracy in its reporting of results. Personal
accuracy is also maintained by having reports peer reviewed by other
scientists within the laboratory. Scientists are trained in analysis,
interpretation and reporting of DNA results.1186
1386 Mr Egan said that PathWest conducts approximately 10,000 cases a
year. This includes cases involving complex low-level DNA profiles.
Personally he has been the reporting scientist in thousands of cases and
has given evidence in court approximately 150 times. This includes in the
Supreme, District and Magistrates Courts.1187
1387 PathWest is accredited by the National Association of Testing
Authorities (NATA) and has maintained that accreditation since 2001.
Mr Egan said it is a very long process to become accredited. It required
PathWest to demonstrate that it had been undertaking testing using
recognised scientific methods and that the processes had been properly
documented. NATA officials attended the laboratory to ensure that the
processes are being undertaken properly. The accreditation process
1185
ts 6677 - 9, 6738 - 44; exhibit 16076, exhibit 16077, exhibit 23892, exhibit 23950.
1186
ts 6485 - 8, 6757.
1187
ts 6487.
Page 365
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
continued from 1998 to 2001. The accreditation achieved in 2001 was to

do nuclear DNA testing and the analysis of hairs. Subsequently, in 2007,
PathWest was accredited to do Y-STR testing.1188
1388 The PathWest laboratory is regularly re-assessed. For the first
10 years after 2001 this occurred every two years. Now there is an
assessment every three years with a surveillance visit in between. There
have been approximately three surveillance visits since 2001. PathWest
has maintained its accreditation since 2001. This means that the
laboratory is fit for purpose, the people doing the work are properly
qualified and trained, the machines and equipment are verified and
validated, reports are consistent and based on published science and that
the processes are subject to a quality management system. NATA checks
that those things are being maintained. If they are not, an opportunity to
rectify may be given and if the standards are not met accreditation can be
lost.1189
1389 In 1996 PathWest was located on the first floor of J Block at the
QE II Medical Centre in Nedlands. In May 2004 PathWest moved to new
premises in Bentley. A floor plan of the J Block premises was tendered.
There was a central corridor with the DNA laboratory on one side and the
examination room on the other. Access to the corridor was through swipe
card operated security doors. Swipe cards were issued to staff who
worked in either Forensic Biology (PathWest) or Forensic Pathology (the
latter having adjacent offices). In 1996 there were eight staff in Forensic
Biology.1190
1390 Visitors could only obtain access by using a telephone on the outside
of the security doors. That telephone would go through to the clerical
area and a member of staff would then attend to escort the visitor if they
were allowed entry. Visitors would usually attend to deliver items for
examination. Visitors were supervised if they went into any other area of
the laboratory.1191
1391 The doors to the examination room and the DNA laboratory were on
the left and right of the corridor respectively. At the end of the corridor
was the receivals area. This is the area to which visitors would be taken
to sign in to the visitors book. Anyone who came in to the laboratory was
expected to sign the visitors book and record their name, who they were
1188
ts 6489 - 90.
1189
ts 6490, 6756, 6761.
1190
ts 6492 - 4, 6503; exhibit 23893.
1191
ts 6494, 6501 - 2, 6505.
Page 366
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
there to visit and their arrival and departure times. This included police
officers, members of the public, tradesmen and technicians. The visitors
books for the period have been retained. Mr Egan has searched the books
from 1995 to the present and was able to say that the name of the accused
is not recorded as a visitor, though other Telstra technicians are.1192
1392 Items were received at the desk in the receivals area and noted in the
register. They would then be placed in the examination room on a large
bench. The examination room bench had a non-porous surface so that it
could be cleaned with chemicals. Any chemical screening tests were
conducted in this area. If slides of samples were required that was also
done in the examination area.1193
1393 The DNA laboratory was on the opposite side of the corridor to the
examination room. All of the Forensic Biology staff had access to the
DNA laboratory, although generally only a couple of people worked in
that area at any one time. In 1996 that was predominantly Mr Webb and
Ms Ashley. A bio-safety or fume hood containing an exhaust fan was
used for the examination of samples. There was also a bio-cabinet, which
was similar to the fume hood and was used for setting up samples because
it was made from stainless steel and very easy to clean. This cabinet
contained ultraviolet lights that could be turned on to decontaminate the
area in which the work was to be done. There were two freezers and a
refrigerator in the DNA laboratory. Extraction of DNA was done on a
specific bench and amplification was done in a different area where the
bio-cabinet was located. A PCR machine was also located in the
laboratory. On the left, inside the door to the laboratory, was an area for
storing samples that were due to be tested.1194
1394 Mr Egan said that samples to be tested would be first placed in the
storage area and recorded in the register. They would then be moved to
the extraction bench for that process to be carried out. A quantitation
process to find out how much DNA was present may be carried out. The
extract would then be taken to the amplification area and prepared in the
bio-cabinet for placing in the PCR machine. Once amplification was
complete the amplified DNA would be placed into another machine for
interpretation (using electrophoresis). The genetic analyser machines that
produced this information (electropherograms) were acquired in 1997.1195
1192
ts 6494 - 5, 6504, 6515.
1193
ts 6496 - 7, 6515.
1194
ts 6498 - 9.
1195
ts 6500, 6505 - 6.
Page 367
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HALL J
1395 The trays used in the amplification process were single use and were
discarded after being used. The capillary in the genetic analyser machine
was cleaned by the machine after each use and replaced after
approximately 200 samples, which was about every three or four days.1196
1396 The bio-safety cabinet is essentially a metal box with glass panels at
the front. The glass is between the person and the work area. Work is
done inside the box. It has good lighting and can be easily cleaned by
using UV light, which decontaminates the surfaces. The bio-hood was
similar to the cabinet but had air suction. The hood was generally only
used for noxious substances.1197
1397 In 1996 the PPE that was used in the DNA laboratory was a lab coat
and gloves. Pipettes used to transfer liquid samples had disposable tips
and were changed between each sample.1198
1398 Storage boxes that were divided into smaller sections were used to
store the DNA extracts. The box was made of waxed cardboard and had a
grid reference system so that each compartment could be identified and
easily located. Each extract was in a small microcentrifuge tube the size
of a pen lid. Each tube was placed into a compartment of the box. These
boxes of extracts were stored in the freezer. Each box had a separate
number, thus 11J7 was the reference for the tube in box 11, position J7.
The tubes are also labelled with the case number, where the sample was
from and the position storage code. The tubes are sealed with a small lid
and each contains approximately 0.2 mm or less.1199
1399 In 1996 and 1997 cleaning of work areas was done with bleach and
alcohol. The first pass would be with bleach and then the surface would
be sprayed with alcohol and wiped down. The bins were emptied in the
afternoon and floors were mopped by an external contractor. Cleaning of
benches was the responsibility of staff. The laboratory assistant or
scientist who was conducting a process would first clean the bench top
and then clean it again after the process was complete. This meant that an
area of bench may be cleaned 5 to 20 times a day.1200
1400 In 1998 there was an expansion of the DNA laboratory and this
resulted in the introduction of a second door. This resulted in a change of
work practices such that one door was used only for entry and one for
1196
ts 6507 - 8.
1197
ts 6508 - 10.
1198
ts 6509.
1199
ts 6512 - 3.
1200
ts 6515.
Page 368
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HALL J
exit. Movement through the laboratory flowed from extraction to PCR

amplification. This was intended to prevent DNA being taken back into
the main part of the laboratory. In 2002 there was an additional item
examination area added that had pin code access only. In 2003 there was
an area within the laboratory added for use in processing reference DNA
samples. In 2004 there was a further expansion, with the acquisition of
some space for property storage. That storage space was in a different
building and was only accessible with a swipe card alarmed PIN.1201 Only
Forensic Biology staff had access to these new areas.1202
1401 PathWest moved to new premises in Bentley in 2004. PathWest was
the only occupant of the new building. These premises had four wings
and was about three times larger than the Nedlands premises. The areas
were designated for distinct uses, being an item receival area, an
examination laboratory, a DNA laboratory and an administration area.
The DNA laboratory was divided into a reference sample section and a
case work section. Access to the building was through a central foyer.
There was a camera and telephone and visitors were required to dial the
reception area and advise who they were and why they were attending in
order to be buzzed in. A member of staff would meet the visitor in the
foyer and the visitor book would need to be completed. Access to each of
the areas beyond the foyer was by swipe card secure doors. Visitors were
escorted by staff members whilst in the building. The only area to which
people other than staff regularly attended was the exhibit storage area
where there was sally port for police and forensic officers to deliver
exhibits. The sally port allowed a car to be driven in and the roller door
closed so that the area was secure.1203
1402 The first DNA testing kit used at PathWest was the HLA-DQ Alpha
kit that was used between 1993 and 1995. The first multiplex (that is, that
tests multiple loci) DNA kit used at PathWest was the Polymarker kit that
was used between 1995 and 1997. The D1S80 was a single allele kit used
between 1995 and 1998. The CTT kit tested three alleles plus the sex
marker (amelogenin) and was used between 1996 and 1998. Profiler Plus
was a multiplex kit used between 1998 and 2013. COfiler was another
multiplex used between 2001 and 2012. Minifiler was a multiplex that
used smaller pieces of DNA and was used between 2009 and 2014.
1201
ts 6519.
1202
ts 6516 - 24; exhibit 23893.
1203
ts 6524 - 8; exhibit 23893.
Page 369
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
PowerPlex 21 is the multiplex kit that has been used since 2013 and is
presently in use at PathWest.1204
1403 Each case was given a unique PathWest reference number. All
samples relating to that case were marked with that number. The first two
numbers are the year in which the first samples were received. The
Huntingdale case reference is 88R046 and was assigned on 17 February
1988. The Karrakatta case reference is 95R056 and was assigned on
14 February 1995. The Sarah Spiers case reference is 96R116 and was
assigned on 11 March 1996. The Jane Rimmer case reference is 96R254
and was assigned on 17 June 1996. The Ciara Glennon case reference is
97R155 and was assigned on 17 March 1997. Another number was used
for all three of the latter cases, being 01R516, assigned on 16 October
2001.1205
1404 Where an incident of possible contamination comes to light

PathWest has a procedure for conducting an inquiry. In general terms this
involves looking for the root cause of the problem, trying to identify
where in the system it had occurred and to then remedy any issues that
might come from that, such as a change of procedure or further training
for the staff member involved. Contamination by the DNA of a staff
member is more easily identifiable because there is a staff database with
the DNA profiles of all staff members which can be quickly referenced.
That database exists so that any staff DNA contamination incidents can be
easily identified. If the contaminant is not staff DNA the inquiry would
look to other samples that were being processed at around the same time
and to look for any opportunity for contamination to have occurred.1206
1405 There are quality control systems in place to detect contamination if

it occurs. This includes the use of positive and negative controls.
A negative control is a blank and a positive control is a sample of known
DNA. The presence of DNA in a negative control may indicate
contamination, but does not necessarily invalidate the results. If the DNA
can be identified as that of a staff member then it can be effectively
removed from the results by discounting those parts of the profile. Single
alleles may be a drop-in or artefact that is not reproduced and can also be
discounted. There is a consensus between laboratories as to the likelihood
of drop-in occurrences. PathWest practice is consistent in this regard.1207
1204
ts 6528 - 31; exhibit 16061.
1205
ts 6531, 6534 - 5.
1206
ts 6714, 6729.
1207
ts 6728 - 30.
Page 370
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
1406 PathWest maintains records of quality issues (including

contamination issues). Quality issues are where something unexpected
happens to a sample or to the paperwork or something related to a case.
Mr Egan has compared the statistics relating to such issues at PathWest
with what is reported in the literature regarding the occurrence of such
issues at other laboratories. In relation to this case a total of 28 quality
issues had been identified over a 25 year period and 17,000 analyses.
That represents a frequency of quality issues of 0.16. This compares
favourably with a frequency of 0.3 to 0.4 reported by the Netherlands
Forensic Institute in an article published in 2004 in a peer reviewed
journal.1208
1407 The NATA accreditation includes assessment of contamination

detection measures. The regular reviews and surveillance visits include
examination of any contamination incidents that may have occurred.1209
1408 The quality control procedures also include the checking and peer
reviewing of results. Peer reviewing means that a colleague of sufficient
seniority and experience will check the work of the primary scientist.
This is required before results can be reported.1210
1409 In cross-examination Mr Egan conceded that the introduction of the

ProfilerPlus kit in 1998 or 1999 was a milestone in increased sensitivity of
DNA testing. The tests used prior to that required much larger amounts of
DNA. As a consequence the potential for transfer of DNA in a way that
could not be seen was not considered in the early days. Cleaning
protocols were still followed and gloves were still changed regularly
between items. However, with the introduction of more sensitive tests the
level of PPE was increased. In particular face masks were introduced.1211
Quality issues at PathWest

1410 Quality issues are incidents where some error or flaw in testing or in
a process has been exposed. Quality assurance systems at PathWest
require that such incidents be investigated and any corrective action
necessary to prevent repetition is identified and implemented.1212
1411 In his evidence (referred to earlier) Mr Egan identified 28 quality

issues relevant to this matter. Of these 10 were the focus of questioning
1208
ts 6730 - 33, 6753.
1209
ts 6754, but see ts 6761.
1210
ts 6763.
1211
ts 6807 - 9.
1212
ts 6829.
Page 371
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
by the defence. Though none of the issues related specifically to a

possible contamination issue in respect of AJM40 and 42, the defence
argued that they showed that processes at PathWest were not infallible,
that contamination issues had occurred in respect of other samples and
that some of those issues had been undetected for long periods. The
defence relied on the number and nature of these issues to support a
contention that contamination could have occurred in respect of AJM40 or
42 and have been undetected and undocumented. Each of the incidents
relied on will be referred to in the following section in the order they were
dealt with in cross-examination.1213
Issue 1 – anal swab (AJM30)

1412 This swab was collected at the post-mortem examination of
Ms Glennon in 1997. In 1997 Mr Egan was a laboratory technician and
assisted in the setup of DNA testing. In 2001 Qiagen extracts were
created and Mr Egan undertook amplification and electrophoresis of a
sample. In 2018 the extracts were sent to Cellmark in the UK. Four
samples were combined and analysis revealed the presence of two
contributors, one of which was consistent with Ms Glennon and the other
was consistent with Mr Egan's DNA profile.1214
1413 When informed of the likely contamination Mr Egan undertook a
review of the steps undertaken in respect of the extracts and identified
those where he was involved. He concluded that the likely opportunity
for his DNA to have been deposited in the samples was in 1997 when he
did the setup for testing. This was a more likely occasion because at that
time facemasks were not being worn in the laboratory.1215
1414 In cross-examination Mr Egan said that whilst it is known that

coughing, sneezing or even breathing can cause contamination, this was
not considered to be a significant risk in 1997 because of the low
sensitivity of the tests being used at that time. That is, any DNA likely to
be transferred by such mechanisms would not have been detected by the
tests that existed then. By 2001 more sensitive tests were being used and
that is why procedures changed.1216
1213
Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, DNA Evidence, 65 - 86 [218] - [276].
1214
ts 6613 - 6, 6620.
1215
ts 6616.
1216
ts 6903 - 8.
Page 372
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HALL J
Issue 2 – Rimmer HVS

1415 Two high vaginal swabs (23B1 and 23B2) were taken from
Ms Rimmer and first came into PathWest on 4 August 1996. They were
subjected to testing in 1996 and 2001. In 1996 Mr Webb undertook the
extraction and amplification steps. In 2017 they were sent to Cellmark
and a DNA profile consistent with that of Mr Webb was detected.1217
1416 When advised by Cellmark of the likely contamination an

investigation was conducted. The conclusion was reached that Mr Webb
was either directly involved or in the near vicinity of the affected samples
when they were being tested. It was noted that modern highly sensitive
DNA testing methods will occasionally result in the detection of low
levels of operator DNA in samples analysed prior to 2000. No further
action was taken because by the time the contamination was detected
procedures had advanced.1218
Issue 3 – Glennon shaver (AW23)

1417 A shaver belonging to Ms Glennon was taken by police from her
home on 17 March 1997 and was subject to a DNA extraction procedure
the following day. Mr Webb undertook the extraction process. No DNA
was detected at that time. It was further tested in 2001. An
electropherogram from the 2001 testing revealed a mixed profile with a
male contributor.1219
1418 In 2018 Mr Egan reviewed the 2001 results and concluded that there
were at least two contributors, one of whom was Ms Glennon. Mr Webb
could not be excluded as the male contributor; that is, his profile was a
likely match for that of the male contributor. Mr Egan concluded that
contamination had likely occurred at the extraction stage in 1997 and was
due to insufficient contamination minimisation precautions in the
laboratory prior to 2000. The reason that the contamination was not
detected in 1997 but was in 2001 was because the earlier tests were less
sensitive than those used later and also because in 2001 a Qiagen
purification process was used.1220
1419 Mr Egan accepted that the contamination would have been apparent
in 2001 and that a search could have been undertaken at that time to
identify the source of the contaminating DNA. He suggested that the
1217
ts 6908 - 10.
1218
ts 6910 - 2.
1219
ts 6833, 6912 - 5.
1220
ts 6915 - 8.
Page 373
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
reason that was not done at that time was because this was not a crime
scene sample but a sample being tested for the purpose of obtaining a
reference sample for Ms Glennon. The contamination made it unsuitable
for that purpose.1221
Issue 4 – earring (CJC11)

1420 An earring obtained from the home of a suspect, who was later
excluded, was tested in December 2004. The item was examined by
David Fegredo, a staff member. The profile of Mr Fegredo was detected
in the DNA testing and was still present when a re-run of the sample was
undertaken.1222
1421 This incident of contamination was detected relatively quickly and

corrective action was undertaken at the time. That action involved a
discussion with Mr Fegredo regarding the importance of proper attire and
the introduction, or reinforced use, of hair nets.1223
Issue 5 – Rimmer hair mass subsample (VA6892)

1422 The hair mass of Ms Rimmer was examined over several days in
2009 by PathWest and ChemCentre staff, including Fiona Sinnamon.
Subsequently some red material was removed from the hair by the
ChemCentre and it was treated as a subsample. The red material was
submitted for DNA testing in 2014 and the profile of Ms Sinnamon was
detected.1224
1423 An investigation at PathWest in 2017 concluded that the
contamination had likely occurred at the 2009 examination because
Ms Sinnamon had had no other involvement with the item. A report notes
that the 2009 examination lasted over five hours and that it was possible
that examiner contamination was possible even if all appropriate
minimisation precautions were taken. The report states that no other
results were affected by this incident. The root cause was stated as
insufficient minimisation precautions and the recommended action was
re-testing.1225
1221
ts 6917; exhibit 18277.
1222
ts 6918 - 9.
1223
ts 6920 - 1; exhibit 30267.
1224
ts 6921.
1225
ts 6922 - 5; exhibit 30268.
Page 374
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Issue 6 – vegetation (RH9)

1424 RH9 is a sample of vegetation taken from the site in Eglinton where
Ms Glennon's body was disposed of. A PathWest scientist, Louise King,
was not involved in the original examination of this item but she was
involved in a DNA extraction and Qiagen purification conducted in
August 2003. Extracts from this sample were amongst those sent to
Cellmark for testing in 2017. Cellmark combined the extracts and found
that the combined sample contained DNA consistent with that of
Ms King.1226
1425 Mr Egan was asked relatively little about this sample. He confirmed
that he knew Ms King and would regard her as a careful scientist.1227
Issue 7 – vegetation (RH22)

1426 RH22 is a sample of vegetation taken from the site in Wellard where
Ms Rimmer's body was disposed of. Mr Bagdonavicius conducted an
examination of the sample in 2003 together with two female police
officers. His role was to supervise the female police officers in an effort
to avoid male DNA contaminating the sample. He gave evidence that he
avoided touching the vegetation and that the closest he came was probably
somewhere between three to six feet (other than when opening and
re-sealing the packing), but he also wore the same personal protective
equipment as the others in attendance. He did open the bag containing the
vegetation. He could not give a specific length of time for the
examination but said that it may have taken several hours.1228
1427 Ms King was not involved in the original examination but she was
involved in DNA extraction and Qiagen purification conducted in the
same year. This resulted in a number of original extracts and purified
samples which were amongst those sent to Cellmark for testing in 2017.
Cellmark combined the original extracts together and also did the same
with the purified extracts, producing two combined samples. In both
combined samples a mixed profile was found in which Mr Bagdonavicius
and Ms King were identified as the major contributors.1229
1428 Mr Egan said that the 2003 examination was likely to have been a
lengthy one and that even if Mr Bagdonavicius adopted all of the
appropriate techniques for minimisation there may have been an
1226
ts 6925 - 6.
1227
ts 6925.
1228
ts 5733 - 42, 5864 - 70, 6450 - 7, 6590, 6592 - 4, 6926, 6929.
1229
ts 6926.
Page 375
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
opportunity as he viewed or looked over the vegetation sample to

contribute some of his DNA. He accepted in cross-examination that any
such opportunity involved only being in close proximity to the item, but
not touching it.1230
Issue 8 – knife
1429 This knife (not the Telstra knife found in Wellard) was examined in
1998. Mr Webb was not involved in the examination or in DNA testing.
However, eight alleles consistent with his profile were found in the DNA
results. A corrective action report was not generated until 2009, at which
time no action was deemed necessary other than to create a record of the
incident. By that time a procedure had been implemented to filter all
profiles through the staff profiles before being uploaded to the DNA
database.1231
1430 As to the possibility that contamination had occurred during DNA

testing, Mr Egan agreed that the postulated contamination mechanism was
Mr Webb's general presence in the laboratory. He said there was no
documentation to show whether or not Mr Webb was at work when the
examination or DNA testing was done, but he did work at PathWest at the
relevant time. Mr Webb predominantly worked in the DNA laboratory
and it was possible that his DNA was present on chairs, benches or other
items in that laboratory. Mr Egan agreed with a suggestion that a possible
mechanism was Mr Webb looking over the shoulder of another examiner
or working at an adjacent workstation. If Mr Webb was doing laboratory
work he should have been wearing personal protective equipment, but that
was not required if he was using the computer in that area. DNA
laboratory work may have involved the use of a cabinet or hood designed
to minimise the movement of biological material, but not all DNA work
was done in those items of equipment.1232
1431 As to the possibility that contamination occurred at the examination
stage, Mr Egan said that such an examination would have occurred on the
table in the item examination laboratory. There were clerical areas around
that table and Mr Webb had his own workstation in that area. Those
conducting an examination of an item were required to wear protective
equipment, but those present in the room doing administrative work were
1230
ts 6829 - 30.
1231
ts 6930 - 1, 6936; exhibit 30269.
1232
ts 6931 - 3.
Page 376
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
not. A sneeze or cough in this area was also said to be a plausible

mechanism for transfer of DNA.1233
Issue 9 – Rimmer fingernails (RH33 and RH34)

1432 RH33 and RH34 are fingernail samples taken from Ms Rimmer at
the post-mortem examination. Examination and DNA analysis of both
RH33 and RH34 occurred between 6 and 9 August 1996 and between
21 and 28 August 2003. Mr Webb was not involved in those processes.
Extracts from these samples were amongst those sent to Cellmark for
testing in 2017. Cellmark combined the extracts and found that the
combined sample contained a partial DNA profile consistent with that of
Mr Webb.1234
1433 An investigation was conducted and Mr Egan said that the only
conclusion that could be reached was that Mr Webb had been in or about
the laboratory when the samples were received, tested, amplified, profiled
or tested. Mr Webb was working at PathWest at the relevant times and
predominantly worked in the DNA laboratory where the extraction and
amplification processes were undertaken.1235
Issue 10 – RH21 twig B

1434 RH21 was one of the pieces of vegetation covering the body of
Ms Rimmer at the Wellard scene. It was received at PathWest in 2001
and examined in 2002, 2003 and 2017. After the 2002 examination DNA
tests were performed on samples taken from the vegetation. One of the
samples was from part of the vegetation identified as twig B. At that time
no DNA was detected. A Qiagen purification was then done and the
purified extract tested. A female profile was produced that did not match
any person known to be connected to this case.1236
1435 In 2007 an investigation was conducted and the source of the DNA
identified as being the complainant in an unrelated case. A sample in the
unrelated case was examined on 31 January 2002, three working days
prior to the extraction of the RH21 sample. Mr Egan said that a
contamination opportunity occurred in the DNA laboratory because the
microcentrifuge tubes used to extract DNA in the unrelated case were
from the same batch as those used to extract DNA from the RH21 sample.
The RH21 extraction was the next one done using that type of tube, no
1233
ts 6932 - 6.
1234
ts 6601, 6936.
1235
ts 6938 - 9; exhibit 17928.
1236
ts 6939 - 42.
Page 377
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
other extraction was done between them. Mr Egan said that the only way
this contamination could occur was by operator error in that 'a bit of
biological material' from the unrelated case might have contaminated a
tube used for the RH21 batch. He described this as a 'manual-handling
issue'.1237
Other issues – DNA register

1436 On 4 April 1997 a number of items (including a bag of yellow top
containers) were received at PathWest. An itemised exhibit list was
attached to the Coroners Act form that accompanied the items and the
items received had been ticked. Mr Bagdonavicius placed asterisks next
to a number of these items to denote that they had been 'sent to DNA' on
7 April 1997. Amongst those items that were marked with an asterisk
were both AJM40 and AJM42. Mr Bagdonavicius said that this
assessment did not require him to open the exhibits. These items were
then supposed to be recorded in the DNA register.1238
1437 There are a number of discrepancies between the exhibit list and the
register. First, AJM33, Ms Glennon's t-shirt, has an asterisk on the list but
is not in the register. Second, AJM35 is not asterisked on the list but is in
the register. Mr Bagdonavicius said that this was because he had made an
error in placing an asterisk next to AJM33 (an item which had not yet
been received at PathWest), when the correct item was AJM35, a vaginal
swab. He said that the items selected for referral for DNA testing were
essentially all of the swabs and fingernail samples. He could not explain
how this error had occurred, other than to say it was not deliberate.1239
1438 Some of the items in the register have also been asterisked.
Mr Bagdonavicius said he did this and the purpose was to designate those
items that should be examined. AJM42 is one of the items asterisked.
AJM40 is not. He said that this process was a recommendation based on
the results 'so far'. As the defence points out, if this is a reference to
presumptive tests for blood and semen, then it does not explain why
different recommendations were made for different nail samples since no
presumptive tests were done on those samples. However, when asked
specifically about the nails he said that he may simply have looked at the
containers and made a decision based on 'how much material was in
there'. He maintained that he did not open the containers and had no
reason to do so and that he made his observations through the clear plastic
1237
1238
ts 5320 - 3, 5333 - 5, 5748, 5754 - 6; exhibit 15693, exhibit 23453.
1239
ts 5335 - 40, 5343 - 4, 5751, 5756 - 9; exhibit 15693, exhibit 23453.
Page 378
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
sides of the containers. The defence suggest that this is inconsistent with
the fact that AJM41 and 46 contained nail fragments that were larger than
AJM42 and AJM49, yet the former were deemed not suitable for testing
whereas the latter were.1240
1439 Whatever the basis for selecting some items for testing was, the
evidence is that AJM40 was not selected for testing. The clear evidence is
that it was not opened at this time and that it was not necessary to open
the containers in the selection process. The documentation regarding the
DNA testing done at that time confirms that AJM40 was not selected for
testing. Even if, contrary to the evidence, AJM40 was opened at this time,
there would be the same issue as to the absence of a possible source for
contamination as applies to AJM42.
Other issues – matrix

1440 In 2003 Mr Bagdonavicius prepared a chart setting out the results of
testing for various items connected with the case. This was referred to in
evidence as a matrix. The purpose of it was to provide the Macro Task
Force with information about what tests had been done (and thereby
identify any opportunities for further testing).1241
1441 The matrix went through a number of drafts, and the final version
was peer reviewed by Dr Gavin Turbett. In the first draft question marks
and the acronym YTBL (yet to be located) were inserted in the location
column for a number of items, including AJM40. Mr Bagdonavicius said
that this was because he was working with very newly created software
that had been introduced to record location details. The information in the
new system was incomplete. The location was later determined and the
information inserted into a subsequent draft of the matrix.1242
1442 There are a number of errors that remain in the final version of the
matrix, notwithstanding that it was peer reviewed. The defence suggest
that this says something about the quality of the work that went into the
matrix. Whether it does or not, it says nothing about the actual tests
results on which the matrix was based. Nor does it follow as a matter of
1240
ts 5341 - 3, 5752, 5852 - 3; exhibit 23453; Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, DNA Evidence, 26
[106], 27 [108] - [113].
1241
ts 5808 - 9, 5374.
1242
Page 379
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
logic that errors in the matrix make it more likely that an opportunity for
contamination occurred but was undocumented.1243
1443 Mr Bagdonavicius said that in order to make an assessment of

whether further testing was viable he would either have retrieved the
items himself or asked another staff member to get them for him. He
typed in a description of AJM40 as 'Debris only. Not suitable for testing'
after viewing the item. He said he looked through the transparent
container and did not take the top off. He said his view that the contents
were not suitable for testing was based on his assessment that he did not
see any nails, swabs or 'extra-large' pieces of material. There was 'some
very little material' that he could not identify. A decision as to whether
the sample was suitable for further testing depended on whether there was
identifiable nail material, it did not matter how large the piece of nail
was.1244
1444 The defence submits that Mr Bagdonavicius' description of the
material in AJM40 is inconsistent with how the contents were described
when the container was examined at FSS in 2008. At that time a note was
made that the contents were 'several bits of debris on sides and bottom of
pot varying sizes < 0.1 - 0.5 cm'. The wording may be different, but it is
difficult to see the suggested inconsistency. The suggestion that it is
possible that there had been a failing at PathWest and some foreign
material had been introduced into the AJM40 container between 2003 and
2008 is not supported by the evidence.1245
Other issues – ESR water control

1445 In 2004 a number of extracts created at PathWest were sent to ESR
for further testing. The negative controls relating to those samples were
also sent. The testing at ESR showed that one of the controls contained
female DNA. As negative controls should be clear of DNA this indicated
a possible contamination incident.1246
1446 In cross-examination Mr Bagdonavicius said that testing of the

relevant extracts at PathWest had occurred in 2003 and that this had
included the water controls. He was shown an electropherogram for the
relevant control and confirmed that his handwriting appears on it. That
1243
Various versions of the matrix were tendered – exhibit 23624, exhibit 16812, exhibit 15718, exhibit 23642,
exhibit 23679, exhibit 16813; Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, DNA Evidence, 22 [95], 44
[163] - [165].
1244
ts 5373, 5489 - 91, 5502, 5851 - 2; exhibit 15718.
1245
Exhibit 14510; Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, DNA Evidence, 37 - 41 [103] - [153].
1246
Page 380
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
document shows that female DNA was detected at the time and was
consistent with what was later found by ESR. Mr Bagdonavicius said that
the presence of reportable alleles in a control may affect the results of
other samples in the same run, but not necessarily so, and it would depend
on the results in respect of the other samples. He said it was not his job to
consider the results or the implications of them. He did not convey these
results to ESR when the extracts were sent to them for further testing.1247
1447 Mr Egan gave evidence that consideration was given to treating this
contamination event as a quality issue. A decision was made not to
because the result at ESR was generated using testing techniques that
were not validated for use at PathWest. However, he accepted that the
failure to advise ESR of the contamination could be classified as a quality
issue. It was not treated as such, either in 2003 or subsequently.1248
1448 The defence submits that this incident bears upon the effectiveness of
the PathWest quality system to deal with contamination events. I accept
that contamination of a control is an incident that should have been
identified as a quality issue in 2003. The fact that ESR may have used
different techniques in their testing was no reason not to conduct an
investigation, since the contamination had been detected before the
samples were sent to ESR. It is also arguable that the failure to advise
ESR of the contamination was a quality issue, though it is not something
that could possibly have influenced the outcome of their testing. It was,
as Mr Egan said, just 'good information to have'.1249
1449 However, the significance of this incident needs to be viewed in

context. In this regard I refer to Mr Egan's evidence regarding the likely
occurrence of incidents, the accreditation of PathWest and the nature and
operation of the quality assurance system generally. I am not convinced
that this incident justifies a conclusion that the quality assurance system
was ineffective. In the application of a quality system it is likely that
judgments will need to be made as to whether an incident requires
investigation or corrective action. The fact that a judgment is made not to
treat a particular incident as requiring action and that a case can be made
for an alternative view does not establish that the system is not working.
There was nothing capricious about the decision not to treat the water
control as a quality issue and that decision does not support a conclusion
that the quality system was inadequate or unreliable.
1247
ts 5786, 5792 - 801; exhibit 23643, 23741.
1248
ts 6839 - 43.
1249
Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, DNA Evidence, 67 - 68 [230].
Page 381
[2020] WASC 339
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Cellmark and the possibility of other DNA

1450 A number of extracts relating to the fingernail samples were sent to
the UK for analysis at the Cellmark Forensic Services laboratory in 2017.
This included extracts created by both PathWest and ESR. The extracts
did not included any relating to AJM40 or 42. It was not alleged that any
DNA matching that of the accused was detected in these samples.
However, the relevance was said to be that there was also no DNA that
might suggest another possible suspect.
Andrew McDonald – evidence summary

1451 Mr McDonald was the lead DNA scientist at Cellmark at the relevant
time. He now works for PathWest. He prepared the report on the testing
done at Cellmark.1250
1452 Cellmark primarily used a DNA kit called NGM Select. It tests
17 sites, not all of which are shared with other kits. It is a sensitive kit
and the amplification used with it is 30 cycles. To maximise the results
Cellmark combined some of the extracts. Cellmark also received
reference samples for Ms Glennon and the accused so that NGM Select
profiles could be created for comparison purposes.1251
1453 In some of the combined samples allelelic peaks were detected that
did not correspond to Ms Glennon. In particular, there was one additional
peak in a combined sample from AJM41, one additional allele in a sample
from AJM47, five additional peaks in a sample from AJM49 and two
additional peaks in a sample from AJM50. By examining the positions of
these additional peaks and, in some cases doing an additional test to detect
the presence a Y chromosome (amelogenin), Mr McDonald was able to
offer a view as to whether these peaks were likely to be genuine alleles or
artefactual and whether the source of any additional DNA was male.
There was no indication of extraneous DNA in other samples tested,
including samples for AJM43 and AJM46.1252
1454 In respect of AJM41 one combined sample produced a full profile of

Ms Glennon and an indication of one additional trace level contributor.
Y-STR analysis was conducted to determine whether there was any
indication of a male contributor and no male DNA was detected.
1250
ts 6390 - 1, 6399.
1251
ts 6393 - 5, 6401, 6404, 6410, 6467; exhibit 16061, exhibit 23735.
1252
ts 6411 - 6; exhibit 23735.
Page 382
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HALL J
Mr McDonald was unable to say whether the one trace level allele was an
artefact or a true allele.1253
1455 In respect of AJM49, three extracts were tested that produced results.
Although there were possible indications of an additional trace level
contributor in each of these, Mr McDonald said that there was no
evidence that any such contributor was male because there were no
additional peaks at the amelogenin locus. However, he could not rule out
that the Y peak may have dropped out and could not therefore be certain
that if the additional alleles came from another person (rather than being
artefactual) that person may be either male or female.1254
1456 In respect of AJM50, one extract was tested that produced results.
Again there was a possible additional trace level contributor.
Mr McDonald said that there was no evidence that any such contributor
was male, subject to the possibility of Y chromosome drop-out.1255
1457 Mr McDonald said that research conducted at Cellmark had shown
that drop-in of single alleles into negative controls was a reasonably
common event, particular in extraction negatives (12%). A 'drop-in' is a
single allele in the environment that is the product of degraded DNA. He
contrasted this with gross contamination by complete DNA molecules,
which will produce peaks at most or all of the sites.1256
1458 In cross-examination Mr McDonald said that the additional peak in

the AJM41 profile was in the 30 position at the D21 locus. He referred to
this as an 'artefactual position', but accepted that if it was a true allele it
could not have come from the accused.1257
1459 As to AJM49, Mr McDonald said in cross-examination that the first

sample tested produced an almost full profile for Ms Glennon and two
other peaks that were a possible indicator of an additional trace
contributor: a 10 at D16 and a 30 at D21. Both of these were marked on
the results sheet with brackets and put into an unconfirmed section to
indicate that the results were less strong. There was insufficient
remaining sample to undertake Y-STR analysis. Again these two peaks
fell into 'artefactual positions', which he said meant that a reasonable
explanation was that they were artefacts and not genuine alleles.
1253
ts 6410 - 2; exhibit 23735.
1254
ts 6415 - 6; exhibit 23735.
1255
ts 6415 - 6; exhibit 23735.
1256
ts 6417, 6421 - 2.
1257
ts 6431 - 2; exhibit 23690; exhibit 23724.
Page 383
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HALL J
However, if they are genuine alleles they could not have come from the
accused.1258
1460 The second AJM49 sample tested was a Qiagen purified extract and
produced a full profile for Ms Glennon and three additional peaks that
were a possible indicator of an additional trace contributor: an 11.2 at
D85, an 18 at D22 and a 26 at SE33. All of these were marked on the
results sheet with brackets and put into an unconfirmed section to indicate
that the results were less strong. Again there was insufficient remaining
sample to undertake Y-STR analysis. As to the 11.2 Mr McDonald said
that this was a 'very odd allele to have' and he was not convinced it was
genuine. He said that all three of these peaks can be explained as
artefactual rather than true peaks. However, if they are genuine alleles
they could not have come from the accused.1259
1461 As to AJM50, Mr McDonald said in cross-examination that this

sample produced an almost full profile for Ms Glennon and two additional
peaks that were a possible indicator of an additional trace contributor: a
12 at D10 and an 11 at D2S441. Both of these were marked on the results
sheet with brackets and put into the unconfirmed section to indicate that
the results were less strong. He said that both of these peaks fall into
artefactual positions. However, if they are genuine alleles they could not
have come from the accused.1260
1462 Mr McDonald also gave evidence regarding the testing of other

samples, some of which revealed likely contamination incidents, which
have been referred to earlier. An extract from an anal swab relating to
Ms Rimmer was also tested and the result was a low-level mixture of at
least two contributors who could not be identified, though there was an
indication that one could be a male, but no indication that the accused had
contributed. However, in re-examination he said that if there were more
than two contributors the accused could not be excluded as a
contributor.1261
1463 In re-examination Mr McDonald said that stochastic effects will vary

depending on the sensitivity of the DNA kit that is used. There is also a
well-recognised effect that produces stutter peaks one repeat unit before
or after a parent peak. This is an effect of the amplification process. It
occurs because an enzyme used in the process can 'slip' and instead of
1258
1259
ts 6438 - 40; exhibit 23729.
1260
ts 6440 - 2; exhibit 23731.
1261
ts 6444 - 5, 6478 - 9; exhibit 23705.
Page 384
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
producing a complete replicate of the DNA it produces an extra section.

There are also other artefacts known as pull-up peaks and capillary spikes.
These are well-documented as to where they may be positioned so that
interpreting scientists can recognise them. The D22 and SE33 markers
are particularly prone to stutter artefacts. He also referred to the 30 at
D21 in the results from AJM41 as a possible over-stutter effect because
there were larger peaks at 28 and 29 at that locus. A significantly smaller
peak one repeat before or after another peak is consistent with stutter. A
similar stutter was observed in a reference sample for Ms Glennon.1262
1464 The defence submits that this evidence could support an inference
that there was DNA present from a person other than the accused. It is
accepted that it would only do so to the extent that the extraneous peaks
observed are not artefacts. However, the evidence of Mr McDonald is
that all of them are possible artefacts and the reasons he gave for putting
them in that category were clear and convincing. It is not any more likely
that any of these alleles came from another contributor than that they were
merely artefacts (indeed, my impression is that it is less likely). I do not
accept that this evidence provides any support for an inference that DNA
from an unknown person was present in the samples.1263
2008 analysis of AJM40 and 42
Carole Evans – evidence summary

1465 In 2008 Ms Evans was employed by FSS as a senior forensic
scientist in the Specialist Case Work Unit at the Trident Court laboratory
in Birmingham. She has a Bachelor of Science degree with honours in
biological science. She worked for FSS from 1992 to 2011. She mainly
worked in the area of mitochondrial DNA and Y-STR testing, but did
some work on extractions for LCN testing.1264
1466 Records shown to Ms Evans show that a number of items including

AJM40, 42, 46 and 48 were submitted by WA Police for analysis by FSS.
They were received first at the London offices of FSS on 1 September
2008 and were then sent to Trident Court, where they were received on
10 September 2008. Some of the items were stored in a locked cupboard
in an ambient temperature room called 'Dry 2', some were stored in a
refrigerator designated 'Radium 1' and some were later stored in a freezer
designated 'Mercury 7'. Dry 2 and Mercury 7 were in the 'clean'
1262
1263
ts 10345; Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, DNA Evidence, 62 [203] - [204].
1264
ts 5879 - 81.
Page 385
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
laboratory. The samples put in Radium 1 were reference samples, which

were deliberately kept separate from other samples.1265
1467 The movement record indicates that AJM40, 42, 46 and 48 were
amongst items placed into Dry 2 on 10 September 2008. AJM40, 42 and
46 and another item were then moved to Mercury 7 on 19 September
2008.1266
1468 Ms Evans conducted an initial examination of the items on

12 September 2008 in room G6 in the clean laboratory. The clean
laboratory was an area used for the initial item examination and extraction
stage. The clean area was maintained at a positive air pressure to control
air flow and had a high level of cleaning and protective clothing use. It
was cleaned rigorously every week from floor to ceiling. Access to the
clean laboratory was restricted by card swipe locks. She confirmed that
the packaging was securely sealed. The packing had been previously
opened in London and resealed with secure tape. The contents included
slides with hairs fixed on them that were examined for suitability for
mitochondrial DNA testing (this will be dealt with in another section).1267
1469 Records indicate that on 18 September 2008 Ms Evans looked for the
items but could not find a number of them, including AJM40, 42 and 46.
She believes that she probably looked in the dry storage area. She likely
asked an administrative assistant to find the missing items. A note on the
records indicates that they were located in a refrigerator in the stores the
following day.1268
1470 On 22 September 2008 Ms Evans conducted another examination of
the items, in particular the yellow top containers AJM40, 42, 46 and 48.
This examination was also conducted in room G6. A number of
photographs of the packaging and the items were taken. AJM42 and 46
were packaged together and AJM40 and 48 were together in a separate
package. The pots were not opened on this occasion, rather they were
examined through the side. AJM42 was described as 'possible debris on
side of pot. ~ 2mm x 0.5mm'. AJM40 was described as 'several bits of
debris on sides + bottom of pot. Varying sizes < 0.1 – 0.5cm'.1269
1471 On 23 October 2008 a case conference between FSS staff and
WA Police was held. At this conference Ms Evans was informed that
1265
1266
ts 5897 - 5902; exhibit 14493.
1267
ts 5889 - 91, 6006 - 12, 6022 - 4; exhibit 14514, exhibit 14527.
1268
ts 5919 - 21; exhibit 14537.
1269
Page 386
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
AJM40 and 48 were 'new' samples (that is, previously untested) and that
AJM42 and 46 had been previously tested by ESR and that a trace of male
DNA may have been located. A decision was made to pool the samples
from each hand, that is AJM40 and 42 from the left hand and AJM46 and
48 from the right hand, and to then test the pooled samples using LCN
DNA analysis.1270
1472 Ms Evans prepared the instructions for the testing of the samples.
Initially a single PCR was ordered, to see the results and determine
whether the amount of DNA in the extracts needed to be altered. LCN
was used because it was anticipated that any DNA would be present at
low levels and LCN is a more sensitive technique. The instructions
included a direction to 'recover from pot with swab'.1271
1473 The extraction process was undertaken by Andrew Talbot.

Ms Evans was a witness to one of the stages of the process. She was
shown notes that said that there was an issue with frozen or crystallised
phenol. This was not uncommon and does not have any effect on the
process, other than perhaps a slightly less efficient extraction. It does not
affect the integrity of any profiles that are produced. A second PCR was
undertaken in December 2008. The results were conveyed to
Dr Whitaker, who was the reporting officer.1272
1474 In April 2009 FSS received samples relating to KJG. Y-STR profiles
of KJG and the then unknown male contributor to mixed samples were
produced. This DNA was later matched to that of the accused. There is
no suggestion that any DNA of the accused was present at FSS prior
to April 2009.1273
Andrew Talbot – evidence summary

1475 In 2008 Mr Talbot was employed by FSS as a laboratory assistant at
the FSS Trident Court Laboratory in Birmingham, UK. He worked for
FSS between 1999 and 2011. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree with
first class honours in genetics and molecular biology. 1274 He was
responsible for undertaking the analytical work on the combined AJM40
and 42 sample.
1270
1271
ts 6048 - 9.
1272
1273
1274
ts 5924.
Page 387
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
1476 The extraction process was done at an identified workstation in a

room in the 'clean laboratory'. This was a laboratory used for special case
work, including LCN work. The airflow in this laboratory is designed to
prevent contamination by maintaining positive air pressure (so that air
flows out). Within the laboratory protective clothing, masks, caps, lab
coats, gloves and clogs are worn. Before the extraction commences the
fume cabinet or bench area is disinfected. Consumables are obtained,
such as tubes, scalpels and swabs. Most of the consumables are also
exposed to ultraviolet light to ensure they are free of any extraneous
DNA.1275
1477 On 3 December 2008 Mr Talbot received instructions to combine

AJM40 and 42 (as well as AJM46 and 48). He retrieved the samples from
storage and took them to the laboratory. He then used a swab moistened
with water or extraction buffer to swab the inside of the containers
marked 40 and 42. The end of the swab was then cut off using a
disposable scalpel and put into an extraction tube for processing.
Mr Talbot could not recall whether he had used a swab for each pot or a
single swab for 40 and 42 and another for 46 and 48. If he used separate
swabs then those for 40 and 42 were combined by being put into the same
tube (as was the case with 46 and 48). Each pot was resealed and placed
back in the storage bag after being swabbed. He tried to ensure that all of
the inside of the pots were swabbed. No more than one pot was open at a
time.1276
1478 The extraction tubes were included in a batch that also included a
control swab and a reagent blank. A control swab does not have any
sample on it and is included in the batch to detect any contamination. The
reagent blank is an empty tube that has the various reagents used in the
extraction process added to it to make sure that those reagents are not
contaminated.1277
1479 A number of reagents were added and the batch was placed into an
incubator at 56°C for two hours. The samples were then placed into a
centrifuge and spun briefly to ensure all liquid is at the bottom of the
tubes. Phenol was then added, the contents mixed and then returned to the
centrifuge for a 'good spin' to separate the phenol and the aqueous layer.
The purpose of this is to separate the DNA (which is in the aqueous layer)
1275
ts 5931, 5935.
1276
ts 5926 - 9, 5936 - 8, 5995; exhibit 14435.
1277
ts 5930, 5939; exhibit 14392.
Page 388
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
from cellular proteins and lipids (that are trapped in the phenol). A phase
lock gel forms a seal between the layers.1278
1480 In this case there was a problem with the phenol and the separation
did not initially occur. Mr Talbot examined the phenol bottle and found
that some of the liquid in it appeared to have frozen or crystallised at the
bottom. This was unusual. He consulted a colleague before proceeding.
He then disposed of that bottle of phenol and obtained a fresh bottle which
appeared unaffected. He added a second quantity of phenol to the tubes
and proceeded with the extraction process. This time separation was
successful. A pipette was used to recover the aqueous layer in each tube
and transfer it to a pre-labelled fresh tube. The remaining phenol and
original tube were disposed of.1279
1481 The process was then repeated using phenol-chloroform. At the end
of that process the aqueous solution was again transferred into a
pre-labelled fresh tube. Again the remaining phenol-chloroform and the
second tube were disposed of. The process was then repeated again using
chloroform (a chloroform wash) and the aqueous solution placed into a
fresh tube. The final stage of extraction was to filter the aqueous solution
using a Microcon filter, a small membrane that fits into the top of a tube.
The solution was placed onto the membrane using a pipette. The liquid
passes through the membrane, leaving any DNA material on top. The
membrane with the DNA is placed upside-down into a fresh tube with
water and put into a centrifuge. The end result was an extract containing
only water and any DNA. This is then separated into two aliquots or
subsamples. This extraction process takes about three hours.1280
1482 At the critical stages of the extraction process there are witnesses
who check that the correct procedures are followed. That includes at the
swabbing stage and when the various reagents are added. The witness
checks to make sure that the tubes are in the correct order and have not
been mixed up accidentally. In this case the relevant form on which the
work was recorded also includes a section that has been signed by
witnesses at the various stages.1281
1483 The next stage is amplification. Mr Talbot was not involved in that
stage, but on viewing records was able to say that the samples were
subjected to 34 cycles of PCR amplification. This is consistent with LCN,
1278
ts 5939 - 43; exhibit 14392.
1279
ts 5941 - 3; exhibit 14392.
1280
ts 5943 - 6, 5948.
1281
ts 5947 - 9; exhibit 14392.
Page 389
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
which uses 34 cycles as opposed to the standard 28. Once the

amplification process was complete Mr Talbot collected the samples and
placed them into the capillary electrophoresis (CE) machine. A check is
made to ensure that all samples are correctly positioned. The CE machine
then produces electropherograms for interpretation by the reporting
officer, in this case Dr Whitaker.1282
1484 Mr Talbot's role at this stage was to check the electrophrograms and
note anything of possible significance on a form for the attention of the
reporting officer. He noted that there was nothing to indicate the presence
of DNA in the control swab. However, the reagent blank showed the
presence of one low molecular weight artefact at the D19 locus (being a
15 allele). The standard of the AJM40 and 42 sample was considered to
be satisfactory and a full mixture was seen (being peaks at every locus and
more than one person present). The AJM46 and 48 sample showed the
presence of a low molecular weight profile with the presence of an X peak
at the amelogenin locus and peaks at 10 other loci. Two other negative
controls and two positive controls produced expected results.1283
1485 About a week later, on 15 December 2008, a second PCR

amplification run was done of the AJM40 and 42 and AJM46 and 48
extracts. Mr Talbot understood this was to see if the results of the first
run would be confirmed. It was usual to repeat the run for LCN testing.
On this occasion the control swab showed the presence of an X peak at
the amelogenin locus and no other peaks. The reagent blank showed
peaks at two loci. The AJM40 and 42 sample produced a mixed DNA
profile with peaks at all loci with no clear major contributor. The AJM46
and 48 sample produced a mixed DNA profile with peaks at all loci and a
clear major contributor. The EPGs were again sent for interpretation by
the reporting officer.1284
1486 Mr Talbot noted the presence of some features on the second run
electropherogram for the AJM40 and 42 sample at the D3 locus that he
considered could be 'background noise' or 'pull-up'. He explained these
were artefacts, rather than true allelic peaks. Background noise does not
have the same appearance as an allelic peak. Pull up is an artefact that
occurs when there is cross-over between one coloured dye and another
(three dyes being used in the process). It occurs when there is large peak
that 'can bleed over into other colours'. This artefact looks like a peak but
1282
ts 5951 - 2, 5954 - 5, 5960, 5963; exhibit 14666.
1283
exhibit 14606, exhibit 14607, exhibit 14666.
1284
Page 390
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
can be identified because the three colours line up on the graph. Another
artefact occurred at the D2 locus, being a peak at 23.3 close to the actual
allelic peak at 24. He said that the 23.3 is an effect of the allele at 24
caused by the primers used in the process. He referred to this as an
'N-peak'. At the amelogenin locus the graph appeared to show two
X peaks as well as a Y peak. Mr Talbot said that the two X peaks were
due to the strength of the X causing the machine to size what was really a
single X peak as two. A possible artefact was also noted to the left of the
amelogenin region. The presence of the Y peak was consistent with one
of the contributors being male. At the D8 locus possible background and
N-peak artefacts were also noted.1285
1487 The two runs used the whole of the two extracts created. There was
no extracted DNA left at the end of testing.1286
1488 In cross-examination Mr Talbot agreed that the earlier a

contamination occurred in the process the greater effect it might have.
This was a function of the amplification process.1287
1489 A photograph of the yellow top container AJM40 was shown to
Mr Talbot and it was suggested that there were what appeared to be
scratches or striations on the clear plastic part. He said that there was
'something there' but could not say whether those marks were there when
he first saw the pot or whether they would have been noted if they
were.1288
Interpretation of the results
Jonathan Whitaker – evidence summary

1490 Jonathan Whitaker is a forensic scientist from the United Kingdom
with nearly 30 years' experience in the field of forensic science. He
currently works for a private consultancy service called Principal Forensic
Services, which provides services in forensic casework and training to
both the prosecution and defence, and law enforcement bodies. His
qualifications are a Bachelor of Science with honours in genetics and a
Doctorate of Philosophy in molecular genetics, both from the University
of Edinburgh.1289
1285
1286
ts 5989.
1287
ts 5991.
1288
ts 5996 - 7; exhibit 11447.
1289
ts 6961.
Page 391
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
1491 After completing his PhD in 1989 Dr Whitaker joined the Forensic
Science Service (FSS), which was a department of the Home Office in the
UK delivering forensic services to English police forces. He commenced
as a junior forensic scientist and later became involved in the development
and validation of DNA profiling techniques. In particular he was
involved in the implementation of those techniques into forensic casework
and in reporting evidence from those cases in court. He remained with
FSS until 2012, when that organization was shut down. At that time he
was a principal forensic scientist in charge of DNA profiling
interpretation. He then formed the company Principal Forensic Services,
together with other scientists from the FSS. He continues to be engaged
in DNA profile interpretation and opinion work, as well as training in this
area. He is also involved in audits and validation of laboratories and the
accreditation of scientists. He has a role in the development of guidelines
by the forensic science regulator of the UK.1290
1492 Dr Whitaker estimates that he has given evidence about DNA
interpretation on hundreds of occasions, both in the UK and in other
countries. He has particularly done so in relation to the LCN technique,
which will be referred to in further detail later. This has included giving
evidence in Australia, New Zealand, Sweden and Ireland.1291
1493 Dr Whitaker is a member of the Forensic Science Society of the UK

and of the Dutch Register of Forensic Practitioners. He is qualified to
undertake casework in the Netherlands and is also a member of the
Advisory Committee for DNA Assessment in that country.1292
1494 Whilst with the FSS Dr Whitaker had a role in the research and
development of new DNA profiling techniques to ensure that they were
validated and suitable for being presented to courts. These techniques
included amplification of DNA and multiplex analysis of DNA samples.
At that time the UK was at the forefront of development of multiplex
tests. Part of the reason for that was that FSS had a large and
well-resourced research and development department. This resulted in
FSS receiving case work from other countries who did not have the same
capabilities at the time.1293
1495 One of the techniques that Dr Whitaker was involved in the research,
development and validation of was the Low Copy Number technique
1290
ts 6962.
1291
ts 6968.
1292
ts 6969.
1293
ts 6962 - 3.
Page 392
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
(LCN). This technique was first developed specifically for a UK Court of

Appeal case in 1999 relating to a man who had been convicted and
executed in 1962. Many years later it was deemed it would be useful to
undertake testing of the original exhibits. Given the age of the exhibits
there was likely to be only small amounts of DNA remaining so
FSS developed a technique for coping with this. The LCN technique was
first used in that appeal case and was thereafter used in routine
casework.1294
1496 All DNA testing techniques involve an amplification stage in which

the DNA contained in a sample is amplified or copied. The purpose of
this step is to increase the amount of target DNA in a sample. The
process involves a number of cycles in which each cycle effectively
doubles the amount of DNA. In a standard DNA test the number of
cycles at the relevant time was 28. The LCN technique increased the
number of cycles to 34.1295
1497 There is a risk that by increasing the number of cycles there is a
tendency to 'overexpose the picture' such that interpretation may be more
difficult. Because of this risk a framework for interpretation and reporting
of LCN results was developed. The framework included undertaking at
least two independent tests on the sample and producing a 'consensus
DNA profile', that is, comparing the results of the two tests and only
reporting those results at tested loci that were reproduced. This is done
because where the quantity of DNA is small and amplified to a greater
degree there tends to be more variation in the way the peaks appear and
the requirement for correlation or duplication is a way of controlling that
variation and allows the scientist to interpret the results with more
confidence.1296
1498 Quality controls that were applied in standard tests were also used.
These included looking to see whether peaks on the electropherogram
(EPG) were in the positions of known alleles and were of a certain shape
and size. That is to say, peaks on the profiles had to comply with the
interpretation rules and parameters before they could be designated as part
of the profile.1297
1499 It is not possible to predict in advance whether a sample contains a

very small quantity of DNA. A pre-assessment stage was used to
1294
ts 6963 - 4.
1295
Each cycle has the effect of doubling the amount of DNA. So the LCN method increases the DNA by a
factor of 64, ts 6964 - 5, 7082.
1296
ts 6965 - 6.
1297
ts 6965 - 6.
Page 393
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
determine whether the LCN technique was likely to be appropriate. If, for
example, the sample was very old or if it appeared likely to have been
broken down by the environment or bacteria, the pre-assessment may be
that a more sensitive test might be needed because it would give the best
chance of obtaining a result. However, once LCN testing was done it may
appear that the quantity of DNA was greater than predicted and may have
been sufficient for standard testing. This would be apparent from the size
and conformation of the peaks on the EPG.1298 Later in his evidence
Dr Whitaker noted that in standard DNA testing a quantitation step
occurred to determine the quantity of DNA in a sample. He said that one
reason for this was to ensure that the amount of DNA was not greater than
the optimal amount as this could overload the test and produce a distorted
result. The LCN method did not include a quantitation step because that
step involves using some of the available DNA and that would be
problematic where a pre-assessment had been made that the amount of
DNA was likely to be low. He said that the lack of a quantitation step in
this case did not affect the profile obtained or invalidate the results.1299
1500 The LCN method can be used in conjunction with any DNA
multiplex kit. The multiplex kit that was used by FSS in respect of the
samples sent for testing by WA police was SGM Plus. There had been a
process of validation in respect of the use of LCN with the SGM Plus
multiplex kit. Later in his evidence Dr Whitaker said that new generation
multiplex kits that had become available in recent years had increased
sensitivity and this meant that the LCN method was less used (though still
offered by some laboratories).1300
1501 Dr Whitaker said that in the UK contamination is defined as the

introduction of foreign DNA into a forensic sample or forensic process
after the crime has been detected and the first responding officer has
attended the scene. In simple terms it is the introduction of DNA after the
crime has been detected. Contamination is a type of transfer of DNA. It
needs three requirements to be fulfilled. First, there needs to be a source
of DNA. Second, there needs to be an opportunity for the transfer to
occur. Third, there must be a mechanism by which the transfer can occur.
The risk of contamination can never be entirely eliminated, but there are
steps that can be taken to minimise it and to detect it if it occurs.
Detection involves having a quality management system that requires
1298
ts 6967.
1299
ts 7053 - 5.
1300
ts 7052 - 3.
Page 394
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
instances of contamination to be reported, investigated and for corrective

action to prevent re-occurrence.1301
1502 The sources of possible contamination are staff, consumables and

other samples. In regard to contamination from staff the risk can be
managed by restricting access to the laboratory, using cleaning routines
and using PPE. Prevention can also be assisted by having distinct and
separate areas in the laboratory to avoid samples coming into near
proximity with each other. A staff DNA elimination database containing
the profiles of staff members can be used to identify sources of
contamination should it occur. Negative controls can assist in detecting
contamination and identifying the part of the process in which it occurred.
Contamination between samples is more difficult to deal with because the
source and mechanism is not as readily identified as is the case with staff
contamination. The existence of such contamination may be revealed by
the appearance of foreign DNA in a negative control or by case work
assessment and interpretation. The latter involves an assessment by the
scientist of what might be expected given the circumstances in which the
sample was taken. An example might be where the sample was taken
from an air crash victim who had been severely burnt and the expectation
was that the sample would only contain poor quality, low-level DNA. If
the sample produced the opposite, a good quality, high-level profile, this
might raise a concern and prompt further investigation. Dr Whitaker also
emphasised the importance of scrutinising results to consider whether
DNA might not have come from the sample that was being tested, but was
the result of some contamination event.1302
1503 Dr Whitaker explained that two types of controls are used in DNA
laboratories, positive controls and negative controls. A positive control is
a sample of known DNA that is used to ensure that the testing system is
working properly. The purpose of negative controls is to ensure that no
extraneous DNA is introduced during the testing process. Negative
controls should not contain DNA and should remain DNA-free at the end
of the process when tested. It is possible that a negative control may
contain one or two reportable peaks, particularly in more sensitive LCN
techniques, but that does not necessarily invalidate the run. This is
because isolated fragments of DNA can occur (and are referred to as
drop-ins) and are a well-recognised event. These can be identified and
excluded in the case of LCN analysis by duplicating the test (the drop-in
being unlikely to be repeated). In standard DNA tests drop-ins are
1301
ts 6969 - 70.
1302
ts 6971 - 3.
Page 395
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
identified because they are at very low levels and often fail to meet the
reportable threshold.1303
1504 DNA will gradually break down if exposed to environmental factors,

including body fluids, ultraviolet light, humidity, bacterial action and high
temperature. Chemicals produced in the course of the decomposition of a
body can also promote the decay or destruction of DNA. This process of
decay will affect longer fragments of DNA more readily than shorter
ones. A DNA multiplex kit tests a number of sites on the DNA strand,
which sites will have alleles that vary in length. On an EPG the shorter
fragments appear on the left and the longer ones to the right. Accordingly
degradation of the DNA may produce exponential decay, that is, a gradual
decrease in the amount of available DNA from the shorter to the longer
sites. This can produce what was described as a 'ski-slope' effect from left
to right on the EPG. This is to be contrasted with non-degraded DNA
which should produce peaks that are relatively even.1304
1505 In 2008 Dr Whitaker was based in the FSS laboratory in Wetherby,
Yorkshire. The LCN method was being utilised in the Specialist Case
Work Unit, which was attached to the Research and Development Group
in another FSS laboratory in Birmingham. However, Dr Whitaker
remained responsible for the interpretation and reporting of results that
were produced using LCN. This meant that whilst other scientists
undertook that laboratory work, Dr Whitaker was responsible for
interpreting the results and reporting on them.1305
1506 Dr Whitaker attended a meeting with WA Police and scientists from

the Birmingham laboratory at which a pre-assessment of the samples
AJM40, 42, 46 and 48 was made. Those samples had arrived at the
Birmingham laboratory on 10 September 2008. He formed the view that
as the samples were very small quantities of what was described as debris
the best way to maximise the amount of any DNA and get a result at the
end of the process was to combine some of the samples. This decision
was also informed by the fact that two of the samples were from the left
hand and two from the right. The possible downside to this was that in
the event of a positive result it would not be possible to say whether the
DNA came from either or both of the combined samples. However, this
had to be weighed against the risk that if tested individually there may
have been insufficient DNA to produce a result. Relevantly, AJM40 and
1303
ts 6972 - 4.
1304
ts 6974 - 5, 7084 - 5.
1305
ts 6975 - 6.
Page 396
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
42, from the left hand, were combined. It was also determined that LCN
would be used.1306
1507 Two subsamples were created and one was run through the process
to see what results were obtained. This was done because if no results
were obtained the second sample could be preserved to be used in the
future if technology improved further. However, if results were obtained
the second sample would need to be run in order to comply with the LCN
comparison process.1307
1508 When the first sample was run on 5 December 2008 a full profile
was obtained at the 10 sites that are included in the SGM Plus kit.
A number of sites had three or four peaks and Dr Whitaker considered
that the best explanation for this was that it was a mixed profile including
the DNA of two people, one of whom was male. It was also apparent that
the DNA was degrading somewhat, as it exhibited the exponential decay
'ski-slope' appearance on the EPG. Both components (that is, the DNA of
both contributors) appear to have degraded in the same pattern and this
could support an inference that both sources of DNA had been exposed to
the same environmental conditions. In analysing the EPG Dr Whitaker
used his knowledge and experience, and applied guidelines and rules, to
discount some peaks that were likely to be artefactual or the product of
'stutter'.1308
1509 Because a result was obtained from the first subsample it was then
necessary to run the second subsample in order to undertake the
comparison exercise required for the LCN method. The second test
occurred on 16 December 2008. A consensus profile was then obtained
by noting those peaks that were reproduced in both tests. Again the
results indicated a two person mixture, with one person being male and
with degradation from left to right on the EPG. Dr Whitaker said that,
notwithstanding the degradation, this was 'quite a good quality profile' and
that the DNA markers, particularly at the left side, were well above the
baseline and could be observed with confidence. He said that the profile
obtained was distinct, in the sense that it could be separated from
'background noise', demonstrable, in that it could be seen on the EPG,
duplicated, in that it appeared on both tests, and defined, in that the peaks
had shape that enabled them to be correlated with the ladder that identifies
1306
ts 6976 - 81.
1307
ts 6984.
1308
ts 6989 - 93, 6997.
Page 397
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HALL J
known alleles at each site. The results were peer reviewed by a second
scientist, who concurred with the conclusions of Dr Whitaker.1309
1510 Later in his evidence Dr Whitaker said that whilst, in the absence of
quantitation, he could not say exactly how much DNA was present in this
sample, the results told him that there was sufficient DNA to give
reproducible outcomes. He said that this indicated that there was enough
DNA to produce a reportable result. He referred to a stochastic threshold,
being a level at which variations occur which interfere with an accurate
profile. If these results had gone below that threshold he would have
expected to see differences between the two runs. The fact that the runs
produced exactly the same results indicated to him that this sample was
just above the threshold.1310
1511 It should be noted that the samples from the right hand, AJM46 and
48, were also combined and analysed using LCN and produced a single
source female profile. This DNA had degraded in the same way as that in
the other samples. Dr Whitaker made an assessment that, given the
source of the samples, this DNA profile was likely that of Ms Glennon.
This was then used as the reference profile for Ms Glennon, at least at that
stage, when examining the mixed profile from AJM40 and 42 (I should
note that it was later confirmed to be consistent with Ms Glennon's
profile).1311
1512 Dr Whitaker then used the reference profile for Ms Glennon to

subtract her profile markers from the results obtained for the mixed profile
from AJM40 and 42. This was done on the basis that it was likely that the
female contributor to the mixed sample was Ms Glennon given the source
of the samples. Whilst some alleles may have been common to both
contributors, this process produced a list of alleles that were unique to the
male contributor. It was possible from this to determine the possible
combinations that could exist in the male profile. There was no evidence
of a third person in this mixture. The information in regard to the male
profile was checked against the UK DNA database and produced no
matches.1312
1513 In early January 2009 Dr Whitaker advised WA Police of the results.
Later the same month he was provided by PathWest with a reference
sample for Ms Glennon which was analysed using the LCN method and
1309
ts 7008 - 9.
1310
ts 7055.
1311
ts 7026.
1312
ts 7029 - 35.
Page 398
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
SGM Plus. That analysis produced a profile that matched the single
source profile obtained from AJM46 and 48. It also confirmed the view
that one of the contributors to the mixed sample of AJM40 and 42 was
Ms Glennon.1313
1514 On or about 16 April 2009 FSS received two samples relating to KJG
and the Karrakatta incident. They were a low vaginal swab (sperm cell
fraction) and a high vaginal swab (sperm cell fraction). The first extract
was analysed and produced a single source male profile. This profile was
found to match one of the possible combinations for the male contributor
to the mixed profile taken from AJM40 and 42. No result was achieved
from the second swab and this caused some concern as it was known that
PathWest had produced a result from another part of that sample.
Dr Whitaker suggested possible reasons for this apparent inconsistency,
being that the DNA was of insufficient quantity or had degraded such that
it could no longer be detected. He said that repeated freezing and thawing
can promote degradation. A test was conducted which showed that the
quantity of DNA in this sample was very low.1314
1515 By the time the accused was arrested in 2016 and a reference sample
obtained from him FSS had closed down. For this reason it was no longer
an option for FSS to undertake any analysis of that sample using SGM
Plus. However ESR in New Zealand was continuing to use SGM Plus at
that time and so the sample was sent to them to produce a profile using
that multiplex kit and the LCN method. The consensus profile that was
produced was then sent to Dr Whitaker so that he could do further
interpretation work.1315
1516 Dr Whitaker said that it was important to point out that his initial
interpretation of AJM40 and 42 and findings as to the male contributor to
that mixed sample had occurred in the absence of any reference profile
from the accused. For this reason there was no possibility that the
reference profile could have influenced the earlier findings.1316
1517 On comparing the profiles Dr Whitaker found that the reference

profile of the accused matched the profile obtained from the low vaginal
swab relating to KJG and was consistent with the accused being a
contributor to the mixed sample obtained from AJM40 and 42. He said
that the matches observed were what he would expect to see if the same
1313
ts 7035 - 7.
1314
ts 7039 - 43, 7086.
1315
ts 7044.
1316
ts 7044.
Page 399
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
man was the source of the KJG sample as was a contributor to the
Glennon fingernail sample. The statistical evaluation of the likelihood of
the accused being the source of those samples was undertaken by ESR
(see the evidence of Susan Vintiner).1317
1518 Dr Whitaker was asked to comment on possible contamination

scenarios. The first scenario was that contamination had come from the
KJG high vaginal swab. A timeline of the examination of that swab and
the examination of AJM40 and AJM42 was provided.1318 He noted that it
would be expected that the original swab would have KJG's DNA
included in it, as well as the DNA of the man who sexually assaulted her.
The fact that there was no indication of any DNA from KJG in the AJM40
and 42 mixed sample was not consistent with the swab being a source of
contamination. He said that he could not accept that there was a way in
which KJG's DNA would selectively disappear leaving only that of the
accused (and Ms Glennon).1319 He also said that for DNA from the swab
to have persisted in the laboratory for 13 months (being the period
between the examination of the swab and an examination of AJM42) was
an 'inordinately long' period of time and that the DNA would not only
need to have persisted but also evaded all of the laboratory cleaning
regimes. It would also have to have evaded detection in any of the control
samples that passed through the laboratory in that period and avoided
contaminating other samples. Further there would need to have been a
mechanism by which the DNA was introduced into the yellow top
container AJM42. This involved a series of events, each of which was in
itself unlikely. He assessed this scenario as 'extremely unlikely' and 'well
below very low' as a probability.1320
1519 The second scenario was that contamination had come from the
sperm cell fraction of the KJG high vaginal swab. As this subsample
would only be expected to contain the DNA of the accused it would not
have the problem associated with the swab of the selective absence of the
DNA of KJG. However, all of the other steps would still need to be
fulfilled (including the same relevant time gap). An additional difficulty
is that the extract was in liquid form and was kept frozen when not being
worked on, which would impede any inadvertent transfer. He assessed
the possibility of contamination by this scenario as 'very low'.1321
1317
ts 7044 - 8.
1318
Exhibit 30272.
1319
ts 7056 - 61.
1320
ts 7062 - 5.
1321
ts 7064 - 5.
Page 400
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
1520 Dr Whitaker was also asked about a scenario in which Ms Glennon

scratched someone other than the accused at a time close to her death. He
said given that Ms Glennon's nails were broken and that she appeared to
have put up a fight it would be reasonable to infer that she had scratched
her attacker with some degree of force. Experiments conducted in such
scenarios suggest that there would be an expectation of finding the DNA
of the person who has been scratched in a fingernail sample. In this
regard it was relevant in considering the possibility of contamination that
no other person's profile was found in the sample.1322
1521 Dr Whitaker was then asked to consider the prosecution scenario,
being that the DNA of the accused had got under the nails of Ms Glennon
as a result of her scratching him in the course of a violent interaction very
close to the time of her death. He pointed out that this scenario involved
only a single step, as opposed to the multiple steps of the contamination
scenarios. On this scenario nobody else is involved so there would be no
expectation of finding anybody else's DNA. There would be an
expectation of seeing the DNA profile of the accused that was in fact seen
in this case. This would take into account an assumption that Ms Glennon
lost her life soon after the scratching occurred and thus did not engage in
activity that might have resulted in loss of DNA (such as handwashing).
There would also need to have been sufficient DNA transferred for it to
have persisted to the time when Ms Glennon's body was recovered. He
assessed the probability of this scenario accounting for the evidence as
'moderately high to high'.1323
1522 In comparing the scenarios Dr Whitaker said that, whilst he could not
exclude the other scenarios, the evidence was more likely if the accused
had been scratched by Ms Glennon than if she had scratched someone
else. He believed his assessment of the scenario involving the accused as
moderately high was conservative, taking into account that it was not
known if the scratching had drawn blood (being a rich source of DNA)
and the uncertainty as to what happened to Ms Glennon after any
scratching occurred.1324
1523 Dr Whitaker also said that the fact that both components in the
fingernail sample had degraded in a similar way did not necessarily mean
that all of the biological material was deposited at the same time.
However, this was a factor that was relevant to take into account in
considering the possibility of contamination, because if the components
1322
ts 7067 - 8.
1323
ts 7068 - 70.
1324
ts 7070.
Page 401
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
had a different degradation pattern this may be an indicator of

contamination. For contamination to have occurred in this case it would
have to make allowance for the fact that the components have degraded in
the same way, which is consistent with them having been exposed to the
same conditions.1325
1524 Dr Whitaker was also asked about the possibility that the mixed
fingernail profile was the result of a transfer involving other individuals.
He said that in such an event there would be an expectation of seeing the
intermediary person's profile as well. Whilst not conclusive, experimental
data suggests that transfers by way of a third person will result in some
trace of that person's DNA in the sample.1326
1525 In cross-examination Dr Whitaker accepted that it was not possible

to identify the nature of the cellular material from which DNA had
derived by examining a profile obtained from trace evidence. Nor can the
profile itself say anything about the mechanism by which the DNA was
deposited. In particular DNA testing cannot distinguish between DNA
deposited by means of primary, secondary or some other transfer.1327
1526 Dr Whitaker accepted that the amount of DNA necessary to get

above the stochastic threshold is 0.2 nanograms, or 200 picograms, and
that this represented about 30 to 40 cells (a single cell being believed to be
about 6 picograms). He accepted that this was relevant in considering
issues to do with transfer and contamination.1328
1527 In regard to degradation of DNA, it was put to Dr Whitaker that
samples that are not frozen will degrade more quickly. He accepted this
as a general proposition but said that dry, dark storage at ambient
temperature is also a stable environment and that DNA can remain stable
for thousands of years in good conditions. If samples are kept in the same
conditions it would be expected that the degree of degradation would be
similar. However, he said that swabs were slightly different, because, for
example, an intimate swab may have more bacteria on it. When told that
the KJG high vaginal and low vaginal swabs had been frozen and thawed
the same number of times he said that could suggest that this was not the
reason why different results had been obtained by FSS.1329
1325
ts 7071 - 5.
1326
ts 7075.
1327
ts 7080.
1328
ts 7082 - 3.
1329
ts 7086 - 90.
Page 402
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
1528 Dr Whitaker accepted that a secondary transfer by way an

intermediary person would not necessarily result in the intermediary's
DNA being in the final sample, though this would be an expectation
subject to the particular circumstances. Variables that might affect this
include the DNA shedding character of the persons involved and whether
an intermediary was wearing gloves.1330
1529 Laboratories have quality management systems to detect

contamination and these evolve by learning from instances where
contamination has occurred. It is routine for laboratories to have
databases containing the DNA of staff members and frequent visitors,
such as the police. Another preventative measure is 'deep-cleaning',
which Dr Whitaker said was adopted at the Birmingham FSS laboratory
and in use when the LCN process was being undertaken there. If such
cleaning was not occurring he accepted that would be one less safeguard
against contamination. Other pro-active methods of detecting
contamination are environmental monitoring and the use of negative
controls.1331
1530 In regard to the scenario involving contamination from the sperm cell
fraction, it was put to Dr Whitaker that there were examples of
contamination occurring after a period of longer than 13 months. He
agreed that he had been informed of an incident in 2007 that occurred at
the Cellmark laboratory in the UK. In that incident two negative controls
were found to be contaminated with the DNA of a former staff member
who had left the laboratory 16 months earlier. The staff member had not
worked in the relevant part of the laboratory but had had regular access to
a freezer, which later came to be used by the relevant section of the
laboratory. After investigation no specific transfer scenario was
identified. However, Dr Whitaker said he would make a distinction
between what is possible and what is probable. He also suggested that the
case was not comparable because it involved a staff member who visited
the freezer frequently such that that person's DNA could have built up in
an environment where it was likely to have persisted. In contrast the
scenarios here involved a single forensic item containing very little
DNA.1332
1531 In regard to the likelihood of DNA being transferred by scratching,
Dr Whitaker was referred to an experimental study in which 33% of the
samples produced foreign source DNA of variable quality under the nails
1330
ts 7093 - 4.
1331
ts 7094 - 6.
1332
ts 7097 - 9.
Page 403
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HALL J
of the person doing the scratching. In a sub-group where more vigorous

scratching was undertaken foreign DNA was detected in 40% of the
samples. The subjects were re-tested six hours later after going about
their normal daily activities and very little DNA was then detected.
Dr Whitaker accepted that this study provides information about the
persistence of DNA in a living subject who has scratched another person
and about the deposition of DNA by scratching (when done according to
the protocol in this experiment). However, he said that it was not possible
to get an experiment that will mirror every case work scenario because it
was usually not possible to know exactly what had occurred. The actual
mechanisms in the real world are not as neat and predictable. The study
shows that transfer of DNA can occur, but the probability of it occurring
may vary depending on a range of factors, such as the severity of the
scratching, the length of the nails, whether blood was drawn, the length of
contact and the number of instances of contact.1333 In re-examination the
point was made that the paper acknowledged that there were limitations in
comparing the persistence of foreign DNA under fingernails in a
controlled environment with victims of violent crimes and sexual assault
who may be fighting aggressively for their lives and safety.1334
1532 Dr Whitaker was a well-qualified and highly experienced expert
witness. His evidence was clear, cogent and compelling. The
methodology he used was well-explained. He expressed his conclusions
with great care and attention to the limitations of the evidence. He made
appropriate concessions in cross-examination, but was not moved from
his conclusions.
Susan Vintiner – evidence summary

1533 Susan Vintiner is a forensic scientist specialising in forensic biology.
She has a Bachelor of Science with honours from Victoria University in
Wellington. She is employed by Environmental Science and Research
Ltd (ESR) and is based at that organisation's laboratory at Mount Albert,
Auckland, New Zealand. She has worked at ESR and its predecessor
since 1982. Her experience includes the examination of crime scenes and
DNA profiling. That experience includes using LCN methodology. She
has been undertaking DNA analysis and presenting reports in court on this
subject since the late 1990s.1335
1333
ts 7103 - 7.
1334
ts 7109 - 10.
1335
ts 7113 - 4.
Page 404
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
1534 ESR is an agency of the government of New Zealand and

incorporates branches that deal with environmental science, public health
and forensic science. The forensic group is responsible for undertaking
work on DNA testing, profiling and evaluation. ESR used the SGM Plus
multiplex kit for standard DNA work from about 2000 to 2008. After
2008 ESR changed over to using another kit called Identifiler. However,
they continued to use SGM Plus for LCN work until 2018.1336
1535 In 2017 ESR undertook testing of a reference sample of DNA from

the accused. This was analysed using SGM Plus and LCN methodology
(this was because at this time ESR was only using SGM Plus for
LCN testing). Because there was too much DNA in the sample it was
necessary to dilute it for use with LCN. There was an initial error with
the dilution and only a partial profile was obtained. However, the error
was corrected and two further runs produced results that were then
compared to produce a consensus profile.1337
1536 Also in 2017 a reference sample for Ciara Glennon was received and
analysed using the same method. An initial attempt with this sample
failed because the amount of DNA was greater than expected. When this
issue was addressed two runs were successful and a consensus profile was
obtained.1338
1537 Subsequently, Ms Vintiner received EPGs and sample logs from

Dr Whitaker relating to the AJM40 and 42 sample. This was all that was
required for her to then undertake statistical analysis comparing the
reference profiles to the mixed profile obtained from AJM40 and 42 by
FSS. However, she first examined the EPGs to determine whether she
agreed with consensus profile prepared by Dr Whitaker. She agreed with
that consensus profile, subject to noting that there was a low threshold
allele at loci D18 (which Dr Whitaker had also noted) which due to it
falling below the reportable low level was not taken into account in the
evaluation.1339
1538 Once a profile has been obtained a statistical evaluation can be done
using a software program. The program used for this purpose in this case
was called SPURS (statistical probability using re-sampling) – a program
that was developed in 1998 and validated for use with profiles obtained
using SGM Plus and LCN methodology. The program uses a population
1336
ts 7114 - 5.
1337
ts 7116 - 21; exhibit 14772.
1338
ts 7121 - 3; exhibit 14773.
1339
Page 405
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
database which provides information on the frequency of alleles. From

this it is possible to determine the likelihood that a questioned sample of
DNA originated from a known person.1340
1539 The population database used in the statistical analysis contained
allele frequency data that had been published in 2014. This publication
was for the Australian population for use with the PowerPlex 21 multiplex
kit. It provides the allele frequencies for the three major population
groups in Australia: Caucasian, Asian and Aboriginal. The database is
applicable to SGM Plus as all of the alleles tested in that multiplex kit are
contained within the PowerPlex 21 kit.1341
1540 Ms Vintiner inputted the genotype combinations from the AJM40

and 42 mixed profile, as well as the reference profiles for the accused and
Ms Glennon. An assumption was made that the mixed sample was that of
two people, a male and a female and that Ms Glennon's profile was within
the mixture. A factor was applied to take into account that in any
population there will be degree of relatedness between some individuals
(a theta or co-ancestry coefficient). The calculations of probability are
repeated a thousand times such that the figure quoted is at a 0.2
significance level, which means that there is a 98% probability that the
true value is a number greater than that given.1342
1541 The conclusions were expressed, as is usual in respect of DNA

evidence, in the form of likelihood ratios. The competing hypotheses
were that the mixed profile has originated from Ms Glennon and the
accused or that it has originated from Ms Glennon and another male
chosen at random from the Australian population (that is, a person
unrelated to the accused). Ratios were calculated for each major
Australian population group.1343
1542 Ms Vintiner said that the ratio in respect of the Australian Aboriginal
population component of the database was that the mixed profile results
were at least 10 million times more likely if that profile originated from
Ms Glennon and the accused than if it had originated from Ms Glennon
and a male chosen at random from the Aboriginal population. She said
that the ratio in respect of the Australian Caucasian population was that
the mixed profile results were 80 million times more likely if it had
originated from Ms Glennon and the accused than if it had originated
1340
ts 7115 - 6.
1341
ts 7128 - 30, 7134; exhibit 14752.
1342
ts 7130 - 3.
1343
ts 7133.
Page 406
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HALL J
from Ms Glennon and a male chosen at random from the Australian

Caucasian population. On a verbal scale ranging from neutral support to
extremely strong support, the highest rating is given where the ratios
produced are a million and above. Accordingly, both of the ratios
reported are considered as providing extremely strong support for the
hypothesis that the mixture has originated from Ms Glennon and the
accused.1344
1543 Ms Vintiner also received from Dr Whitaker an EPG of the low

vaginal swab sperm cell fraction in relation to KJG. The profile obtained
was then compared to the reference sample of the accused and analysed
using the SPURS program. The competing hypotheses on this occasion
were that the male DNA had originated from the accused or that it had
originated from some other unrelated male in the Australian population.
Again the ratios were calculated for each major Australian population
group.1345
1544 Ms Vintiner said that the ratio in respect of the Australian Aboriginal
component of the database was that the sperm cell fraction result were at
least two million times more likely if that profile originated from the
accused than if it had originated from a male chosen at random from the
Aboriginal population. She said that the ratio in respect of the Australian
Caucasian population was that the profile results were 20 million times
more likely if that profile had originated from the accused than if it had
originated from a male chosen at random from the Australian Caucasian
population. Accordingly, both of these ratios are considered as providing
extremely strong support for the hypothesis that the DNA in the sperm
cell fraction has originated from the accused.1346
1545 In cross-examination Ms Vintiner confirmed that her calculations

took into account all of the possible combinations of alleles that could be
attributed to the male in the mixture. The relative frequency of alleles in
the population did not assist in the interpretation of the EPG of the mixed
profile because a scientist could only report what was seen in the results
and any individual person could only inherit alleles from their parents
(regardless of how common or rare they may be in the general
population).1347
1344
ts 7132 - 5; exhibit 14774.
1345
ts 7136 - 7.
1346
ts 7137; exhibit 14775.
1347
ts 7139 - 43; exhibit 14752.
Page 407
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HALL J
1546 In re-examination Ms Vintiner said that the SPURS program takes

into account all of the possible combinations of genotypes and then uses
the frequency of the alleles in the population to make the statistical
calculation (that is to say, frequency is used in the statistical stage, not in
the interpretation of the EPG).1348
1547 Ms Vintiner's evidence provides strong support for the conclusion

that the DNA of the accused is in both the mixed fingernail sample of
Ms Glennon and the KJG sperm cell fraction. Her evidence was not
significantly challenged and the methodology was clear and compelling. I
accept her evidence in its entirety. There is no reason to doubt the
statistical probabilities that were provided.
Mitochondrial DNA
1548 In 2008 FSS was requested to undertake mitochondrial DNA testing
on a number of hairs taken from the body of Ms Glennon. The
prosecution does not rely on this evidence, but the defence say that it is
relevant because it may support a hypothesis that someone other than the
accused was the killer of Ms Glennon. The defence say it is also relevant
in considering the evidentiary significance of the fibre evidence and, in
particular, the possibility that fibres, like these hairs, can be present
adventitiously.1349
1549 Carol Evans of FSS conducted the relevant testing and produced a
report dated 10 October 2009. She received the hairs on 10 September
2008 and they comprised 12 hairs recovered from the drop sheet AJM65,
three hairs recovered from the bra AJM34, 12 hairs recovered from the
t-shirt AJM33, nine hairs recovered from the underwear AJM29 and
15 hairs recovered from the drop sheet AJM15. A reference DNA extract
for Ms Glennon was also provided at the same time. On 20 April 2009
Ms Evans received two control samples of Ms Glennon's hair for the
purposes of comparison. The stated purpose of the examination was to
determine if the hairs recovered from AJM65, AJM34, AJM33, AJM29
and AJM15 could have originated from Ms Glennon.1350
1550 Ms Evans' report explains that mitochondrial DNA differs from

nuclear DNA in that it is inherited only from one's mother, and therefore
all individuals who are related by a maternal link will have the same
mitochondrial DNA profile. Further, mitochondrial DNA varies less
1348
ts 7143.
1349
ts 10249 - 50, 10255; Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, DNA Evidence, 5 [13] - [16], 10 [33] - [36].
1350
ts 6119 - 21; exhibit 14380.
Page 408
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HALL J
between individuals and therefore more individuals chosen at random

from the population will have the same mitochondrial DNA profile.1351
1551 The result of testing was that mitochondrial DNA could not be
extracted from 14 hairs, 23 hairs produced a profile that was consistent
with that of Ms Glennon and could have come from her or someone in the
same maternal line, three hairs produced results that were not of
reportable quality, and the remaining 11 contained sufficient differences
to Ms Glennon to eliminate her as a source. Of those 11, two hairs
produced the same profile and could have come from the same source.1352
1552 Further comparison of the profiles of the same 11 hairs was later
undertaken in 2019 by Dr Dadna Hartman, a scientist at the Victorian
Institute of Forensic Science. She was provided with the FSS report.
Dr Hartman's results were largely the same, but for the fact that she
considered that there were another two of the group of 11 hairs that could
have come from the same donor. Dr Hartman also conducted a
comparison with a reference profile of the accused and concluded that he
could be excluded as the source of the 11 hairs.1353
1553 The significance of this evidence was that 11 hairs found on

Ms Glennon could be excluded as having come from her and were likely
to have come from nine individuals, none of whom was the accused. One
of the hairs was found on the bra and one on the underpants. The defence
suggest that the location of those hairs is significant because it is not
consistent with transfer by casual social contact. The defence submit that
the DNA obtained from these hairs places the AJM40 and 42 DNA into
context. It is said that there is DNA from 10 different people on
Ms Glennon and the DNA of the accused is only one of these.1354
Conclusions – DNA evidence

1554 Following the finding of the body of Ms Glennon a large number of
samples were taken for the purposes of DNA testing. These samples were
taken at the scene and at the post-mortem examination. Initial testing
revealed nothing that could assist in identifying the killer. However, the
science of forensic DNA testing continued to improve and, in 2008, a
decision was made to attempt Low Copy Number testing. That testing
had to be done in the UK by FSS because PathWest did not have the
relevant accreditation. The testing resulted in the discovery of a mixed
1351
ts 6121; exhibit 14380.
1352
ts 6121 - 5; exhibit 14380.
1353
ts 9765 - 9; exhibit 23849.
1354
Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, DNA Evidence, 10 [33].
Page 409
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HALL J
DNA profile from a sample that was combined from debris from two nails
on Ms Glennon's left hand (AJM40 and 42).
1555 The analysis of the mixed profile revealed that it was likely to come
from two people, at least one of whom was male. Given that the samples
came from Ms Glennon's nails it was reasonably assumed that she was
one of the contributors. This made it possible to make a prediction as to
the possible profile of the other, male, contributor. At the time this
analysis was done the accused had not been identified as a suspect.
However, a match was found with the suspected perpetrator of the
Karrakatta offences. This was confirmed by comparing samples taken
from intimate swabs of the Karrakatta victim to the mixed profile derived
from AJM40 and AJM42.
1556 It was not until 2016 that the accused was identified as a suspect and
a DNA sample obtained from him. Following his arrest in December of
that year a reference sample of his DNA was obtained and sent to ESR in
New Zealand to produce a profile. The reason this was necessary was that
by 2016 FSS had closed down and ESR was a laboratory that continued to
use the same multiplex kit (SGM Plus) and the LCN method. The profile
obtained was then compared to the mixed profile derived from AJM40
and AJM42 and found to be consistent; that is, the DNA of the accused
was consistent with him being a contributor to the mixed sample because
alleles matching his were present at each of the tested sites.
1557 It was then necessary to consider the likelihood that the accused was
a contributor by using a statistical program that considers all of the
possible combinations of alleles. This was done by ESR and produced the
result that it was 80 million times more likely (using Caucasian population
data) that the mixed sample was that of the accused and Ms Glennon than
some unknown and unrelated person and Ms Glennon.
1558 I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the DNA of the accused
is in the AJM40 and AJM42 mixed sample. The evidence in that regard
was clear, consistent and largely uncontested. I have given a general
summary of this evidence because it was not seriously in dispute that the
DNA of the accused was in the mixed sample – the real issue was how it
got there.
1559 The prosecution case was that the accused's DNA came to be under
the nails of Ms Glennon during the course of a violent struggle as she
sought to defend herself from the fatal attack upon her. There are a
number of facts that support the inference that such a struggle occurred.
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They are the defensive wounds to the right arm, the torn left thumbnail
and the torn right fingernail. In particular the left thumbnail (AJM40) had
a jagged appearance that was inconsistent with the smooth and apparently
manicured appearance of most of the other nails. Both Dr Margolius and
Dr Cooke expressed the view that the damage to the nails was recent
(though Dr Cooke accepted that it was not possible to place a time frame
on damage of this sort). I accept that the nail was damaged in a struggle
between Ms Glennon and her attacker. This enhances the significance of
the presence of the DNA of the accused.
1560 I should note that there is no evidence that the accused and
Ms Glennon met in any innocent social context, nor that they were ever in
close proximity in a social context or that his DNA could have been
transferred to her in such a context. The only alternative explanation
suggested by the defence is that the accused's DNA was introduced into
AJM40 or AJM42 (or both) by a contamination incident. Of course, the
defence has no obligation to propose or prove any innocent explanation.
It is for the prosecution to prove that the DNA got there in the way it
alleges. In doing so the prosecution has adduced detailed evidence as to
the testing, storage and movement of all relevant exhibits in order to
disprove any possibility of contamination.
1561 The defence pointed to some aspects of the evidence that it suggested
left open the possibility that these containers did not originally contain the
DNA of the accused or may have been opened at some undocumented
time. The lack of evidence as to exactly what the nail samples looked like
when first taken is relied on. Whilst I accept that there is no direct
evidence in this regard, either from a witness or by photograph, the
process as video recorded does not cause me to doubt that the samples
were collected. It may well be that in the case of AJM40 the sample was
not a clearly defined piece of nail, but was smaller pieces of debris (as it
was later so described). But that does not mean that DNA from under or
around the nails could not have been taken as part of that sample.
1562 I also accept that the containers were not sealed with evidence tape at
the time they were first taken (or for some years thereafter). However,
they were screw top containers and it is unlikely that they could be opened
other than by deliberate effort. The only obvious reason to open a
container is to conduct a procedure and the records in that regard have
been referred to. To say that it would be possible to open a container that
was not sealed with evidence tape and also possible for there to be no
record of this, is to suggest a mere theoretical possibility. The available
evidence provides no support for this possibility, and indeed is against it.
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In particular, I accept the evidence of Mr Bagdonavicius that he did not

open AJM40 in 1997 or 2003 when assessing whether the contents were
suitable for testing. I do so notwithstanding that there were errors in some
of the records, including the matrix he prepared in 2003. I do not dismiss
the cross-examination regarding the records, but I do not accept that it
supports a conclusion that Mr Bagdonavicius was generally careless in his
work or that his evidence as to whether the containers were opened is
unreliable.
1563 As to the scratches or striations on the AJM40 container, I accept

that no witness was able to say with certainty how they had been caused.
However, the evidence of Mr Talbot was that he had swabbed the
container with a swab dampened with water or buffer solution. He could
not now say whether the marks were dried liquid, but he gave his
evidence by video link from Scotland and was only able to be shown a
photograph of the container. The original container was an exhibit at the
trial and I was able to observe it closely. In the photograph the marks
appear to be scratches or cracks, but when the container itself is closely
viewed they appear to be more consistent with dried lines of liquid.
I made this observation during the course of closing addresses and
afforded counsel an opportunity to make submissions on it. In my view
the process undertaken by Mr Talbot provides a ready explanation for
these marks. In any event there is no evidence that they were present
prior to the testing at FSS in 2008. The existence of these marks does not
cause me to doubt that the integrity of the AJM40 container was
maintained. In particular, it does not cause me to infer that the container
was opened on some other undocumented occasion.1355
1564 In order for contamination to be open there must be a possible source

of DNA, an opportunity for contamination to occur and a mechanism by
which it could have occurred. The possible sources may include items or
samples from other earlier crimes in which the accused was involved. In
this case the possible sources are the kimono from the Huntingdale
offences and the exhibits taken during the investigation of the Karrakatta
offences. The kimono was at the PathWest laboratory between
19 February 1988 and 30 March 1988 and did not return until after the
2008 testing of the fingernail samples. The fingernail samples did not
come into the laboratory until 4 April 1997. The nine year gap between
the kimono leaving in 1988 and the nail samples arriving in 1997 excludes
any reasonable opportunity for the kimono to be a possible source of
1355
Exhibit 23517.
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contamination. The only other possible sources are the exhibits and
samples taken in the Karrakatta investigation (the KJG exhibits).
1565 The evidence, which I accept, is that the KJG clothes were returned
to police on 8 March 1995 and did not return to PathWest until
25 February 2009. Those items were not, therefore, at PathWest when
AJM40 and 42 arrived and did not return until after AJM40 and 42 had
been tested at FSS. The only KJG samples that remained at PathWest
during the period that AJM40 and 42 were there were the intimate swabs
and the cut sample of hospital gown. Screening tests were conducted, but
the only one of those samples that was DNA tested prior to 2008 was the
high vaginal swab (HVS1). All of the others remained together in storage
and were not tested until 2009. This evidence provides no opportunity for
any DNA of the accused from the KJG original samples to have
contaminated AJM40 or 42.
1566 There is another obvious difficulty with any hypothesis that any of
the original KJG exhibits were a source of contamination; none of KJG's
DNA was found in the mixed sample tested at FSS. The original KJG
exhibits, being clothes and swabs, can reasonably be expected to have had
her DNA on them, as well as possibly that of her attacker. Indeed later
testing showed this to be the case. Single source profiles were only
obtained where differential extractions were performed. There is no
realistic mechanism whereby the DNA could have been removed from
any of these exhibits and then entered one or other of the containers
marked AJM40 and 42. But even if there was, it is inconceivable that any
such contamination would have been selective, that is that the DNA of the
accused would be transferred and the DNA of KJG would not. For these
reasons the possibility of contamination from the original KJG exhibits
must, in my view, be discounted.
1567 This leaves the sperm cell fraction created from the high vaginal
swab (HVS1) of KJG as being the only possible source. This is because
that extract contained only the male component of the DNA, which it was
later confirmed matched the DNA profile of the accused. The timeline for
the creation and subsequent testing of the extract is known and provides
for no realistic opportunity for a contamination incident to occur.
1568 The HVS1 swab was first examined at PathWest on 14 February
1995, analysis was undertaken between 27 February and 18 March 1996,
again from 19 to 21 May 1997 and finally on 24 and 25 September 1999.
AJM42 was subject to analysis between 9 and 11 April 1997, 5 and 6 May
1997 and finally 22 to 25 October 2001. The May 1997 analysis and the
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October 2001 analysis were both done on existing extracts and did not
require AJM42 to be re-opened. The only other time that AJM42 was
opened was on 23 March 2004 for the purpose of removing the nail pieces
for sending to ESR.
1569 It is apparent that there are only two occasions when AJM42 was
opened prior to 2008 which could have afforded an opportunity for
contamination of that container. This was on 9 April 1997 and on
24 March 2004. However, for contamination to have occurred on either
of these occasions the HVS sperm cell fraction sample or an extract of it
would have to have been open at the same time or shortly before. In fact
the evidence was that these samples were never open at the same time.
The closest opportunity for transfer was the 13 month period between
18 March 1996 and 9 April 1997 and other gaps were much longer. The
extended time gaps, the cleaning of the laboratory in the interval and the
precautions taken in undertaking work in the laboratory were such that the
possibility of contamination from the HVS can be excluded as a
reasonable possibility. That DNA from the HVS could have escaped into
the laboratory, remained undetected for over a year, evaded all cleaning
protocols and then contaminated AJM42 (and none of the many other
samples processed in the laboratory in the interim) is inconceivable.
1570 In coming to this conclusion I have taken into account the record
keeping at PathWest and the evidence of the PathWest employees
involved in the analysis. Whilst the records had some inaccuracies, these
were relatively small in number, did not materially affect the ability to
trace the relevant samples and were not of a nature or number as to cast
any real doubt on the thoroughness and professionalism of PathWest. In
saying that, it must be borne in mind that this case involved an
extraordinary number of samples that were analysed over many years.
This resulted in a very large quantity of records. That some errors
occurred is not unexpected. But they do not give me cause to think that
there were systemic issues at PathWest that could affect the reliability of
the records or the results relating to AJM40 and 42.
1571 I have also taken into account that the witnesses who performed the
various processes on the samples had limited if any independent
recollection of what they did and had to rely on records and their
knowledge of standard procedures. Given that the nature of this scientific
work is necessarily repetitive and formulaic, the lack of specific
recollection of individual procedures is entirely unsurprising. It is more
likely that something would be remembered if an unusual incident
occurred or there was some departure from the standard operating
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procedures. It is also likely that if this had occurred that it would be

reflected in the records. I am satisfied that reliance on the records and
standard procedures was appropriate and I had no cause to think that there
had been any significant departure from those procedures that was not
noticed or recorded. Nor did I have any reason to question the honesty
and integrity of the PathWest witnesses.
1572 There was a faint suggestion during the trial that Telstra employees
may have visited PathWest for work related purposes and this could be a
means by which the DNA of the accused could have entered the
laboratory (either directly from him or by secondary transfer by some
other Telstra worker who had been in contact with him). This is no more
than a theoretical possibility because there is no evidence that the accused
or anyone closely associated with him visited PathWest at any time
reasonably contemporaneous with the examination of AJM42 (or at all).
In fact a register kept at PathWest to record visitors to the laboratory
confirms this. In closing submissions defence counsel accepted that this
was not a reasonably possible explanation for the presence of the
accused's DNA in AJM40 and 42.
1573 As to quality standards at PathWest, I was impressed with the care

and attention to detail of the witnesses who gave evidence. The
laboratory maintained NATA accreditation throughout the relevant
period, and I have no reason to believe that this accreditation was
undeserved. Whilst standards regarding quality control and the use of
PPE changed over the years, PathWest maintained the appropriate
standards at all times. The changing standards reflected growing
awareness of trace evidence and the increasing sensitivity of the tests that
were used. It is clear that some of the practices used in the late 1990s and
early 2000s would not be considered adequate by contemporary standards.
But even taking that into account I am not convinced that the DNA
evidence is cast into serious doubt or diminished in value. The change in
standards does not, in the known circumstances of this case, make
contamination a reasonable explanation for the presence of the DNA of
the accused in the fingernail sample.
1574 There were a number of quality issues that were highlighted by the
defence. None of these were denied or minimised by the PathWest
witnesses. Indeed, it is apparent that such issues were treated with
appropriate seriousness. Those issues are said to raise questions as to the
reliability of the testing results, but it is important to place them into
context. A very large number of tests were done on samples related to
this case over a 20 year period. Whilst a forensic laboratory should strive
Page 415
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to minimise the potential for such issues, even the best run laboratory
cannot reduce that risk to zero. Issues will arise and the existence of a
system for detecting and addressing them is an important component of
quality assurance. I accept Mr Egan's evidence that the rate of occurrence
of quality issues at PathWest was not unusual and compared favourably to
the published standards of another international laboratory.
1575 As to the known incidents of contamination, it is important to

emphasise that none of them related directly to AJM40 and 42. There is
no direct evidence that those samples were contaminated, or at risk of
contamination, at any point in their history. Rather, what is suggested is
that the contamination incidents in relation to other samples are sufficient
to raise a doubt as to the reliability of the results in respect of AJM40 and
42. That is, that those incidents raise the possibility that contamination
could have occurred in respect of AJM40 and 42 and have passed
undetected. This argument depends upon an assessment of the quality
incidents in the context in which they occurred to see whether they sustain
an inference that there were systemic failures that could also have affected
the relevant samples.
1576 Of those incidents that related to contamination all bar one involved
contamination by the DNA of a staff member. Such contamination is
qualitatively different from that alleged by the defence to have occurred
here as it will usually involve only a single step and the source and
opportunity is evident in most cases. The only example of contamination
between different case samples involved samples that were tested in the
same area of the laboratory five days apart (but consecutively, in the sense
that the contaminated sample was the immediately following batch dealt
with using the same equipment). The opportunity in that case was readily
apparent. This is to be contrasted with the times between the
KJG samples and AJM42 being tested. Those times make any transfer
extremely unlikely. I accept in this regard the evidence of Mr Egan and
Dr Whitaker.
1577 I have taken into account the mitochondrial DNA evidence and the
suggestion that this shows that the DNA of the accused is only one of
10 other people's DNA found on Ms Glennon. Whilst this is strictly true,
it does not diminish or call into question the reliability of the fingernail
DNA evidence. Furthermore, it is relevant to take into account that the
mitochondrial DNA is of a different nature and has been obtained from
hairs. The obvious possibilities for the movement and transfer of hairs by
casual contact does not readily support an inference that any of these hairs
are likely to be from a person associated with Ms Glennon's death. The
Page 416
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nature of mitochondrial DNA means that it is less discriminating than

nuclear DNA, thus whilst it is possible to exclude the accused it would be
virtually impossible to locate any unknown source (and thereby determine
whether the source had innocent contact with Ms Glennon or otherwise).
The mitochondrial DNA is no more likely to have come from a person
associated with Ms Glennon's killing than from some entirely innocent
casual contact. In contrast, the nuclear DNA of the accused found on or
under the fingernails, is capable of identifying him with a high degree of
certainty and has no obvious innocent explanation. In my view the
mitochondrial DNA does not support an inference consistent with
innocence; that is, that some other person was involved in the death of
Ms Glennon. The locations in which some of the hairs were found adds
little, if anything, given that no person could say with certainty that the
hairs were in those precise locations at the time of death.
1578 I have considered whether the fact that no other DNA of the accused
was found on Ms Glennon and that none was found on Ms Rimmer is a
reason to question the significance of this evidence. It is true that the
quantity of DNA involved is small, but that has not affected the reliability
of the result. The absence of other DNA has to be considered in context.
The bodies of both Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon were found in bushland
and in a state of decomposition. Those circumstances are likely to have
reduced the chances of recovering DNA from any attacker. Furthermore,
the precise circumstances of the abduction and deaths of the victims is
unknown – thus it cannot be known what opportunities there may have
been for transfer of DNA. An additional factor is that technology has
improved over time – the relevant results were only obtained in 2008
using more sensitive LCN technology. By that time there was a
possibility that any other DNA had degraded. For these reasons I do not
consider that the absence of any other detected DNA is a factor which
affects the weight to be accorded to this evidence.
1579 The Cellmark results do not support an inference that DNA from
people other than the accused may have been in some of the samples. The
only other complete or partial profiles found by Cellmark were from
PathWest staff members and are acknowledged instances of
contamination. The presence of a single or small number of peaks in
other samples is consistent with stochastic or artefactual effects. There is
no more likelihood that these peaks indicate the presence of other DNA
than that they are such effects.
1580 It is also relevant that the DNA of the accused is not known to have
contaminated samples in any other case. It is not suggested by the
Page 417
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defence that any contamination was the result of deliberate action.

Indeed, that possibility is effectively excluded by the fact that the DNA
was discovered in 2008, long before the accused had been identified as a
suspect in respect of the Karrakatta offences or the murders. Accordingly,
any contamination incident could only have been a random occurrence.
The prosecution submits that it would be the most unlikely of
coincidences if the DNA of the accused from an abduction of a young
woman in Claremont happened to only contaminate a sample from
another young woman abducted in similar circumstances. I have taken
this into account in assessing whether contamination is a reasonable
explanation for the presence of the DNA of the accused in the mixed
sample of AJM40 and 42.
1581 The fact that testing of AJM42 prior to 2008, both at PathWest and
ESR, did not detect any male DNA does not support an inference that the
presence of the DNA of the accused in the combined sample in 2008 is
due to contamination. There are several reasons for this. First, it is
possible that the DNA found in 2008 came entirely from AJM40. Second,
it is possible that small amounts of DNA that fell below detectable levels
were present in both AJM40 and 42 and that when combined the DNA
was then able to be detected. Third, the testing at FSS in 2008 involved
the use of the LCN method, which was not used in any of the earlier
testing. The greater amplification utilised in the LCN method and its
consequential greater level of sensitivity allows for the possibility that the
DNA was present at the time of the earlier tests but at levels that were not
detectable by the tests then used.
1582 In my view contamination has been excluded as a rational

possibility. There remains only one reasonable inference available and
that is that the DNA of the accused was present in one or both of AJM40
and 42 at the time that they were collected. The only rational explanation
for the presence of the DNA at that time is that it was deposited under the
nails of Ms Glennon as she fought against her attacker shortly before her
death. This is consistent with the state of the nails, and in particular the
left thumbnail from which AJM40 was taken. Because this is a critical
element of the prosecution case I consider it is necessary for it to be
proven beyond reasonable doubt. Applying that standard, I am satisfied
beyond reasonable doubt that:
1. DNA of the accused was found in the sample derived from the
nails on the left hand of Ms Glennon;
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2. DNA was not present as a result of any contamination incident;

and
3. DNA was deposited at the time of the fatal attack upon

Ms Glennon as a result of her attempts to defend herself from the
person attacking her.
Fibre evidence
What the prosecution relies on
1583 In respect of counts 7 and 8 the State relies on evidence about fibres
located on shorts worn by KJG, on a t-shirt worn by Ms Glennon at the
time of her death and in the hair of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. These
fibres are said by the State to correspond with clothing of a kind worn by
the accused and a car driven by him at the relevant times.
1584 The fibres located on the victims were referred to as 'critical fibres'.
Those critical fibres were initially compared to fibres in a database created
by the ChemCentre. After the accused was arrested the ChemCentre also
compared the critical fibres to sources of fibres connected to the accused.
The car used by the accused at the time of counts 7 and 8 was also located
and some fibres found in that vehicle were also treated as critical fibres.
1585 As part of the investigation of these matters the ChemCentre created

a database of fibres. The database is comprised of fibres associated with
the victims and fibres collected from various other materials, but mainly
from carpets and fabrics found in cars. As at 22 April 2020 there were
22,552 entries in the fibres database of which 1,595 were collected from
exhibits associated with KJG, 1,652 are associated with Ms Rimmer and
2,021 are associated with Ms Glennon.1356
1586 The two kinds of fibres described as critical fibres are referred to as
'clothing fibres' and 'car fibres'. The clothing fibres fall into two
categories: blue polyester fibres and blue non-delustered rayon fibres.
There are four kinds of car fibres: grey delustered polyester fibres and
three different kinds of polypropylene fibres.
1587 The State says that the clothing fibres found on the shorts worn by
KJG, the t-shirt worn by Ms Glennon and in Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon's hair originated from items of clothing made for Telstra
technicians. The accused was a Telstra technician who owned and wore
items of Telstra clothing during the period of the commission of counts
1356
ts 9227, 9305, 9327; exhibit 23268, p 38.
Page 419
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3 - 8. The State's case is that the fibres from the accused's Telstra clothing
transferred onto the three victims in the course of the offences, either
directly from the clothing he was wearing at the time, or indirectly
because the fibres were present in the car he used to commit the
offences.1357
1588 The State also says that the car fibres found in Ms Glennon and
Ms Rimmer's hair originated from a VS series I Holden Commodore
station wagon. At the time of the commission of counts 7 and 8 the
accused was allocated a vehicle of that make and model by Telstra. After
his arrest by police that car was located (1BPX-080) and fibres that
correspond to the fibres found on the victims were taken from it.1358
Nature of the fibre evidence

1589 The expert evidence about fibre analysis was given by Dr Ray
Palmer and two ChemCentre scientists, Belinda Evans and Rees Powell.
Ms Evans is a forensic scientist and has been at the ChemCentre since
2005. Mr Powell is a forensic chemist and has been at the ChemCentre
since 2009. Dr Palmer is an independent forensic science consultant with
over 35 years' experience in the field of fibre evidence.
1590 Ms Evans prepared a PowerPoint presentation providing an overview

of textile fibre analysis at the ChemCentre. Mr Powell contributed to the
content of that presentation and also presented his own PowerPoint
presentation about the analysis of fibres in the Macro investigation.1359
The summary that follows is based on that evidence. The evidence of
Mr Palmer will be separately summarised.
ChemCentre
1591 The analysis of fibre evidence in this matter was carried out by the
ChemCentre. The ChemCentre is a NATA accredited facility and an
independent statutory authority established under the Chemistry Centre
Act 2007 (WA). Mr Powell said that the ChemCentre has held a NATA
accreditation to perform fibre analysis since 1995 or 1996; this means that
their methodology is audited and they are required to carry out proficiency
trials (during which the analysts are required to examine a known sample)
in order to continue their accreditation.1360
1357
State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The Fibre Evidence, 83 [2].
1358
Exhibit 14367; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The Fibre Evidence, 83 [3].
1359
1360
ts 7654, 8216 - 7.
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1592 In the mid-1990s it was located in East Perth and in 2009 moved to a
new facility in Bentley on the Curtin University Campus. The
ChemCentre assists the police in criminal investigations through the
recovery, identification and comparison of microscopic amounts of
materials, including fibres.1361
Fibre analysis
1593 Fibre analysis is a subset of textile evidence. A textile is defined as a
flexible material consisting of a network of natural and (or) synthetic
fibres. Textile evidence can be divided into three areas of analysis:
textile trace evidence, textile end products, and textile pattern examination
(for example, damage to textiles or imprints on textiles).1362
1594 Individual fibres are spun or twisted together to form a yarn. Fibres
or yarns are then joined together to produce a textile or fabric. There are
different methods of joining yarns together, including woven and
non-woven methods. Woven fabrics include shirts, pants, jeans and
knitted fabrics. Non-woven fabrics are bonded together mechanically,
thermically or chemically – examples include cleaning wipes, car carpets
and face masks used in the medical industry.1363
1595 Fibres are ubiquitous. When a person sits down they transfer fibres
from their clothing to the seat they are sitting on. If they are sitting on a
fabric seat then fibres from the seat may be transferred to the clothing that
they are wearing.1364
Fibre transfer
1596 The word 'shedding' is used to describe the transfer of a fibre from
one place to another. A fibre may shed as a result of contact between a
fabric source and an object. Fibres can also shift from object to source.
An object does not have to be composed of fibres to have fibres on it.
Fibres from another source are called 'foreign fibres'.1365
1597 The movement of fibres from source to object can occur without
direct contact between them. Mr Powell said that he would expect there
to be lower numbers if there was not direct contact. Fibres can dislodge
from the fibre source and travel through the air onto the object by way of
secondary or tertiary transfer. He agreed that one of the ways that the
1361
ts 7654, 8216.
1362
ts 7655, 7657; exhibit 30344, slide 5, slide 9.
1363
ts 7656; exhibit 30344, slide 7.
1364
1365
ts 9367.
Page 421
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means of transfer can be inferred is by considering the number of fibres

on the recipient object.1366
1598 Fibres shed at different rates. The rate of shedding depends on the
garment and the interaction that a person has with it. Natural fibres such
as cotton and wool break more easily than synthetic fibres because they
are not as strong. It also depends on the amount of force that is used; a
synthetic fibre will break, shed and transfer if a lot of force is used. Once
a fibre is shed, whether it will persist on another garment or not depends
on whether the garment is made of a fabric that the fibre will adhere to.1367
Characteristics of fibres
1599 Fibres have many distinguishing characteristics. The properties that
scientists look for when they are analysing fibres in the laboratory is
chemical composition; physical features including colour, dimension and
shape in cross-section; the presence of additives such as delusterant; and
microscopic properties, such as fluorescence and birefringence. When
comparing two fibres, the more of these characteristics they have in
common, the more likely it is that they come from the same source.1368
1600 There are two types of textile fibres: natural and synthetic fibres.
Natural fibres are then classified into animal and vegetable. Animal fibres
can come from silk (from spiders or silkworms) or hair. The most
common animal fibre is wool. Vegetable fibres include cotton, flax and
jute.1369
1601 Synthetic fibres also come in two types, from the transformation of
natural polymers or synthetic polymers. An example of the
transformation of natural polymers is rayon – the cellulose from wood
pulp is generated to make rayon fibres. Synthetic polymers are used to
make fibres such as polyester, polypropylene, acrylic and nylon.1370
1602 Dyes and pigments are used to colour fibres. The colour of a fibre
can alter along the length of it. Usually with synthetic fibres the dye is
uniform. In natural fibres it can vary because natural fibres are usually
dyed after they have been spun or made into fabric whereas in synthetic
1366
ts 9367.
1367
ts 7656 - 7.
1368
1369
1370
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HALL J
fibres the dye or pigment is added in the manufacturing process so the

fibre is produced as a coloured fibre.1371
1603 Fibres also vary in thickness. Some synthetic fibres are very thin,
such as microfibres used to make clothing. Others are very thick, such as
carpet fibres, because they need to be durable and have good wear
resistance. Natural fibres may also vary in thickness, for example high
quality merino wool will be very fine whereas wool of lesser quality will
be less so.1372
1604 Ms Evans showed a slide with diagrams of some common shapes of

fibres in cross-section. The manufacturer determines the shape of a
synthetic fibre when it is produced. When a synthetic fibre is produced a
spinneret is used – a metal disc with the shape that the fibre is going to be
cut into it – and the polymer is forced through the disc which makes the
shape of the fibre. Common shapes of fibres include cylindrical and
trilobal. Ms Evans said that the cross-sections of natural fibres can be
more distinctive. She gave the example of wool fibres, which have
overlapping scales; this is a feature of an animal fibre.1373
1605 Delusterant is a chemical added to synthetic fibre to reduce sheen

and makes the surface of the fibre slightly rougher. A commonly used
delusterant is titanium oxide. The delusterant is embedded into the fibre,
it is not a contaminant sitting on top of the fibre. Accordingly, it is not
removed through washing. Under a microscope the delusterant appears as
small black dots in the fibre.1374
1606 Fibres can also be distinguished on the basis of two microscopic
properties. One is birefringence, the double refraction of light that is a
quality of some materials. Birefringence is dependent on composition and
is used to identify what kind of synthetic fibre is being examined. The
other is fluorescence, the luminosity of a material when illuminated.
Different fibres may fluoresce depending on the dye, the fibre itself or
contaminants or additives on a fibre. Fluorescence may be detected on a
fibre for several reasons: an individual fibre may fluoresce; or the textile
may be washed with particular laundry detergents that have optical
brighteners that may cause fibres to fluoresce; or biological contaminants
may cause a fibre to fluoresce.1375
1371
ts 7658, 7663.
1372
ts 7658, 7661.
1373
ts 7659 - 61; exhibit 30344, slide 11.
1374
ts 7658.
1375
ts 7658, 7689; exhibit 30344, slide 10.
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Recovery of fibres
1607 Fibres can be recovered by police examining a crime scene or be
located by scientists who examine items from the scene in a laboratory.
The police may take fibres or yarns to the ChemCentre for comparison to
a piece of clothing. Alternatively, the police may bring into the laboratory
two items of clothing, one from the victim and one from the accused.
Scientists can examine the items to see whether they can find fibres
corresponding with one garment on the other garment.1376
1608 Fibres can be recovered in the laboratory by searching items under a

stereomicroscope and hand picking the fibres off with specialised
tweezers made of medical grade stainless steel. The other main way of
removing fibres from garments is by tape lifting. The analyst examines
the clothing using a clear adhesive tape. Crime scene surfaces can be tape
lifted as well and those tape lifts can be sent to the ChemCentre for
examination.1377
1609 There are two approaches that are taken to tape lifts. There is
'one-to-one' tape lifting, where clear tape is used to cover a whole garment
and the individual pieces of tape are numbered and the examination
records use a schematic to show where on the shirt the fibres have been
lifted from. The other approach is called 'zonal tape lifting'. Instead of
using a large number of individual pieces of tape, fewer pieces of tape are
used and the garment is divided into zones. One piece of tape is used for
each zone of a garment; multiple pressings using one piece of tape are
used in each zone of a garment. The choice of method is in the discretion
of the analyst in the laboratory – it may depend on the shedability of the
garment; for example, one tape lift from a woollen garment may saturate
the tape and multiple pressings would not be possible. For a more tightly
woven garment (which sheds less) one piece of tape may be sufficient.
Once the tape lifts are removed they are placed on a clear acetate sheet. A
number of tape lifts may be placed onto one sheet. They are then
examined under a stereo microscope.1378
1610 Tape lifting is the preferred method, but if a garment is heavily

soiled or is not amenable to that process then scraping is a backup
process. This process involves using a metal ruler (or something similar)
and scraping it against a garment to remove any trace material that might
be present on it. The trace material is collected on a drop sheet below.
1376
1377
ts 7671 - 2; exhibit 30344, slide 22.
1378
ts 7672 - 4; exhibit 30344, slide 23, slide 24.
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The drop sheet is typically then folded in half and the debris is transferred
to a petri dish. The petri dish is then examined by stereomicroscopy.
Shaking may also be used, this is mainly done with clothes. Large items
of clothing may be shaken over clean paper, the debris that falls onto the
paper is collected and searched for fibres.1379
1611 Another method of collecting fibres is vacuuming. This is used to

remove trace materials from inaccessible areas; for example, between the
cracks in a couch or around a car seat. Vacuuming is done by WA Police,
it is very rarely done by the ChemCentre. The WA Police send in vacuum
samples to the ChemCentre for examination. Vacuum samples are also
used where there is a lot of sample or a mass of dispersed material and it
is easier for the police to vacuum it.1380
1612 For some exhibits a process of washing and filtering is employed.

Mr Powell provided as an example the examination of Ms Rimmer's hair
mass. The hair mass was examined and then, in order to collect further
trace material from biological material that was present in the hair mass,
the hair was washed with water and detergent to try to break down the
biological material and free up any trace material that might have been
caught up in that biological material. The washings were then filtered and
the material collected was examined.1381
1613 Another method is vacuum filtration. Mr Powell explained that

sections of Ms Rimmer's hair mass were placed into a beaker and a
detergent and water mixture was added to break up the biological material
and potentially free up trace material. It was then subjected to vacuum
filtration to remove that biological material and the solid material left
behind was searched. Fibres were then recovered from the filtration
paper.1382
ChemCentre processes
1614 Ms Evans provided a flow chart of the journey that a sample takes in
the ChemCentre laboratory. She said that if a police officer brings an
item to the ChemCentre the item is examined by a receiving analyst. The
analyst checks the item to ensure it is sealed. Paperwork is then filled out
1379
ts 7672, 8227.
1380
1381
ts 8227 - 8.
1382
ts 8542 - 3, 8560 - 1, 8572 - 3.
Page 425
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HALL J
to record what time it was received and who it was received from and
electronic notes are made.1383
1615 An electronic information system records receival and registration

and movement of all of the items received at the ChemCentre. When an
item is received it is given a laboratory number so that it can be identified.
Each case will have its own number and then each item will have a
sequential number in addition to the laboratory number. The items are
then given a storage location. The numbering system is based on a prefix
with the year that the samples were received in the laboratory, then a case
number and then the item number. If a subsample is taken from that item
it is given a unique subsample number.1384 A subsample number is three
digits and in the case of Ms Rimmer, the ChemCentre recovered more
than 1,000 subsamples. For this reason a new laboratory number was
created and there are two laboratory numbers associated with Mr Rimmer:
96F0448 and 11F3094.1385
1616 ChemCentre staff wear PPE in the laboratory, including laboratory
coats and gloves. Face masks and hair nets are available – these would be
worn if there was a risk of DNA contamination of the item or if the item
might contaminate the scientist. Safety glasses are also worn.1386
1617 In the forensic science laboratory there are search rooms and
laboratories. The search rooms are sealed and locked. The initial
examination of an item happens in a search room. The seals on the item
are checked and photographed before the item is opened. In each of the
search rooms there is a stereomicroscope and a Polilight.1387 The
operation of a Polilight will be explained later.
1618 Fibres located under stereomicroscope are mounted onto glass slides.
A drop of mounting media is placed onto the slide. Mounting media is
stable and sets hard, so it helps to preserve and secure the fibre on the
glass slide for many years. The mounting media does not change the
characteristics of the fibre. The fibre is then placed into the mounting
media on the glass slide and then a round glass coverslip is placed on top.
This secures the fibre in place and allows the analyst to look at it under a
compound microscope. More than one fibre can be mounted onto a slide
1383
1384
ts 7666; exhibit 30433, slide 17, exhibit 30344, slide 15.
1385
ts 8378 - 9, 8543.
1386
1387
ts 7664 - 6, 7670.
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and more than one fibre can be under a single coverslip. Up to three or
four fibres might be mounted on one slide under different coverslips.1388
1619 As described earlier, fibres that have been recovered from tape lifts
are first placed onto acetate sheets. Once they are on the acetate sheet the
fibres are secure so the scientists can move them out of the search room
and into the main laboratory. If a particular fibre is located it is cut out
and mounted on a glass slide for further examination.1389 Once a fibre is
located it is given a subsample number in accordance with the
ChemCentre numbering convention and registered in the laboratory
information management system. This number, the initials of the person
who has registered the subsample and the date that the sample is
registered are printed onto a paper sticker that is placed on the slide.1390
1620 There is both refrigerated and dry storage at the ChemCentre. The
storage areas are only accessed by staff with authority to do so.
Individual slides are stored in a slide box that holds 100 glass slides. The
boxes are labelled and given a position number. The position number and
location are recorded in the laboratory information management system.
This enables a subsample to be easily located.1391
1621 In a routine case fibres that are recovered from a victim are
compared to constituent fibres from a control item which might include a
garment from a person of interest or suspect. That is typically how cases
present to the laboratory where a person of interest is known. Mr Powell
said that this results in a narrowing in the search for fibres from the victim
because the scientists have a control item. For example, if it is known that
the person of interest was wearing a green jumper, the scientists can look
for green fibres on the victim's clothes. When fibres are recovered in a
routine case the scientists will record their observations and the results for
various techniques in an Excel spreadsheet. By using the spreadsheet they
can sift through the results and find recovered fibres that appear to have
similar properties to the control fibres and then perform further
analysis.1392
1622 Mr Powell contrasted routine case work to cold case investigations.

He said that the main difference is that in a cold case investigation there is
no identified person of interest, which means there are no control items at
1388
ts 7680 - 1.
1389
1390
1391
ts 7664, 7681; exhibit 30344, slide 32.
1392
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the beginning. In such a case fibres of any colour or type may potentially
be of investigative value.1393
Fibre analysis at the ChemCentre

1623 In most cases the following kinds of analysis are carried out at the
ChemCentre:1394
1. stereomicroscopy to collect fibres and mount them onto slides;
2. compound microscopy to observe fibre properties;
3. polarised light microscopy to infer fibre type;
4. microspectrophotometry (MSP) for objective measurement of

fibre colour; and
5. Fourier-Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy for confirmation
of fibre type.
1624 The various microscopy techniques use light to analyse fibres. When
light hits a sample under a microscope, the light refracts at different
wavelengths. Colours are represented by different wavelengths in the
visible spectrum; for example, purple light is about 400 nanometres, and
then as the wavelengths get longer the colour changes from purple to red,
which is about 700 nanometres. If white light is shone onto a white
surface it will reflect all of the colours of the spectrum and so the surface
is seen as white. If a white light is shone onto a green surface, all of the
colours of the spectrum will be absorbed apart from green, which is
reflected, and so the surface is seen as green.1395
1625 In the laboratory the different microscopes use light in different

ways. The stereo microscopes use reflected light; the light hits the sample
from the sides and then is reflected up. The compound microscope uses
transmitted light; the light comes up from below and transmits through the
sample. The fibre may absorb some light and then transmit the rest. The
way that the light passes through the sample is used to measure the optical
properties and to measure colour.1396
1626 Stereomicroscopes are low powered or use low magnification; they

are therefore ideal for searching for and recovering fibres.
1393
ts 8221.
1394
1395
1396
ts 7677.
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A stereomicroscope allows for an item to be magnified from about

10 - 600 times. An item, a tape lift from an item (acetate sheet), or debris
collected from an item can all be viewed under a stereomicroscope.
Stereomicroscopy is often used to look at larger items because the analyst
can easily manipulate the items under the microscope. A reflected light
source is used, and the light comes from the side of the microscope onto
the sample and then back up through the objective (that is, the lens which
relays the image to the eyepiece where it can be viewed by the analyst).
Stereomicroscopes can be equipped with a digital camera so that the
analyst can take digital images of what they are seeing through the
microscope.1397
1627 A compound microscope is used for high magnification or high

powered microscopy. Compound microscopes work differently to
stereomicroscopes in that transmitted light is used. The objectives sit very
close to the sample (only millimetres away). The light passes up through
the glass slide, then through the fibre and then the analyst observes the
fibre through the eye piece. Compound microscopes are used to look at
the features of individual fibres; that is, diameter, perceived colour, the
presence of any additives (such as delusterant), and the cross section.
They are also used for more advanced illumination set ups including
polarised light microscopy (to look at birefringence to infer the fibre
composition) and fluorescence (to look at the fluorescent properties of
fibres).1398
1628 When analysts look at fibres under a compound microscope using a

white light the terminology used is 'brightfield' and an image taken of this
is a referred to as a brightfield image. This technique allows the analyst to
note the perceived colour of the fibre and the presence of any delusterant.
Brightfield images can also be used to determine the fibre diameter and
cross section shape. Comparison microscopy using brightfield images
allows two fibres to be compared and they may be distinguished if they
have a different cross sections or diameters.1399
1629 Polarised light microscopy is a technique in which a compound

microscope is used and two polarising filters are inserted, one that sits
below the fibre (called a polariser) and one that sits above the fibre (called
the analyser). If both of the filters are aligned the light source from the
microscope will pass through. If the top filter is rotated by 90 degrees
(also called crossed polars) then the light is blocked from coming through
1397
ts 7679, 8228; exhibit 30344, slide 29.
1398
1399
ts 7682, 8228, 9329.
Page 429
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the second filter. In polarised light microscopy, crossed polars are used
and the fibre is placed between them. The light source travels through the
first polarising filter and hits the fibre. The light then disperses at
different angles. That causes some of the light to pass through the second
filter. Then instead of seeing a black image the analyst can see coloured
lines in the fibres. This is described as interference colours or
birefringence, or a birefringent pattern. The images that are created are of
a black background and the fibre appears coloured, sometimes having
multiple colours.1400
1630 Polarised light microscopy allows the analyst to infer the
composition of the fibre. It is usually used to identify synthetic fibres
because they contain polymers. By looking at the colours or band of
colours generated when the fibre is viewed between the filters analysts are
able to infer the fibre's composition. A highly birefringent fibre such as
polyester passes through the colours of the spectrum at a greater rate than
a fibre with low birefringence. Mr Powell explained that birefringence is
related to the depth of the fibre. He said that the centre of a fibre will
appear as a different colour to the edges of the fibre because on the edge
of the fibre there is only a small vertical depth. By studying the colours
and how they change based on the thickness at each individual part across
the width of the fibre the analysts can infer what type of fibre it is.1401
1631 Ms Evans demonstrated the use of polarised light microscopy in the

examination of fibres by showing side-by-side comparison images of
three colourless fibres (an acrylic fibre, a nylon fibre and a polyester fibre)
using brightfield technique and cross polar technique. There are no filters
in the microscope when the brightfield image is taken; the fibre is
observed with transmitted light passing through it to the eyepiece. For the
polarised image the two filters have been inserted. In the polarised image
the birefringence colour pattern is visible. The pattern is markedly
different when seen through the polarised filters. The acrylic fibre
displayed one colour – that is called low polarisation or low birefringence.
A fibre of low birefringence (such as rayon) does not display all of the
colours of the rainbow to the same extent as a highly birefringent fibre
(such as polyester).1402
1632 An experienced analyst can recognise from the colour pattern what
the composition of a fibre is.1403 Once the thickness of the fibre is known,
1400
ts 7684 - 6, 8228; exhibit 30344, slide 38.
1401
ts 7684, 8228, 8315.
1402
ts 7686 - 7, see for example ts 8798 - 9; exhibit 30344, slide 39.
1403
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HALL J
the polymer composition of the fibre can be inferred using a chart called a
Michel-Levy chart. The chart uses the visible colour, the thickness and
the resultant birefringence to assist in determining the fibre type. The
colour banding of the birefringence pattern created by a fibre can be
compared to the colour banding of another fibre to see if they correspond.
1633 Fluorescence is what occurs when a sample is 'excited' with light at

one wavelength and then emits light at a longer wavelength. As explained
above, different colours are measured at different wavelengths. When
light of a particular colour is shone onto a sample and that sample emits a
different colour that is referred to as fluorescence. In order to create this
effect, a filter is used with a light source. The filter only allows light at
one wavelength to pass through. Different filters are used for different
wavelengths.1404
1634 A Polilight can be used by forensic investigators to examine exhibits

and look for particles on them that fluoresce. Fluorescing material can
include fibres, or evidence of fingerprints, sperm or blood. A Polilight
was used to examine KJG's clothes, Ms Rimmer's hair mass and
Ms Glennon's body and clothing. A Polilight produces light at a specific
wavelength and analysts wear different coloured goggles. When a particle
fluoresces the goggles act as a barrier and only allow the light from the
particle that is fluorescing to be visible.1405
1635 Fluorescence can also be used as a distinguishing characteristic of

fibres. The ChemCentre uses an illumination set up on the compound
microscope to look at the fluorescent properties of fibres. An excitation
filter is used that only allows light at one wavelength to pass through to
the fibre. Two different kinds of excitation filters are used: ultraviolet
(UV) and green light. When a green filter is used the light source from
the microscope shines onto the excitation filter and only the green light
passes through to the fibre. The fibre may absorb the green light and emit
red light (a longer wavelength than green light). Although UV light is not
visible to the human eye it can be used to test for fluorescent properties.
When the UV set up is used only UV light can pass through the excitation
filter onto the fibre. Fibres that can be seen under UV fluorescence will
absorb the UV light and typically emit a blue light.1406
1404
ts 7677, 7688; exhibit 30344, slide 28.
1405
See ts 4356, 7669, 8360 - 1, 8416, for example see ts 8524; exhibit 2997 from 9.48.09 - 10.10.58 and
10.48.11 - 10.49.11, exhibit 30344, slide 19.
1406
ts 7682, 7688, 8243; exhibit 30344, slide 40.
Page 431
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1636 A comparison microscope is two compound microscopes

side-by-side and joined together by an optical bridge. One slide is placed
under one microscope and one slide under the other. The magnification is
the same on both sides. This microscope is used to view two fibres at the
same time and next to each other in order to compare them. There is a
digital camera to record images of what is observed under the two
microscopes. Images taken using the comparison microscope have a faint
black line down the middle that represents the divide between the two
microscopes. The characteristics that are being looked for when
comparing two fibres include perceived colour, thickness, cross-section
and presence and distribution of delusterant.1407
1637 Ultra-violet fluorescence and green field fluorescence modes can be

used on the comparison microscope. If two fibres have a comparable
fluorescence response, it may mean that they may have originated from
the same source. When comparing two fibres to see if they have similar
fluorescence it is necessary to consider the history of the fibres. That is
because differences in fluorescence can be caused by what has happened
to a sample. Optical brighteners in detergent or the presence of biological
material can influence the fluorescence result.1408
1638 Another technique used is microspectrophotometry. There is a high
degree of subjectivity in the way that people perceive and describe colour.
For that reason the ChemCentre use a microspectrophotometer (MSP), an
instrument that makes an objective measurement of colour. The MSP can
measure colour across the range of wavelengths: the UV to the
near-infrared range. The MSP uses a light source that emits light up to the
sample. The sample absorbs some of the light, depending on what colour
it is. For example, a red fibre would absorb all the light that is not red.
The red light would pass through the fibre up to a detector to measure
colour.1409
1639 On the MSP there is an eyepiece that is used to view the fibre and a
black square called an aperture. The MSP measures the colour of the
fibre in the area of that aperture. The aperture is moved along the length
of the fibre. A reading at a particular area or a scan along the length of
the fibre to measure colour at various points along it can be done. The
MSP measures absorbance characteristics along a wavelength range.
A computer algorithm is then used to express that information as a
number, which is shown in a graph. On the graph the absorbance is on the
1407
ts 7683; exhibit 30344, slide 35, slide 36.
1408
ts 7688, 8243 - 4, 9074.
1409
ts 7651, 7691 - 2; exhibit 30344, slide 42, slide 43, slide 44.
Page 432
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vertical axis (how much light is absorbed at each wavelength) and the
wavelength is on the horizontal axis.1410
1640 The analysts look at the spectrum and the different data points along
the line in the graph. Features of the line are called peaks, shoulders and
troughs. The peaks are where there is the most absorption and the troughs
where there is a lower amount of absorption. The shoulders are areas
where the spectrum levels off. When comparing two spectra the analyst
looks at all the data points to see whether they have the same absorbance
values. The analyst selects the number of scans that they want the MSP to
do. The MSP then does that number of scans at different points along the
fibre. If there are 10 scans done there will be 10 lines on the graph.1411
1641 There is a difference in the MSP spectra of synthetic and natural

fibres. Synthetic fibres tend to have less variation in colour compared to
natural fibres. Best practice for a synthetic fibre is to do 10 scans along
the length of the fibre. A natural fibre might not have uniform dye
absorption so 20 readings would be done to get a more accurate average.
When an analyst is comparing two fibres in the laboratory they can
overlay the MSP spectrum for the fibres to see if the fibres are similar or
different in colour. Mr Powell said that when the gap between the lines is
small, that indicates a strong correlation as to colour.1412
1642 Another form of analysis is called Fourier-Transform Infrared

Spectroscopy (FTIR). Mr Powell said that FTIR was used only minimally
by the ChemCentre in relation to Macro work because it is a destructive
and lengthy process. FTIR is used to analyse the polymer composition or
chemical makeup of a fibre; for example, to determine if it is cotton,
polyester or nylon. This form of analysis is used to confirm the fibre type
that has been inferred by polarised light microscopy.1413
1643 Thin layer chromatography (TLC) is a technique that is used where

further discrimination between fibres is required. It is used to separate
and analyse dyes and discriminate between fibres on the basis of the
components used in the dye. Before the TLC process is carried out a fibre
is removed from the slide. The dye component is then extracted using a
solvent. TLC is a destructive technique because once the dye has been
extracted it cannot be replaced. A 'post-TLC' fibre can still be subject to
1410
ts 7692 - 3, 8230, 9395; exhibit 30344, slide 45, slide 46, slide 57.
1411
1412
ts 7692, 8230.
1413
ts 7696 - 702, 8220; exhibit 30344, slide 48, slide 49, slide 50, slide 51, slide 58.
Page 433
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analysis, but the absence of the dye may cause a different result in some
forms of analysis.1414
1644 TLC works by separation; dye molecules separate according to their

composition and their structure. Ms Evans displayed a diagram of what a
typical TLC setup looks like. In this example the components of a black
dot were separated. The black dot was comprised of dye and the solvent
used to extract the dye from the fibre. More solvent was put into the
bottom of a tank and the plate with the black dot was placed vertically
into the solvent in the tank. The components of the black dot have
separated into four different colours – purple, green, red and yellow as the
solvent moved along the plate. Mr Powell said that the analysts consider
how far the dot has migrated. They analyse the TLC plate under regular
and alternative light sources to test the results under different wavelengths
(for example, to look for fluorescence). They can test similar fibres to see
if they produce similar or different results based on the dye
characteristics.1415
ChemCentre fibre database

1645 Mr Powell has been working on fibres from the Macro investigation
since 2011. He described the ChemCentre's work on the Macro
investigation and the development of a database of fibres. His evidence
referred to work done by the ChemCentre prior to his involvement in
2011. In giving that evidence he had access to the ChemCentre's case
files. He said that over the years, a number of chemists had been involved
in the Macro work, including Bernard Lynch, Richard Clarke, Dr John
Challinor, Dr John Coumbaros, Richard Donovan, Belinda Evans and
Peter Collins.1416
1646 Mr Powell said that the ChemCentre's initial examinations from 1996
involved material recovered from the bodies and clothing of the victims,
vegetation, fabric and carpet items and various motor vehicles and
premises. At the post-mortem examination of Ms Glennon colourless
fibres and yarns were recovered and the initial part of the examination
involved looking for colourless or white sources that may provide a link
to those fibres. Coloured fibres were not analysed at that time. 1417
1647 Mr Powell said that the first indication that they might have to
change their approach to the fibre evidence came in 2005 when the
1414
ts 7703; exhibit 30344, slide 52; see, for example, ts 8481 - 2.
1415
ts 7703 - 4, 8480, 8485; exhibit 30344, slide 52.
1416
ts 8217 - 8, 8224.
1417
ts 8224 - 5; exhibit 30460, slide 10.
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ChemCentre staff participated in a co-laboratory examination with

PathWest. In that examination items hundreds of fibres were
1418
recovered. It was clear that it was not a viable proposition to compare
every recovered fibre to every other fibre that had been collected, the
number of such comparisons would be extraordinarily large and exceed
capabilities.
1648 The Macro investigation was reviewed in 2008 by WA Police. The

ChemCentre then received a request for an extensive search of the
existing items for trace evidence and fibres. The objective was to collect
every coloured fibre of interest from the victims, items associated with the
victims and the scenes to see if an analysis of these fibres led to any
investigative leads or to any links between the cases. Mr Powell said it
was at that stage that they realised that a database would be required to
handle and interpret the data.1419
1649 In 2008 the ChemCentre made enquiries to see if there was an
existing software program for a database and was told that there was no
commercial program available. As an alternative, the ChemCentre
decided to adapt a database program that had been designed for the
profiling of illicit drugs (known as ForProf, which is a shortened form of
forensic profiling). That database was modified to allow it to accept MSP
spectra. The database uses an algorithm to compare MSP results, in what
is known as a modified Pearson correlation coefficient method. The
ChemCentre tested the database in 2010 and found that analysis of the
same sample by different operators provided what Mr Powell described as
a good agreement of MSP spectra collected up to 189 days apart. They
therefore concluded that the database was fit for purpose and it was in use
from 2011.1420 Mr Powell produced a screen shot of the fibre database.
There are fields where the analyst enters the details for each fibre: the
unique name of the sample, the perceived colour of the sample and the
fibre type. The case number for the Macro samples is 290.1421 When a
fibre is searched against the database the results that are returned show the
unique identifier of the fibre the subject of the search and a list of fibres
that an algorithm returns as the closest matches according to MSP data.
The matches are listed in order of the strength of the correlation, with zero
being a perfect match that is returned when a fibre is compared against
1418
1419
1420
1421
Page 435
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HALL J
itself. The value that the algorithm produces increases in value with
decreasing match strength.1422
1650 The database also permits the user to view the MSP spectra. This
allows the user to compare the two fibres visually without being
completely reliant on the algorithm. Mr Powell said it is an important
step to review the result manually. He said that the database was useful to
objectively compare the fibres but it was an arduous and time consuming
process to use the early version of the database. At that stage it was still
necessary to compare one fibre against the rest of the collection, which
resulted in the need to make thousands of comparisons.1423
1651 The next step was to export the data from the database to Microsoft
Excel. The database is a single spreadsheet and each fibre is entered as a
unique row in the spreadsheet. The data entry fields are the various
columns. Column A is the fibre's unique name or identifier. The case
number is column B. Other columns contain information about the
characteristics of the fibres, such as colour and fibre type. It also records
the storage location. Mr Powell described the numeric MSP data as the
'crux' of the database. As noted above, a number of repeat spectra are
produced for each fibre. The average of those scans represented as
numeric data is incorporated into the database. It is this numeric data that
is compared as between two fibres.1424
1652 Mr Powell said that Excel was used to identify groups of fibres that
had a similar colour. In the investigative phase approximately
4,400 fibres were collected. They were then separated out by fibre type.
All of the fibres of a particular type, such as polyester, were then
compared to each other using the algorithm and sorted according to the
number of matches. The hypothesis was that a fibre that has a large
number of close matches represents a large group of the same type of fibre
and this may indicate a recent transfer of fibres.1425
1653 Mr Powell described the next step as the grouping process. If fibre B
is already listed as a match for fibre A, then fibre B is removed from the
list because A represents B. In this way, a group of 50 fibres is described
once, not 50 times. The fibres that remained on the list were considered
'target fibres'. Each of these fibres is likely to be unique in colour from
the others still remaining as otherwise it would have been deleted during
1422
ts 8231 - 2.
1423
1424
ts 8233 - 5; exhibit 30460, slide 23, slide 24, slide 25.
1425
Page 436
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the grouping process. Each of the target fibres could represent a larger
group of fibres with similar colour. Mr Powell explained that fibres from
the same source can have other than a complete zero match. A correlation
of between zero and seven for synthetic fibres indicates a likelihood that
the fibres have come from the same source.1426
1654 At this point in the process, the database algorithm was completely
based on colour. The next step was a manual step and involved a new
window in the database that displayed compound microscope images of
two fibres of the same colour next to each other. The scientists could then
compare other physical properties of the fibres, such as diameter and the
presence or absence of delusterant. A conservative approach was adopted
because the images show only a small section of the fibres and at this
stage they were screening only for obvious non-matches. The same
window allows an analyst to view the MSP overlay of those two fibres
and make their own decision about whether they consider them to match,
rather than relying entirely on the algorithm.1427
1655 This process of grouping fibres was conducted for each of the target
fibres. That is, the ChemCentre carried out the database search using the
algorithm and then viewed the images. By following this process for each
of the fibres, a preliminary fibre group was created. They then moved on
to other fibre types and repeated the process.1428
1656 Once the ChemCentre had developed the preliminary groups they
confirmed those preliminary groups using comparison microscopy.
Mr Powell showed a slide to the court that had two fibres and three
comparison microscopy images for each in brightfield, UV and green field
modes. Each fibre in the group was compared to the target fibre in the
group.1429
1657 The ChemCentre written method that describes the database is

known as 'Fibres 11'. The method was first issued on 18 December 2012
and first included in the NATA assessment on 27 February 2013, prior to
the publication of a 2014 ChemCentre report.1430
1658 While the ChemCentre analysts were grouping fibres in the

investigative phase of the case they noticed that the MSP spectra of some
of the fibres showed characteristics that were suggestive of automotive
1426
1427
ts 8241 - 3; exhibit 30460, slide 31.
1428
ts 8243.
1429
ts 8243 - 4; exhibit 30460, slide 32.
1430
ts 8245 - 6.
Page 437
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HALL J
fibres. The indicative features were peaks in the spectrum. The analysts
started to attend at automotive wreckers and police holding yards to take
samples of textiles from vehicles. Along with each sample they recorded
the year of manufacture of the vehicle, the vehicle manufacturer and the
model. The objective was to identify the possible source of some of the
unknown fibre groups. The fibres collected from vehicles became what
have been known as 'control fibres'.1431
1659 In the grouping process carried out in 2013 ChemCentre scientists

identified a group of 20 grey polyester fibres in Ms Rimmer's hair mass.
They found that that this fibre group appeared to correspond in properties
to seat fabric from a 1996 VS Holden Commodore. Mr Powell explained
that on the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) plates of vehicles there is
a trim entry. There were two known trim types for the 1996 VS Holden
Commodore, coded 15i and 25i. He produced a comparison microscopy
image of one of the fibres from Ms Rimmer's hair and a fibre from the
seat insert fabric from a 1996 VS Holden Commodore. He said that the
particular fibres vary slightly in their diameter and along the length of the
fibre but that he considered them to correspond in their perceived colour
and in the presence of delusterant. He also produced an MSP overlay of
the two fibres and said that in terms of the peaks and troughs shown on
the graph the two fibres appear to be consistent. He referred to a feature
of MSP spectra of automotive fibres called a 'doublet', which is between
500 and 600 nanometres – being two peaks that appear in the centre of the
spectrum. He said that these peaks are not typically seen in fibres
recovered from garments. He considered these two fibres to have a
consistent spectrum profiles.1432
2014 ChemCentre report

1660 During 2013 and 2014 the ChemCentre finalised the grouping
process and carried out comparison microscopy on the preliminary groups
for the fibres that are associated with the victims. In May 2014 they
issued an investigative report to the police to be used for intelligence
purposes. This reported on the analysis of all of the exhibits associated
with KJG, Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. In this report 129 different fibre
groups were reported on, predominantly polyester, wool and cotton fibres.
Some groups were common to all three victims, some were common to
1431
1432
Page 438
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HALL J
two, some were only associated with one victim. It included a list of
known fibres from automotive sources.1433
1661 Mr Powell said that the term 'corresponding' had been chosen for use
in the 2014 report to mean that there were no significant differences
observed between the MSP spectra of the two fibres being compared. In
the example referred to earlier there are very slight differences in how
much light is absorbed at particular wavelengths. He said that a fibre that
is slightly darker than the other may show a difference in the 'Y' axis and
this is not much of a concern. What is of more concern is peaks being
shifted along the wavelength axis because this may indicate a different
colourant. He said he would consider the examples provided to
correspond in properties.1434
1662 In other comparisons Mr Powell has used the word 'similar'. He said
that in the 2014 report the vast majority of the groups of fibres that were
identified had no known source; there was simply a group of similar fibres
that might have come from the same source. They did not have a control
at that stage to compare them to. Fibres were deemed similar if there
were observed differences in the properties, but they may still be from a
single source.1435
1663 When a known source was identified the ChemCentre was able to
study multiple fibres from the source and make an informed decision
about how much variation could be expected in fibres from that source.
Before they had a source, they had to estimate the variability that they
might expect. Once they had a known source they were able to express a
more informed opinion about the amount of variance that existed within
fibres from that source. Groups of fibres that were described as similar or
corresponding in the 2014 report might be excluded or have their
designation changed once they were compared to a known source.1436
KJG – collection and history of critical fibres

1664 Two critical clothing fibres are associated with KJG. They are both
blue polyester fibres that were recovered from the shorts she was wearing
when she was assaulted by the accused. The shorts were given the exhibit
reference AJM2. At least 301 fibres were recovered from tape lifts taken
from the shorts. The two critical fibres were referenced as fibre 191
1433
ts 8250 - 1; exhibit 30460, slide 39.
1434
1435
ts 8249.
1436
ts 8249 - 50.
Page 439
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HALL J
(taken from the front of the shorts) and fibre 280 (taken from the rear of
the shorts).1437 These fibres are said to correspond to Telstra clothing.
1665 The evidence regarding the collection and subsequent movement of

the shorts came from a large number of witnesses and it would be
unnecessarily confusing and disjointed to summarise the evidence of each
of those witnesses individually. Accordingly the summary that follows
has been distilled from the various relevant witnesses to present a clearer
narrative.
AJM2 – black shorts

1666 The collection of the black shorts from the Karrakatta scene, their
storage, delivery to PathWest and examination there, has been detailed
earlier in these reasons in the DNA section. As noted in that section
Ms Francis took the KJG exhibits, including the black shorts, to the
ChemCentre on 27 June 1996. This was for the purpose of examination
for fibres.
1667 Mr Bernard Lynch is a retired forensic scientist who worked at the
ChemCentre from 8 April 1968 to 30 June 2006. He was shown the
request for analysis form submitted with the KJG exhibits on 27 June
1996 and agreed that it was an urgent request for the shorts to be tested for
fibres from the carpet in the vehicle in which KJG had been abducted,
paint from the vehicle and hairs. He took the exhibits straight to his office
and gave them ChemCentre reference numbers. He put a ChemCentre
sticker on the paper bag AJM2.1438
1668 On 1 July 1996 Mr Lynch started his examination of the black shorts
and underpants. He went to a search room and cleaned the bench. He
took a large sheet of clean, new paper and placed it on the bench. He said
it was standard practice to wear protective equipment, a white lab coat and
usually gloves. He did a gentle shake of the item to see if any particular
matter dropped off. In cross-examination he agreed that he shook the
shorts gently because if he shook them violently then fibres might be lost
into the air.1439
1669 He then carried out a visual inspection. He noted that there was
much adherent vegetable matter and some loose black polyester fibres.
He carefully removed the adherent vegetable matter with forceps. He
then carried out tape lifting to recover and preserve any loosely adherent
1437
ts 4096, 8312 - 3, 8360, 9227; exhibit 15594, exhibit 30265.
1438
1439
ts 7311, 7324; exhibit 23147.
Page 440
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HALL J
extraneous fibres. He did this to the front and back of the shorts. He was
shown four pages of photographs of acetate sheets to which the tape lifts
he took had been affixed. He said that during his examination he wrote
'black pants 004 (front) (zip frontage)' on page one. He recognised his
writing on page three which says 'back side' and he agreed that the tape
lifts on that page came from the back of the black shorts.1440
1670 Once he had created the tape lifts he conducted a microscopic

examination of them using a stereo microscope. Mr Lynch said he was
looking for coarse synthetic fibres that are typical of carpet fibres because
they are quite a lot coarser than textile or clothing fibres, usually in the
range of 30 - 60 or 70 microns. They are often trilobal and often black or
dark grey in colour. He said he did not locate any carpet type fibres or
automotive paint particles on the shorts.1441
1671 Once Mr Lynch had concluded his examination the shorts were put
back into the packaging. Mr Ashworth collected the exhibits from the
ChemCentre on 7 October 1998 and took them back to the exhibits store.
The tape lifts were placed in an envelope and put into the case file at the
ChemCentre. Critical fibre 191 was later recovered from these tape
lifts.1442
1672 The PTS record does not show that on 7 October 1998 Mr Ashworth
collected the KJG exhibits from the ChemCentre and took them back to
the forensic exhibits office. A PTS record entitled 'Property Transfer
History' shows that the regimental number of Mr Ashworth's supervisor,
SC Keith Leslie (4895), gave the exhibits to an officer with regimental
number 7651, then-Detective Teresa Kurtis on 12 October 1998.
Mr Ashworth said that sometimes SC Leslie updated the PTS for him.1443
1673 The exhibits were not recorded in the PTS as having been received
by the Sex Assault Squad until 17 June 1999. Officer Kurtis' regimental
number appears under the column 'convey'. That means that she took the
exhibits to the next point. The next line is 'received' and the date is
17 June 1999. Ms Kurtis said that the items were not received on that
date; she received them on 12 October 1998. She said that on 17 June
1999 another officer went into the system and recorded the items as
received because she had not done that. She said that she would normally
have received them in the system and could think of no reason why she
1440
ts 7312 - 6; exhibit 23148.
1441
ts 7316 - 7; exhibit 23147.
1442
ts 7288 - 91, 7317 - 8, 8313; exhibit 05742.
1443
ts 3359, 3378, 7288 - 91, 7298; exhibit 01889.
Page 441
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HALL J
did not do it on this occasion. If she had properly received the exhibits
the PTS record should have shown her regimental number in the
right-hand column and the date 12 October 1998.1444
1674 In cross-examination Ms Kurtis said that she had a general memory
of collecting the exhibits and storing them where they would normally be
stored. She said that she did not open any of the bags to make sure that
she had what was described on the PTS. She said that after she had been
handed the exhibits the PTS does not record whether one or all of the
exhibits moved somewhere else between 12 October 1998 and 17 June
1999. She said that she did not have anything to do with the exhibits after
she conveyed them to the Sex Assault Squad.1445
1675 John Wibberley is a retired police officer whose statement was read
to the court. In 1998 he was a detective sergeant attached to the Sex
Assault Squad in Perth. In 1999 one of his areas of responsibility was the
auditing and transferring of property. He has no independent recollection
or knowledge of his involvement with the KJG exhibits, which was one of
many matters he was involved in at that time. He was shown a copy of
the Property Transfer History which shows that on 17 June 1999 he
electronically received items 1 - 8 into the Sex Assault Squad and then
transferred those items from the Sex Assault Squad to a police officer at
the Child Protection Squad. He is aware that the regimental number of
the officer shown as receiving the items is that of then Detective Sergeant
John Adams. He stated that he would have transferred the entire case file
to Det Sgt Adams along with the exhibits. In 1999 the Sex Assault Squad
was on the ground floor of a building located in Adelaide Terrace, Perth
and the Child Protection Squad was located in the same building but on
the floor immediately above. He stated that all the exhibits were stored
within a secure storage room in the Sex Assault Squad office.1446
1676 In 1999 Jonathan Adams, then a detective sergeant, had just been
transferred from the Homicide Squad to the Child Protection Unit. At this
time the Child Protection Unit and the Sex Assault Squad were being
amalgamated into one unit called the Child Abuse Squad or the Child
Abuse Unit. He recalled that the KJG investigation exhibits were handed
to him by Det Sgt Wibberley from the Sex Assault Squad in June or July
of 1999. He said that the exhibits all moved together; he did not recall
any of the items being separated. The items then remained in the exhibits
storage area which was within the Child Protection Squad. He was shown
1444
ts 3376 - 80.
1445
ts 3393.
1446
ts 7876 - 8; exhibit 30334.
Page 442
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HALL J
the PTS Property Transfer History which recorded that the exhibits were
received from Detective Sergeant Wibberley on 17 June 1999. He
recalled that there was a box of items including clothing, case files,
documents and statements. He did not recall exactly what clothing items
were in the box. The clothing items were individually wrapped or packed
into either green and brown or plain brown paper exhibit bags, which
were closed by folding over the top. The bags had a label on them with a
description of what was inside the bag. He did not open the bags, he
relied on what the label said as to the content of the bags. The exhibits
were kept in the exhibit store at the Child Protection Squad.1447
1677 Mr Adams said that on the PTS there is an entry recorded by him on
7 February 2001 and shows a movement to the property storage unit at
Maylands. He said he made a tentative decision to move the items to the
off-site property store but that did not eventuate. This can be seen on the
system because the property was noted in the transferred column but is
not shown as being received by anyone. He said that the exhibits
remained stored in the locked property unit at the Child Protection Squad
between 7 February 2001 and 25 July 2001, and this was where the items
were, notwithstanding the PTS record.1448
1678 The records then show that on 25 July 2001 Det Sgt Adams gave the
exhibits to Detective SC Richard Zuiderduyn of the Special Crime Unit.
In 2001 Det SC Zuiderduyn was attached to the Macro Task Force. His
statement was read in to evidence. On 25 July 2001 he went to the Child
Abuse Squad and collected the eight KJG exhibits from Det Sgt Adams
and took them to his office at the Macro Task Force, which at the time
was located on the 5th floor of Curtin House. The exhibits remained
securely stored within his office area for three days (including a
weekend).1449
1679 On Monday 30 July 2001 Det SC Zuiderduyn gave the box of
clothing exhibits to Detective Sergeant Hubbard who was a senior officer
at the Macro Task Force and one of the officers in charge of the exhibit
storeroom. At that time the Macro Task Force (later Special Crime
Squad) had a dedicated and secure exhibit storeroom that only certain
officers were able to access.1450
1447
ts 2897 - 8, 2901 - 5, 2907; exhibit 01889.
1448
ts 2905 - 6; exhibit 01889.
1449
ts 2906, 7878 - 80; exhibit 01889, exhibit 30336, exhibit 30337, exhibit 30339 (exhibit 30339 is an extract of
exhibit 01889 (and exhibit 02482)).
1450
Page 443
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HALL J
1680 Simon Hubbard is a former police officer who was a detective

sergeant with Macro Task Force as at July 2001. Mr Hubbard said that at
that time the Macro Task Force was on the same floor as the Major Crime
Squad at Curtin House, but had its own restricted area including a secure
exhibit storeroom that was for its exclusive use. He stated that in
recording his receipt of these items on the PTS on 30 July 2001 there
would have been no reason for him to be personally in possession of these
exhibits for any length of time. His role would have been to secure the
items in the Macro Task Force exhibit storeroom and update the PTS
accordingly.1451
1681 Detective SC Evan Damianopoulos is currently stationed at the

Major Crash Investigation section of WA Police. In 2008 he was with the
Special Crime Squad and was assisting in the investigation of the KJG
matter. On 18 March 2008 he was involved in repackaging the exhibits.
He was part of a cold case review of the matter as the police were trying
to establish new avenues of enquiry. Part of the process was to get all the
exhibits out and make sure that they were in separate bags; it was not part
of the process to examine the exhibits. He got the exhibits out of the
secure exhibit storage room and took them back to his office to a table
near his work station in the Special Crime Squad. He repackaged the
items so that there was only one exhibit in each security movement
envelope. The brown paper bag that had contained AJM2 was put in to
the same envelope as the black shorts. He wrote his name, signature,
regimental number (8293) and the date that he put the item into the bag.
He is described as the 'sealing officer'. He then returned the exhibits to
the secure storage room.1452
1682 On 25 February 2009 Snr Sgt Paton sent the KJG exhibits to
PathWest for further testing. In the police records he is described as the
courier, who gave the exhibits to Carolyn Jones at PathWest.1453
1683 Carolyn Jones has been employed as a property officer at PathWest

since 2003. Her statement was read in to evidence. During the course of
her work at PathWest she received and returned various exhibits to the
WA Police that were brought in for analysis. The PathWest records show
that she accepted the exhibits on 25 February 2009 at 1.51 pm and that she
physically checked each item as being correctly labelled and securely
sealed with evidence tape at the time of receipt. Once she physically
received the eight exhibits at PathWest, she completed an electronic
1451
ts 7883; exhibit 30335.
1452
1453
Page 444
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HALL J
update for incoming exhibits against case number 95R0056, the case
number for KJG.1454 She labelled each of the exhibits with a unique case
identifier which in this case was 95R0056, batch number 4 expressed as
95R0056.4. Once the exhibits were labelled she then updated the
Forensic Biology evidence access and movement log to reflect the storage
location of each batch.
1684 The movement log records that on 27 February 2009 Ms Jones

updated it to record the storage of the exhibits in batch 4 as being on shelf
150. She stated that she cannot explain why this update occurred two
days after receival but the actual physical movement of these exhibits to
shelf 150 would have occurred on 25 February 2009. She said that the
eight items relating to 95R0056.4 would have been in their original
packaging that was sealed with tamper proof tape and stored in a
cardboard box. The cardboard box was stored on its allocated shelf in the
storeroom.1455
1685 The movement log shows that the exhibits moved next on
5 November 2009. Ms Jones took four exhibits from batch 4 that were
individually numbered 0003, 0004, 0006 and 0007 and gave them to
Sergeant Siobhan O'Loughlin from the Special Crime Squad.1456
1686 Sgt O'Loughlin is a senior forensic investigator at Forensic Field
Operations in the crime scene investigation unit at Midland and has been a
police officer for 29 years. She was with the Special Crime Squad
between 2009 and 2012 where she was a senior forensic investigator
working on cold case homicides, including Operation Macro. The police
records show that she collected the four exhibits from PathWest on
5 November 2009. The items are listed in the records; the fourth item on
the list is 'black shorts'. She said that she believed that the items were in
security movement envelopes. She took the items to the exhibit storage
area used by the Special Crime Squad at Eastpoint Plaza on Adelaide
Terrace.1457
1687 On 10 November 2009 Sgt O'Loughlin took the four exhibits to the
ChemCentre and delivered them to Mr Peter Collins. After the shorts had
been re-received by ChemCentre they were subjected to further testing,
1454
1455
ts 9650 - 2; exhibit 16417.
1456
ts 9652; exhibit 16401, exhibit 16417, exhibit 16402, exhibit 16403.
1457
ts 7597, 7608 - 10; exhibit 11905.
Page 445
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including Polilight examination and sampling for gunshot and explosive

residue.1458
1688 On 26 July 2010, the shorts were photographed by John Coumbaros

at the ChemCentre. Dr Coumbaros then shook and beat the shorts over a
paper sheet and collected the debris. He also collected control fibres from
the shorts.1459
1689 On 9 January 2014, the shorts were again photographed at the

ChemCentre by Mr Peter Collins and Mr Powell. They then subjected the
shorts to a visual examination and tape lifting. Fourteen tape lifts were
collected. Critical fibre 280 was located in these tape lifts.1460
Critical fibre 191

1690 As noted above, the tape lifts produced by Mr Lynch had been in an
envelope at the ChemCentre since 1996. It was not until 2009 that
scientists from the ChemCentre undertook further examinations of those
tape lifts. They were examined by stereomicroscope in January and
February 2009 and no critical fibres were located. On 19 January 2010
five fibres were recovered from the front tape lift 3 by Melissa Davies and
these fibres were transferred to microscope slides.1461 None of these are
critical fibres.
1691 On 22 January 2014 front tape lift 3 was again subjected to

stereomicroscopy and fibres were recovered by Mr Powell. These fibres
were transferred to microscope slides including the critical fibre
94F4128.004-191 (referred to as fibre 191). He viewed the tape lift under
a stereomicroscope and removed the fibre using a pair of tweezers. Using
the stereomicroscope, he placed the fibre onto a microscope slide that had
previously been loaded with a small drop of colourless mounting medium
and then a coverslip was placed on top. After the fibre was placed onto
the slide it was subjected to compound microscopy and a brightfield
image was taken. That image was loaded onto the database. He also
obtained a polarised light microscopy image of the same fibre. Mr Powell
observed that fibre 191 is a blue delustered fibre and inferred that it is
polyester. After the compound microscopy work on the same day the
1458
ts 7610 - 2, 8361; exhibit 11908.
1459
ts 8362.
1460
ts 8632.
1461
ts 8313; exhibit 30472.
Page 446
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HALL J
fibre was analysed by MSP. The analyst was not recorded in the case
notes. Ten MSP repeats were conducted for critical fibre 191.1462
Critical fibre 280

1692 As noted above, on 9 January 2014 Mr Powell and Mr Collins
created 14 tape lifts from the shorts. Seven fibres were recovered from a
tape lift from 'area 3 of tape lift 1' on 3 February 2014, including fibre
registered as 94F4128.004-280, known as fibre 280. Mr Powell subjected
fibre 280 to compound microscopy and produced two images. Mr Powell
observed that it is a blue delustered fibre and inferred that it is polyester.
The fibre was also analysed by MSP, although the analyst was not
recorded.1463
Jane Rimmer – collection and history of critical fibres

1693 One critical clothing fibre was recovered from Ms Rimmer's hair, a
blue polyester fibre said to correspond to the Telstra clothing. Twenty
one critical vehicle fibres were also located in Ms Rimmer's hair. The
20 grey polyester fibres and one blue-grey polypropylene fibre are said to
correspond to the fibres from a VS series I Holden Commodore station
wagon with 25i trim.1464
1694 Again, the evidence regarding the collection and subsequent

movement of the relevant exhibit came from a large number of witnesses
and it would be unnecessarily confusing and disjointed to summarise the
evidence of each of those witnesses individually. Accordingly the
summary that follows has been distilled from the various relevant
witnesses to present a clearer narrative.
Rimmer hair mass

1695 The exhibit from which these fibres were obtained was described as
a 'hair mass'. The accused admitted that the hair mass from which the
fibres were recovered is Ms Rimmer's. The hair mass was collected at the
post-mortem examination on 4 August 1996. In her report Dr Margolius
noted that the hair was covered in vegetation and had come away from the
skull.1465
1696 Mortuary technician Anthony Wight assisted Dr Margolius with the

examination. In the video recording of the post-mortem Mr Wight
1462
ts 8313 - 8; exhibit 23969, exhibit 23970, exhibit 30322, 173, exhibit 30472.
1463
1464
ts 9228, 9970, 9984; see exhibit 30265; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The Fibre Evidence, 97 [37].
1465
Page 447
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HALL J
recognised himself putting on a pair of gloves. He can then be seen to

pull the hair away from the deceased's head, lift the entire hair mass away
from the body and take it somewhere off screen. In his evidence
Mr Wight said that it looked like the hair mass was put onto a tray where
it would have remained while he waited for further direction from
Dr Margolius. Later in the recording the hair mass is visible in the body
bag on the left of the video. Mr Wight said that at the end of the
post-mortem the hair mass would have been kept in the cool room inside
the body bag.1466
1697 On the afternoon of 6 August 1996 Dr Margolius conducted an
examination of the deceased in the presence of Dr Cooke, Dr Buck,
Mr Wight and Detective Vicky Young. The examination started at 15.00
and was completed by 16.50. Dr Margolius noted that she conducted a
careful examination of the hair from the head of the deceased. Mr Wight
did not recall being present at the examination on the afternoon of
6 August 1996 but he is aware that the records show that he was. He said
that the hair from the head of the deceased would have been in the body
bag. There is no mention of it being in a container. It would have been
his responsibility to return the body to the cool room with the body bag
zipped up. No specimen would have been removed from the body bag
unless Dr Margolius said so.1467
1698 On 7 August 1996 Dr Margolius conducted a further post-mortem

examination in the presence of mortuary technicians Robert Macdermid
and Brian Mouchemore and forensic odontologist Stephen Knott. The
examination started at 13.00 and finished at 14.00. It is recorded by
Dr Margolius that material was submitted for toxicological examination,
including hair. Mr Macdermid could not recall being in attendance on
7 August 1996, but had access to post-mortem reports prepared by
Dr Margolius and noted that there is a reference to him having
attended.1468
1699 Mr Macdermid agreed that he had assisted Dr Margolius to take

representative samples of maggots and bowel and hair to be sent for
toxicological examination by the ChemCentre. Records show that
Dr Margolius filled out a Coroner's Act request for the hair specimen to be
sent for analysis on 9 August 1996 and that it was collected by a police
officer, 'BJ Mott' on 21 August 1996. Mr Macdermid said that the hair
1466
ts 4309 - 11, 4313; exhibit 02995, at 9.52.24.
1467
ts 4313, 4315, 4346; exhibit 14264.
1468
ts 3818 - 9, 4347; exhibit 14264.
Page 448
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sample container would probably have been stored in Dr Margolius'

freezer between 9 August 1996 and 21 August 1996.1469
1700 On 21 August 1996 Sergeant Mott went to the State Mortuary and
collected the hair mass from Dr Margolius. Sgt Mott signed the Coroner's
Act form as courier at 2.10 pm on 21 August 1996. He said that he
delivered the sample to Mr Hansson at the ChemCentre on the same day
at 2.35 pm. He said that the hair sample was in a plastic container or
bucket. He did not open it.1470
1701 Robert Hansson was a forensic chemist employed by the

ChemCentre. His statement was read in to evidence. On 21 August 1996
he received a specimen in a bucket marked 'hair' from Sgt Mott. The
specimen was accompanied by a Coroners Act form. He has limited
recollection of the exhibit and looked at the form to refresh his memory.
It records the specimen as 'hair' and he said that indicated to him that it
was from the post-mortem examination of Ms Rimmer conducted by
Dr Margolius. He received the specimen at the toxicology unit of the
ChemCentre, which was then located at 30 Plain Street, East Perth. He
then recorded the details of the exhibit in the forensic laboratory
information management system. He affixed two adhesive labels to the
bucket containing the exhibit. He placed one label on the lid and one
label on the side of the bucket. The laboratory number is comprised of
several components: 96F designates the financial year the case was
received at ChemCentre, 0448 is the case number and 006 the sample
number. He said that there is also a white adhesive label with black print
attached to the side of the bucket, which he recognised as the type
routinely fixed to exhibits received from the State Mortuary. He said his
recollection is that evidence tape was not used on the bucket.1471
1702 After Mr Hansson received the hair mass he secured the bucket
within the Toxicology Unit's refrigeration unit. His recollection is that the
refrigeration unit was a walk-in refrigerated room located within the
laboratory area. He stored the exhibit on a shelf within a unit designated
as 'Do not dispose'. He said that the hair mass was initially stored in the
refrigerator and later placed in the freezer for long-term storage. The hair
mass was not accompanied by a request for analysis and to his knowledge
was not examined while it was at the ChemCentre. He has not seen any
record of an examination being conducted. He can recall having a
discussion with Dr Margolius on the telephone about the analysis of the
1469
ts 3831, 3828; exhibit 14344.
1470
ts 3418 - 9; exhibit 11848.
1471
Page 449
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HALL J
hair mass. He said Dr Margolius requested that the exhibit be stored

indefinitely.1472
1703 On 26 August 2009 forensic officers working in the Special Crime

Squad, Sergeant Jade Sustek (then known as Heald) and Sgt O'Loughlin,
went to the ChemCentre and met with Mr Hansson and Ms Bianca
Douglas (then Stevens), the manager of Forensic Toxicology. The
officers were told that the hair mass removed from Ms Rimmer at the
post-mortem had been located. They were shown a light blue bucket with
a white lid. The bucket had mortuary labels on it with Ms Rimmer's
details and the word 'hair' was written on it.1473
1704 Sgt O'Loughlin said that the next day she sent an email to the
ChemCentre advising that the police would return and conduct an audit of
the exhibits held in the Forensic Toxicology department once they had
authority to take the bucket and the hair. She explained that police have
no authority over exhibits that are seized at a post-mortem; she sent an
email to Dr Margolius making the request and obtained permission from
the Deputy State Coroner of Western Australia to take possession of the
hair.1474
1705 Before the hair was collected the ChemCentre moved from its
location on Plain Street to a new laboratory in Bentley. On the weekend
of 5 and 6 September 2009 the ChemCentre's toxicology laboratory
exhibit holdings (which included the hair mass) were moved into the new
facility. Mr Hansson supervised the physical movement of the exhibits.
He did not have a specific recollection of moving the hair mass exhibit but
he recalled that all of the exhibit holdings were packed, transported and
stored securely. In the new premises exhibits that were required to be
kept in cold storage were placed into a new walk-in
refrigerator/freezer.1475
1706 On 16 September 2009 Officers O'Loughlin and Sustek met with
Ms Douglas and Kenneth Sanderson from PathWest at the ChemCentre.
Ms Douglas took the bucket out of the large walk-in freezer and put it
onto a laboratory table where it was examined and photographed by
1472
ts 7646 - 7.
1473
ts 7516 - 7, 7597 - 8.
1474
ts 7518 - 9, 7599.
1475
ts 7647, see also 7520.
Page 450
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HALL J
Sgt Sustek. Photographs were taken of both the outside and the inside of
the bucket and it was then resealed with evidence tape.1476
1707 Ms Douglas's statement was read in to evidence. She had been

shown three photos of the bucket (two of which seem to be copies of
those taken by Sgt Sustek) and concluded it was from Ms Rimmer's
post-mortem. She also confirmed that she was present for the
photographing of the bucket. The hair was not touched or removed from
the container. Ms Douglas returned the container to the freezer.1477
1708 Five days later, on 21 September 2009, Officers Sustek and

O'Loughlin returned to the ChemCentre and collected the exhibit from
Ms Douglas. They took it to the South East Metropolitan District
Forensic Investigation Office in Cannington Police Complex and the
forensic laboratory area of that building. When the officers assessed the
hair mass at the ChemCentre they noticed that it was frozen and had ice
on it. The purpose of taking it to the laboratory was to place it in the
drying room so that it was dry before it was further examined. In the
laboratory, Sgt Sustek took some further photos. She and Sgt O'Loughlin
then removed the hair mass from the bucket and placed it on a sheet of
brown paper. They put the bucket into a large brown paper bag and
sealed it. They then removed some pieces of ice from the hair with
tweezers; some hair came away with the ice. The ice and hair was put
into a yellow top container. They slid the piece of brown paper with the
hair mass on top of it into a larger brown paper bag and sealed it. The two
brown paper bags were then put into the drying room. The hair mass and
bucket were the only exhibits in the room at the time. They set the
temperature, locked the door and placed an evidence tape seal across the
door. The yellow top container and the tweezers (in a clip seal bag) were
returned with the officers to the Special Crime Squad where those items
were secured.1478
1709 On 24 September 2009 Officers Sustek and O'Loughlin returned to

the drying room. The seal across the door was still intact and the two
exhibits were still there in sealed bags. They took the unopened bags to
1476
ts 7520 - 6, 7526 - 7, 7531 - 2, 7648, 7599; exhibit 12027, exhibit 12626, exhibit 12628, exhibit 12629,
exhibit 12635.
1477
. ts 7648, 7651 - 2; exhibit 12629 appears to be a copy of exhibit 23010 and exhibit 12626 appears to be a
copy of 23011, exhibit 23010, exhibit 23011, exhibit 23012.
1478
ts 7527, 7601, 7648 - 9; 7527 - 8, 7602 - 3, 7528 - 40, 7603 - 5; exhibit 12024, exhibit 12026, exhibit 12031,
exhibit 12034, exhibit 12035, exhibit 12041, exhibit 12043, exhibit 12045, exhibit 12049, exhibit 12052, exhibit
12054, exhibit 12055, exhibit 12057, exhibit 12058, exhibit 14343, exhibit 23009.
Page 451
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
Eastpoint Plaza to the exhibit storage area located in the basement that is
used by the Special Crime Squad.1479
1710 On 1 October 2009 Snr Sgt Paton conveyed the hair mass and the
bucket from the Special Crime Squad to PathWest to undergo a
'co-laboratory' or 'co-lab' examination, which had been requested by him.
This 'co-lab' examination of the hair mass at PathWest was attended by
police officers (Officers Paton, Sustek and O'Loughlin), and scientists
from PathWest (Fiona Sinnamon and Mr Sanderson) and the ChemCentre
(Peter Collins, Belinda Evans, and Melissa Davies). The examination was
carried out over four days: 1, 2, 5 and 14 October 2009.1480
1711 The co-laboratory examination was explained by Ms Evans. She

said that an examination of an item required to be examined by both
agencies would be examined at PathWest so that the item was not
contaminated with DNA at the ChemCentre. ChemCentre staff attended
to assist PathWest staff and also to ensure that evidence they were looking
for was not destroyed.1481
1712 On 1 October 2009, prior to the commencement of the examination,
Sgt Sustek took photographs of the packing of the bucket and the hair
mass, both of which were still sealed with the evidence tape dated
21 September 2009. Sgt O'Loughlin opened the bag and pulled out the
hair, but it remained on the brown paper, which was itself placed on top of
white sheets on the PathWest bench. A Polilight examination was
conducted prior to teasing the hair out.1482
1713 Ms Sinnamon then conducted acid phosphatase testing and
Kastle-Meyer testing. She ran some swabs over the hair mass, and the
swabs were given to Mr Collins, who examined them under a microscope
to ensure there were no fibres or adherent material. The hair mass was
then removed from the brown piece of paper and placed onto a white
sheet of paper. Officers O'Loughlin and Sustek then teased the hair mass
into five areas using tweezers, to thin it out so that it could be examined.
The hair was described as brittle and fragile.1483
1714 A Polilight was used to see if anything was fluorescing and tweezers
were used to remove trace evidence that fluoresced. A quick examination
1479
ts 7542 - 3, 7605.
1480
ts 7192 - 6, 7360, 7544 - 6; 7606, 7731; exhibit 16418, exhibit 12134.
1481
ts 7730.
1482
ts 7198 - 201, 7203, 7205, 7364, 7546 - 9, 7607; exhibit 12064, exhibit 12066, exhibit 12067, exhibit 12679,
exhibit 12681, exhibit 12685, exhibit 12686; exhibit 12689, exhibit 12691.
1483
ts 4365, 7200 - 1, 7206, 7208 - 9, 7545, 7550 - 3.
Page 452
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HALL J
of the five areas was conducted and there was some further swabbing and
testing for blood and semen. Each area was packaged individually in the
white paper it had been examined on and placed into a clip seal bag. All
the five areas were then put back into a brown paper bag and sealed by
Sgt O'Loughlin. The brown bag remained at PathWest overnight.1484
1715 The next day Officers Paton, O'Loughlin and Sustek went back to
PathWest and collected the five hair mass samples and associated items
and took them to the ChemCentre. They met Mr Collins, Ms Davies and
Ms Evans there and continued the examination of the exhibits. Sgt Sustek
took photographs of the large brown bag containing the samples prior to it
being opened. They examined the hair mass subsamples one at a time. 1485
1716 From this date the hair mass samples remained separate and were
separately examined. The examination of the hair mass samples was
carried out on 2, 5 and 14 October 2009 by the same police officers and
the ChemCentre scientists. They did not recover any critical fibres in the
examination of the five areas of the hair mass in these examinations. At
the conclusion of these examinations the five hair mass areas remained at
the ChemCentre.1486
Critical fibres 270, 279 and 311

1717 Hair mass area 1 was re-examined over three days by Mr Collins and
Ms Evans between 9 and 11 August 2010. Two officers from Special
Crime Squad, Officers Sustek and Rod Harris were observing and taking
notes. The examination involved collecting whatever fibres were present.
Both hair mass area 1 and the fibres recovered from it remained at the
ChemCentre.1487
1718 On 11 August 2010 there was an examination of a paper drop sheet

that the hair mass had been wrapped in. Debris that was collected from
the drop sheet was transferred to a petri dish and registered as a
subsample.1488
1719 The petri dish that contained the debris collected on 11 August 2010
was examined by forensic scientist Dr John Coumbaros on 24 August
1484
ts 7206 - 8, 7210 - 4, 7364, 7552 - 5; exhibit 12076, exhibit 12698, exhibit 12703, exhibit 12706, exhibit
1485
1486
ts 7558 - 67, 7577.
1487
ts 7737 - 41, 7579, 7582; exhibit 30303, p 21.
1488
ts 7739, 8417.
Page 453
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
2010, 1 September 2010, 15 September 2010 and 29 October 2010.

During this examination fine hairs and ovoid particles were recovered.1489
1720 The petri dish was again examined by Dr Coumbaros and forensic
scientist Anthony Donovan for a period of five days between
16 November 2010 and 19 January 2011.1490 Three critical fibres were
recovered from the petri dish during this period. At the end of the
examination on 11 August 2010 it was decided that ChemCentre would
continue to examine the remaining hair mass areas.
1721 On 16 November 2010 Dr Coumbaros recovered a fibre registered as

96F0448.006-270, known as fibre 270. It was subjected to compound
microscopy on 25 November 2010 by Mr Donovan and it is identified as a
grey delustered polyester fibre. Mr Donovan analysed the fibre by MSP
on the same day.1491 The MSP was repeated by Mr Powell on 21 March
2017.1492
1722 On 18 November 2010 Dr Coumbaros recovered a grey polyester
fibre registered as 96F0448.006-279, known as fibre 279. Fibre 279 was
analysed by MSP by Mr Donovan on 26 November 2010 and this was
repeated by Mr Powell on 21 March 2017.1493
1723 On 18 November 2010 Dr Coumbaros recovered a grey delustered

polyester fibre registered as 96F0448.006-311, known as fibre 311. Fibre
311 was analysed by MSP by Mr Donovan on 30 November 2010 and this
was repeated by Mr Powell on 21 March 2017.1494
Critical fibres 251 and 221
1724 Hair mass area 2 was examined by Polilight at the ChemCentre on
2 October 2009. Mr Collins, Ms Evans and Ms Davies were in attendance
from ChemCentre and Officers Sustek, O'Loughlin and Paton from
WA Police. Various fluorescing materials were removed and put into
medallion holders.1495
1489
ts 8417.
1490
ts 8417.
1491
1492
ts 8429; exhibit 24227.
1493
1494
ts 8464 - 6, 8471; exhibit 24281, exhibit 24282, exhibit 30325, p 11, exhibit 30478.
1495
ts 8382.
Page 454
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
1725 On 23 September 2010 hair mass area 2 was searched for trace
evidence by Dr Coumbaros and Mr Donovan. Fibres were recovered, but
none of them were critical fibres.1496
1726 From 18 October 2010 to 8 November 2010 hair mass area 2 was
again examined by Dr Coumbaros and Mr Donovan. It was shaken and
the shakings together with the material that was present in the paper
packaging of the hair mass was transferred into a petri dish. The petri
dish itself was searched over a four day period and fibres were recovered
from it. 1497
1727 A blue delustered polyester fibre was recovered by Dr Coumbaros on
4 November 2010 and was registered as 96F0448.006-251, known as fibre
251. Fibre 251 was analysed by MSP on 12 November 2010 and this was
repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.1498 A grey polyester fibre
was recovered by Dr Coumbaros on 4 November 2010 and was registered
as 96F0448.006-221, known as fibre 221. Fibre 221 was analysed by
MSP on 11 November 2010 by Mr Donovan and this was repeated on
21 March 2017 by Mr Powell.1499

1728 From 10 November 2011 to 29 November 2011 hair mass area 2 was
divided into three sections and was subjected to further examination by
Mr Powell and Mr Donovan. Mr Powell said that a section of the hair
mass was placed into a beaker and a detergent and water mixture was
added to break up the biological material and potentially free up trace
material. It was then subjected to vacuum filtration to remove that
biological material and the solid material left behind was searched. Fibres
were recovered from the filtration paper.1500
1729 On 14 November 2011 a grey delustered polyester fibre was

recovered from the filtration paper following vacuum filtration of section
1 of hair mass area 2 by Mr Donovan. It was registered as
96F0448.006-873, known as fibre 873. Fibre 873 was analysed by MSP
by Mr Donovan on 19 December 2011 and this was repeated by
Mr Powell on 21 March 2017.1501
1496
ts 8382.
1497
ts 8382.
1498
ts 8382 - 4, 8390; exhibit 30474, exhibit 24089, exhibit 24090, exhibit 30322, p 179.
1499
ts 8402 - 4, 8411 - 2; exhibit 30475, exhibit 24183, exhibit 24184, exhibit 24193, exhibit 30325, p 2.
1500
ts 8542 - 3.
1501
ts 8542 - 5, 8548; exhibit 30488, exhibit 24474, exhibit 24475, exhibit 30325, p 41, exhibit 24485.
Page 455
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J

recovered from hair mass area 2, section 2 following vacuum filtration by
Mr Donovan. It was registered as 96F0448.006-920, known as fibre 920.
Fibre 920 was analysed by MSP by Mr Powell on 19 December 2011. He
also repeated the MSP on 21 March 2017.1502

recovered from hair mass area 2, section 1 after vacuum filtration by
Mr Donovan. It was registered as 96F0448.006-943, known as fibre 943.
Fibre 943 was analysed by MSP on 20 December 2011 by Mr Powell. He
repeated the MSP on 21 March 2017.1503

1732 Hair mass area 3 was examined by Polilight and stereomicroscopy on
5 October 2009. Mr Collins, Ms Evans and Ms Davies were present, as
were and Officers Paton, O'Loughlin and Sustek.1504
1733 This area of the hair mass was examined again by Mr Collins and
Graham Horsley on 13 July 2010 and Mr Collins on 15 July 2010. On
both of these occasions samples of debris were removed and transferred to
petri dishes.1505
1734 From 19 January 2011 to 27 January 2011 Dr Coumbaros again

examined hair mass area 3. He separated and shook the hair mass; debris
and shakings were collected in a petri dish.1506 This petri dish was
searched for trace evidence and fibres were recovered and registered as
subsamples. Among these subsamples were two critical fibres:
96F0448.006-450, known as fibre 450 and 96F0448.006-497, known as
fibre 497. Both fibre 450 and fibre 497 were recovered from the petri dish
by Dr Coumbaros on 20 January 2011.1507
1735 Dr Coumbaros subjected fibre 450 to compound microscopy on

27 January 2011 and it is a grey delustered polyester fibre. On 31 January
2011 Mr Donovan carried out an analysis of this fibre using MSP and this
was repeated by Mr Powell on 21 March 2017.1508
1502
1503
ts 8554 - 6, 8559 - 60; exhibit 30490, exhibit 24506, exhibit 24507, exhibit 30325, p 47, exhibit 24517.
1504
ts 7227, 7561 - 4, 7608, 7736, 8473.
1505
ts 8473.
1506
ts 8473.
1507
ts 8473 - 4; exhibit 30479.
1508
ts 8472 - 4, 8478; exhibit 24305, exhibit 24306, exhibit 30325, p 14, exhibit 24316.
Page 456
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
1736 Fibre 497 was subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Donovan

on 28 January 2011 and it is a grey delustered polyester fibre. It was
subjected to MSP analysis on 3 February 2011 by Mr Donovan and this
was repeated on 21 March 2017 by Mr Powell.1509

1737 Hair mass area 3 was examined again from 28 November 2011 to
7 December 2011 by Mr Powell and Mr Donovan. Similarly to hair mass
are 2, they divided hair mass area 3 into 3 further sections which were
each washed in a liquid detergent solution and subjected to vacuum
filtration. The filter paper was then searched and fibres were registered as
subsamples.1510
1738 A critical fibre was recovered from section one of hair mass area 3
by Mr Donovan on 2 December 2011. It was registered as 11F3094.001–
129, known as fibre 129. It was subjected to compound microscopy on
29 December 2011 by Mr Powell and it is a grey delustered polyester
fibre. It was subjected to MSP analysis on the same day by Mr Powell
and this was repeated on 21 March 2017 by Mr Powell.1511
1739 On 6 December 2011, a critical fibre was recovered from section

three of hair mass area 3 following the vacuum filtration by Mr Donovan.
It was registered as 11F3094.001–217, known as fibre 217. It was
subjected to compound microscopy on 29 December 2011 by
Mr Donovan and it is a grey delustered polyester fibre. It was subjected
to MSP on 3 January 2012 and this was repeated on 21 March 2017 by
Mr Powell.1512

1740 On 14 October 2009, hair mass area 4 was examined by Polilight and
stereomicroscopy for fluorescing material. In attendance from the
ChemCentre was Mr Collins, Ms Evans and Ms Davies. Various pieces
of fluorescing material were removed to medallion holders, as were two
fibres. On 8 June 2010, area 4 was again examined by Polilight by
Dr Coumbaros and further fluorescing material was recovered.1513
1741 Hair mass area 4 was subjected to essentially the same vacuum
filtration process as other areas. It was examined by Mr Donovan over a
1509
ts 8494 - 5, 8499; exhibit 24341, exhibit 24342, exhibit 30325, p 17, exhibit 30480, exhibit 24352.
1510
ts 8560 - 1; exhibit 30491.
1511
1512
1513
ts 8500.
Page 457
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
six day period from 7 to 15 December 2011. It was divided into three
sections. Each section was washed in liquid detergent solution and
subjected to vacuum filtration, and the filter paper was searched for trace
evidence via stereomicroscopy. Subsamples from the filter paper were
registered.1514
1742 Between 27 January 2011 and 2 February 2011, area 4 was examined
over a four day period by Dr Coumbaros. The hair mass was shaken and
the shakings were placed in a petri dish. The petri dish was searched and
trace evidence, which was predominantly fibres, was recovered and
registered as subsamples.1515
1743 A critical fibre was recovered from the vacuum filtration paper from
hair mass area 4, section 2 by Mr Donovan on 13 December 2011. It was
registered as 11F3094.001-326, known as fibre 326. Fibre 326 was
subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Donovan on 4 January 2012
and it is a grey delustered polyester fibre. It was also analysed by MSP by
Mr Powell on 4 January 2012 and this was repeated by him on 21 March
2017.1516
1744 A critical fibre was recovered from the vacuum filtration paper from
hair mass area 4, section 3 by Mr Donovan on 13 December 2011. It was
registered as 11F3094.001-357, known as fibre 357. Fibre 357 was
subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Powell on 4 January 2012 and
it is a grey delustered polyester fibre. It was also analysed by MSP by
Mr Powell on 5 January 2012 and he repeated the MSP on 21 March
2017.1517
Critical fibres 571, 595, 607, 620 and 670
1745 A fibre was recovered on 27 January 2011 by Dr Coumbaros from
the petri dish which contained debris shaken from hair mass area 4. It was
registered as 96F0448.006-571, known as fibre 571. It was subjected to
compound microscopy by Mr Donovan on 3 February 2011 and it is a
blue-grey polypropylene fibre. It was analysed by MSP on 8 February
2011 by Mr Donovan and this was repeated by Mr Powell on 23 March
2017.1518
1514
ts 8572 - 3, 8753; exhibit 30494.
1515
ts 8499 - 500.
1516
1517
1518
Page 458
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
1746 A second critical fibre was recovered from the same petri dish on
28 January 2011 by Dr Coumbaros. It was registered as 96F0448.006–
3 February 2011 by Mr Donovan and it is a grey delustered polyester
fibre. It was also analysed by MSP on 9 February 2011 by Mr Donovan
and this was repeated by Mr Powell on 21 March 2017.1519
1747 A third critical fibre was recovered from the petri dish on 31 January
2011 by Dr Coumbaros. It was registered as 96F0448.006-607, known as
fibre 607. It was subjected to compound microscopy on 3 February 2011
and it is a grey delustered polyester fibre. It was also analysed by MSP on
9 February 2011 by Mr Donovan and this was repeated by Mr Powell on
21 March 2017.1520
1748 A fourth critical fibre was recovered from the petri dish on
31 January 2011 by Dr Coumbaros. It was registered as
96F0448.006-620, known as fibre 620. It was subjected to compound
microscopy on 9 February 2011 and it is a grey delustered polyester fibre.
It was also analysed by MSP on 10 February 2011 by Mr Donovan and
this was repeated by Mr Powell on 21 March 2017.1521
1749 A fifth critical fibre was recovered from the petri dish on 2 February
2011 by Dr Coumbaros. It was registered as 96F0448.006-670, known as
fibre 670. It was subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Donovan on
9 February 2011 and Mr Powell said it is a grey delustered polyester fibre.
It was also analysed by MSP by Mr Donovan on 14 February 2011 and
this was repeated by Mr Powell on 21 March 2017.1522
1750 On 5 October 2009 hair mass area 5 was examined by Polilight and
stereomicroscopy for fluorescing material by Mr Collins, Ms Evans and
Ms Davies at the ChemCentre. Fluorescent materials were removed and
put into medallion holders.1523
1751 From 3 February 2011 to 9 February 2011, hair mass area 5 was
examined by Dr Coumbaros and it was photographed, separated and
shaken and the shakings were collected in a petri dish. Trace evidence,
1519
1520
ts 8506 - 8; exhibit 24377, exhibit 24378, exhibit 30482, exhibit 30325, p 23, exhibit 24387.
1521
ts 8512 - 4; exhibit 24392, exhibit 24393, exhibit 30325, p 26, exhibit 30483, exhibit 24403.
1522
1523
ts 8524.
Page 459
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
being predominantly fibres, was recovered from this petri dish and was
registered as subsamples.1524
1752 On 3 February 2011 Dr Coumbaros recovered a fibre from the petri

dish that contained the shakings from hair mass area 5. It was registered
as 96F0448.006-737, known as fibre 737. It was subjected to compound
microscopy on 15 February 2011 by Mr Donovan and it is a grey
delustered polyester fibre. Mr Donovan also analysed it by MSP on
16 February 2011 and this was repeated on 21 March 2017 by
Mr Powell.1525
1753 A second critical fibre was recovered from the same petri dish by
Dr Coumbaros on 9 February 2011. It was registered as 96F0448.006–
1754 A third critical fibre was recovered from the same petri dish by
Dr Coumbaros on 9 February 2011. It was registered as 96F0448.006–
Ciara Glennon – collection and history of critical fibres

1755 Eleven critical clothing fibres were recovered by the t-shirt of
Ms Glennon and 39 critical clothing fibres were recovered from her hair.
All of these were blue polyester fibres said to correspond to the Telstra
clothing, with the exception of six from the hair, which were blue
non-delustered rayon fibres, also said to correspond to the Telstra
clothing.
1756 In addition a total of 11 critical vehicle fibres were recovered from
the hair of Ms Glennon. Of these three were grey polyester fibres, seven
were light grey polypropylene fibres and one was a dark grey
polypropylene fibre. All of these fibres were said to correspond to fibres
from a VS series I Holden Commodore station wagon with 25i trim.
1524
ts 8524.
1525
1526
1527
Page 460
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
1757 Again, the evidence regarding the collection and subsequent

movement of the relevant exhibits (the t-shirt and the hair mass) came
from a large number of witnesses and will be summarised to present a
clearer narrative.
AJM33 – t-shirt
1758 On 3 April 1997 Inspector Mark Bordin (then a detective senior
constable attached to the Homicide Squad) and Detective Robert Kays
collected Dr Margolius from the QE II Medical Centre in Nedlands and
drove to Pipidinny Road in Eglinton. They arrived at 12.03 pm. He was
briefed by the forensic team leader, Sgt Hemelaar, and then at 13.45 he
and Dr Margolius went to the bush area where the deceased was located.
Dr Margolius did a preliminary examination of the deceased and Inspector
Bordin kept a running sheet from 14.15. He took eight polaroid
photographs during the examination, which he numbered, signed and
dated. The white t-shirt worn by the deceased is clearly visible in some of
these photographs. Dr Margolius made some observations about the
deceased in situ, including that she was wearing a white soiled short
sleeved t-shirt with a pink pattern on it. It was crumpled at the waist
revealing approximately 5 cm of the deceased's back.1528
1759 On 3 April 1997 at about 4.45 pm Hugh Torpy, a funeral director
employed by Purslowe Funerals, and his colleague Brian Bramley
attended the scene near Pipidinny Road in a Ford Falcon wagon to collect
the body of the deceased. The body bag containing the deceased was
placed in the rear of the vehicle and secured with a locking mechanism.
Mr Bramley then drove the vehicle to the QE II Medical Centre and they
arrived at 6.30pm. Mr Torpy said that they reversed the vehicle up the
driveway of the mortuary and then stopped and opened up the tailgate of
the car. The police then took custody of the deceased and removed her
remains into the State Mortuary.1529
1760 Superintendent Leembruggen and Inspector Bordin followed

Mr Torpy and Mr Bramley's vehicle to the QE II Medical Centre. They
were there when the body was removed and taken into the receival area of
the mortuary. Superintendent Leembruggen signed the 'WA Govt
Contract for the Removal of Bodies' form at the time that the body was
delivered to the mortuary.1530 Graham Paul, a mortuary technician
1528
ts 3959 - 62, 3964; 4349, 4351; exhibit 01960, exhibit 01961.
1529
ts 3917, 3919 - 22; exhibit 01881.
1530
ts 3933, 3935; exhibit 01881.
Page 461
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HALL J
working for the State Mortuary, admitted the deceased into the mortuary.
This was done without opening the body bag.
1761 On 4 April 1997 Dr Margolius carried out the post-mortem

examination of the body of Ms Glennon at the State Mortuary. In
attendance at the post-mortem were Superintendent Leembruggen,
Inspector Bordin, Mr Teraci, Sergeant Hyde, Sgt McCulloch, Claude
Minsini, David Caldwell, Dr Cadden, Dr Cooke, Dr Frank Hughes,
Laurance Webb, Mr Macdermid, Mr Wight, Mr Paul and
Mr Mouchemore. Mr Paul identified himself on the post-mortem
recording. His role at the post-mortem was to assist the mortuary
manager and assist with some of the photography by setting out some
items and holding up some sample bottles. This included setting out the
deceased's clothing. He agreed that part of his job was to hold containers
for people who were collecting samples.1531
1762 Mortuary technician Robert Macdermid also assisted in the
post-mortem examination. In the recording of the post-mortem, the
deceased is on a green sheet on the floor. Mr Macdermid can be seen
with a pair of curved scissors. He cuts along the top of the t-shirt then
along the shoulder and down one side. Another cut is made along a
sleeve. The t-shirt was then taken out from underneath the deceased and
laid out on the green sheet. Photographs were taken of it and it was
arranged for this purpose by Dr Margolius and Mr Paul.1532
1763 Sgt McCulloch was responsible for collecting the exhibits and they
are therefore recorded with his initials, AJM, as the prefix. He was also
responsible for the packaging, the labelling, the secure storage and the
later distribution of the exhibits taken at the post-mortem. He recalled
that when the t-shirt was removed from Ms Glennon's body it was put into
a green striped paper bag. He said that the t-shirt was sodden, soiled and
moist and for this reason the colour of the bag faded significantly. He
said he would have placed a white forensic exhibit label onto the bag with
details written on the label. He folded the open end of the bag over a
number of times to keep it together.1533
1764 Sgt McCulloch said that some of the exhibits taken at the
post-mortem were collected by Mr Webb and Ms Ashley from PathWest.
He took the exhibits that remained to police headquarters. He placed
them into a lockable drying room in the police headquarters complex,
1531
ts 3888, 3895, 3897 - 8, 4328, 4331, 4365; exhibit 02997.
1532
ts 3805, 3835 - 6, 3899 - 90; exhibit 02997.
1533
Page 462
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HALL J
which is cleaned before and after use. These exhibits included

Ms Glennon's clothing. He said that the t-shirt was taken out of the bag it
was in and placed over a stainless steel drying rack with a drop sheet
underneath the rack. The bag also stayed inside the drying room. The
t-shirt stayed in the drying room over the weekend and Sgt McCulloch
retrieved it at about 11.00am on 7 April 1997. He put the t-shirt back into
the original paper bag. He said that the paper bag had dried out to a
degree.1534
1765 On 7 April 1997 Sgt McCulloch delivered items seized at the

post-mortem, including clothing items, to Mr Bagdonavicius at PathWest.
He was shown a request for analysis form which records that he is the
officer delivering the samples. The form lists the items that he delivered,
including AJM33, the t-shirt. The items are noted to have been received
at 1.30 on 7 April 1997. Mr Bagdonavicius was shown a different version
of what appeared to be the same request for analysis form and said that
once the clothing exhibits were catalogued and bagged they would have
been placed in the exhibit room, which is a dry storage area.1535
1766 On 8 April 1997 Sgt McCulloch and Sgt Hyde went back to the State
Mortuary to conduct a Polilight examination with Mr Macdermid,
Dr Margolius and Mr Webb. They examined some vegetation and
clothing. Sgt McCulloch recalled that the t-shirt was one of the items
examined by Polilight. He said that he assumed that the t-shirt had been
taken to the mortuary by Mr Webb. At the end of the examination the
clothing remained in Mr Webb's custody.1536
1767 On 9 April 1997 Sgt Mott went to PathWest to collect some samples
for analysis and also some exhibits. He referred to his daily work journal
to refresh his memory about what he did on that day. He went to
PathWest at 1.20pm. He was handed a PathWest document containing a
list of samples for analysis, one of which was 'AJM33a' which Sgt Mott
described as a 'sub-item'. He agreed he collected AJM33a, and other
'sub-items', from PathWest and delivered them to the ChemCentre at
2.00 pm on the same day. He also collected the actual clothing exhibits
that the samples had been taken from.1537
1768 Scott Egan of PathWest gave evidence that his signature appears on a
request for analysis document and he put the ticks next to the items that he
1534
ts 4121 - 3, 4138 - 9.
1535
ts 4139, 4146 - 8, 5319 - 20; exhibit 11430, note that exhibit 11430 and exhibit 15715 are not identical, but
both versions contain Mr Bagdonavicius' signature in 'received' stamp.
1536
ts 4149 - 51.
1537
ts 3434 - 5, 3437 - 8; exhibit 11856.
Page 463
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HALL J
returned to Sgt Mott on 9 April 1997. Mr Egan said that AJM33 (along
with other clothing exhibits) came into the PathWest laboratory on 7 April
1997 and went out of the laboratory on 9 April 1997. He said in that time
the exhibits were examined with a Polilight by Mr Webb. He said that
after leaving PathWest the exhibits went into Officer Mott's
possession.1538
1769 After Sgt Mott collected the exhibits he took them to the police
forensic exhibits office. He said that they would have been signed over to
the person in charge of the exhibits office for storage. The exhibits he
collected were in paper bags. He did not open them.1539
1770 Victor Webb is a former police officer who is currently a forensic

consultant. He joined WA Police in 1974 and resigned in 2005. He
worked in the Crime Scene Unit which was based in police headquarters
in East Perth. To avoid confusion with Mr Laurance Webb I will refer to
him hereafter as Sergeant Webb. In February 1999 he took some exhibits,
including AJM33, to the FBI in Washington. He travelled there with
Mr Lynch from the ChemCentre. In the lead up to the trip he gathered the
exhibits together and prepared them for transportation. He recalled that
he took items of clothing that Ms Glennon had been wearing when she
was located. He said that the items were packaged in a paper bag and the
bag was folded at the top and then a seal was placed on top of that. The
exhibits were placed into a locked suitcase. He departed from Perth
airport with the items on 6 February 1999. He arrived in Washington DC
at 19.30 hours on the same day. He said he took a taxi to FBI
headquarters with two suitcases. The exhibits were delivered by him to
the FBI and accepted by 'D Chris Allen'.1540
1771 Duane Chris Allen is a special agent with the Federal Bureau of
Investigations (FBI) of the United States of America. His statement was
read in to evidence. In 1999 he was based at the Trace Evidence Unit at
FBI headquarters in Washington DC. He stated that he received two
boxes of exhibits at 8.00 pm on Saturday, 6 February 1999 from
Sgt Webb. He secured the evidence in his evidence locker so that a
forensic technician could process them in the laboratory the following
week.1541
1538
ts 6646, 6648 - 9.
1539
ts 3441 - 2.
1540
ts 7379, 7386 - 7, 7390 - 1, 7393.
1541
ts 9792; exhibit 15223.
Page 464
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HALL J
1772 Sgt Webb returned to the FBI laboratory on 9 February 1999 to open
the suitcases, divide the exhibits up and advise what areas the exhibits
were to go to, either trace evidence or DNA. On 8 March 1999 he
received a letter from the FBI confirming what had been delivered, and it
notes both the FBI exhibit number and the WA Police exhibit number in
brackets. The Glennon exhibits in the list include the t-shirt, which has
been given an FBI designation of Q7.1542
1773 In 1999 Mary Lou Leitner was a physical science technician at the
FBI. Her statement was read in to evidence. She worked in the
Trace Evidence Unit, which had previously been called the Hair and Fiber
Unit. Ms Leitner was assigned to the Glennon matter under the
supervision of Mr Allen. When exhibits were received by the FBI they
were sent to the Evidence Control Center and a laboratory number was
assigned. Ms Leitner produced a worksheet that shows an inventory of
the items that were logged in on 10 February 1999, which includes 'Q7
shirt (33)'. After the inventory was completed, the exhibits that did not
require refrigeration were placed in an evidence locker.1543
1774 Ms Leitner's role as Mr Allen's technician was to process the

evidence that he received. Though she did not definitely recall, she stated
that she would have retrieved the evidence for the Glennon matter from
the locked cabinet/locker for examination. During the examination she
took handwritten notes, which she produced. The notes record that on
1 June 1999 she examined Q7, a shirt. She noted that the packaging (of
the shirt) was the same as Q6. Q6 is recorded as having been received in
an open brown bag and then in a closed clear plastic bag with two empty
brown bags and then sealed in another clear plastic bag.1544
1775 Ms Leitner described the examination of the t-shirt. She stated that a
piece of brown paper would have been placed on the examination bench
and the shirt put onto it. She visually examined the shirt and noted that it
was a light-coloured short sleeve crew neck that was worn, heavily soiled
and stained with many holes and an apparent hospital cut. After the visual
examination the shirt would have been suspended from a metal rack above
the brown paper and scraped down with a kitchen spatula to remove any
trace evidence debris adhering to the shirt. The debris would then be
collected from the brown paper and placed into pillboxes. She collected
two petri dishes containing trace evidence debris, one cutting of a piece of
the shirt placed in a fold of paper and two glass microscope slides
1542
ts 7400; exhibit 13349, p 2, 3.
1543
1544
Page 465
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
containing hairs and fibres. At the completion of the examination she

applied evidence tape to the bag containing the shirt, the two petri dishes
and the one paper fold. She wrote the laboratory number on each petri
dish and returned the items to the evidence cabinet for storage.1545
1776 Mr Allen stated that the exhibits were stored within a locked room
until 1 March 2001 when they were returned to WA Police by FedEx.1546
1777 In 2001 Cary Oien was a forensic examiner in the Trace Evidence
Unit at the FBI. His statement was read in to evidence. He was
responsible for conveying sealed boxes from the Trace Evidence Unit to
the Mail Services Unit. He produced documents confirming the return of
the exhibits relating to Ms Glennon.1547
1778 Dale Canvin is a FedEx employee with access to FedEx records. His
statement was read in to evidence. He explained the FedEx database
known as 'COSMOS', which is a system that records the movement of
packages. He located shipping records that relate to items shipped from
the FBI headquarters to WA Police in Perth. One records the delivery of
two packages shipped on 1 March 2001 to 'Det. Sergeant V Webb' and
signed for by 'J Dean' on 6 March 2001.1548
1779 In 2001 Jeffery Dean was employed in the mailroom at WA police

headquarters. His statement was read in to evidence. He has no
recollection of taking delivery of the two packages, but confirmed that his
signature appears on the delivery record.1549
1780 Sgt Webb said that the items were returned in two cardboard boxes
by Federal Express, an international courier. They were received on
6 March 2001. Sgt Webb was shown a FedEx delivery record addressed
to him and said that Mr Dean, whose name appears on the receipt, was a
security guard and receipt of delivery was something a security guard at
headquarters would typically do. The receipt describes the contents as
'981130009 (Q1 – Q4)', '990210009 (Q1 – Q130, K1 – K54, NE1),
'pillboxes and slides'. Sgt Webb said he retrieved the items that had been
returned by the FBI virtually straight away. He went through the boxes
over a period of time in the physical evidence laboratory and stored them
in the microscope room overnight. An FBI document entitled 'Secondary
1545
15239.
1546
ts 9794; exhibit 15255.
1547
1548
1549
ts 9802; exhibit 01887.
Page 466
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
Evidence Inventory' was with the FedEx boxes and Sgt Webb used it as a
checklist to check everything off. He said that the t-shirt AJM33 was in
the box, along with two pillboxes marked Q7 and one paper fold. The
items were all marked and sealed with FBI tape.1550
1781 Mr Webb said that some of the exhibits were subsequently sent on to
different locations and he re-labelled them with a different exhibit number
and his own initials, VW. He grouped exhibits together and assign them a
VW number based on where the exhibit was going. He created VW3
from debris samples taken from various exhibits by the FBI, and recorded
it on the PTS. He then divided VW3 into VW4, VW5 and VW6. By
reference to the PTS records he said that VW5 is a sample pack of debris
separated from VW3 containing nine exhibits and that on 26 March 2002
VW5 was created on the PTS. VW5 included Q7, which is described as a
'plastic exhibit container with debris from drying sheets containing hairs',
and Q7.1 which is described as 'debris from drying sheet'. On 8 April
2002 he hand delivered VW5 to PathWest.1551
1782 The exhibit was received at PathWest by Philip Read. His statement
was read in to evidence. He stated that on 8 April 2002 at 14.27 he
received the items including Q7 and Q7.1. On 23 April 2003 Veila
Langoulant, another employee at PathWest whose statement was read in
to evidence, returned Q7 and Q7.1 (along with some other exhibits) to
Detective Haynes from Operation Macro.1552
1783 Detective Senior Sergeant Haynes' statement was also read in to
evidence. He stated that on 23 April 2003 he went to PathWest and
retrieved a number of exhibits including Q7 and Q7.1 and took them to
the Macro Task Force office where he secured them. On the following
day he took these exhibits to Sgt Webb at the Forensic Crime Scene Unit
and they discussed extracting hairs from the exhibits. He stated that the
exhibits were then taken to DECU for storage.1553
1784 On 25 April 2003 Det S/Sgt Haynes was at the Physical Evidence
Laboratory (in the Forensic Crime Scene Unit) with Sgt Webb. Sgt Webb
removed some hairs from the petri dishes Q7 and Q7.1 and put them into
a new petri dish QVW7.1. He said that Q7 was resealed and retained.1554
1550
ts 7380, 7403 - 6, 7408 - 9; exhibit 13350, exhibit 13363.
1551
ts 7415 - 7, 7419 - 20, 7426, 7430; exhibit 02384, exhibit 13364, exhibit 13365, exhibit 13366, exhibit
13355.
1552
1553
ts 9768; exhibit 16834.
1554
ts 7439 - 40, 7445, 9770; exhibit 13358.
Page 467
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HALL J
1785 On 28 April 2003 VW5 was delivered by Sgt Webb to DECU. A

statement made by Kathleen Mullen was read in. Ms Mullen was working
in DECU at the time. She stated that she received the exhibit from
Sgt Webb and secured it at DECU according to their procedures.
Subsequently, on 12 October 2005 she handed the same item to Senior
Sergeant Ken Sanderson. In 2003 Snr Sgt Sanderson was the officer in
charge of the Forensic Branch Crime Scene Unit and undertook some
forensic work in relation to Operation Macro.1555
1786 Mr Sanderson said that on 12 October 2005 he and Snr Sgt Paton
went to DECU and received VW5 – consisting of nine petri dishes. He
was not sure where the exhibits were stored immediately after that but
said that it was probably in his office at Special Crime Squad in Eastpoint
Plaza. The next day, 13 October 2005, he and Snr Sgt Paton went to the
ChemCentre and gave the petri dishes to Mr Lynch. A request for
analysis form to the ChemCentre was signed by Snr Sgt Paton.1556
1787 Mr Lynch was shown the request for analysis form and said that it
records that he received nine items from Snr Sgt Paton on 13 October
2005. He said that he would have registered the items and given them a
lab number and identification tags and then transferred them to the
exhibits store.1557
1788 Richard Clarke was a research mineralogist employed by the

ChemCentre. In his statement he said that he understood that on 29 June
2010 during an audit of the various Macro exhibits held at the
ChemCentre a number of petri dishes were located in his office including
'2 x Q7'. He said that the laboratory reference number was
05F1425001-9, which indicated that there were nine petri dishes. He was
made aware of this audit in 2016 but did not recall being present when it
was conducted. He stated that the petri dishes were received at
ChemCentre on 13 October 2005 by Mr Lynch.1558
1789 The next movement of the petri dishes was referred to by Sgt Sustek.
She said that on 29 June 2010 she took custody of the nine petri dishes
(including two called Q7) and transferred each petri dish into individual
zip lock bags.1559
1555
ts 8126 - 7, 7327; exhibit 15622.
1556
ts 7176, 7178, 7347 - 9; 7352 - 3; exhibit 12251, exhibit 13366, exhibit 23446, see also exhibit 23141.
1557
ts 7320; exhibit 23141.
1558
ts 8185; exhibit 30454.
1559
Page 468
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HALL J
1790 In November 2010 Det Sgt Stanbury and Det Sgt Perejmibida
travelled to FSS in the UK with exhibits for examination. The
FSS submission of work document records that amongst the items
submitted were two petri dishes described as Q7, 1 of 2 and Q7, 2 of 2.
Det Sgt Stanbury said that they gave FSS the petri dishes containing
debris from Ms Glennon's t-shirt and requested FSS to remove hairs from
the container and assess them for DNA opportunities. He said that
anything else in the dishes was to be left in the petri dish for examination
by other people for trace evidence.1560
1791 Mathew Doherty was employed by FSS between 2006 and 2011 and
his statement was read in. He stated that one of his duties was the receipt
of exhibits into the laboratory. He said that on 24 November 2010 he
received 178 exhibits from Det Sgt Stanbury. He checked that each
exhibit was present and secure and that the exhibit number and the exhibit
bag number of each exhibit correlated with those on the itemised list at the
back of the supplied FSS submission of work document before he added
his name stamp and signature to each relevant page. He also marked the
final page with a date and timestamp.1561
1792 Carol Evans from FSS was shown the documentation that
accompanied the items and said that FSS was requested to remove all
hairs from the petri dishes and assess their potential for DNA analysis and
that all trace evidence was to be preserved and returned to WA Police for
further examination. Two of the items were 'VA5454' described as 'Q7,
1 of 2, original FBI exhibit' and 'VA5455' described as 'One petri dish
marked Q7, 2 of 2.' FSS file records show that VA5455 and 5454 left
FSS London on 22 December 2010 and were received by FSS Trident
Court (Birmingham) on 23 December 2010.1562
1793 Samantha Underwood worked at FSS between 1995 and 2012. She
was also shown the FSS case file. She recognised her handwriting on the
case notes. She said that she moved the items to the laboratory On
25 January 2011 she examined VA5454 and removed roughly 50 hairs
and placed them onto four acetate sheets. On the same day she moved
VA5454 and VA5455 to a dry storage room. On 26 January 2011 she
examined VA5455 and removed approximately 40 hairs and placed them
1560
ts 6230, 6231, 6237 - 8; exhibit 14376, exhibit 14378.
1561
ts 8115; exhibit 14376.
1562
Page 469
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
onto acetate sheets. The records show that on the same day she moved
VA5455 to dry storage.1563
1794 As a consequence of the closure of FSS arrangements were made for

the Special Crime Squad to recover all the exhibits relevant to the Macro
investigation that were being stored at FSS and return them to Perth.
FSS sent the case files to Wetherby in Yorkshire and the WA Police
organised for them to be brought back to Australia from there.
Det Sgt Stanbury and Det Sgt Buck went to the FSS laboratory in
Wetherby on November 2011 to meet Dr Whitaker and start the process
of reconciling the WA Police records with the FSS records and the
physical material. FSS provided them with the exhibits and officers
ticked them off on a list that had been prepared in Perth.
Det Sgt Stanbury estimated that there were approximately 500 exhibits
held at FSS. The exhibits were sealed and packed in a crate. The list
includes an entry for VA5454 one 'pillbox' (or petri dish). He said that the
hairs taken out of the petri dish went to Cellmark for further testing and
the petri dish came back to Australia. The list also includes an entry for
VA5455 another petri dish. He said that similarly the hairs retrieved from
this petri dish went to Cellmark and the petri dish itself came back to
Australia. The two petri dishes were in the same security movement
envelopes that they went to FSS in. They were then put into a crate.
There were eight crates in all.1564
1795 The crates containing the exhibits from FSS were returned to Perth
by TNT courier. The TNT records show that on 6 December 2011 eight
secure crates were delivered to the Special Crime Squad. They were
signed for by Snr Sgt Paton. He placed the frozen exhibits into secure
freezers and the remainder into dry storage. Snr Sgt Paton waited until
Det Sgt Stanbury returned to unpack the crates. Det Sgt Stanbury said
that he and Snr Sgt Paton opened some of them soon after he got back to
work and some remained unopened for some time. The records show that
box 6 of 8 was opened on 28 December 2011 and there are photographs of
the seals on the crate. Det Sgt Stanbury and Snr Sgt Paton created a
13 page spreadsheet to keep track of the items that had been returned. In
their evidence they both noted that the petri dishes were in box 6.
Det Sgt Stanbury said that the fact that the petri dishes 5455 and 5454
appeared in this list is an acknowledgment that they were received in
1563
ts 6299 - 302, 6306; exhibit 23825, exhibit 23833, exhibit 23834, exhibit 23836, exhibit 23837, exhibit
23825.
1564
ts 6239 - 40, 6242, 6244, 6251; exhibit 23878.
Page 470
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HALL J
Perth. The items were then stored in the secure facility at Special Crime
Squad in the Hatch Building.1565
1796 On 11 January 2012 Sgt Sustek took the petri dishes from the storage
facility at the Special Crime Squad to the ChemCentre. They were in
security movement envelopes.1566 She was shown a continuity document
that she created that showed that she took the items to Peter Collins at the
ChemCentre.

1797 Mr Powell gave evidence about the recovery of critical fibres from
the contents of the petri dishes. He said that two petri dishes with debris
collected by the FBI from Ms Glennon's shirt were examined and critical
fibres were recovered from both of them. As noted above, the petri dishes
had been previously received at the ChemCentre on 13 October 2005, but
they were not examined at that time. Mr Powell's evidence about the
examination of Q7 and Q7.1 related to the receipt of them by the
ChemCentre on 11 January 2012.1567
1798 Mr Powell said that five critical fibres were recovered from Q7,
1 of 2, which is also known as VA5454. This petri dish was registered
with a ChemCentre number.1568
1799 On 19 January 2012 Mr Powell collected five images of Q7. From

19 January 2012 through to 27 January 2012 the item was subjected to
stereomicroscopy and examined over a three day period by Mr Powell and
Anthony Donovan.1569
1800 Q7 was then searched for trace evidence and fibres were recovered
as subsamples 05F0925.087-002 through to 05F0925.087-134. This
included the following five critical fibres:1570
1. 05F0925.087-010 known as fibre 010
2. 05F0925.087-031 known as fibre 031

3. 05F0925.087-104 known as fibre 104(1)
1565
ts 6252 - 3, 6255 - 6, 7235 - 7, 7239 - 40, 7245; exhibit 02910, exhibit 12130, exhibit 12145, exhibit 12800.
1566
ts 7585 - 7; exhibit 12806.
1567
ts 9006, 9058; exhibit 30265, row 1000.
1568
ts 9006 - 7; exhibit 30544.
1569
1570
ts 9007, 9024 - 5, 9032, 9042, 9049; exhibit 30544, exhibit 30545, exhibit 30546, exhibit 30547, exhibit
30548.
Page 471
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HALL J
4. 05F0925.087-113 known as fibre 113
5. 05F0925.087-128 known as fibre 128(1).
1801 Fibre 010 was recovered by Mr Donovan on 23 January 2012. On

27 January 2012 Mr Powell subjected fibre 010 to compound microscopy
and a brightfield image and a polarised light image were collected. He
observed that the fibre is dark blue and the delusterant is difficult to see in
the brightfield image. He said that from the colour banding present in the
polarised light image it can be inferred that it is a polyester fibre. On
30 January 2012 Mr Donovan subjected fibre 010 to MSP. The MSP was
repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.1571
1802 Fibre 031 was collected by Mr Donovan on 23 January 2012.

Mr Powell subjected the fibre to compound microscopy on 27 January
2012 and collected a brightfield image and a polarised light image. He
said it is a blue delustered fibre and inferred that it is polyester. On
31 January 2012 Mr Powell analysed the fibre using MSP.1572
1803 Fibre 031 is described by the ChemCentre as both a 'critical fibre'
and a 'target fibre'. That is because this fibre was selected as the target
fibre of the blue polyester group because it corresponded to a large
number of other fibres. This particular fibre was chosen as a target fibre
in a different way to other target fibres. Mr Powell said that the database
algorithm had selected a different fibre as the target fibre for the blue
polyester group, but he intervened because he considered that fibre 031
better expressed the group due to it its delusterant properties. Fibre 031
was later compared to many of the other fibres.1573
1804 Fibres 104(1) and 113 were recovered on 27 January 2012 by

Mr Donovan. There is more than one critical fibre with the subsample
number ending in 104, and for this reason I will refer to this one as fibre
104(1). Mr Powell subjected both fibre 104(1) and fibre 113 to compound
microscopy on 31 January 2012 and collected a brightfield image and a
polarised light microscopy image of both fibres. He said that fibre 104(1)
is a blue delustered fibre and inferred that it is polyester. He said that
fibre 113 appears to be a blue fibre with delusterant that is somewhat hard
to see. He noted that the polarised light image was difficult to see but
based on the colour banding inferred that the fibre is polyester.
Mr Dovovan analysed fibre 104(1) and fibre 113 by MSP on 2 February
1571
ts 9008 - 11; 9014; exhibit 25695, exhibit 25680, exhibit 25679, exhibit 30322, p 2.
1572
1573
ts 9026, 9028 - 9.
Page 472
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
2012. Mr Fillingham repeated the MSPs for both fibres on 29 April

2019.1574
1805 Fibre 128 is the first of two fibres with this identifier and I will
therefore refer to this one as fibre 128(1). Fibre 128(1) was recovered on
27 January 2012 by Mr Donovan. He also subjected it to compound
microscopy on 1 February 2012 and a brightfield image and a polarised
light microscopy image were collected. Mr Powell said that fibre 128
appears to be dark blue colour and that the delusterant was hard to see in
the brightfield image. On the basis of the polarised light image he
inferred that it is a polyester fibre.1575 Fibre 128 was analysed by MSP on
2 February 2012 by Mr Donovan. The MSP was repeated on 29 April
2019 by Mr Fillingham.1576
Critical fibres 017, 104, 142, 143, 176 and 198

1806 As noted above, Q7 and Q7.1 were received at the ChemCentre on
11 January 2012. Q7.1, also known as Q7, was registered with a
ChemCentre number and it is clear from the registration of the various
subsamples taken from it that it bears a unique ChemCentre number.1577
1807 On 30 January 2012, Mr Powell collected three images of Q7.1.

From 30 January 2012 to 8 February 2012 it was examined by
stereomicroscope and subsamples were collected and registered as
05F0925.088-002 to 05F0925.088-201. This included the following
critical fibres:1578
1. 05F0925.088-017 known as fibre 017
2. 05F0925.088-104 known as fibre 104(2)
3. 05F0925.088-142 known as fibre 142
4. 05F0925.088-143 known as fibre 143
5. 05F0925.088-176 known as fibre 176
6. 05F0925.088-198 known as fibre 198.
1574
ts 9032 - 4, 9038 - 9, 9042 - 4; exhibit 25729, exhibit 25730, exhibit 25745, exhibit 25755, exhibit 25756,
exhibit 25758, exhibit 30322, p 8, 11, exhibit 30546.
1575
1576
ts 9050, 9054; exhibit 30322, p 14, exhibit 25785.
1577
ts 9058; exhibit 30549.
1578
ts 9058 - 60, 9067, 9078, 9083 - 4, 9091, 9099; exhibit 30549, exhibit 30550, exhibit 30551, exhibit 30552,
exhibit 30553, exhibit 30554.
Page 473
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HALL J
1808 Fibre 017 was recovered by Mr Donovan on 1 February 2012. He

also subjected it to compound microscopy on the same day and collected a
brightfield image and a polarised light microscopy image. Mr Powell
observed that it is a blue delustered fibre and inferred that it is a polyester
fibre. Mr Donovan analysed it by MSP on 2 February 2012.
Mr Fillingham repeated the MSP on 29 April 2019.1579
1809 As noted above, fibre 104 has the same last three numbers as another
critical fibre. For this reason I will refer to this fibre as fibre 104(2). It
was recovered by Mr Powell on 2 February 2012. Mr Donovan examined
it by compound microscopy on 6 February 2012 and collected a
brightfield image and a polarised light image. Mr Powell observed that it
is a blue delustered fibre and inferred that it is a polyester fibre.
Mr Powell analysed fibre 104(2) by MSP on 15 February 2012.
Mr Fillingham repeated the MSP on 29 April 2019.1580
also subjected it to compound microscopy on 8 February 2012 and
collected a brightfield image and a polarised light image. Mr Powell
observed that it is a blue delustered fibre and inferred that it is polyester.
It was analysed by MSP on 16 February 2012 by Mr Donovan. The MSP
was repeated on 29 April 2019 by Mr Fillingham.1581

also subjected it to compound microscopy on 8 February 2012 and
collected a brightfield image and a polarised light image. Mr Powell said
that the fibre is dark blue and he inferred it is polyester. He observed that
the brightfield image is quite dark and that delusterant was difficult to see.
The fibre was later compared to other fibres, and Mr Powell observed the
presence of delusterant in three other brightfield comparison images.
Fibre 143 was analysed by MSP on 16 February 2012 by Mr Donovan.
This was repeated on 29 April 2019 by Mr Fillingham.1582
1812 Fibres 176 and 198 were recovered on 8 February 2012 by

Mr Donovan. He also subjected them to compound microscopy on
17 February 2012 and collected a brightfield and a polarised light image
for each fibre. Mr Powell observed that both fibres are blue delustered
fibres and inferred that they are polyester. Both fibres were analysed by
1579
ts 9059 - 61, 9066; exhibit 25798, exhibit 25799; exhibit 25816; exhibit 30322, p 17.
1580
ts 9068 - 70; exhibit 25821, exhibit 25822, exhibit 25824, exhibit 30322, p 20.
1581
ts 9078 -80, 9083; exhibit 25845, exhibit 25846, exhibit 25862; exhibit 30322, p 23.
1582
25877, exhibit 25878, exhibit 30322, p 26.
Page 474
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HALL J
MSP on 20 February 2012 by Mr Powell. Each MSP was repeated on

29 April 2019 by Mr Fillingham.1583
AJM54 – hair mass

1813 On 4 April 1997 Dr Margolius carried out a post-mortem
examination of the body of Ms Glennon and noted in her report that the
deceased had long brown lightly dyed hair and that it presented as a
tangled mass, predominantly around the top of the head and partially
covering the back of the skull. Dr Margolius and Dr Cooke (who assisted
at the post-mortem) both noted that the hair was coming away from the
skull.1584
1814 In the recording of the post-mortem examination the removal of the

hair mass is not clearly visible. What can be seen is that Dr Margolius
and mortuary assistants Mr Macdermid and Mr Paul are working in the
area of the deceased's head. The view of what is happening is obscured
by Mr Macdermid, who has his back to the camera. At 13.18.15
Dr Margolius has a piece of string in her hand and is working near the
head area; some head hair is visible. The word 'string' can be heard in the
audio. Dr Margolius continues to work near the head until 13.18.34 when
the recording stops. When the recording resumes at 13.24.10 the head
hair has been removed.1585
1815 Mr Macdermid said that Mr Paul was trying to remove all of the
head hair. He explained that they try to peel the head hair off, including
the roots, and that it can sometimes be a difficult process, and appears to
have been difficult in this case. He said that a piece of string is tied
around the hair closest to the neck and is used to show which part of the
hair mass was closest to the body. Once the hair mass was removed it
was put into a plastic bag. It would then have been put into a billy bucket
or a brown paper bag. The string would have gone with the hair mass.1586
1816 Superintendent Leembruggen recorded the hair mass on the exhibit
list as AJM54. As previously noted, the exhibits officer at the
post-mortem was Sgt Adam McCulloch, so the exhibits were given the
prefix AJM. There are several versions of the exhibit list kept by
Superintendent Leembruggen. It is not clear from these lists alone when
AJM54 was collected. Mr Laurance Webb's initials appear against some
1583
ts 9091 - 3, 9099 - 101, 9096, 9104; exhibit 25884, exhibit 25885, exhibit 25903, exhibit 25904, exhibit
25918, exhibit 30322, 29, 32, exhibit 30553.
1584
ts 4358, 4530.
1585
ts 3487; exhibit 02997.
1586
ts 3846 - 50.
Page 475
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HALL J
of the exhibits on the first version of the list. Superintendent

Leembruggen recalled that exhibits highlighted in green with Mr Webb's
initials represent those that Mr Webb took during the post-mortem
process. He said that they took their first break at around 12.30 pm and
Mr Webb signed for some of the items at the end of the first period.
Mr Webb's signature appears at the bottom of the exhibit list, and it is
dated 4 April 1997 at 12.20 hours. On this exhibit list next to AJM54 the
words 'head hair' are written and then have been crossed out and initialled
by Superintendent Leembruggen. AJM54 is not initialled by Mr Webb on
this list, but AJM55 and AJM56 are. In cross-examination,
Superintendent Leembruggen compared two versions of the exhibit list.
He agreed that from the first version it appeared that no exhibit 54 had
been collected and that from another version it appeared that there was an
exhibit 54.1587
1817 Superintendent Leembruggen was shown another version of the
exhibit list, on which Ms Ashley (Furmedge) of PathWest has signed as
the recipient of a number of items on 4 April 1997 at 15.05 hours. The
items highlighted in yellow on this list were taken by Ms Ashley and
include AJM54. The entry for AJM54 in this version of the list has
additional writing, being 'head hair – string indicates rear neck'.
Superintendent Leembruggen agreed that this item is the hair mass. He
was also shown the original, hard copy of the exhibit log. On the original,
the entry against AJM54 says 'head hair – string indicates rear neck'.
Sgt McCulloch was also shown the version of the list in which AJM54
was highlighted in yellow and initialled AF, and said that this meant it had
been received by Ms Ashley from PathWest.1588
1818 Ms Ashley said that she received some items from Ms Glennon's
post-mortem on 4 April 1997 and took them to PathWest. She was shown
a copy of the exhibit list attached to a Coroners Act form and said that this
document is signed when items are received by PathWest from the
mortuary and records the details of specimens that have been delivered to
PathWest for analysis. She was also shown a 'Forensic Services –
Biology' form. She said that the purpose of this form is to provide a list of
samples that have been received by PathWest. The number at the top is
the laboratory number that was given to the Glennon exhibits. The '8' in
red in a circle on the form is the batch number, which means that this is
the eighth group of exhibits that were delivered to PathWest in this matter.
AJM54 'head hair' is listed on the form and recorded as having been
1587
1588
ts 3947, 3949, 4060, 4067, 4118 - 9; exhibit 23504, exhibit 23506.
Page 476
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
received in a plastic bag. Some of the writing on the form is that of

Mr Egan.1589
1819 Mr Egan said that the samples were handed to him in the receival
area and as he was writing the information on the form he was looking at
the mortuary paperwork, the police paperwork and the samples. He said
that some samples from AJM54 down to AJM64 were separated out from
the others on the form because they were received at a different time.
They were received by Ms Ashley on the same day at 15.05. He said that
he would have recorded the case number on the exhibits so that all of the
samples from the case can be identified as relating to that case. He also
noted the receipt of the samples in the Forensic Biology receipt book. He
said that AJM54 was a portion of hair in a plastic bag and that he
examined it but that was the extent of his recollection. He said that
PathWest would occasionally get head hair in a plastic bag but that it was
not a common type of sample.1590
1820 Mr Egan was shown a Forensic Services – Biology worksheet
labelled 'Hairs'. He said that this form contains notes about the
examination of some hairs that were in a plastic bag. The form refers to
AJM63, but that is an error, it should be AJM54. He said he knows that
because of his review of his case notes. In the list of samples received
into the laboratory AJM63 is recorded as 'hair vagina' and it is noted that
it has been stored in a sterile container. On the 'Hairs' worksheet the
writing in blue is Mr Egan's and the writing in black is that of
Mr Bagdonavicius. The exhibit is described as 'large mass of hair in a
plastic bag in a paper bag'. Mr Egan took 12 hairs out of the clump of
hairs in the bag. He placed them onto a microscope slide that was labelled
with the details of the sample. The hairs that were not selected would not
have been taken out of the plastic bag. He said that after he had finished
with the hair that was not selected to be placed on the slides he would
have packaged it back up and put it either into dry storage or a fridge or
freezer.1591
1821 Mr Egan said that it appears that the hair mass was tested for the
presence of semen and then sent to the mortuary on 9 April 1997. The
basis for this is a stamp on another version of the exhibit list that has been
marked up. He said he wrote next to AJM63 in blue: 'AP NEG 9-4-97
1589
ts 4768 - 9, 4776; exhibit 15693, 7.
1590
ts 6607, 6610 - 12, 6633; exhibit 15693, note that the exhibits separated out are not AJM54 - AJM64
inclusive. It is clear from the exhibit that Mr Egan is referring to AJM54, AJM61, AJM62, AJM63, AJM64,
1591
Page 477
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
SE' and noted that the word 'hair' is highlighted in yellow. Mr Webb's
signature is next to that note. Mr Egan said that this note records that an
acid phosphatase test (the presumptive test for semen) was carried out on
that sample on that date, that the result was negative and that it was
witnessed by Mr Webb. He recalled that he was a laboratory assistant at
the time and that Mr Webb was overseeing his work. He said that the
signature of Mr Macdermid recorded that the item was returned to the
mortuary. At that time PathWest did not have a standard form for the
return of an item and this was the standard way to do it.1592
1822 Mr Macdermid was shown another version of the same document
and recognised his signature. He noted that in the stamp it has the date
9 April 1997 and the word 'mortuary'; he said that was when he received
something that is described as hair. He said if the hair was being kept at
the mortuary it would be stored in the freezer associated with the
particular pathologist who did the examination.1593
1823 Another mortuary assistant, Brian Mouchemore, recalled being asked
to put Ms Glennon's hair mass, or the hair that had been taken from her
head, into a billy bucket. He recalled seeing the hair mass and described
it as a full head of shoulder-length hair and a scalp with a bit of detritus in
it. He was pretty sure that he got it from the fridge in the cool room. He
was not sure when he did this, but said it could have been between a
couple of days and week after the post-mortem on 4 April 1997.1594
1824 Mr Mouchemore did not have a clear recollection of where he got the
billy bucket from. He said that it was in good condition and unmarked on
the outside with no lettering or markings. He said that he had not done
something like this before and was pretty sure that Mr Macdermid (who
was the senior mortuary technician) asked him to do it. Before he put the
hair mass into the bucket it was in a clear plastic bag outside the body
bag. He believes that he took the billy bucket with the hair mass inside
back into the cool room. He recognised a photograph of the billy bucket
and said that the photograph had been taken on the right-hand side of the
'brain room' in the mortuary.1595
1825 A form records that a sample of hair was delivered by Dr Margolius
to Martin Blooms of PathWest at midday on 10 June 1997. Mr Blooms
did not have an independent recollection of dealing with the hair mass.
1592
ts 6644 - 5, 6897; exhibit 16026.
1593
ts 3853 - 4.
1594
ts 4071 - 2.
1595
ts 4073 - 4, 4076, 4087 - 8.
Page 478
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
He was shown the form and noted that it has Ms Glennon's name on it and
that it relates to one exhibit described as 'hair – filtered'. The form records
that Dr Margolius is both the technician releasing the item as well as the
consulting pathologist authorising the release of the item to Mr Blooms.
The form has the case number associated with Ms Glennon. It also has
97R155.54 on it. The 54 or .54 refers to the 54th batch of items or item
that the laboratory has received in relation to this matter. If an item leaves
Forensic Biology but then comes back later it gets a later batch number
and is classified as a new batch. Mr Blooms noted that Fiona Sinnamon, a
scientist from PathWest, had written on the form 'stored in box 49 (-20
degrees freezer)'. He said that storage at that temperature is a reliable way
of storing biological material for future testing because it remains fairly
stable. Box 49 is the storage location.1596
1826 Mr Bagdonavicius of PathWest was shown a request for analysis

form which refers to a 'head hair sample – cut'. He said that the case
number on the form showed that this is a Glennon exhibit and said that the
batch number is 33. He later said that this was an error and the correct
batch number was 54. He signed the form and dated it 23 April 1997.
Annotations on the form record that this sample was taken by Detective
Sergeant Joseph Marrapodi on 17 November 1997 for treatment at a
funeral directors premises and return to the parents of Ms Glennon.
Mr Bagdonavicius said that this was a head hair sample from a billy
bucket. He described the billy bucket as a pinkish bucket with a white lid.
He said he did not look into the container to see how much hair was in it.
He provided the bucket to Det Sgt Marrapodi and Dr Margolius was
present.1597
1827 Det Sgt Marrapodi said that on 17 November 1997 he was asked to
take some of Ms Glennon's hair to Purslowes in North Perth for treatment
before being given to her family. He said he went to the State Mortuary
where he met with Dr Margolius and Mr Bagdonavicius. He recalled that
Mr Bagdonavicius brought a bucket into the main foyer area of Forensic
Pathology and gave it to Dr Margolius. She took the bucket away and
then returned five or six minutes later and handed him a small package,
like a clip seal bag, which she told him was hair. He took the package to
Purslowes in North Perth and handed it to a staff member.1598
1828 On 5 February 1999 Sgt Gary Hyde went to PathWest to collect an

exhibit and take it to Sgt Webb. He believed that the exhibit was a hair
1596
ts 5006 - 9; exhibit 19851.
1597
ts 5346 - 50; exhibit 15859.
1598
ts 9814 - 6.
Page 479
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
sample. At that time Sgt Webb was dealing with the movement of some
exhibits to the United States. A PathWest exhibit receipt notes that the
exhibit is 'hair mass CE Glennon' and that Sgt Hyde signed for it at
14.05 pm. Once he had the item Sgt Hyde took it directly to
1599
Sgt Webb.
1829 The Glennon hair mass was amongst the items taken to the FBI by
Sgt Webb. The movement of those items has already been summarised in
respect of AJM33, the t-shirt. Sgt Webb said that he packaged the hair
mass in preparation for its transportation to the FBI. It was originally in a
plastic Ziploc bag. He took two suitcases of exhibits from a number of
crime scenes and packaged every exhibit in a cryovac plastic bag and
sealed them. He was shown a photo of the hair mass taken after it had
been to the FBI. It was in a plastic bag that had writing on it. He said the
hair mass was in a bag like the one in the photo when he received it from
PathWest.1600
1830 On 8 March 1999 Sgt Webb received a letter from the FBI
confirming what had been delivered, and it notes both the FBI exhibit
number and the WA Police exhibit number in brackets. The Glennon
exhibits in the list include 'K1 head hair sample from Ciara Glennon'.1601
K1 was the FBI designation for the hair mass.
1831 Ms Leitner, the FBI technician tasked with examining the items,
made notes that show that on 24 May 1999 she examined the hair mass.
The hair mass was in a clip seal bag. She could not recall the examination
specifically but said that hair examinations were typically done with
fine-tipped tweezers under a stereomicroscope. She also produced a
'secondary evidence inventory' dated 18 August 1999, which is a list of
the exhibits examined and a record of the subsamples that were obtained
from them. According to this document, Ms Leitner made three slides
and collected one petri dish of debris from the K1 hair mass. She stated
that two representative samples of hairs were removed and mounted on
glass microscope slides and one sample of fibres was removed and
mounted on a glass slide. Debris and hair was also placed in a petri dish.
All secondary evidence collected had the FBI laboratory number, item
number 'K1' and Ms Leitner's initials 'MLL' written on them. At the
1599
ts 3635 - 6; exhibit 08369.
1600
ts 7389.
1601
ts 7400; exhibit 13349, p 2, 3.
Page 480
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
completion of the examination she applied evidence tape to the bag

containing the K1 hair mass and the petri dish.1602
1832 Sgt Webb said that the hair mass remained in the microscope storage
area in the physical evidence laboratory for a fair amount of time upon
return from the FBI. He said it remained there for possibly two years. He
said that the hair mass was entered onto the PTS on 22 May 2003 and
given the identifier VW1. Somewhat confusingly there was already a
VW1 in existence from when the items had first been returned from the
FBI and distributed (the earlier VW1 consisted of 84 glass slides). An
item known as VW1A was also entered on 22 May 2003, which was a
subsample of hair Sgt Webb took from VW1 in order to take it to the
Australian Federal Police (AFP) for testing. He said that VW1 was in two
clip seal bags and that he removed VW1A and put it into separate
packaging.1603
1833 The Property Transfer History shows that VW1 and VW1A went to
the DNA Exhibits Co-ordination Unit (described by some witnesses as
DECU) on the same day, 22 May 2003. Ms Kathleen Mullen of DECU
stated by reference to the PTS records that she received the items on
22 May 2003.1604
1834 David Barnett is a former police officer who worked at DECU. His
statement was read in to evidence. He did not have any independent
recollection of transferring VW1 or VW1A. However by reference to the
PTS records he stated that on 1 August 2003 the items were transferred
from DECU to Snr Sgt Paton.1605
1835 Superintendent Anthony Lee has been intermittently involved with
Operation Macro since 2003. His statement was read in to evidence. He
stated that on 5 August 2003 he took two items to the Australian Federal
Police forensic laboratory in Canberra for specialist forensic examination.
The items were marked VW1 and VW1A. The two items are recorded as
having been received at the AFP laboratory at 11.00 am on 5 August
2003. That document describes the exhibits as 'control of head hair taken
from VW1' and 'hair mass taken at PM'.1606
1836 Dr James Robertson is a forensic scientist with the Australian
Federal Police who gave evidence about the movement of the exhibits at
1602
ts 9780 - 3; exhibit 15225, exhibit 15226, exhibit 15227, exhibit 15228, exhibit 15229, exhibit 15230.
1603
1604
1605
ts 8130 - 1; exhibit 01896.
1606
Page 481
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
the AFP. He signed a continuity label to indicate he had seen the item
that came into the AFP. He said that after the exhibits went into the case
reception area and were received by the administration team they would
have been placed into the secure store. He looked at both items on
18 August 2003 but primarily concentrated on VW1. He did not believe
he had opened VW1A. He said VW1 was in a press-sealed plastic bag.
He would have selected twenty hairs to provide for variety in the sample
and prepared the hairs for microscopic examination, by placing them
individually on microscope slides with mounting liquid. The slides were
marked with a unique number, given a sub-number and dated. He would
have placed the hair mass back in the bag and not removed it again.1607
1837 Dr Robertson said that he did not do any further examinations until
the following year, from about 10 to 14 July 2004. On 29 June 2005 some
items were returned to WA Police from the AFP, although some slides
remained with Dr Robertson until 2010.1608
1838 On 28 June 2005 Snr Sgt Sanderson attended the AFP's Forensic
Service Office in Canberra and met with Dr Robertson. Snr Sgt
Sanderson said he returned the following day on 29 June 2005 and
collected the exhibits. He flew back to Perth with the exhibits contained
in boxes. At the time he collected the exhibits he did not have an exhibit
list; he created one about a month after he returned. He did not have any
notes that said where the boxes were during this month, but suggested that
the boxes were stored in the Physical Evidence Laboratory.1609
1839 Sgt Hyde said that he believed he checked the contents of a series of
three boxes on 18 July 2005. He did not have a recollection of having
done this, but said he had seen Snr Sgt Sanderson's running sheet that
made reference to it. He said he opened all three of the boxes and made
observations about their contents and resealed the boxes. The notes
record that the boxes were opened on 18 July 2005 at 1250 hours and
resealed.1610
1840 On 26 July 2005 Snr Sgt Sanderson and Sgt Hyde conducted a
stocktake of the boxes. Sgt Hyde opened the boxes and advised of the
details. Snr Sgt Sanderson was the scribe and said he would record what
1607
ts 7625 - 7, 7633 - 4; exhibit 12147.
1608
ts 7627, 7641.
1609
ts 7328 - 9, 7331.
1610
Page 482
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
was in the boxes and make decisions about whether to send exhibits on to
another laboratory.1611
1841 Sgt Hyde gave evidence that a clip seal bag came from within one of
the boxes. He was shown a photograph of the bag. Evidence tape across
the bottom is signed by Sgt Webb and dated 22 May 2003. There is more
evidence tape towards the top of the bag that is signed by Sgt Hyde and
dated 26 July 2005. The bag also has a forensic services label with the
description 'hair mass taken at PM'. He was shown a photograph of
another clip seal bag. There is a forensic services label on it recording
details including a description 'control of head hair taken from VW1'. He
noted that the evidence tape is signed by Sgt Webb. Sgt Hyde said that
this was VW1A and would have been in one of the boxes.1612
1842 Sgt Hyde was next shown a photograph of two empty plastic bags
with some markings on them. He said that from a review of the running
sheet these two bags were removed from the bag that contained VW1. He
explained that in the outer bag there were three items; the hair mass that
was within another bag, and two empty bags. He said that an incision was
made to the outer bag to remove the two empty bags and then the bag was
resealed. He agreed that at that point the hair mass was in a bag inside
another sealed bag. He said that 'K Glennon hair mass' is written on it and
a case number '97R155.33'. The other bag has a number, 'K1' and some
initials.1613
1843 Sgt Hyde said that from a review of the photographs and the running
sheet his interpretation of these notes is as follows. He opened an outer
bag and took out two empty plastic bags. He left VW1 (in the transcript
referred to as VW1A) inside an inner clip seal bag in the outer bag. The
outer bag was resealed and evidence tape was placed over the seal. He
did not do anything else with the items that were in the box apart from
open them up and take the bags out and seal the bags back up. He said
that at the end of this process he believed they updated the PTS records
for the items and he thought the items may have been forwarded to
PathWest.1614
1844 The next day, 27 July 2005, Snr Sgt Sanderson took those items to
PathWest that he had decided should be sent there. He was shown an
'incoming case' document that he said was an acknowledgement by
1611
ts 3637, 3639, 7329; exhibit 12248.
1612
1613
1614
ts 3659, 3664, 3667.
Page 483
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
PathWest of the items that he took there. Karen Gibbs of PathWest

stamped and dated the document 27 July 2005 at 11.44 am. That
document shows that two sealed bags or boxes were received and a list of
items is attached. He said that the list was part of the request for analysis
that he sent to PathWest and that Karen Gibbs checked and labelled it.
VW1 and VW1A are both on the list.1615
1845 Ms Gibbs' statement was read in to evidence. She stated that she
received two sealed boxes from Snr Sgt Sanderson. Accompanying the
boxes was a checklist of the slides and containers in the boxes, which she
checked off. She produced the conveyance sheet and checklist and stated
that she signed both documents indicating she received the exhibits, which
relevantly include VW1 and VW1A.1616
1846 After the ChemCentre had located what was thought to be vehicle
fibres in Ms Rimmer's hair a decision was made to examine Ms Glennon's
hair exhibits for such fibres. On 28 September 2018 Sergeant Beck
attended PathWest to collect VW1 and VW1A from forensic biologist
Tracey Horner. He described VW1 as a portion of Ms Glennon's head
hair and VW1A as a subsample from VW1. They were already in clip
seal bags when Sgt Beck collected them and the VW1 bag had numerous
pieces of evidence tape on it. VW1A was in a yellow envelop within a
clip seal bag and was sealed. PathWest records show that Sgt Beck
collected and signed for VW1 and VW1A at 9.34 on 28 September 2018.
He said he had already assigned them forensic register barcodes and he
attached the barcodes to them and delivered them directly to Peter Collins
at the ChemCentre.1617
1847 Sgt Beck and Mr Collins signed a document that shows that VW1
and VW1A were received by Mr Collins at the ChemCentre at 10.26 on
28 September 2018. The barcodes that Sgt Beck had assigned to the
exhibits appear on this document, which is a printout of the forensic
register.1618
1848 From 1 October 2018 to 25 October 2018 VW1 was photographed

and searched via stereomicroscopy. The mass was split into sixteen
subsamples during this search.1619
1615
ts 7345 - 6; exhibit 20004.
1616
ts 9655; exhibit 16842.
1617
ts 7989 - 90; exhibit 06042.
1618
ts 7991 - 2; exhibit 06043.
1619
Page 484
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HALL J
Critical fibre 005

1849 Hair sample 1 was examined by stereomicroscope by Mr Collins on
1 October 2018. He recovered fibres 05F0925.109-001 to 109-026,
including one critical fibre registered as 05F0925.109-005, known as fibre
005.1620
1850 Fibre 005 was subjected to compound microscopy on 5 October 2018

by Mr Collins. He also analysed it by MSP on that day. Mr Powell said
that fibre 005 is a light grey delustered polypropylene fibre. He observed
that the fibre 005 appears to have a trilobal cross-section and is quite
thick. He said this was possibly indicative of a carpet fibre.1621

1851 On 2 October 2018 Mr Collins recovered fibres from hair sample 2,
ranging from 109 subsample -027 to -046. These included three critical
fibres that were registered as 05F0925.109-040, known as fibre 040,
05F0925.109-042, known as fibre 042, and 05F0925.109-043, known as
fibre 043.1622
by Mr Collins. Mr Powell said that fibre 040 is a blue delustered
polyester fibre. Mr Collins analysed fibre 040 by MSP on 8 October 2018
and the MSP was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.1623
by Mr Collins. He also analysed it by MSP on 8 October 2018.
Mr Powell said that fibre 042 is a blue delustered polyester fibre.1624
by Mr Collins. He also analysed it by MSP on 8 October 2018.
Mr Powell said that fibre 043 is a blue delustered polyester fibre. He
noted that some areas of fibre 043 were damaged.1625
Critical fibres 087, 050, 060, 063, 075, 079, 083 and 088
1855 From 3 to 4 October 2018 Mr Collins examined hair sample 3 by
stereomicroscope. Fibres 05F0925.109-047 to 05F0925.109-094 were
recovered. This included the following eight critical fibres:
1620
ts 8851.
1621
1622
ts 8620, 8631, 8642.
1623
ts 8620 - 2, 8626 - 7; exhibit 24663, exhibit 24662, exhibit 24678, exhibit 30322, 35, exhibit 30496.
1624
1625
Page 485
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HALL J
1. Fibre 05F0925.109-087 known as fibre 0871626

8. Fibre 05F0925.109-088 known as fibre 088.1633
1856 Fibre 087 was subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Collins on

5 October 2018. He also analysed it by MSP on 8 October 2018.
Mr Powell said that fibre 087 is a blue delustered polyester fibre. He also
said that the fibre appeared slightly deformed and out of focus. He said
the focus issue could be explained by the amount of mounting medium on
the glass slide.1634
5 October 2018. He also analysed it by MSP on 8 October 2018. The
MSP was repeated on 2 May 2019 by Mr Fillingham. Mr Powell made
several observations about fibre 050. He said it is a blue non-delustered
rayon fibre. He also said it has a striated appearance and has a
non-cylindrical cross-section. The polarised light image showed low
birefringence and that the fibre was of cellulosic composition. He said in
combination these factors indicated to him that it is a rayon fibre. As
between the two MSP analyses, Mr Powell said the 2019 MSP showed a
much wider spread in absorbance values, that is, a wider ranges between
the darker and lighter areas.1635

5 October 2018. He also analysed it by MSP on 8 October 2018. Fibre
1626
ts 8647; exhibit 30499.
1627
ts 8798; exhibit 30521.
1628
ts 8861; exhibit 30530.
1629
ts 8866; exhibit 30531.
1630
ts 8807; exhibit 30522.
1631
ts 8871; exhibit 30532.
1632
ts 8879; exhibit 30533.
1633
ts 8834; exhibit 30527.
1634
1635
ts 8798 - 801; exhibit 30521, exhibit 25170, exhibit 25171, exhibit 25172, exhibit 30324, p 2.
Page 486
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HALL J
060 is a light grey delustered polypropylene fibre with a trilobal

cross-section.1636

5 October 2018. He also analysed it by MSP on 8 October 2018. Fibre
063 is a light grey delustered polypropylene fibre with a trilobal
cross-section.1637

by Mr Collins. He also subjected it to MSP on 8 October 2018. The MSP
was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 2 May 2019. Fibre 075 is a blue
non-delustered rayon fibre. Mr Powell also said it appears to have a
non-cylindrical cross-section and has a striated appearance.1638

Mr Powell said fibre 079 is a light grey delustered polypropylene
fibre.1639
Mr Powell said fibre 083 is a light grey delustered polypropylene fibre
with a non-cylindrical cross-section.1640
1863 On 5 October 2018 Mr Collins subjected fibre 088 to compound

microscopy and analysed it by MSP. Mr Powell said fibre 088 is a grey
delustered polyester fibre.1641

1864 Between 4 and 9 October 2018, Mr Collins examined hair sample 4
by stereomicroscopy. Through this process fibres 5F0925.109-095
through to 5F0925.109-142 were recovered.1642 This included the
following five critical fibres:

2. Fibre 05F0925.109-128 known as fibre 128(2)1644
1636
ts 8861 - 2; exhibit 25315, exhibit 23516, exhibit 30297, p 14, exhibit 30530.
1637
1638
1639
1640
ts 8879 - 80; exhibit 25350, exhibit 23549, exhibit 30297, p 5, exhibit 30533.
1641
ts 8834; exhibit 30527, exhibit 25258, exhibit 25259, exhibit 30295.
1642
ts 8654; exhibit 30500.
1643
ts 8654; exhibit 30500.
Page 487
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1865 Fibre 135 was recovered on 9 October 2018. On 12 October 2018
Mr Collins subjected fibre 135 to stereomicroscopy and analysed it by
MSP. The MSP was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.
Mr Powell said fibre 135 is a blue delustered polyester fibre.1648
1866 Fibre 128 is the second of two fibres with this identifer. I will refer
to it as fibre 128(2). Fibre 128 was recovered on 9 October 2018. On
11 October 2018 Mr Collins subjected fibre 128 to compound
microscopy. He also analysed it by MSP on 12 October 2018. The MSP
was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 2 May 2019. Mr Powell said that fibre
128 is a blue non-delustered rayon fibre. He also said it appeared to have
a non-cylindrical cross-section and visible striations.1649
Mr Collins subjected fibre 130 to compound microscopy. He also
analysed it by MSP on 12 October 2018. The MSP was repeated by
Mr Fillingham on 2 May 2019. Mr Powell said that fibre 130 is a blue
non-delustered rayon fibre, with non-cylindrical cross-section with
striations present.1650
Mr Collins subjected fibre 141 to compound microscopy and analysed it
by MSP. The MSP was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.
Mr Powell said that fibre 141 is a blue delustered polyester fibre. He also
explained that the likely reason the fibre appears lighter at one end is that
it was compressed by the tweezers.1651

by MSP. The MSP was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019 and
1644
ts 8811 - 2; exhibit 30523.
1645
ts 8816; exhibit 30524.
1646
ts 8660; exhibit 30501.
1647
ts 8666; exhibit 30502.
1648
1649
1650
1651
Page 488
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HALL J
Mr Powell noted the 2019 MSP had much wider absorbance. Mr Powell
said that fibre 142 is a blue delustered polyester fibre.1652

1870 On 9 and 10 October 2018, Mr Collins examined hair sample 5 by
stereomicroscopy. During this process fibres 05F0925.109-143 through
to 05F0925.109-160 were recovered. These included the following three
critical fibres:

Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019. Mr Powell noted the wide spread of
absorbance and said that fibre 157 is a blue delustered polyester fibre.1656
analysed it by MSP on 15 October 2018. Mr Powell said that fibre 158 is
a delustered polyester fibre. Though the transcript is indistinct at the point
Mr Powell identifies the colour of the fibre having looked at the
brightfield image, his earlier evidence was that this fibre was
characterised as blue. The MSP was repeated in 2019.1657

analysed it by MSP on 15 October 2018. Mr Powell said that fibre 159 is
a blue delustered polyester fibre. The MSP was repeated on 29 April
2019 by Mr Fillingham.1658
1652
ts 8666-7, 8670 - 1; exhibit 30502, exhibit 24805, exhibit 24806, exhibit 30322, p 53, exhibit 24819.
1653
ts 8674; exhibit 30503.
1654
ts 8683; exhibit 30504.
1655
ts 8690; exhibit 30505.
1656
1657
1658
Page 489
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Critical fibre 169

1874 On 10 to 11 October 2018 Mr Collins subjected hair sample 6 to
stereomicroscopy. This process resulted in fibres 05F0925.109-161
through to 05F0925.109-199 being recovered. This included fibre
05F0925.109-169 known as fibre 169.1659

analysed it by MSP on 15 October 2018. The MSP was repeated on
29 April 2019 by Mr Fillingham. Mr Powell said that fibre 169 is a blue

1876 On 15 to 16 October 2018 Mr Collins subjected hair sample 7 to
stereomicroscopy. During this process he recovered fibres from the
subsample, being 05F0925.109-200 through to 05F0925.109-224. This
included two critical fibres: 05F0925.109-203 known as fibre 203 and
05F0925.109-218 known as fibre 218.1661
1877 Fibre 203 was recovered on 15 October 2018. Mr Collins subjected
it to compound microscopy on 18 October 2018. He also analysed it by
MSP on 19 October 2018. Mr Powell said that fibre 203 is a blue
1878 Fibre 218 was recovered on 16 October 2018. It was subjected to
compound microscopy by Mr Collins on 18 October 2018. He also
Mr Powell on 3 December 2018 to perform an analysis over an extended
range. Mr Powell said that fibre 218 is a dark grey delustered
polypropylene fibre. He also observed that there is a blue pigment
towards the centre of the fibre, it has quite a wide diameter and appears to
have a non-cylindrical cross-section.1663
Critical fibre 247

1879 On 17 and 18 October 2018, Mr Collins subjected hair sample 9 to
stereomicroscopy. Subsamples 05F0925.109-244 through to
1659
ts 8697; exhibit 30506.
1660
ts 8697 - 8, 8702-3; exhibit 30506, exhibit 24880, exhibit 24881, exhibit 30322, p 65, exhibit 28495.
1661
1662
1663
Page 490
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HALL J
05F0925.109-257 were recovered, including critical fibre

05F0925.109-247 known as fibre 247.1664

analysed it by MSP on 3 April 2019. The MSP was repeated on 2 May
2019 by Mr Fillingham. Mr Powell said that fibre 247 is a blue delustered
rayon fibre. He also said that it appeared to have a non-cylindrical
cross-section and appears to contain striations.1665

1881 On 18 October 2018 Mr Collins subjected hair sample 10 to
stereomicroscopy. From this subsample fibres 05F0925.109-258 through
to 05F0925.109-265, were recovered. These include fibre
05F0925.109-258 known as fibre 258 and fibre 05F0925.109-259 known
as fibre 259.1666
MSP was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019. Mr Powell said
that fibre 258 is a blue delustered polyester fibre.1667

MSP was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019. Mr Powell said
that fibre 259 is a blue delustered polyester fibre.1668

1884 From 19 to 22 October Mr Collins subjected hair sample 11 to
stereomicroscopy. During this process fibres 05F0925.109-266 through
to 05F0925.109-289 were recovered.1669 These include the following
critical fibres:
1664
ts 8823; exhibit 30525.
1665
1666
1667
1668
1669
ts 8742, 8884; exhibit 30510.
1670
ts 8724; exhibit 30510.
Page 491
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Mr Collins subjected fibre 278 to compound microscopy. Mr Powell
explained that there was an issue regarding the microscopy of this fibre in
that a brightfield image had been incorrectly described as a polarised light
image and so the polarised light image was repeated by Mr Collins on
26 March 2020. On the basis of the compound microscopy images,
including the 2020 repeat of the polarised light image, Mr Powell said that
fibre 278 is a blue delustered polyester fibre. Fibre 278 was also analysed
by MSP by Mr Collins on 26 October 2018.1673

analysed it by MSP on 26 October 2018. Mr Powell said fibre 267 is a
light grey delustered polypropylene fibre.1674
Mr Powell on 3 December 2018 with extended range. Mr Powell said
fibre 268 is a light grey delustered polypropylene fibre. He also observed
some blue flecks and said the fibre appeared to have a non-cylindrical
cross-section.1675
1888 On 22 and 23 October 2018 Mr Collins subjected hair sample 12 to
stereomicroscopy. The fibres recovered were registered as
05F0925.109-290 through to 05F0925.109-308.1676 These included the
following five critical fibres:
1671
ts 8884; exhibit 30534.
1672
ts 8891; exhibit 30535.
1673
1674
1675
1676
ts 8731; exhibit 30511.
1677
ts 8731; exhibit 30511.
1678
ts 8736 - 7; exhibit 30512.
Page 492
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Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019. Mr Powell said that fibre 294 is a blue



by MSP. The MSP was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 2 May 2019.
Mr Powell said that fibre 308 is a blue non-delustered rayon fibre. He
also observed that it had an apparent non-cylindrical cross-section and
striations.1686

1894 On 23 October 2018 hair sample 13 was subjected to
stereomicroscopy by Mr Collins. This resulted in the collection of fibres
05F0925.109-309 through to 05F0925.109-312. This included critical
1679
ts 8742; exhibit 30513.
1680
ts 8748; exhibit 30514.
1681
ts 8827; exhibit 30526.
1682
ts 8731 - 2, 8733; exhibit 30511, exhibit 29475, exhibit 29474, exhibit 24976, exhibit 30322 p 80.
1683
ts 8736 - 8, 8741 - 2; exhibit 30512, exhibit 24994, exhibit 24993, exhibit 30322 p 83, exhibit 25008.
1684
ts 8742 - 5; exhibit 30513, exhibit 25013, exhibit 25012, exhibit 25014, exhibit 30322 p 86.
1685
ts 8748 - 9, 8752 - 3; exhibit 30514, exhibit 25029, exhibit 25030, exhibit 30322 p 89, exhibit 25045.
1686
ts 8827 - 31; exhibit 30526, exhibit 25243, exhibit 25244, exhibit 25245, exhibit 30324 p 17.
Page 493
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HALL J
fibres 05F0925.109-309 known as fibre 309 and fibre 05F0925.109-311

known as fibre 311.1687

microscopy and analysis by MSP. The MSP was repeated by
delustered polyester fibre. He also noted that there appeared to be some
damage to the bottom of the fibre.1688
1896 Fibre 311 was subjected to compound microscopy and analysis by

MSP on 26 October 2018 by Mr Collins. The MSP was repeated by
Critical fibre 315

stereomicroscopy. Fibres recovered were registered as 05F0925.109-313
through to 05F0925.109-319. This includes critical fibre
05F0925.109-315 known as fibre 315.1690
microscopy and MSP analysis. The MSP was repeated by Mr Fillingham
on 29 April 2019. Mr Powell said that fibre 315 is a blue delustered
polyester fibre.1691
Critical fibre 325
stereomicroscopy. During this process fibres recovered were registered as
05F0925.109-320 through to 05F0925.109-327. This included critical
fibre 05F0925.109-325 known as fibre 325.1692

Mr Collins subjected fibre 325 to compound microscopy and MSP
analysis. The MSP was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.
1687
1688
1689
1690
ts 8766; exhibit 30517.
1691
1692
ts 8772; exhibit 30518.
1693
ts 8772 - 3, 8776-7; exhibit 30518, exhibit 25099, exhibit 25100, exhibit 30322, p 101, exhibit 25114.
Page 494
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1901 On 25 October 2018 Mr Collins subjected hair sample 16 to
stereomicroscopy. Fibres recovered were registered as subsamples
05F0925.109-328 through to 05F0925.109-341.1694 These include the
following critical fibres:


microscopy and MSP analysis. Mr Powell said that fibre 333 is a grey
Critical fibre 024

1905 As noted above, VW1A arrived at the ChemCentre on the same day
as VW1, 28 September 2018. On 29 and 30 October 2018 it was
photographed, subjected to stereomicroscopy and searched for trace
evidence by Mr Collins. Fibres recovered in this search were registered as
05F0925.110-001 through to 05F0925.110-042. This includes critical
fibre 05F0925.110-024 known as fibre 024.1701
1694
ts 8778; exhibit 30519.
1695
ts 8778; exhibit 30519.
1696
ts 8841; exhibit 30527.
1697
ts 8786; exhibit 30520.
1698
ts 8778 - 9, 8783; exhibit 30519, exhibit 25115, exhibit 25116, 30322, p 104, exhibit 25130.
1699
1700
1701
Page 495
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HALL J

microscopy and MSP analysis. Mr Powell said that fibre 024 is a grey
The billy bucket

1907 As noted above, the hair mass had been removed from the billy
bucket and sent to the FBI. On 20 March 2018, Sgt Beck and Senior
Sergeant Natasha Rogers attended the State Mortuary to meet Dr Buck
and Tony Wight, the mortuary manager. Sgt Beck and Snr Sgt Rogers
were shown a billy bucket in an insecure plastic bag, which was in a
freezer in the basement. Sgt Beck said there was red writing on the top of
the bucket that said 'keep', a PathWest reference number '97R155' and
batch number '.33' and the letters 'BTBCEG'. 'Hair' was written on the
side of the bucket.1703
1908 Mr Wight brought the bucket to Sgt Beck, who took some
photographs of it. Snr Sgt Rogers took notes and was cross-checking
what they found. Mr Wight removed the lid so that Sgt Beck could take a
photo of the inside of the bucket. There was a small amount of hair and a
piece of paper towel or filter paper inside. The lid was then replaced and
the bucket returned to the freezer at the State Mortuary.1704
1909 On 10 October 2018, Sgt Beck and Snr Sgt Rogers returned to the
State Mortuary and collected the billy bucket from Dr Cooke. Dr Cooke
was shown a receipt for the transfer of the bucket, which shows that it was
collected by Snr Sgt Rogers. Dr Cooke was also shown photos of a billy
bucket and said he believed that was the bucket he handed to Snr
Sgt Rogers. Sgt Beck placed the billy bucket in a prisoner property
envelope and signed and sealed it. He then returned to Cold Case
Homicide and placed it in secure storage.1705
1910 On 31 October 2018 Sgt Beck took the prisoner property envelope
with the billy bucket inside to the ChemCentre and delivered it to Peter
Collins for the purpose of fibre analysis.1706
1911 On 1 and 5 November 2018 at the ChemCentre, photographs were

taken of the bucket both before and after it was removed from the prisoner
property envelope. The contents of the bucket were removed from the
1702
1703
ts 7983.
1704
1705
ts 4561 - 3, 7987 - 8; exhibit 14286, exhibit 14360, exhibit 14361, exhibit 14362.
1706
ts 7988, 8959 - 8960; exhibit 25570.
Page 496
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HALL J
bucket and placed onto a tray and again photographed. The bucket
contained some hair and a brown section of paper. Two subsamples of
the hair were taken and registered. The paper was sliced into two sections
and registered as subsamples. Each of these four items was examined by
stereomicroscopy by either Mr Collins or Mr Powell between 1 and
6 November 2018.1707

1912 On 1 November 2018 three critical fibres were recovered by
Mr Collins from a subsample of the hair from the bucket. They were
registered as 05F0925.111-007 known as fibre 007, 05F0925.111-020
known as fibre 020 and 05F0925.111-025 known as fibre 025.1708
1913 Fibre 007 was subjected to compound microscopy on 5 November

2018 by Mr Collins and he also analysed it by MSP on 6 November 2018.
The MSP was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019. Mr Powell

said that fibre 025 is a blue polyester fibre. The delusterant was difficult
to discern on the images.1711

1916 On 2 November 2018, two further critical fibres were recovered from
the hair subsample by Mr Collins. They were registered as
05F0925.111-044 known as fibre 044 and fibre 05F0925.111-051 known
as fibre 051.1712

2018 by Mr Collins and he also subjected it to MSP on 6 November 2018.
1707
ts 8960 - 5; exhibit 30538, exhibit 25570, exhibit 25556, exhibit 25557, exhibit 25559, exhibit 25560, exhibit
1708
ts 8965, 8971, 8976.
1709
1710
1711
ts 8977 - 8, 8979; exhibit 25590, exhibit 25592, exhibit 25595, exhibit 30540, exhibit 30322, p 116.
1712
ts 8982, 8990.
Page 497
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HALL J

said that fibre 044 is a blue polyester fibre.1713

K1 pillbox
1919 As noted above, the hair mass had been delivered by Sgt Webb to the
FBI, along with other exhibits associated with Ms Glennon, between
6 and 10 February 1999. The hair mass was given the FBI exhibit
identifier 'K1' and subsamples had been taken from the hair mass,
including one that was put into a petri dish. The petri dish had itself also
been labelled 'K1'. Sgt Webb received the FBI exhibits, including the hair
mass and the petri dish on 6 March 2001.1715
1920 At some stage between 6 March 2001 and 18 May 2001, Sgt Webb
relabelled the exhibits that had returned from the FBI according to where
they were to be sent. The process included the labelling of VW3. He was
shown a copy of PTS records in relation to VW3 and said that it was
entered onto the PTS on 18 May 2001; those records describe it as 'Debris
samples taken from various exhibits by FBI'. He examined VW3 and
took various samples from that exhibit which were numbered VW4, VW5
and VW6. He said he would have done this in the physical evidence
laboratory.1716
1921 VW5 is described in the PTS records as 'sample pack of debris
separated from VW3 containing 9 exhibits'. Sgt Webb was shown a
document entitled 'Forensic exhibit inventory' that he said was 'more than
likely' created by him. On this document, K1 is recorded as 'exhibit
container containing control sample of CEG's hair'. Sgt Webb was asked
whether K1 made up part of VW5 and he could not recall. He said that
K1 is the 'hair mass and control sample' and that if it was going anywhere,
it would have gone to the ChemCentre.1717 As noted above multiple items
were labelled 'K1' whilst they were at the FBI.
1713
ts 8982 - 3, 8988 - 9; exhibit 25606, exhibit 25607, exhibit 30322, p 119, exhibit 30541, exhibit 25624.
1714
1715
ts 7402, 7404, 9781; exhibit 13349, p 3, exhibit 13350, exhibit 15226, exhibit 22054.
1716
ts 7415 - 7; exhibit 13364.
1717
ts 7417 - 8, 7420; 7426 - 7, note that at ts 7417, Mr Webb is shown exhibit 13365, which was at that stage of
the trial a smaller subset of pages than those that eventually became exhibit 13365, see ts 7432; exhibit 02384,
exhibit 13365.
Page 498
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1922 Sgt Webb was shown the Property Transfer History for VW5. He
said it was entered into the PTS on 26 March 2002 and on 8 April 2002 he
hand delivered it to PathWest. On the basis of VW5 having been
delivered to PathWest, he said there is a high probability that it was hairs.
It was put to Sgt Webb that nine items on pages 34 to 36 of the inventory
made up VW5 and he said 'I would say yes'. He agreed that the nine
exhibits were going to PathWest. The PTS shows that VW5 was hand
delivered by Sgt Webb to PathWest on 8 April 2002. He was shown a
request for analysis form that is accompanied by further PTS
documentation relating to VW5. It has a list of exhibits on it that were
delivered to PathWest, including K1, which is described as 'Control
sample of Ciara Glennon's hair'.1718
1923 The next time the VW5 exhibits moved was on 24 April 2003 when
they went to the Forensic Crime Scene Unit. Velia Langoulant was at that
time working at PathWest. Her statement was read in to evidence. She
stated that at 1535 hours on 23 April 2003 she returned exhibits including
K1, and delivered them to Detective Roger Haynes. Detective Haynes'
statement was also read in. He stated that he attended PathWest on
23 April 2003 and collected exhibits including K1. He said that he took
them to Sgt Webb at the Forensic Crime Scene Unit the following day,
24 April 2003.1719
1924 Sgt Webb said that he opened some of the petri dishes comprising
VW5 in order to divide them into different samples. This was observed
by Detective Haynes. Sgt Webb and Detective Haynes created a list of
the items from which subsamples were created. He was asked whether he
engaged in this process with K1, and he responded that he would not have
any reason to examine the hair mass but said that 'if there was a petri dish
named 'K1' then yes'. His list does not show that the K1 petri dish was
opened; however, he could not recall whether his list was exhaustive.1720
1925 VW5 next went to the DNA Exhibits Co-ordination Unit on 25 April
2003, although they were not entered into the PTS until 28 April 2003 by
Kathleen Mullen. Ms Mullen worked in the DNA Exhibits Co-ordination
Unit. She did not recall receiving the exhibits, but by reference to the
PTS, said that she received 'item 5' from Sgt Webb. Sgt Webb explained
they were only noted as being received on 28 April 2003 because of the
1718
1719
1720
ts 7446, 7448, 9770; exhibit 13358.
Page 499
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HALL J
Anzac Day public holiday. He was shown another copy of the same
document and he agreed that 'item 5' meant VW5.1721
1926 On 12 October 2005 Ms Mullen handed the same item to Kenneth

Sanderson. Mr Sanderson and Snr Sgt Paton took the petri dishes to
Mr Lynch at the ChemCentre on the following day. Mr Sanderson agreed
that 9 petri dishes made up VW5. He was shown a request for analysis
form dated 13 October 2005. He could not explain why the form was
dated 13 October 2005 and on the PTS records the date of transfer as
12 October 2005, but said that the DNA Exhibits Co-ordination Unit
could not record the date he took an item somewhere else, unless that is
updated on a PTS system. He said that overnight the items probably
would have been held at the Special Crime Squad in his office.1722
1927 Mr Lynch gave evidence that he signed the request for analysis form
dated 13 October 2005 and the description of the items received says 'nine
plastic containers debris ex-FBI relate to Glennon – Pipidinny Road'. He
said he would have received the items, given them a lab number and
identification tags and then transferred them to an exhibits store. He was
shown a photograph and recognised his own handwriting on a biohazard
label and said that he probably would have written that at the time he
received them.1723
1928 As noted earlier in respect of AJM33 (the t-shirt), on 29 June 2010

nine petri dishes were located in the office of Richard Clarke at the
ChemCentre during an audit of Operation Macro exhibits, including the
dish marked K1. Mr Clarke was shown a photograph of a clear plastic
bag containing petri dishes and said he believed them to be associated
with ChemCentre case number 05F1425. Mr Clarke recalled that he
visually inspected the petri dishes without opening them and determined
that they contained insufficient soil to provide useful mineralogical
evidence.1724
1929 After the audit, the petri dish K1 was returned to Sgt Sustek on
29 June 2010. Sgt Sustek gave evidence that she attended the
ChemCentre with Sergeant Rod Harris and met with Mr Collins from the
ChemCentre. She said they collected nine petri dishes that were
individually sealed and all of them were in one clip seal bag. She said
there was a PTS number on the bag that related to all of the items. She
1721
ts 7417 - 9, 7446 - 7, 8126; exhibit 13365, exhibit 13366, exhibit 15622.
1722
ts 7352 - 3, 7447 - 9, 8126; exhibit 12251, exhibit 13366, exhibit 15622, exhibit 23141.
1723
1724
ts 8186, 8484 - 5; exhibit 30454.
Page 500
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HALL J
recorded the details in her day book. The clip seal bag was opened and
the petri dishes separated out to see what was written on them and then
each petri dish was sealed within its own clip seal bag. Sgt Sustek's notes
show that one of the petri dishes was labelled with case numbers, 'K1' and
a note 'item 5'.1725
1930 On 20 November 2012 Dr Coumbaros from the ChemCentre

received the petri dish K1 from Sgt Sustek. It was delivered along with a
number of other items. Sgt Sustek produced a continuity document that
describes K1 as a petri dish containing head hair samples from Ciara
Glennon and states that the petri dish was created by the FBI on
18 August 1999. The document also states that the hair in the petri dish
comes from the original hair mass delivered by Sgt Webb to the FBI.1726
Critical fibre 002(1)

1931 On 5 December 2012 Mr Powell took some photographs of the K1
petri dish and then examined it. He recovered two fibres, including a
critical fibre which was registered as 96F2948.216-002 known as fibre
002. This is the first of two critical fibres recovered with the same suffix,
being -002. I will therefore refer to this fibre as 002(1).1727
1932 Fibre 002(1) was subjected to compound microscopy on 5 December

2012 by Mr Powell and he also analysed it by MSP on 10 December
2012. The MSP was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 1 May 2019.
Mr Powell said it is a blue delustered polyester fibre.1728
RH17 – lock of hair

1933 RH17 is the lock of hair located by forensic officers at the Eglinton
scene on 3 April 1997. The accused has admitted that the lock of hair is
Ms Glennon's. Two critical fibres were recovered from this exhibit.1729
1934 The evidence about how RH17 was located and seized at the scene
was given mainly by retired police officers Robert Hemelaar and Barry
Mott and Sgt Hyde who is still part of the forensic section of WA Police.
Some of that evidence has been summarised in an earlier part of these
reasons. As has previously been noted, the video recording taken at the
scene has a pause which coincides with the time that RH17 was collected.
1725
1726
ts 7587, 8996; exhibit 12746, exhibit 12807, exhibit 30543.
1727
ts 8996 - 8; exhibit 30543, exhibit 25670, exhibit 25671, exhibit 25672, exhibit 25674, exhibit 25675.
1728
1729
ts 7810; exhibit 30387.
Page 501
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HALL J
1935 Sgt Mott recalled that RH17 was collected before the body of
Ms Glennon was moved. Sgt Hemelaar was shown a photograph of the
specimen jar containing RH17. He agreed that there are two different sets
of handwriting on it. The writing in red is not his handwriting.
Sgt Hemelaar believes that he has written 'RH 17 hair sample from head'
on the jar. He suggested that his writing looks a little different to normal
because he was writing on the curved surface of the jar. He said that he
would have written on the jar and handed it to Constable Hyde to record
on the exhibit list. He said that the yellow top container with RH 17
would have remained sealed and been taken from the portable fridge in
the forensic trailer into the exhibit fridge at forensic division. Sgt Hyde
noted on the running sheet when exhibits were taken to the fridge in the
trailer. He has recorded that at 15.35 Sgt McCulloch took RH17 (along
with RH 21, 22, 18, 19 and 20) to the fridge.1730
1936 Sgt McCulloch's role at the Eglinton scene was effectively to act as a
courier to take the exhibits from the scene back to the vehicle in a timely
manner. He did not have an independent recollection of where RH17
went to. He said that in ordinary circumstances a sample of hair would
not go into the fridge, he said it could have been couriered up into the
trailer but not put into the fridge. The vehicles returned to police
headquarters. He said that he probably assisted Sgt Hemelaar in carrying
some of the exhibits into police headquarters and up to the third floor
where the photographic section was located, which was where
Sgt Hemelaar was stationed at the time.1731
1937 Sgt McCulloch did not know where RH17 was stored when they got
back to police headquarters; he said that if it was biological material it
may have been stored in an exhibit fridge. Sgt Mott was asked about
where RH 17 went and he said that it probably went to the exhibit area dry
room. Sgt Hemelaar said that RH17 would have gone from the portable
fridge to the secure exhibit fridge.1732
1938 Sgt Mott said that when they went to the office the items were
processed and entered onto the PTS; he recalled that he may have assisted
Sgt Hemelaar with that task. Sgt Hemelaar said that once the items had
been logged into the PTS system a receipt was printed and that the time
on the receipt is the time of printing. The relevant receipt records that a
1730
ts 3219 - 21, 3289 - 90, 3420, 3427, 3432, 3621; exhibit 22059.
1731
ts 4107 - 9, 4110.
1732
ts 4110.
Page 502
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HALL J
number of items, including RH17, were logged into the system by

21:31 hours on 3 April 1997.1733
1939 Sgt McCulloch recalled that he went to the post-mortem examination

at the State Mortuary the next day with SC Hyde. They left from the
office and dropped off some entomological exhibits to the Department of
Agriculture on the way. Sgt Hyde was asked if he recalled RH17 being at
the State Mortuary and said that he did not.1734
1940 At the post-mortem Sgt McCulloch was responsible for the

packaging, labelling, secure storage and the later distribution of exhibits.
He collected the exhibits at the post-mortem. He said that before an
exhibit could be given to anyone the pathologist had to sign off on it.
That was done on a Coroner's Act form. This included not just exhibits
that were physically collected at the post-mortem but some that had been
collected earlier, including RH17. He is noted to be the 'courier' on the
Coroner's Act form for the exhibits taken at the post-mortem. This means
that during the course of the examination he handed some items to
Laurance Webb from PathWest. On the first page of the form there is a
list of items. Item 4 is 'RH17 (scene)'. On the fourth page of the list there
is a note 'RH' 17 hair sample (head) SCENE'. Sgt McCulloch said that is
not his handwriting and he did not recognise the it. He said this document
accompanied the exhibits listed on it and he handed it to Mr Webb at
12.30pm on 4 April 1997. He was asked if he had any idea where RH17
came from and how it came to be handed it to Mr Webb and he said he
did not.1735
1941 Mr Webb's statement was read in to evidence. He stated that at
12.20 pm on 3 April 1997 he received a quantity of exhibits from
SC McCulloch, who recorded the exhibits on a police exhibit list. He
signed a forensic pathology consultation form for items including RH17.
He took the exhibits to PathWest, where they were received by Scott Egan
who recorded the samples onto three yellow 'samples received' forms.
The forms record that RH17 (described as 'hair sample from head') was
received and under the heading 'label' it is noted '1507 3/4/97 RH17 hair
sample from head'.1736
1942 Mr Bagdonavicius examined RH17. That examination has been

summarised earlier in these reasons. A PathWest hair examination
1733
ts 3233 - 5, 3433; exhibit 08134.
1734
ts 3629, 4110.
1735
ts 4111, 4113, 4115 - 7; exhibit 18803.
1736
ts 4768 - 9, 5576 - 8, 6605 - 6; exhibit 15693, p 5, exhibit 16810, which is a copy of exhibit 18803, exhibit
16815, note exhibit 16815 is the same as 15693, p 5.
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worksheet refers to RH17 as a clump of hair greater than 200 hairs in a

sterile container. Twelve hairs were removed for examination and the
remaining hairs remained in the sterile container.1737
1943 Alaina Farrelly is a forensic scientist who worked at PathWest for a
few months in 2007 on a project for the Cold Case Homicide Squad, who
were then investigating the murders of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. Her
task was to catalogue and examine a number of exhibits, containers and
slides containing hairs and fibres to see if they were suitable for DNA
analysis. On 22 and 25 June 2007 she examined RH17. She had limited
independent recollection of the examination. By reference to notes and
photographs taken at the time she was able to describe the process that she
undertook. She opened a box containing 20 yellow top containers, which
were packaged together inside a clip seal plastic bag inside the box.
Packaged alongside the yellow top containers was a clip seal plastic bag
containing gloves and a brown paper bag. RH17 is listed as one of the
yellow top containers removed from the plastic bag and is described as
'hair sample from head'. She wrote 'NFA' next to this description in her
notes, meaning 'no further action'. In her notes RH17 is described as: 'RH
17 – (see photo for labelling of YTC) as per AJM53 (plus vegetation and
insects present in YTC)'. The description she wrote for AJM53 is
'contains a mass of brown, curly hair. Appear to be from a single source,
so detailed exam not continued.' It appears from the notes that the yellow
top containers were removed from the bag and photographed. According
to her examination notes, Ms Farrelly did not carry out any further
examination of RH 17 at this time. She was not able to say whether she
opened the lid of the yellow top container containing RH17 at any point
during the examination. After she had finished the examination she
would have repackaged the exhibits and returned them to their storage
location.1738
1944 The exhibit then remained in storage at PathWest until it was

collected on 6 September 2018 by SC Michael Lee who was then attached
to the Cold Case Homicide Squad. SC Lee's statement was read in to
evidence by consent. He stated that he went to PathWest and collected
236 Macro exhibits with the Glennon laboratory reference and took them
to the Cold Case Homicide Squad exhibit store. The exhibits were handed
to him by Dean Topping from PathWest. SC Lee stated that the exhibits
1737
ts 5308 - 9; exhibit 15716.
1738
ts 8187 - 9; exhibit 16078.
Page 504
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HALL J
had been individually packaged and sealed before he picked them up.
Included in the items collected was exhibit RH17.1739
1945 On 19 December 2018 RH17, along with other exhibits, was taken
out of the Cold Case exhibit store by a police auxiliary officer at the
request of Sgt Beck. Sgt Beck is a forensic supervisor who had been
seconded to the Cold Case Homicide Squad in 2015 to review the exhibits
and consider possible forensic lines of enquiry. He took RH17 to the
forensic work area to be examined. He said that RH17 was considered to
be a potentially important exhibit because it had undergone very little
examination or movement since it was seized at the Eglinton scene. He
photographed the entire bag that RH17 was in and then opened the bag
and took the yellow top with RH17 out. He observed that it had no
evidence seal, so he placed packing tape around the top and then evidence
seal over that and then photographed it. He did not open RH17 at any
time.1740
1946 On the same day, Sgt Beck took RH17 to the ChemCentre and gave
it to Mr Collins. RH17 was given the ChemCentre reference number.
RH17 was eventually returned by Peter Collins to Mandy Stewart from
WA Police on 9 July 2019.1741
Critical fibres 002(2) and 034
1947 Mr Powell gave evidence about the location of the critical fibres in
RH17. On 20 December 2018 Mr Collins took four photographs of the
RH17 and in the course of that day and the next searched the hair using a
stereo microscope. He located 55 fibres in that search, which were given
reference numbers 05F0925.112-001 to 05F0925.112-055. These
included two blue polyester fibres. One was recovered on 20 December
2018 which was registered as 05F0925.112-002 known as fibre 002(2).
The other was recovered on 21 December 2018 and given the reference
code 05F0925.112-034 known as fibre 034.1742
1948 Fibre 002(2) was subjected to compound microscopy on

21 December 2018 by Mr Powell and he also analysed it by MSP on
24 December 2018. Mr Powell described it as a blue delustered polyester
1739
ts 9645 - 6; exhibit 11364.
1740
ts 7993, 7969, 7992 - 7; exhibit 06054, exhibit 06061, exhibit 06067.; exhibit 06076, exhibit 06078.
1741
1742
ts 9105 - 6, 9117; exhibit 25947, exhibit 25948, exhibit 25949, exhibit 25950, exhibit 30556.
Page 505
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fibre. The MSP scans were repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April

2019.1743
1949 Fibre 034 was subjected to compound microscopy on 21 December

2018 by Mr Powell and he also analysed it be MSP on 24 December 2018.
Mr Powell described it as a blue delustered polyester fibre. The MSP
scans were repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.1744
1BPX-080 – collection and history of critical fibres

1950 After the arrest of the accused the police located and seized the
vehicle that had been the Telstra work vehicle allocated to the accused at
the time of counts 7 and 8, namely the white VS Holden Commodore
station wagon. The history of this vehicle has been referred to earlier in
these reasons. At the time of the seizure the car was no longer owned by
Telstra and had a different registration number. It was owned by David
Palmer and had the registration number 1BPX-080. After being seized
the car was extensively examined and both control and critical fibres were
recovered from it. A summary of the relevant evidence in that regard
follows.
1951 On 22 December 2016 Detective SC Stuart Richardson executed a

search warrant at the address in Chidlow of Mr Palmer, the then current
registered owner of 1BPX-080. Det SC Richardson is a member of the
Cold Case Homicide Squad and at that time he was seconded to Operation
Macro. He was accompanied by Detective First Class Constable Brad
Smith and SC Lippiatt. Detective Smith was the video camera operator
and SC Lippiatt was the forensic officer.1745
1952 Mr Palmer's personal effects were removed from the vehicle and
SC Lippiatt took photographs of the inside and outside of it, including the
VIN. The door and the bonnet of the vehicle were sealed with evidence
tape and it was towed to the Midland Forensic facility.
Det SC Richardson followed the towing vehicle to the Midland facility
and SC Lippiatt signed it in. Once the vehicle was at Midland the seal on
the driver's side door was broken and the keys were removed from the
ignition. A seal was placed on the door and a vehicle cover was placed
over it.1746
1743
ts 9108 - 10; exhibit 25920, exhibit 25921, exhibit 25928, exhibit 30322, p 125, exhibit 30555.
1744
ts 9917 - 8, 9122; exhibit 25953, exhibit 25952, exhibit 25967.
1745
ts 1895, 7706 - 8.
1746
ts 1895, 7707 - 13, 7745; exhibit 02818, exhibit 02825, exhibit 02826, exhibit 02828; exhibit 02829, exhibit
02830, exhibit 02832, exhibit 02834, exhibit 02835.
Page 506
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1953 The evidence about the examination of the vehicle was given by
Sergeant Stephen Marks from the forensic division in Midland, who was
the crime scene manager for the examination. The examination took
place over three days in the garages at the Midland Forensic Unit
commencing on 9 January 2017. Before the examination began
Sgt Marks was given a briefing by Snr Sgt Rogers from Special Crime
Squad and there was a decision made to remove the mats, covers on seats,
seats themselves and the door trims and the seat belts. An electronic
forensic register was created which contains notes, the list of exhibits
collected and photographs taken during the examination. SC Burke was
the exhibits officer, SC White the assistant and First Class Constable Day
was the photographer. Other officers from traffic branch and scientists
from PathWest and the ChemCentre also attended to assist during the
examination, including Mr Powell.1747
1954 A series of photographs were tendered showing the condition of the
vehicle before the examination started. The items seized at the
examination were given the identifier HBE: for Hayley Burke and 'E'
because she was the exhibits officer. Photographs were also tendered of
the items after they had been removed from the vehicle and of the vehicle
during the examination.1748
1955 At the end of each day of the examination the exhibits collected were
transferred to a temporary store at the Exhibits Management Unit, which
is located inside the Forensic Building. At the end of the examination on
the third day the doors were sealed and the vehicle was left in the garage.
Over the three days of the examination the examiners dismantled the
vehicle, collected vacuumings of debris and took photographs. They
dismantled the car carefully to preserve any evidence. Over a hundred
numbered exhibits were collected.1749 Sgt Marks was taken through a
large number of photographs of the exhibits that were relevant to the fibre
analysis.
1956 The exhibits from which relevant fibres were recovered are as
follows:
1. HBE10 – the backrest of the rear seat on the passenger's side1750
1747
ts 7746 - 9, 7806.
1748
exhibit 06750, exhibit 06752, exhibit 06754, exhibit 06756, exhibit 06757, exhibit 06758, exhibit 06760, exhibit
06761, exhibit 06762, exhibit 06763, exhibit 06764, exhibit 06765, exhibit 06778, exhibit 06779, exhibit 06780,
1749
ts 7778 - 9, 7784, 7787, 7789, 7802, 7804 - 5.
1750
ts 7766 - 8; exhibit 06895. See also exhibit 06896, exhibit 06900, exhibit 06901, exhibit 06983.
Page 507
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2. HBE11 – the backrest of the rear seat on the driver's side1751
3. HBE15 – the seat base from the rear passenger seats1752
4. HBE16 – the driver's seat1753

5. HBE21 – the front passenger's seat1754
6. HBE58 – the carpet from the rear boot area1755
7. HBE59 – vacuumings from underneath the carpet area of the rear

seat1756
8. HBE82 – four vacuum filters from the floor area of the driver's
and passenger's side and 'one bag of large items taken from
floor'1757
9. HBE103 – the carpet from the front passenger and driver's area.1758
1957 In February and March 2017 examinations of the exhibits taken from
the vehicle were carried out by the Cold Case Homicide Squad, the
ChemCentre and PathWest. Some of the exhibits were moved from the
Exhibits Management Unit to PathWest on 1 February 2017. The
evidence about the transfer was given by unsworn officer Reginald
Burnaby of the Exhibits Management Unit and Carolyn Jones from
PathWest. Their statements were read in to evidence. Neither had a clear
recollection of these events, though they both produced documentation in
respect of the transfer. Ms Jones believed the documentation to be true
and accurate. Mr Burnaby stated that he had delivered six items to
PathWest on 1 February 2017. Ms Jones stated that she received six items
from Mr Burnaby at 8.44 am on that day. The items are described by their
exhibit numbers and their forensic barcodes: HBE10, 11, 13, 15, 16 and
21.1759
1958 None of the documents produced by either Mr Burnaby or Ms Jones

identify the carpet exhibit HBE58 by its exhibit number or by its forensic
barcode as having been delivered to PathWest on that day. Although
1751
ts 7766 - 8; exhibit 06895. See also exhibit 06898, exhibit 06900, exhibit 06902, exhibit 06985.
1752
ts 7770, exhibit 06931, exhibit 06934. See also ts 7775 - 6, exhibit 06990, exhibit 06992.
1753
ts 7771; exhibit 06935, exhibit 06936, exhibit 06938, exhibit 06939, exhibit 06994.
1754
ts 7772 - 3, 7776 – 7; exhibit 06960, exhibit 06961, exhibit 06963, exhibit 06964, exhibit 07000.
1755
ts 7781 - 4, 7788; exhibit 07225, exhibit 07244, exhibit 07246, exhibit 07254, exhibit 07271.
1756
ts 7784 - 6, 7788; exhibit 07260, exhibit 07228, exhibit 07272.
1757
ts 7794, 7800, 7805, 9213; exhibit 07622, exhibit 26602, exhibit 26606.
1758
ts 7794, 7800; exhibit 07473.
1759
ts 7911, 8122 - 4, 9653 - 4; exhibit 14259, exhibit 14260, exhibit 14261, exhibit 16419.
Page 508
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HBE58 does not appear in any of these documents, it is clear that this
exhibit was delivered to PathWest at some stage prior to 15 March 2017.
SC Khng gave evidence that he examined HBE58 at PathWest with
Mr Topping on 15 March 2017.1760
1959 Co-laboratory examinations of exhibits taken from 1BPX-080 were

carried out at PathWest by the Cold Case Homicide Squad, ChemCentre
and PathWest. The evidence about these examinations was given by
SC Khng and Mr Powell. During these examinations photographs were
taken and control fabric samples were collected from the carpets and
seating components.1761 These samples were taken in order to compare
fibres found on Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon with fibres that were
original to the car. The evidence relevant to the control fibres will be
referred to later in these reasons.
1960 Thirteen blue polyester fibres described by Mr Powell as critical

fibres were also recovered during the examination of the vehicle. These
fibres were recovered from three exhibits (or subsamples from them):
RAP94, HBE59 and HBE82.1762 These are fibres that did not appear to be
derived from the vehicle fabrics, but rather were introduced or foreign
fibres (which is why they were treated as critical fibres).
1961 On 21 February 2017, during the PathWest examination, a plastic
cover was removed from the right-hand side of the base of the driver's seat
(HBE16). Debris that was on the exposed metal bracket or rail was
removed by Mr Powell. He collected the debris in a yellow-top container
which was given the exhibit number RAP94. At the end of the
examination on 21 February 2017 RAP94 was taken to the ChemCentre
by Mr Powell and registered.1763
1962 RAP94 was examined by Mr Powell and Mr Collins at the

ChemCentre between 23 May 2017 and 30 May 2017. The debris was
separated into three petri dishes and examined by stereomicroscopy. The
three petri dishes were registered as subsamples known as petri dish 001,
petri dish 120 and petri dish 247.1764
1760
ts 7949; exhibit 07271.
1761
ts 7911, 7915, 8251 - 2, 9239, 9256 - 7.
1762
ts 9129.
1763
ts 7930, 7932 - 3, 9130, 9135; exhibit 08527, exhibit 08528, exhibit 08542, exhibit 08546, exhibit 08552,
1764
ts 9131.
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Critical fibres 029, 050, 070 and 107

1963 The first petri dish was searched by stereo microscopy for three days
from 23 to 25 May 2017 by Mr Collins. During this examination four
critical fibres were recovered:
1. 16F1555.094-029 known as fibre 0291765
2. 16F1555.094-050 known as fibre 0501766
3. 16F1555.094-070 known as fibre 0701767
4. 16F1555.094-107 known as fibre 107.1768
1964 On 24 May 2017 fibre 029 was recovered by Mr Collins. The fibre
was subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Powell on 24 May 2017
and he collected a brightfield and a polarised light image. He said that the
fibre is blue and delustered and inferred that it is polyester. On 25 May
2017 the fibre was analysed by MSP by Mr Collins and the MSP was
1965 On 24 May 2017 Mr Collins recovered fibre 050. The fibre was
subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Powell on 24 May 2017 and he
collected a brightfield and a polarised light image. He said that the fibre
is blue and the delusterant is difficult to see. Mr Powell inferred that it is
polyester. On 25 May 2017 the fibre was analysed by MSP by Mr Collins
1966 Mr Collins also recovered fibre 070 on 24 May 2017. It was
subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Powell on 24 May 2017 and he
collected a brightfield and a polarised light image. He said that it is a blue
delustered fibre and he inferred that it is polyester. On 25 May 2017 the
fibre was analysed by MSP by Mr Collins and the MSP was repeated by
Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.1771
1967 On 25 May 2017 Mr Collins recovered fibre 107. The fibre was
subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Collins on 25 May 2017 and he
collected a brightfield and a polarised light image. Mr Powell said that it
is a blue delustered fibre and he inferred that it is polyester. He also
1765
ts 9131.
1766
ts 9142; exhibit 30558.
1767
ts 9147 – 8; exhibit 30559.
1768
ts 9153 – 4; exhibit 30560.
1769
ts 9131, 9135 - 6, 9140; exhibit 26283, exhibit 26284, exhibit 30322, p 134, exhibit 26298, exhibit 30558.
1770
ts 9142 - 4, 9146 – 7; exhibit 26341, exhibit 26340, exhibit 30322, p 137, exhibit 23657.
1771
ts 9147 - 9, 9152 – 3; exhibit 30559, exhibit 26359, exhibit 26360, exhibit 30322, p 140, exhibit 26372.
Page 510
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HALL J
agreed that this fibre was quite damaged, possibly due to pressure from
tweezers. On 25 May 2017 the fibre was analysed by MSP by Mr Collins
1968 The second petri dish from RAP92 was searched by stereo
microscopy on 25 and 26 May 2017 by Mr Powell.1773 During this
examination subsamples were recovered including three critical fibres:
1. 16F1555.094-154 known as fibre 1541774
2. 16F1555.094-187 known as fibre 1871775
3. 16F1555.094-215 known as fibre 215.1776

1969 On 25 May 2017 Mr Powell recovered fibre 154 from petri dish 120.
The fibre was subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Collins on
26 May 2017 and he collected a brightfield and a polarised light image.
Mr Powell said that it is a blue delustered fibre and he inferred that it is
and this was repeated on 29 April 2019 by Mr Fillingham.1777
The fibre was subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Collins on
26 May 2017 and he collected a brightfield and a polarised light image.
Mr Powell said that it is a blue delustered fibre and he inferred that it is
and this was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.1778
It was subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Collins on 29 May 2017
and he collected a brightfield and a polarised light image. Mr Powell
observed that fibre 215 appears dark blue and the delusterant is somewhat
difficult to view. He inferred that it is a polyester fibre. Fibre 215 was
analysed by MSP by Mr Horsley on 29 May 2017 and this was repeated
by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.1779
1772
1773
exhibit 30561.
1774
ts 9158; exhibit 30560,
1775
ts 9164; exhibit 30562.
1776
ts 9171; exhibit 30563.
1777
1778
1779
Page 511
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HALL J

1972 The third petri dish was searched by stereo microscopy between
26 and 30 May 2017 by Mr Collins. During this examination two critical
fibres were recovered: 16F1555.094-347 known as fibre 347 and
16F1555.094–384 known as fibre 384.1780
1973 Fibre 347 was recovered from petri dish 247 on 29 May 2017 by
Mr Collins. It was subjected to compound microscopy by Mr Powell on
29 May 2017 and he collected a brightfield and polarised light image. He
observed that it is dark blue and the delusterant is somewhat difficult to
see. He inferred that it is a polyester fibre. Fibre 347 was analysed by
MSP on 30 May 2017 by Mr Horsley and this was repeated by
1974 Fibre 384 was recovered from petri dish 247 on 30 May 2017 by
Mr Collins. He also subjected it to stereomicroscopy on the same day and
collected a brightfield and a polarised light image. Mr Powell observed
that fibre 384 is blue and delustered and he inferred that it is polyester.
The fibre was analysed by MSP on 31 May 2017 by Mr Collins and this
was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.1782

1975 Mr Powell said that the vacuumings from under the rear bench seat,
HBE59, were received on 8 June 2017. The item was examined by
stereomicroscopy by Mr Powell and Mr Collins over a seven day period
starting on 15 June 2017.Mr Powell took photographs of the item before it
was examined.1783
1976 The debris was in two white filtration canisters numbered 1 and 2.
The debris in canister 1 was transferred into two petri dishes, one of
which was petri dish 074. The filter paper from canister 1 was transferred
into a petri dish. The debris from canister 2 was transferred into two petri
dishes, one of which was petri dish 229. The filter paper from that
canister was also transferred to a petri dish, referred to as petri dish
260.1784
1977 These petri dishes were searched for trace evidence and Mr Powell
said that three blue polyester critical fibres were recovered that were
1780
1781
1782
ts 9183 – 6; exhibit 30565, exhibit 26486, exhibit 26485, exhibit 26488, exhibit 30322, p 158.
1783
1784
Page 512
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HALL J
found to correspond with the fibres from the Telstra pants, the Telstra
shorts and the Bruck Telstra Navy swatch.1785
1978 The critical fibres were recovered from petri dish 074, petri dish 229
and petri dish 260.1786 The critical fibres are:
1. 16F1555.199-100 known as fibre 1001787
2. 16F1555.199-233 known as fibre 2331788
3. 16F1555.199-383 known as fibre 383.1789
1979 On 16 June 2017 petri dish 074 was searched by stereomicroscopy

by Mr Collins and fibre 100 was recovered. Mr Powell subjected fibre
100 to compound microscopy on 19 June 2017 and he collected a
brightfield and a polarised light image. He observed that it is a blue
delustered fibre and he inferred that it is polyester. Fibre 100 was
analysed by MSP on 20 June 2017 by Mr Powell and this was repeated by
1980 On 20 June 2017 petri dish 229 was searched by stereomicroscopy
by Mr Collins and a fibre 233 was recovered. It was subjected to
compound microscopy on 21 June 2017 by Mr Collins and he collected a
brightfield and a polarised light image. Mr Powell observed that it is a
blue delustered fibre and he inferred that it is a polyester fibre. Fibre 233
was analysed by MSP on 22 June 2017 by Mr Collins and this was
1981 Between 21 June 2017 and 26 June 2017 petri dish 260 was
examined by Mr Powell and Mr Collins. Mr Powell recovered fibre 383
on 22 June 2017. Mr Collins subjected it to compound microscopy on
23 June 2017 and he collected a brightfield and a polarised light image.
Mr Powell observed that it is a blue delustered fibre and he inferred that it
is polyester. Mr Powell analysed the fibre by MSP on 26 June 2017 and
this was repeated by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.1792
1785
ts 9193.
1786
ts 9194, 9200, 9206.
1787
ts 9194; exhibit 30566.
1788
ts 9200 – 1; exhibit 30567.
1789
ts 9206; exhibit 30568.
1790
1791
1792
Page 513
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Critical fibre 293

1982 Mr Powell said that HBE82, the vacuumings from the front of the
vehicle, both the driver's and passenger's sides, were received at the
ChemCentre on 8 June 2017. HBE82 was examined over a seven day
period by Mr Powell and Mr Collins from 27 June 2017 to 6 July 2017.
Photographs were taken before it was examined.1793
1983 The item was four while filtration canisters. The debris from each
canister was transferred to various petri dishes and given ChemCentre
registration numbers. One of these petri dishes contained the filter paper
from canister 2 and this was known as petri dish 244.1794
1984 The filter paper from canister 2 was examined over a two day period
by Mr Powell on 29 and 30 June 2017. On 30 June 2017 Mr Powell
recovered fibre 293. Mr Powell subjected fibre 293 to compound
microscopy on 4 July 2017 and he collected a brightfield and a polarised
light image. He observed that it is a blue delustered fibre and he inferred
that it is polyester. Fibre 293 was analysed by MSP on 5 July 2017 and
the ChemCentre records do not note the analyst. The MSP was repeated
by Mr Fillingham on 29 April 2019.1795
Possible sources – Telstra swatch and pants

1985 As noted above, Stephen Gray provided some of his old workwear to
police. On 12 March 2019 Detective SC Samantha Burgess attended
Mr Gray's home and seized a pair of blue pants and a white polo shirt.
Later that day Det SC Burgess gave the exhibits to SC Whincup at the
cold case homicide office. SC Whincup then delivered them to
Mr Collins at the ChemCentre on 15 March 2019.1796
Rees Powell – evidence summary

1986 Mr Powell said that after a further report on their findings was issued
the ChemCentre received more items to examine. One item of particular
interest was a pair of Telstra uniform pants (these were the pants that had
been provided by Mr Gray). The fibres from these pants were compared
to the fibres that had previously been recovered from the victims.1797
1793
1794
ts 9213.
1795
ts 9213, 9215 - 6, 9220 – 1; exhibit 30569, exhibit 26573, exhibit 26574, exhibit 30322, p 170, exhibit
26589.
1796
ts 2132, 8203 - 5, 9666 - 7; exhibit 01990, exhibit 01991, exhibit 01997, exhibit 14223.
1797
ts 8262 - 3; exhibit 30460, slide 61.
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1987 Mr Powell said that a blue polyester fibre group was identified in the
initial grouping process in 2013 (and reported in 2014). At that time the
ChemCentre did not know the origin of those fibres. Mr Powell showed
the court a photograph of the Telstra pants and the label from the inside of
the pants. The pants are made in Australia from polyester and rayon. He
also showed a stereomicroscope image of the fabric, from which it can be
seen that the fabric is woven and that horizontal and vertical yarns have
been woven together to create the fabric.1798
1988 Mr Powell described the fabric as a twill weave and showed an

annotated larger version of the same image to the court. He explained that
warp yarns are the vertical yarns and weft yarns are the horizontal yarns.
In this fabric the warp yarns float over two of the horizontal weft yarns
and then go under the third one. This twill weave creates a subtle
diagonal pattern in the fabric, which is similar to denim.1799
1989 Mr Powell said that each of the yarns contains polyester and rayon
fibres. These fibres cannot be distinguished when viewed by the naked
eye or even by stereomicroscope. He showed a stereomicroscope image
of the yarn, which had been splayed out at one end. It can be seen that the
yarn is made of many fibres and it is not evident which are rayon and
which are polyester.1800
1990 Mr Powell displayed compound microscopy images of the polyester

fibres present in the fabric; one from the warp and one from the weft. He
said that they found that there were differences between the warp and weft
polyesters. The warp polyester yarns were thicker in diameter. There was
a variance in the dye intensity along the length of the fibre. Mr Powell
expressed the view that this may be caused by the fabric having been
constructed with colourless yarns and then dyed. The dye would not be
able to penetrate equally to all the fibres in the constructed fabric causing
the amount of dye to vary in some of the fibres.1801
1991 The variability in dye intensity along the length of some fibres
prompted ChemCentre analysts to repeat the MSP spectra for some of the
critical fibres that were identified as blue polyester fibres or blue rayon
fibres. Mr Powell explained that some analysts had conducted the MSP by
focussing on the dark areas of the fibre only and some had focussed on
both dark and light areas. He explained that this is because it is useful to
1798
ts 8263; exhibit 30460, slide 61, slide 62.
1799
1800
1801
ts 8264 - 5; exhibit 30460, slide 65.
Page 515
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HALL J
see the light and dark areas and express the variability in absorbance, but
that you also get a stronger spectrum for each repeat if you collect from
the dark areas only. He said that repeating the MSP for the blue polyester
and blue rayon fibres again, more variability with the scans could be
achieved.1802
1992 Mr Powell also showed the court compound microscope images of

the rayon fibres; one from the warp and one from the weft. He said that
there are no diameter measurements listed because rayon has a
non-cylindrical cross-section. He showed a diagram of a cross section of
a rayon fibre. One distinction that can be noted between the warp and
weft rayon yarns is that the warp rayons have black dots throughout the
length of the fibre indicating the presence of delusterant. He said that the
warp rayons are delustered whereas the weft rayons are
non-delustered.1803
1993 Mr Powell explained that further tests were carried out after the
ChemCentre received 13 fabric swatches from Bruck Textiles on 24 May
2019. They also received an additional swatch that was marked 'Telstra
Navy' on 13 June 2019. He said that this fabric swatch contained blue
polyester and blue non-delustered rayon fibres corresponding in properties
to the fibres that were recovered from the victims and from vehicle (the 60
blue polyesters and the six blue non-delustered rayons).1804
1994 Mr Powell said that the vast majority of the fibre comparisons were
performed against the Telstra pants due to time constraints and the order
in which the samples were received. The Telstra Navy swatch was
received on 13 June 2019 and the report was due to be filed with the court
by 30 June 2019. The comparisons with the Telstra pants had taken about
a month to complete, so it was not possible to do the same comparisons as
for the Telstra pants. He said that the main point to note was that the
swatch did not contain delustered rayon fibres, only blue polyester and
blue non-delustered rayon in the warp and the weft yarns.1805
1995 Mr Powell showed the court stereomicroscope images of all of the

thirteen Bruck textiles swatches that were received. He observed that it
was possible to see that the swatches were different shades of blue. He
said that the weave type was consistent – over two, under the third – to
create the diagonal pattern known as twill weave. Control fibres were
1802
ts 8336 - 7.
1803
ts 8265 - 6; exhibit 30460, slide 66.
1804
ts 8272 - 3; exhibit 30460, slide 84.
1805
ts 8273 - 5; exhibit 30460, slide 85.
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taken from both the warp and weft yarns of these swatches and subjected
to MSP. The results of the MSP were uploaded to the database and put
into a table that was part of the June 2019 report.1806
1996 Mr Powell also showed the court images that were collected in the
examination of the fourteenth swatch – the Telstra Navy swatch. The card
on the image is dated 6 September 1993 and the shade is described as
'dark navy'. He said that the swatch they received was described as a
'finished sample'. He also showed the court a stereomicroscope image of
the fabric. He noted that this swatch also has the same twill weave
construction.1807
1997 Mr Powell then compared the Telstra pants and the Telstra Navy
swatch. He said that it was important to consider the differences between
the pants and the swatch because most of the comparisons of blue
polyester fibres had been done to the pants. He reiterated that the warp
and weft yarns in the pants were different. The warp polyesters were
generally thicker than the weft polyesters (although it was possible to find
some that were of a comparable diameter) and the warp rayons had
delusterant and the weft rayons were non-delustered. He observed that
the polyester fibres in the swatch appeared to be much more comparable
for the warp and weft in their diameter and presence of delusterant. He
said that the rayon fibres in both the warp and the weft were both
non-delustered and they appear to correspond in their properties in terms
of their non-cylindrical cross-section and their general diameter. Put
briefly, the difference between the Telstra pants and the Telstra swatch
was that the warp rayon in the swatch was non-delustered. Mr Powell
noted that this is important because there were no delustered rayon fibres
recovered from the victims.1808
1998 Mr Powell cited a portion of his June 2019 report:1809

While the majority of comparisons of these fibres [the 60 blue polyester
fibres and six blue non-delustered rayon fibres of interest] were performed
against the Telstra pants, it is considered that a garment constructed of the
fabric represented by the Bruck swatch 'Telstra Navy' lab number
16F1555.238 would represent a more likely source of these fibres. This is
due to the generally wider diameter of the warp polyester fibres of the
Telstra pants, and the non-detection of delustered rayon fibres
corresponding to those of the Telstra pants amongst all fibres recovered in
connection with the Macro investigation.
1806
1807
1808
ts 8276 - 7; exhibit 30460, slide 89, slide 90, slide 93, slide 94.
1809
ts 8277 - 8; exhibit 30460, slide 95.
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1999 Mr Powell said that a garment made out of the Telstra swatch is a
more likely source of the fibres located on the Macro exhibits than the
pants. He also said that it is possible that there was shedding of the
delustered rayon fibres but that they were not found. He said that in terms
of the findings it seems that the Telstra Navy swatch is a more likely
source, but they did not rule out the pants on the basis of not detecting the
delustered rayon.1810
2000 Mr Powell said that they consider fibre transfer and persistence as
factors that may impact whether fibres are found, as well as the history of
the exhibit. He noted that there were no delustered rayon fibres that
matched the Telstra pants found in the vehicle, in Ms Rimmer's hair or in
Ms Glennon's hair or on her t-shirt. In respect of the vehicle, he did note
that the car had been used by other owners for over 20 years.1811
2001 Mr Powell was asked if there is any reason why polyester would
persist better or shed more than rayon. He said that rayon may be more
likely to shed. They conducted shedability tests on the Telstra pants and
found that the rayon fibres shed in larger quantities than the polyester
fibres. He also considered persistence. He noted that they recovered
13 blue polyester fibres from the vehicle and no rayon. He said it was
difficult to make a comment on the findings given the long history for
some of the items and the fact that the case circumstances are
unknown.1812
2002 As mentioned, the ChemCentre undertook shedability testing on the
Telstra pants. Mr Powell understood that the pants had been used; there
was slight wear and tear and minor staining present. They carried out the
testing by dragging a section of a laboratory coat against the Telstra pants
after first having removed extraneous fibres by tape lift. They then
counted the fibres that were transferred onto the laboratory coat. Of the
total fibres that were shed 8.3% were polyester, 81.8% were delustered
rayon and 9.9% were non-delustered rayon. The potential reason for the
difference in the proportions of the two types of rayon is that this is a
'warp-facing garment' (two over one construction) which means that more
of the warp facing weave is exposed. He said that persistence testing was
not done because it would be very difficult to replicate the conditions of
this case.1813
1810
ts 8278.
1811
ts 8278 - 9.
1812
ts 8280.
1813
ts 8280 - 1, 9296.
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Liberty Wagner-Chavez – evidence summary

2003 Liberty Wagner-Chavez is the product development manager for
Bruck Textiles. She started working at Bruck in August 2009. Prior to
working at Bruck she worked for another manufacturer of textile fabrics,
Melba Industries. She has a Bachelor of Applied Science in Textile
Physics from the University of New South Wales and graduated in 1997.
She said Bruck Textiles is an Australian company that has been in
existence since about 1946. Bruck manufactures fabric for protective
clothing and clothing for fire and emergency services as well as
workwear.1814
2004 Ms Wagner-Chavez's role at Bruck is to develop fabrics for specific

customers or for a specific market. She is also responsible for the
development of fabrics for tender. She said that she is given a set of
requirements that the fabrics need to meet and her role is to engineer a
solution by selecting the raw materials and construction that is best suited
to meet the requirement.1815
2005 In cross-examination Ms Wagner-Chavez agreed that Bruck
undertakes testing of fabrics for a number of reasons, including if they
want to find out what a competitor is doing in relation to a fabric, if a new
customer wants to develop a specific product and if there is a complaint
from a customer. She said that the laboratory also conducts process
control testing, so every batch that goes through the mill will have a
sample sent to the laboratory to be tested to compare the sample to the
standard of the fabric.1816
2006 Ms Wagner-Chavez said that she was aware that some fabric from a
pair of Telstra pants had been sent to Australian Textile Mills by
WA Police. Her understanding was that the fabric sample had been taken
from a garment that had been washed and worn and used by a Telstra
worker in the 1990s. That history was relevant to the testing because the
properties of the fabric can change when it is washed and worn. It is
normal for fabric to shrink to a certain extent after washing and
laundering and drying and that can cause the weight per square metre to
increase. The temperature of the washing and drying can affect the
colour; there is more colour loss if higher temperatures are used. If the
1814
ts 8061 - 2.
1815
ts 8063.
1816
ts 8191.
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items had been dried outside then light exposure can also fade the
fabric.1817
2007 Ms Wagner-Chavez said that Australian Textile Mills is an affiliated

laboratory to Bruck Textiles. She said they were all under the Bruck
Textiles umbrella but then split into sales and manufacturing; Australian
Textile Mills is the manufacturing side. Australian Textile Mills produces
all the fabrics for Bruck Textiles and their laboratory does all their quality
control testing and analysis. If Bruck Textiles needs any fabric samples
analysed or additional testing done that is the laboratory that they use.1818
2008 Ms Wagner-Chavez said that there are many ways to construct
fabrics. Broadly, they can be classified into woven, knitted and
non-woven fabrics. There are number of different kinds of woven fabrics
including plain weaves, twill weave and satin weave. Fabrics can be
woven at different widths, with different thread densities and different
fabric weight per square metre. All of those properties can be changed or
selected. There are two types of knitted construction: weft knitting and
warp knitting. Weft knitting also comes in different constructions,
including jersey, interlock, rib and ponte. There are also different
constructions of warp knitting. There are many ways to produce
non-woven fabrics. Non-woven fabrics do not consist of yarns. In
non-woven fabrics fibres have been connected together to form a fabric,
which is quite different to how woven and knitted fabrics are created.
Types of non-woven fabrics include needle-punched fabrics,
hydroentanglement and firmly bonded fabrics, in which a plastic fibre is
melted to hold all the other fibres in place.1819
2009 Ms Wagner-Chavez said that woven fabrics have warp and weft
yarns. The warp yarn runs along the vertical axis of the fabric and the
weft is the yarn that runs and interlaces in the opposite direction with the
warp yarns to produce the fabric. She said that a singular warp yarn is
referred to as an end and a singular weft yarn is referred to as a pick. She
said that with knitted fabrics, weft knitting only has weft yarns and warp
knitting only has warp yarns. If the fabric has both weft and warp yarns
then it is described as woven.1820
2010 Ms Wagner-Chavez said that when man-made fibre types (for

example, polyester, viscose, nylon and acetate) are produced it is possible
1817
ts 8064.
1818
ts 8064.
1819
ts 8065 - 6.
1820
ts 8067; exhibit 30450.
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to influence the amount of lustre, or shininess, that those fibres have.

When the fibre is produced the cross-section can be changed from being
perfectly round (which would reflect the most light) to a different shape
that means that when the light hits it, it would not reflect light to the same
degree. She said that particles (delusterant) can also be added to the
spinning solution before the fibre is extruded, the particles refract the light
and affect the lustre or shininess of the fabric. When there is no
delusterant in fabric it is described as bright. The opposite of that is dull;
examples of delustered fabric include dull polyester and dull viscose.
Fabric between those two types is called semi-dull. She said that viscose
and rayon are essentially the same thing and she uses those terms
interchangeably.1821
2011 Ms Wagner-Chavez said that she received a report from Australian

Textile Mills after they tested the Telstra sample. She explained that the
Tex count is a way of measuring the lineal density of the yarn, it means
grams per thousand metres. If a thousand metres of that yarn was
unwound, then the Tex is the weight of that yarn in grams. The test result
in the report for the warp is 2/23.4. The 2 means that two yarns have been
twisted together to make the warp yarn and the 23.4 means that each of
those yarns has a count or Tex of 23.4. The count of the entire yarn is two
times 23.4. For the weft the result is 1/41 Tex. That means that there is a
single yarn and that yarn has a count of 41 Tex.1822
2012 The test result for the yarn twist test for warp and weft was S 674.4
which means that the this particular yarn has used an S twist to twist the
two separate yarns together and the twist direction of the single yarns
before they were twisted together is the opposite, the Z twist. The Z result
is the turns per metres in the single yarn and S is the turns per metres of
the two yarns twisted together.1823
2013 Ms Wagner-Chavez said that she could tell from the report that the
Telstra sample is a woven fabric, because it has both a weft and a warp
yarn. She said that the aim was to try to identify whether the fabric could
have been produced by Bruck Textiles. She cross-referenced the results
to their database that contains all the fabrics that Bruck makes. She said
that the most likely one was style 5624.1824
1821
ts 8068, 8093.
1822
ts 8067 - 8; exhibit 15213.
1823
ts 8069 - 70; exhibit 30449.
1824
ts 8071.
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2014 The term greige fabric is used to describe fabric that has been woven
and had nothing else done to it. There were a few fabrics that Bruck
produced that had polyester and viscose in them. Ms Wagner-Chavez
compared the properties of those fabrics to the properties that were
measured on the sample to try to identify which one was the most likely.
The style 5624 is the unique number used to describe a base greige fabric;
it describes the yarn count, the machine settings used to produce the
standard weight per square metre and construction of the fabric.1825
2015 A Greige Style Construction Sheet for fabric style 5624 was dated
3 March 1989. This is the adoption date, or the date that it was approved
by the mill as a product. Ms Wagner-Chavez said that greige product is
not sold in that condition, it is just a base fabric. She noted that the
product has two sets of warp yarns and one weft yarn. The values specific
to this fabric are the ends per centimetre, picks per centimetre and the
weave. The warp yarns were 2/20 Tex meaning two yarns of 20 Tex
twisted together. The fibres in the warp yarn were 65% polyester and
35% viscose. The twist of a single warp yarn was 670Z and the twist of
the plied yarn was 824S. Thai Teijin was the supplier of the warp
yarn.1826 The weft yarn was 1/37, meaning it is a single yarn of 37 Tex or
37 grams per kilometre. It is 70% polyester and 30% viscose. This yarn
was jet-spun and the supplier was Bulli.
2016 Those are the factors that Ms Wagner-Chavez compared as a starting

point. She said that some of those properties can change in the fabric
throughout processing so it can also be relevant to look at the standards
for those properties in the finished fabric. She also did a comparison on
the fabric that they sell, also described as finished fabric. She created a
table comparing the standard greige 5624 and the Telstra sample, which is
contained in the document 'WA Police Sample Test Result'. She said that
the information about that sample came from the Australian Textile Mills
test results. The properties of the two fabrics were compared. The Telstra
sample has a fabric mass of 256 grams per square metre and the standard
greige is 210 grams per square metre. She said that the weight of the
fabric will increase throughout processing so the difference is consistent
with the weight difference between the standard and finished product.
Thread density, yarn count and yarn twist can be affected by washing,
because shrinkage can occur. The differences between the Telstra sample
and greige standard in these respects is consistent with the effects of
washing and tumble-drying. Overall the difference between the results for
1825
ts 8071.
1826
ts 8071 - 4; exhibit 15215.
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the Telstra sample and the greige sample are consistent with what one
might expect if the greige was finished and washed and dried.1827
2017 Ms Wagner-Chavez said that the other aspect of what she did was to
compare the shade of the Telstra sample to the shades that Bruck had
produced to try to identify if that sample was a shade that they had
produced on that base fabric. She looked at the sales history for the
period 1993 to 1998. She said that she compared shade number 51189,
which was called Telstra Navy.1828
2018 Ms Wagner-Chavez said that the yarns are initially white (or have no
colour) and then after the processing the fabric is coloured. Each of the
fibre types is dyed separately. The types of dyes that are used and the
conditions that are used to put the dye onto the fibre are different for each
fibre type, so they do not put all the dyes into one bath and put in white
fabric and have coloured fabric come out the other side. She said that
polyester is dyed first and then the fabric is dried. At that stage the fabric
looks like denim because one fibre is dyed and the other is not. Then the
viscose component is dyed and the fabric is dried again, now appearing as
a solid shade.1829
2019 Ms Wagner-Chavez was able to locate the dye recipe for Telstra
Navy. In cross-examination she said that the earliest recipe she could find
was dated 2002. She was shown an example of a dye recipe used for
shade 51189 on greige 5624. She did not know the exact date when the
dye was first used but could see that production started in 1993. This
shade was sold to others and the shade number stayed the same but the
description of the shade changed. If it was not being sold to Telecom
(Telstra) they would not call it Telecom (Telstra) Navy. She said it was
the same colour but had a different name; that is why it is called 'Dark
Navy' on the document.1830
2020 The shade of the Telstra sample was measured against the shade
master for 51189. The shade master is the sample of fabric in the
approved shade that is retained to compare all future batches to. It was
reasonable to expect there to be a difference if a fabric has been laundered
and dried in the sun.1831 The dye comparison was carried out using a
spectrophotometer. The first comparison testing was done on 30 May
1827
ts 8077 - 80; exhibit 15220, she also considered the weave pattern by reference to ends and dents in a length
of fabric, but it is unnecessary to refer to that evidence.
1828
ts 8080.
1829
ts 8092, 8093.
1830
ts 8081 - 2, 8198.
1831
ts 8083.
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2019 and re-done on 21 August 2019. That was because the operator who
did the first test was not able to be identified.
2021 Ms Wagner-Chavez explained that Del (or Delta) E is the

measurement representing overall difference in the colour. The test
measures a number of aspects of the shade. Del L is the difference in the
depth of the shade, Del C measures the difference in the chroma, which is
the saturation or strength of colour. Del H measures the difference in hue,
which is the colour itself. As a general rule a Delta E of less than one
would be a good commercial match. In the comparison of these two
fabrics the outcome is not a commercially acceptable difference because
the difference between the Delta E is greater than one. The biggest
number is the Delta L, which is a measure of the depth of the shade.
However, this is consistent with fading that can happen as a result of
laundering, tumble-drying and exposure to light. The shade master or mill
standard for the combination of the greige product and the colour is dated
6 September 1993, which the date that it was approved for use.1832
2022 Ms Wagner-Chavez was asked whether there had been variations to
the style 5624 since 1993. She looked through the archives at the shop
orders that were created on that style in that shade between 1993 and 1998
and ran a report that allowed her to identify the greige variations that they
used on all of those shop orders for the 51189 shade. A summary was
compiled of the yarns used over the years in the variations (but only up to
version 33). For all of the variations the supplier of the weft yarn
remained the same, Bulli. There were three suppliers of warp yarn; Thai
Teijin and Formosa supplied semi dull polyester and viscose or rayon and
Indorama supplied warp yarn that was dull polyester and bright
viscose.1833
2023 Ms Wagner-Chavez was asked about one of the variations to style

5624 in shade 51189, described as 'variation 17'. She was shown a
screenshot from the Bruck database that shows that a new warp yarn was
being used in the fabric. It had yarn code 3328 and was supplied by
Indorama. She said that the shade master or mill standard is made from
the same build materials as variation 17. She was shown the yarn master
for yarn code 3328 and noted that it is supplied by Indorama and is a semi
dull polyester and bright viscose blend 65/35.1834
1832
ts 8086 - 8.
1833
1834
Page 524
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2024 Ms Wagner-Chavez also did a comparison between the greige, the

Telstra sample and the shade master or mill standard and compiled a table
of that information. The fabrics were compared based on the fabric mass.
Washing and drying could make the fabric heavier and, taking this into
account, the difference between the finished sample and the Telstra
sample would be within commercial tolerances. The variation in the
thread density is not a significant variation. The yarn count increases
because the fibres shrink inside; plus or minus one or two Tex is within
commercial tolerance. The commercial tolerance for twist is plus or
minus 3%, but each yarn has different twist specifications depending on
the supplier so twist comparison is less relevant.1835
2025 Ms Wagner-Chavez was asked whether she had she been able to
locate any records that indicate that the customer, either Yakka or Telstra,
requested any changes to be made to the style code and shade and she said
that she could not find anything to indicate that.1836
Nilani Randeni – evidence summary

2026 Nilani Randeni is a quality assurance and laboratory team leader at
Australian Textile Mills Pty Ltd, which is part of the Bruck Group. She
has a Masters of Business Administration and a Diploma in Textile
Technology. Australian Textile Mills is a fabric manufacturer.
Ms Randeni is responsible for overseeing the testing of fabrics in the
laboratory at Australian Textile Mills.1837
2027 Ms Randeni gave evidence about tests that were carried out under
her supervision on a fabric sample in 2019.1838 On 22 May 2019 she
received an A4 size sample of fabric referred to as a Telstra sample from
the product development manager, Ms Wagner-Chavez. She said that the
sample was a very dark colour, navy, close to black. Ms Randeni was
asked to conduct five tests on the sample: fabric mass, thread count, yarn
count, fibre composition and twist.1839
2028 Ms Randeni said that the Australian Textile Mills laboratory is

NATA accredited for all of the tests. However, after receiving the sample
she contacted Ms Wagner-Chavez and told her that she could not perform
the tests according to Australian Standards because the sample was not
large enough. She informed Ms Wagner-Chavez that she could modify
1835
ts 8109 - 13; exhibit 30443.
1836
ts 8113.
1837
ts 8036 - 7.
1838
This sample was from the Telstra pants obtained from Mr Gray.
1839
ts 8038, 8053.
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the tests to give approximate results. The testing occurred over several
days between 22 May 2019 and 17 June 2019. The physical testing was
carried out senior lab technician Ron Divinagracia under Ms Randeni's
supervision and a report was issued on 17 June 2019.1840
2029 The first test conducted was a 'fabric mass' test, which is a
calculation of grams per square metre. Because the sample size was small
this test had to be modified. A 100 cm circle was cut from the sample,
measured and weighed and the grams per square metre calculated.1841
2030 The next test undertaken was 'threads per unit length'. Ms Randeni
said that this test is presented in two ways: one for the number of threads
running parallel to the selvedge and one for threads running perpendicular
to the selvedge. She explained that warp direction is parallel to the
selvedge (described as ends per centimetre) and the weft direction is
perpendicular to the selvedge (described as picks per centimetre). In this
sample there was no selvedge and therefore no way to distinguish the
warp from the weft, so they nominated a warp on the basis of whichever
direction had a higher number of threads. Past experience is that the
thread count is higher on the warp direction than on the weft direction. To
conduct the test a counter is used. There was sufficient sample that this
test did not have to be modified. The threads per centimetre on the
sample was 33.5 for the warp and 22 for the weft.1842
2031 The next test undertaken was the 'yarn count'. Yarn count is the
linear density of the yarn. This test was modified because usually yarn is
tested that has not yet been woven into a fabric and requires 1,000 m of
thread, which was not available. They used nine yarns of 10 cm each
from the warp and from the weft. That meant that they had 90 cm of yarn
that was weighed and calculated. The unit measurement for the linear
mass density of fibres is a Tex (mass in grams per 1,000 m). The warp
yarn is a two ply yarn, which means it is two yarns plied together. To get
the value for that yarn they divide the result in two. The result for the
warp is expressed as '2/23.4'. The weft was single-ply and it had a Tex
count of 41.1843
2032 The next test was a fibre composition test for both the warp and the
weft. In this instance an American test method was used. They extracted
fibres from the yarn and examined them under a microscope. They then
1840
ts 8038 - 40, 8055; exhibit 15213.
1841
ts 8042.
1842
ts 8043 - 4.
1843
ts 8045 - 7, 8059.
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compared the fibres to photographs (known as photomicrographs) of

various fibres in an Australian test method book to look for the closest
match. The photomicrographs show both cross-sections and the fibre
longitudinally. Ms Randeni said that they were checking the length
direction only. The composition for both the warp and the weft was a
combination of polyester and viscose.1844 She agreed that she is aware
that polyester/viscose can be used in workwear.1845
2033 The final test was a 'yarn twist ply' test and this was also done for the
warp and the weft. Australian testing methods were used without
modification. Ms Randeni said that for this test a length of yarn is taken
and untwisted and the number of twists in that are counted; the results are
expressed as twists per metre. She explained that for ply yarns (two yarns
plied together) the test is done twice. They do the plied yarn twist and
then they separate the two yarns and then untwist the single yarn again
because there is another twist in each single yarn. In this case the warp
was plied and the weft was not. In the report there are results for the 'S'
twist, which is the plied yarn twist, and the 'Z' twist, which is the single
yarn twist. She also said that the polyester and viscose is a blend on the
yarn so you cannot separate them.1846
2034 Ms Randeni said that as they were doing the tests they entered the
data into their system, which meant that it was available to
Ms Wagner-Chavez. Once the tests were complete Ms Randeni sent the
left over fabric back to Ms Wagner-Chavez.1847
Michael Smith – evidence summary

2035 Michael Smith is the sales and marketing manager for Bruck Textiles
in Victoria. He has been employed by Bruck Textiles for over 10 years.
Bruck Textiles is a weaver and finisher of woven fabrics. They have a
mill in Wangaratta in Northern Victoria and a sales office in Melbourne,
where he is located. In his role he has access to Bruck's sales history. 1848
2036 Mr Smith was asked the about fabric described as style 5624 in shade
51189. He said style 5264 is a greige style. He explained that greige is a
grey product that has not been prepared in any way and can be produced
in multiple different shades and different finishes, depending on what the
customer requires. Shade 51189 first appeared in the sales history in 1993
1844
Rayon is a viscose.
1845
ts 8047 - 50; exhibit 15211.
1846
ts 8050 - 2.
1847
ts 8053.
1848
ts 8137.
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and was originally known as Telecom Navy. It has also been called
Telstra Navy and Dark Navy. Two products were made with the 5264
greige style and shade 51189 known as Llama and Merino. These fabrics
had the same construction but they were produced with different finishes.
270,000 m of the Llama fabric was sold to Yakka in the period 1993 to
1997.1849
2037 There were two other customers who purchased small quantities of
the same style using the same shade of the Llama product between 1995
and 1997. In examination-in-chief Mr Smith said that Bruck sold the
Llama product to a distributor in New South Wales called Martin and
Savage in 1995; he thought that they sold them around a couple of
thousand metres. In cross-examination he said that he thought he made an
error when he said Martin and Savage. It was put to him that on 8 May
1995, 578.1 m were sold to Surrey Clothing. He said that sounded
accurate.1850
2038 In examination-in-chief Mr Smith said that the only other purchaser
of Llama product was Solaro Textiles in December 1997. He said he did
not know anything about that company. It was put to him in
cross-examination that the records say 208 m of the same style and shade
was purchased by Solaro Textiles on 28 June 1997 and he said that
sounded right.1851
2039 Mr Smith was shown a photograph of the mill standard. He said that
the phrase 'shade master' and 'mill standard' mean the same thing;
something that is agreed between Bruck and the customer and designed to
be representative of the hand feel and the shade of the fabric. A mill
standard was created so that companies like Yakka get continuity of
supply. They are used so that anybody involved in quality control within
the mill can refer to the mill standard if there is any question about any
aspect of the fabric and compare what is being produced to that standard.
He had arranged for someone at the mill to locate the mill standard for
style 5624 with shade 51189 and post it to WA Police.1852
2040 Mr Smith was asked in cross-examination if every time there is a

variation to the fabric a new mill standard or shade master is provided.
He said that generally they are done once with the agreement of the
customer, but from time to time the customer may request that the mill
1849
ts 8137 - 40, 8144.
1850
ts 8137 - 40, 8146.
1851
ts 8139 - 40, 8146.
1852
Page 528
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HALL J
standard be refreshed. He said that the reason they would probably do

that is if they saw some drift or if the mill itself wanted to refresh it
because it had been handled too much. He explained that what he meant
by 'drift' is that from batch to batch there may be movement in the shade.
He said that for uniform fabrics it is important that people standing next to
each other all appear to have the same coloured pair of trousers or shirt.
He said that Yakka, not Telstra, was his customer, but he was aware that
Telstra were quite diligent in keeping things consistent.1853
2041 It was put to Mr Smith in cross-examination that in the 1990s Bruck

had a number of different shades of navy and he said that it is highly
probable that they did in that greige style and in similar blends that they
were producing. He agreed that Bruck supplied 20 styles in shade 51189.
Seven of those styles are 65% polyester 35% viscose, which is the same
blend as style 5624. He said that 65/35 poly-viscose is pretty generic, it is
a well-proven fabric particularly for workwear or uniforms. It was put
that a total of 408,817.1 m of fabric in shade 51189 was sold between
November 1992 and December 1997 in the 65/35 blend. He was shown a
sales history table. He agreed that style 5624 makes up 268,023.4 m of
the total amount across all the blends. The remaining 140,793.7 m also all
used shade 51189.1854
2042 In re-examination Mr Smith explained that he created the sales

history document because he was asked in a pre-trial conference whether
Bruck used the shade number in any other products. He then looked at the
sales history to see where they may have used that shade in other
products. The table shows everything that they have in their sales history
that used that shade number. He also said that the document does not note
the individual characteristics of the polyester and viscose. He said that the
information that they keep for sales purposes is generic in nature.1855
Kathy Kostas – evidence summary

2043 Kathy Kostas is a garment technician at the Workwear Group. When
she was first employed by them in 1987 they were known as Yakka. She
has a diploma from the Melbourne College of Textiles. She said that the
Workwear Group is a supplier of uniforms to many companies.1856
2044 Ms Kostas said that while she worked for Yakka she recalled
working with the Telstra account. She said that Yakka had the Telstra
1853
ts 8142, 8145.
1854
ts 8146 - 9; exhibit 15206.
1855
ts 8151 - 2.
1856
ts 8155 - 6.
Page 529
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HALL J
account for a long time, including through the 1990s. Telstra employee
uniforms would have all come through product development at the time
she was in that team. She became familiar with the clothing that was
ultimately developed by Yakka for Telstra and with the style codes and
colour shades.1857
2045 Ms Kostas was shown a Yakka delivery receipt in the name of the
accused dated 22 August 1995. In the product code area there is a
number, 02572 446. Ms Kostas said that that 02572 is the style number of
a pair of pants that would have been supplied to a customer. The style
was single pleat front pants and she said this was a very common product
used by Telstra. She said that 446 is the colour code and it is a navy
which she described it as a very unique colour code for Telstra customers.
The colour is also described as 'Telecom navy'.1858
2046 Ms Kostas was also shown the written specifications of the pants,
style number 02572. The specification has the description and diagram of
the pants and details as to the fabric used, where they were made, how the
pants were constructed and the number of revisions. She was asked
whether the variations in the product related to the fixings and sewing or
the fabric itself and she said that it would have related to fabric if there
was a fabric change. She said it could be anything revised on a finished
garment. She did not recall the fabric changing. The specification notes
that the pants are polyester viscose. It also records that Llama is the type
of fabric and it is supplied by Bruck. It notes colour 446, 'T navy' and
Ms Kostas said that this meant Telstra Navy. It also notes the 'fabric
average' is '12.75 M per 10' which means that 10 garments could be made
out of 12.75 m of fabric.1859
2047 Ms Kostas explained that Llama was a fabric which was a polyester
viscose produced by Bruck. She said that the Llama fabric was used to
make things other than the pants. She was shown photographs of a pair of
two pleat pants and the pants label and she said they were the pants they
had been producing, though she did note that 2572 had a Telstra logo on
the front. She said that in the 1990s the pants were made in Australia and
in the late 1990s to early 2000 the production was moved to Fiji and that
after that move the same fabric was still used.1860
1857
ts 8157.
1858
ts 8158 - 9; exhibit 00731.
1859
ts 8160 - 1, 8168; exhibit 15200.
1860
8162 - 5, 8170; exhibit 15190, exhibit 15191, exhibit 15192.
Page 530
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HALL J
2048 Ms Kostas was shown a second Yakka delivery receipt in the name
of the accused dated 2 November 1995. Next to the description 'Telecom
short' there is a product code 05577 and the 446 Telstra Navy colour code.
There is also a reference in the description to 'Telecom Navy'. She
recognised the receipt as one used by Yakka as part of the ordering
process for Telstra uniforms.1861
2049 Ms Kostas agreed that there were at least two types of trousers for
males made from the same polyester-viscose fabric, one type with a
pleated front and one a flat front. It was put to her that the shorts were
also available in both these styles but she was not sure. She said that the
shorts were also made from the polyester viscose blend supplied by
Bruck. She agreed that some items were also made from that fabric in
women's wear. She said that a skirt possibly could have been made out of
the same fabric, but if the range was in Bruck Llama it would be used in a
lot of products.1862
Ian Summerton – evidence summary

2050 Between 1983 and 2005 Ian Summerton was employed by Yakka.
There were also periods of time after that where he was self-employed but
still represented Yakka. From 1995 he was a major account manager with
Yakka and looked after corporate clients, including Telstra. From about
1995 to 2005 he was involved in marketing products at Telstra sites
around the country and also in sourcing new products.1863
2051 Mr Summerton said that he believed that the contract between Yakka
and Telstra for the supply of clothing or products started in 1993. At that
time it was Telecom and then changed to Telstra in about 1995. About
that time Telstra was changing from brown to navy blue uniforms. For a
few years both brown or taupe and navy were available; the taupe was
discontinued from the range in about 1998. The contract came to an end
in 2005 and Telstra moved to another supplier.1864
2052 Mr Summerton said that he was familiar with the documents that
Yakka provided to Telstra for the provision of clothing items. He was
shown a Yakka delivery receipt (in the name of a Telstra employee other
than the accused) that he described as a pro-forma invoice that went out
with every delivery that Yakka made to a Telstra site. He said that each
of the lines on the document represents a style that Yakka had received an
1861
ts 8166; exhibit 00734.
1862
ts 8169.
1863
ts 8172, 8173.
1864
ts 8173, 8178 - 9.
Page 531
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HALL J
order for and then had sent out the order to the particular Telstra site. The
date on the document, 7 July 1994, would be the date that they dispatched
the goods to the Telstra site.1865
2053 One of the items on the delivery receipt is a pair of Telstra pants with
a product code 02572; a poly-viscose pair of pleated navy blue pants.
Mr Summerton said that it is a specific style number used for Telstra only.
He said that 446 is the colour number that relates to Telstra Navy. That
style in that shade was not sold to anyone else. He said that the colour
446 is a very dark navy blue. It was used to make pants and shorts. He
said that the fabric is a polyester-viscose-gabardine called Llama. He said
that pants and shorts were also made of cotton.1866
2054 In cross-examination Mr Summerton agreed that in the 1990s Yakka

had a number of contracts with different companies to supply navy
workwear. In the late 1990s Yakka decided to reduce the number of navy
colours that they used. One of the colours that was chosen was the Telstra
Navy colour. He said that in the late 1900s or early 2000s he thought that
colour was being used by Yakka in workwear for companies other than
Telstra.1867
2055 Mr Summerton also agreed that at some point Telstra garments

started to be manufactured in Fiji and then in China in the late 1990s or
early 2000s. He said that neither the company in Fiji nor the company in
China was a Bruck-owned company. He agreed that Bruck had no control
over what occurred in factories in those countries other than quality
assurance when the garment came to Australia. In Fiji or China Bruck
had no control over whether someone else was using fabric that Bruck had
supplied.1868
2056 Mr Summerton was asked if there was an exclusivity agreement

between Yakka and Bruck and said that he thought that in the very early
days there might have been; that it was a specified colour and therefore
was not able to be made for anyone else or supplied to anyone else.1869
1865
ts 8173 - 5; exhibit 15188.
1866
ts 8175, 8176 - 7; exhibit 15188.
1867
ts 8179.
1868
ts 8180.
1869
ts 8181.
Page 532
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HALL J
Possible sources – 1BPX-080
Collection and history of control fibres

2057 As referred to earlier in these reasons, the ChemCentre was involved
in a joint examination of the vehicle seized after the arrest of the accused
(1BPX-080). From 9 to 11 January 2017 staff from WA Police, PathWest
and the ChemCentre examined the vehicle at the forensic field operations
facility in Midland. During this examination the seating components were
removed and then further examined at another joint examination at
PathWest between 2 and 24 February 2017.1870
2058 Given the earlier finding that the grey polyester fibres in
Ms Rimmer's hair corresponded to seating fabric from a 1996 VS Holden
Commodore the objective was to compare the fibres found in the hair
mass to the fibres from the seats of the vehicle seized.1871 Each of the
various components of the seats were given a unique identifier. Many of
them have Mr Powell's initials (RAP) because he collected them. Control
samples were collected from various parts of the vehicle.
Rees Powell – evidence summary

2059 The dark fabric through the middle of the car seat has a striped
pattern and is referred to as the seat insert. The lighter grey fabric on the
sides of the darker grey fabric is referred to as the seat bolster. A
subsample of the seat insert was taken by Mr Powell and he imaged it by
stereomicroscope.1872
2060 A sample was also taken from the rear cargo area of 1BPX-080.
Mr Powell said that different carpets were used in the rear cargo area and
the cabin area foot wells. The carpet used in the cargo area or boot of the
car is also used on the rear of the back seats. He displayed a microscope
image of a fibre from the rear cargo area of the vehicle. He said it is a
blue-grey polypropylene fibre. He noted that these fibres are much
thicker than the grey polyester fibres. This is because they are required to
be more durable; this is a typical feature of carpet fibres. Mr Powell also
noted that polypropylene is not dyed in the same way as polyester. The
grey polyester fibres from the seat insert can be seen to have consistent
colour throughout the fibre. He said that polypropylene is not typically
1870
1871
ts 8251 - 2; exhibit 30460, slide 41.
1872
Page 533
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HALL J
dyed in this fashion, a pigment is added and the pigment appears as small,
discrete particles.1873
2061 The cabin area carpet was also examined. The cabin area carpet was
the same for the front and the back, but different to the rear cargo area.
The cabin area carpet textile was made of two different types of
polypropylene; Mr Powell described them as light grey and dark grey.
The court was shown a compound microscope image of the two kinds of
fibre. Mr Powell observed that the dark grey has a much heavier amount
of delusterant. He also observed that there is a dark grey band that runs
along the length of both of the fibres. This was explained by the fibres
having a trilobal cross-section. The dark band is a thicker area of the
fibre. Mr Powell said that the trilobal cross-section is reasonably common
for carpet fibres.1874
2062 After examining the fabrics from the vehicle Mr Powell selected
control fibres from them. He viewed the fabrics under a stereomicroscope
and looked for cleaner fibres from areas that were not contaminated.1875
He collected examples of the following fibre types as control fibres:
blue-grey polypropylene, grey polyester, light grey polypropylene and
dark grey polypropylene. He also collected blue polyester fibres that were
foreign to the vehicle and are described as critical fibres and these were
referred to earlier.
2063 Five blue-grey polypropylene fibres were selected as control

fibres:1876
1. 018-001 from control fabric RAP18 (rear cargo area, lower left
area) from HBE10, the rear seat backrest (passenger side)
2. 042-001 from control fabric RAP42 (rear cargo area) from

HBE11, the rear seat backrest (driver's side)
3. 193-001 from control fabric HBE58A, from the grey auto carpet
(HBE58)
4. 194-001 from control fabric HBE58B, the grey auto carpet

(HBE58)
1873
1874
1875
ts 9241.
1876
ts 8611.
Page 534
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HALL J
5. 195-001 from control fabric HBE58C, from the grey auto carpet
(HBE58).
2064 Nineteen grey polyester fibres were selected as control fibres:1877

1. 013-001 to 013-003 from RAP13 (section of rear passenger side
seat back insert) from HBE10, the rear seat backrest
2. 039-002 from RAP39 (rear seat backrest driver's side), from

HBE11, the rear seat backrest (driver's side)
3. 063-002 to 063-004 from RAP63 (rear passenger side seat base

insert) from HBE15, the rear seat base
4. 096-004 from RAP96 (seat base insert from the driver's seat) from
HBE16, the driver's seat
5. 102-002 and 102-003 from RAP102 (driver's seat headrest) from

6. 103-003 to 103-005 from RAP103 (driver's seat base) from
7. 181-002 and 181-005 from RAP129 (front interior seam of seat
insert in seat back) from HBE21, the front passenger seat
8. 183-003 and 183-004 from RAP131 (seat insert from seat back)
from HBE21, the passenger seat
9. 186-002 and 186-003 from RAP134 (head rest) from HBE21, the
passenger seat.
2065 Light grey and dark grey polypropylene fibres were selected as
control fibres. These fibres all came from the examinations of the grey
auto carpet seized from the vehicle (HBE103) Mr Powell collected fibres
from various parts of the carpet and then chose samples from each colour.
2066 Two dark grey polypropylene fibres were selected:1878

1. 107-011 from the front passenger side footwell
2. 107-018 from the lip to the rear of the driver's seat.
1877
ts 8414, 8425, 8438, 8444, 8452 - 5, 8477 - 8, 8483, 8489, 8491, 8498, 8505, 8511, 8517, 8523, 8529,
8533 - 5, 8548, 8571, 8577, 8584, 8836, 8840 - 1, 8843 - 7, 8953, 8958.
1878
ts 8927 - 9.
Page 535
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HALL J
2067 Six light grey polypropylene fibres were selected:1879
1. 107-012 from the front passenger side footwell
2. 107-014 from the rear passenger side footwell

3. 107-023 from the front driver's side footwell
4. 107-027 from the rear driver's side footwell
5. 107-028 also from the rear driver's side footwell
6. 107-030 from the rear of the driver's seat.
2068 In April 2017 the ChemCentre prepared an interim report on their

findings regarding vehicle controls. Following that they tape lifted the
vehicle seating components. The tape lifts and debris from the vehicle
were searched for foreign or extraneous fibres. The purpose of this was to
search for fibres that potentially corresponded in properties to those of the
constituent fibres of Ms Glennon's clothing. He explained that the reason
they focussed on Ms Glennon's clothing is because there was no clothing
submitted to ChemCentre in relation to the death of Jane Rimmer and the
assault on KJG occurred before the manufacture of this vehicle.1880
2069 Mr Powell said that they gave priority to searching hidden or hard to
access areas where fibres might persist over the 20 years that the vehicle
had been used. He said that they found no corresponding fibres to the
constituent fibres of Ms Glennon's clothing items in the search of that
vehicle. A further report was issued in June 2018.1881
2070 The ChemCentre also undertook shedability testing on a sample of

the seat insert fabric that was removed from the rear of one of the front
seats of the vehicle and of the cabin area carpet. This test was carried out
in the same way, by dragging a laboratory coat across the item and then
counting the number of fibres that are transferred. After the shedability
testing of the seat insert fabric Mr Powell recalled that only half of the
tape lifts were actually counted because it was shown that the grey
polyester shed in abundance; from half of the tape lifts over 400 fibres
were counted so the counting was abandoned at that point. The carpet
(polypropylene) test numbers were lower. He said that around 15 - 20
fibres of both the light grey and dark grey types were collected. He said
1879
ts 8611.
1880
1881
ts 8256 - 7; exhibit 30460, slide 48.
Page 536
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HALL J
that there were no persistence tests done for the seat fabric or the cabin
carpet.1882
Craig Porritt – evidence summary

2071 Mr Porritt currently works in China with a company which has been
established as a joint venture between General Motors and Shanghai
Automotive Industry Corporation. He has Bachelor of Mechanical
Engineering from Monash University. He has been working in his current
role since June 2019.1883
2072 Mr Porritt has worked with General Motors Holden since 1996 in a
variety of roles, including as the manager of the interior and seating and
restraints team between 2000 and 2005. In that role he was responsible
for a group of engineers who were designing, releasing, validating and
developing seats, restraints, and air bags, including the fabrics for various
products.
2073 Mr Porritt explained that a VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) is a
unique identifier for vehicles that includes a number of elements. It helps
the public and the manufacturer identify a specific vehicle. There is no
duplication of any VIN anywhere in the world because each manufacturer
is allocated its own code. The number is comprised of a total of
17 characters. The VIN is located in different places on a vehicle
depending on the model, generally there is a plate with the number under
the hood and in later models also a plate at the base of the windscreen.1884
2074 Mr Porritt was shown a photograph of the VIN for 1BPX-080,
6H8VSK35HTL917998, and asked to explain it. He said that 6H8 is the
Holden manufacture code, V represents a Commodore, S is the code for a
VQ or VS model, K means a base model or executive level vehicle,
35 means a four-door wagon with a hatch at the rear, H represents a six
cylinder engine, T is the model year (which eliminates VQ) and L917998
represents the plant and sequence serial number. In summary, the car
with this VIN is a Holden produced six cylinder Commodore VS base
model station wagon.1885
2075 Mr Porritt was able to search a number of Holden databases to obtain

further information about this vehicle. One of those databases records the
first registration number of the vehicle, registration date, vehicle
1882
ts 8281 - 2.
1883
ts 7815 - 7.
1884
ts 7816 – 20, 7820; see exhibit 14886.
1885
ts 7821; exhibit 06749.
Page 537
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HALL J
description, colour, interior trim and engine type. He said it is a

VS Commodore Executive Wagon, model year 1996, white exterior,
25i blue interior trim, automatic transmission, 6 cylinder, with a 3.8 litre
engine. The build date for the car was 21 March 1996, the first
registration number was 9GP-082 and the car was first registered on
28 April 1996. The vehicle was fitted with optional features, being a
cargo restraint barrier between the rear seats and the rear compartment
and a ladder rack (a roof rack designed for ladders).1886
2076 Mr Porritt said that the VS series I Commodore started production in

April 1995. The VS series II started in June 1996 and the VS series III
started at the around the same time as the VT model, which was August
1997. He said that the VS series I came in wagons, sedans and utilities. It
also came in three levels of luxury fitout. Within level 1 there was an
Executive, an Acclaim, an S and an SS level. The level 2 was the Berlina
and the level 3 was the Calais. These levels of luxury applied to VS series
II Commodores as well.1887
2077 Mr Porritt said that at that time Holden had a joint venture
partnership arrangement with Toyota and Toyota sold the Holden
Commodore as a Toyota Lexcen. The Holden Commodore VS series I
and II were rebadged as the Toyota Lexcen CSI and VXI, known as T4
and T5.1888
2078 In the VS series I and II Commodores there were two interior trim
themes to select from: 15i slate grey and 25i blue graphite. Each of those
trim codes had sub-groups of different patterns.1889 Mr Porritt said that
25i trim had plain and patterned elements. There were two colours
developed for the theme, light blue graphite and dark blue graphite.
These two colour patterns were used throughout the vehicle.
2079 The 25i trim included a patterned fabric called Kyneton. Mr Porritt
was asked in cross-examination how many different colours of fibres
there were in the Kyneton fabric and said that he could not answer that.
He agreed that it was more than one because that fabric contained more
than one colour. He said that it is unlikely that there would be a fibre that
is the same colour or an indistinguishable colour in a 25i pattern or fabric
1886
ts 7821 - 5, 7827 - 8; exhibit 14820, p 1.
1887
ts 7829 - 30.
1888
ts 7830.
1889
ts 7832 - 3, 7845.
Page 538
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HALL J
as in a 15i fabric; he said that the colours of the fabrics are quite
different.1890
2080 Mr Porritt said that seat fabrics are broken into two sections. There
is a plain section on the bolsters on the left and right of each seat. In the
centre there is 'insert material', which is typically a patterned fabric. Both
the plain and the patterned fabric fall within the interior trim theme. He
said that this combination of plain seat bolster and patterned insert fabrics
in the blue graphite trim colour was not used in any other vehicles
manufactured by Holden other than the VS series and the Toyota Lexcen
equivalents. The 25i blue graphite trim colour was used on Holden
manufactured vehicles in the VS series I, II and III Commodores and the
T4 and T5 Toyota Lexcens. The Kyneton seat insert fabric was only
available in the VS series I. The fabrics were supplied to Holden by
Melba-Kawashima.1891
2081 Mr Porritt was asked how many Holden manufactured VS series I
Commodores have the combination of the 25i blue graphite trim colour
together with the Kyneton pattern seat inserts. He said that approximately
6,800 station wagons were produced using Kyneton fabric and about
19,300 executive sedans were produced using that fabric.1892
2082 In cross-examination Mr Porritt was asked whether he would expect
other vehicles to have fabrics with the same coloured fibres in them as the
25i fabrics. In particular, he was asked about the 17i trim used in the
1998 VT Commodore and Ford or Toyota vehicles (other than the
Lexcen). He said it was unlikely that a 1998 VT Commodore with a
17i trim code would have any colours or coloured fibres that were the
same as any coloured fibres in a VS Commodore 25i trim. He also said
that it would be very unlikely for a Ford or a Toyota that was not a
Lexcen to have any fibre colours or types in common with the
Commodore VS 25i because the fabrics were engineered to a specific
colour master.1893
2083 Mr Porritt also gave evidence about the carpet used in the VS series
Commodores. He said that the carpet in the main cabin area of the vehicle
was a cut pile carpet made of polyethylene fibre. It was colour-coded as
dark graphite XK and that specific carpet in blue graphite was only
1890
ts 7845 - 86.
1891
ts 7833 - 5; exhibit 06854.
1892
ts 7835.
1893
ts 7848.
Page 539
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HALL J
available in VS series I and series II as a floor carpet in the sedan and

wagon where 25i trim had been selected.1894
2084 In cross-examination Mr Porritt agreed that the 25i trim codes had
different coloured cabin carpets to the 15i trim codes. He also said that it
was unlikely that any of the coloured carpet fibres that made up the cabin
carpets of those vehicles would be common to or correspond to carpet
fibres in other types of car like Toyotas or Fords, with the possible
exception of a U4A Toyota. He said that there would be 'absolutely zero'
opportunity for crossover because it is an Australian produced colour and
Fords and Toyotas had their own colour development in that era.1895
2085 The carpet in the rear cargo area of the VS series I wagon is different
to the main area carpet. Mr Porritt said that this floor carpet (he called it
the load floor) hides the spare wheel tub. There are also two carpeted
vertical panels on the left and right that conceal speakers. The carpet on
the back of the rear seats is the same as the carpet in the load floor, it is
not the same as the floor carpet in the passenger area. This carpet is
constructed from a nonwoven polypropylene polyethylene blend, with the
name Taralock. The Taralock carpet was available in both the 25i and the
15i trim, but was a different colour. Taralock in the 25i colour was only
used in the Holden Commodore VS series I and II wagons. He said that
the carpet on the wheel arches or sides was made using a different
construction method to give it more stiffness. The carpet in the cargo area
was manufactured by LR Aldersons, a company in Thomastown that
produced headliner, which is the passenger compartment roof trim and
certain load floor carpets for Holden.1896
Antonio Laino – evidence summary

2086 Antonio Laino is the sales and marketing director of Bradmill
Outdoor Fabrics. He has a postgraduate degree in Business
Administration and a degree in Applied Chemistry. Prior to joining
Bradmill in 2014 he was employed by Bruck Textiles. Before that he
worked for Melba Industries and Melba-Kawashima.1897
2087 Mr Laino said that in the 1990s Melba was a textile manufacturer.
He began work with Melba in March 1988 as a quality controller, then
became quality assurance manager and then progressed to other roles
1894
ts 7836.
1895
ts 7849 - 50.
1896
ts 7836 - 8, 7850 - 2; exhibit 07217.
1897
ts 7855 - 6.
Page 540
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including general manager of sales and marketing. He worked at Melba

for about 21 years.1898
2088 Melba was the largest manufacturer and supplier of interior trim
textile fabrics to the Australian automotive industry, including supplying
Holden, Ford, Toyota, Mitsubishi and Nissan. Melba got into financial
difficulty in 2009 and Bruck Textiles acquired the assets after liquidation;
a number of personnel, including Mr Laino, transferred to Bruck. Bruck
continued to supply products to the automotive industry. Bruck was not
previously an automotive supplier, they were mainly a supplier of
workwear and other industrial products.1899
2089 In the 1990s Mr Laino role was to ensure that Melba supplied what
the automotive companies required. He said that Melba were by far the
largest manufacturer and supplier of automotive trim products in Australia
at that time. They worked with the design teams of the car companies to
develop new products. He said that the process of developing a new trim
would typically take two years. The automotive companies would create
the colour schemes and Melba would colour their fabrics into the shades
that the car companies chose for their interiors. Melba worked with the
dye houses to get the colour that was required. They would then show the
product to the design department at the automotive company and work
with them until they had got the shade as they wanted it.1900
2090 Mr Laino said that the fabrics used were 100% polyester because it is
the most durable raw material, it had great strength and resistance to
ultraviolet light degradation. He said that some models used leather and
vinyl in certain areas but all of the textiles were 100% polyester. He said
that in the construction of textiles used in vehicles a different grade of
polyester is used to the polyester used in clothes. The yarn used is
stronger so that it has more strength and durability.1901
2091 Melba imported the raw materials for the fabrics from overseas.
They had several suppliers depending on whether they were making a
woven fabric or a knitted fabric. The polyester fibre in yarn form would
come to them wound onto a bobbin and they would then take that yarn
and make it into a fabric. The yarn was mostly raw and undyed, although
sometimes they acquired pre-dyed yarn.1902
1898
ts 7856, 7862.
1899
ts 7856 - 7.
1900
ts 7858 - 9.
1901
ts 7860 - 1.
1902
ts 7862.
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2092 Mr Laino said that Melba outsourced the dying process. In some
cases they dyed the raw white yarn into the colours they wanted and in
others they knit the fabrics in a raw white state and then that would go to a
subcontractor to be dyed. Melba used different companies for colouring
depending on whether they were dying the yarn or the fabric. The
makeup of the dye was determined by the subcontractor. Melba would
issue the specifications and request a shade and then the subcontractor
would send Melba a sample to be approved by the automotive
companies.1903
2093 Mr Laino explained the process of making the Kyneton fabric for
Holden. He said that once the dyed yarn was returned to Melba on
bobbins they knitted it using a high speed knitting machine into a base
fabric. They then put some colour into parts of the fabric and put it
through another process to create a velour effect. In cross-examination he
said that the bolster part of the seat was in one plain colour and the seat
insert fabric had a background colour and a series of highlight colours,
red, blue and green. He said that Melba was involved in developing the
Kyneton pattern with Holden and he understood that it was to be used in
the VS series I Commodore. He said that the Kyneton fabric was specific
to Holden and to the VS series I; every fabric that they developed was
unique to that automotive supplier. Melba would never supply the same
fabric to another customer.1904
2094 Mr Laino said that he was aware that at the time there was some
model-sharing between the car companies and that Holden made a model
for Toyota called the Lexcen and used similar interior fabric. However, it
was in a different pattern called Hastings. This pattern and the appearance
of the fabric was also unique, so that differentiated it from the Holden
vehicles. The colour scheme was otherwise the same.1905
2095 Mr Laino said that there could have been other fabrics called blue
graphite but they would have been differently constructed and would not
have looked anything like the Kyneton fabric. In cross-examination he
agreed that to his recollection all the individual fibres that made up the
Kyneton fabric were unique to that fabric and were not reproduced in any
other automotive fabrics. Any leftover fabric was sold to automotive
trimmers about six months after the end of production.1906
1903
ts 7862 - 3.
1904
ts 7863 - 6, 7869; exhibit 06854.
1905
ts 7866.
1906
ts 7866 - 8, 7875.
Page 542
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Comparative analysis of the fibres

2096 Mr Powell conducted a detailed comparison of each of the critical
fibres with other fibres. In particular he compared the critical fibres with
fibres collected from known sources, including the Telstra Pants and the
Holden Commodore 1BPX-080. The features compared were the type,
diameter, colour and presence of delusterant. This comparison was
undertaken using brightfield, green filter, UV fluorescent and polarised
light images. The polarised light image was useful in identifying the type
of fibre because the birefringence of substances differ, for example
polyester is highly birefringent, and this is evident in in the image by the
pattern of polarised light.1907 Colour was determined objectively using
MSP profiles.
2097 In respect of each comparison undertaken Mr Powell came to a

conclusion as to whether the fibres corresponded in properties, were
similar in properties or differed in proprieties. In some cases fibres
differed only in respect of diameter and Mr Powell explained that this did
not exclude the possibility that they came from the same source as there
could be a variation in size of the same type of fibre within that source.
He gave the example of the Telstra pants and said that if he took any two
fibres at random from the pants and compared them he might find that
their diameters were different even though when each was compared to
other fibres from the pants they would correspond.1908
2098 Amongst the critical fibres were two groups that had a large number
of fibres. These were the blue polyester group and the grey polyester
group. In respect of these two groups a target fibre was selected in the
manner described earlier, that is, one fibre was identified that had a high
level of correspondence to all others in the group and could be used as a
representative of the group. If a critical fibre was found to correspond to
the target fibre it could be assumed that it must also correspond to all
other fibres in that group. This obviated the need to compare every fibre
in that group with every other fibre in that group. In the blue polyester
group critical fibre 031 was identified as the target fibre. In the grey
polyester group critical fibre 270 was identified as the target fibre.
2099 Each of the 98 critical fibres (including the 13 blue polyester fibres
recovered from 1BPX-080) was the subject of individual comparison
analysis. In each case Mr Powell gave evidence of the images that were
taken, the MSP profiles obtained and his opinion as to whether the fibres
1907
ts 8315.
1908
ts 8310.
Page 543
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HALL J
corresponded in their properties. This evidence was summarised in

spreadsheets and charts that were tendered in evidence. The
methodology, thoroughness and conclusions reached by Mr Powell were
not substantially in dispute. In these circumstances it is unnecessary to set
out that evidence in detail. It is sufficient to summarise the conclusions,
which I accept.1909
2100 The 60 blue polyester critical fibres that were subjected to

comparative analysis comprised the two recovered from the shorts of
KJG, one recovered from the hair of Ms Rimmer, 33 recovered from the
hair of Ms Glennon, 11 recovered from the t-shirt of Ms Glennon and
13 recovered from the Holden Commodore 1BPX-080. One of these
60 fibres was the target fibre of this group (031). Of the remaining fibres
55 were compared to the target fibre and found to correspond in
properties. All 60 fibres were compared to polyester fibres from the
Telstra pants and found to correspond in properties.1910
2101 The 23 grey polyester critical fibres that were subjected to
comparative analysis comprised 20 recovered from the hair of
Ms Rimmer and three from the hair of Ms Glennon. One of the 23 fibres
was the target fibre of this group (270). Of the remaining fibres 19 were
compared to the target fibre and found to correspond in properties. All 23
fibres were compared to polyester fibres from the fabric in the seat inserts
of 1BPX-080 and found to correspond in properties.1911
2102 The six blue non-delustered rayon fibres were recovered from the
hair of Ms Glennon. All of these fibres were compared to rayon fibres
from the Telstra pants and found to correspond in properties.1912
2103 The one blue-grey polypropylene fibre was recovered from the hair
of Ms Rimmer. This fibre was compared to polypropylene fibres from the
rear cargo area carpet of 1BPX-080 and found to correspond in
properties.1913
2104 The seven light grey polypropylene fibres were recovered from the
hair of Ms Glennon. All of these fibres were compared to polypropylene
fibres from the main cabin area carpet of 1BPX-080 and found to
correspond in properties.1914
1909
1910
ts 8312 - 9222.
1911
ts 8312 - 9222.
1912
ts 8312 - 9222.
1913
ts 8312 - 9222.
1914
ts 8312 - 9222.
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2105 The one dark grey polypropylene fibre was recovered from the hair
of Ms Glennon. This fibre was compared to fibres from the main cabin
area carpet of 1BPX-080 and found to correspond in properties.1915
2106 The ChemCentre did not compare the various 60 blue polyesters and
six non-delustered rayons to the Telstra swatch in the same detail as they
did for the Telstra pants. However they did compare a small selection of
fibres.1916
2107 Mr Powell showed the court comparison microscopy images of two

fibres: one from Ms Glennon's hair and one polyester fibre from the warp
of the Telstra swatch. He showed one image from a darker area of the
fibres and one from a lighter area. He said that the diameter and
perceived colour of the two fibres appear consistent. He noted that the
presence of delusterant and diameter also appeared consistent in the image
taken from the lighter area. He also showed the court the MSP overlay.
He said he considered the two fibres to correspond in properties.1917
2108 Mr Powell also compared the non-delustered rayon fibres. He
showed the court a comparison microscope image of a fibre from
Ms Glennon's hair and a warp rayon fibre from the swatch. He noted that
looking at the diameter and non-cylindrical cross-section he considered
them to correspond in properties.1918
2109 The 98 critical fibres were also compared to other recovered fibres,
that is, fibres recovered from Ms Rimmer, Ms Glennon and 1BPX-080.
In this way fibres from each source were compared to each other as well
as to the control fibres. With very few exceptions these comparisons also
resulted in conclusions that the fibres corresponded in properties. The
exceptions were explained by Mr Powell and did not affect his opinion as
to the essential comparisons between the critical fibres and the control
fibres.
1915
ts 8312 - 9222.
1916
ts 8282 - 3.
1917
1918
Page 545
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Exclusion of other sources
KJG
2110 KJG's statements were read in to evidence. She stated that to the best
of her knowledge none of her friends or friends of her family worked for
Telecom on or prior to 11 February 1995.1919
2111 She stated that she had never been in a Telecom or Telstra vehicle to
her knowledge and in the days leading up to 11 February 1995 she did not
have contact with any Telecom or Telstra employees.1920
Ms Rimmer – home and vehicles

2112 A hair brush was seized by WA Police on 11 June 1996.
Sgt Hemelaar, SC Stott and Sgt Hyde went to Ms Rimmer's unit in
Wembley. Sgt Hemelaar was the supervising sergeant and photographer
and wrote the exhibit list. SC Stott was the exhibits officer; he used an
identifier that consists of his initials RKS and then a sequential number
following that.1921
2113 The items seized were put into paper exhibit bags and Sgt Hemelaar
wrote the details on the exhibit log as the exhibit was collected. The items
seized include RKS13, the contents of the rubbish bin and RKS14,
medications and a hairbrush from the bathroom cabinet.1922
2114 SC Stott took the exhibits to Curtin House and entered them onto the
property tracing system. Sgt Hemelaar and SC Stott were both shown the
exhibit list and the PTS receipt. They said that the hairbrush that was
seized and shown on the exhibit list as RKS14 was entered onto the PTS
as exhibit 13.1923
2115 Mr Powell examined Ms Rimmer's hair brush and recovered

approximately 200 fibres from it. None of the fibres recovered
corresponded in properties to the Telstra exemplar clothing, Bruck swatch
or Holden VS Commodore fibres of interest.1924
2116 As noted earlier in these reasons, Ms Rimmer owned a silver Mazda

sedan at the time of her disappearance. Her father drove a blue Ford
Falcon sedan and her mother drove a blue Ford Laser hatch.
1919
ts 1966.
1920
ts 1966.
1921
ts 2839, 3105 - 6, 3108, 3581.
1922
ts 2846 - 8, 3107 - 8; exhibit 12565, exhibit 08027, exhibit 08032.
1923
ts 2850 - 3, 3113, 3276, 3279, 3281; exhibit 12567, exhibit 12565.
1924
ts 9231; exhibit 30265, line 451.
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Ms Rimmer – taxis
2117 David Kluwen is a taxi driver. He has been driving with Swan Taxis
on and off since 1989. His taxi driver ID is 2586. He was working on
8 June 1996 in a vehicle that he did not own, he said he did not know who
owned it. To the best of his recollection the day driver was Robert Court
and the taxi operated from Mr Court's house in Beechboro. The taxi was a
white Ford Falcon station wagon with Swan Taxi signage.1925
2118 Mr Kluwen recalled dropping off a fare on 8 June 1996 near the
Hollywood Bowling Club. He then collected a fare; the name allocated to
that fare was Jane. He said he collected a woman with blonde hair, a dark
jacket, blue jeans and black shoes from the phone box near Karrakatta
Cemetery and took her to the Ocean Beach Hotel in Cottesloe.1926
2119 Robert Court's evidence was read in to evidence. He stated that he

was employed as a taxi driver with Swan Taxis from either 1988 or 1989
to 2004. He only ever owned one taxi, which was a white Ford Falcon
station wagon registration number Taxi 351. He leased the taxi plates
from the man he purchased it from.1927
2120 Mr Court stated that he drove the taxi during the dayshift from
5.00 am to 5.00 pm. He recalled that a man called Dave drove the taxi
during the nightshift. The changeover was always at Mr Court's house in
Beechboro.1928
2121 Michelle Aikin is a public servant attached to the Driver and Vehicle
Services Directorate of the Department of Transport. The department
maintains a register of vehicles, which includes identifying vehicle data
(such as year, colour, make, model, VIN and engine numbers). Her
statement was read in to evidence. She stated that she was asked to
provide a list of all Holden Commodore VS and Toyota Lexcen T4 and
T5 vehicle types that were licenced as a taxi during 1996, she was
provided with partial VINs 6H8VS and 6H8T (that relate to vehicles of
those makes and models). She produced a spreadsheet with this
information to WA Police on 5 October 2018. The WA Police then
requested further information about 20 of the vehicles from the
spreadsheet and she provided it on 23 October 2018.1929
1925
ts 1931 - 2.
1926
ts 1932 - 3.
1927
ts 2597.
1928
ts 2597.
1929
ts 8182 - 3; exhibit 00494.
Page 547
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2122 A schedule of agreed evidence for the relevant vehicles was tendered
and includes the details for the relevant vehicles. In the agreed schedule
there is a heading 'Taxi-Plated Vehicles identified in a search for Holden
Commodore VS or Toyota Lexcen T4/5 licensed as at 8 - 9 June 1996
with partial VINs of 6H8VS or 6H8T'. Two 'station sedan' taxis are listed
under this heading, Taxi 409 a white Holden Commodore station wagon
with the VIN 6H8VSK35HTL865822 and Taxi 541 a white Holden
Commodore station wagon with the VIN 6H8VSK35HTL863427.1930
2123 The first of the relevant vehicles has the number plate Taxi 409. The
evidence about Taxi 409 came from the statement of Alan Ladbrook,
which was read in to evidence. Mr Ladbrook stated that he drove Taxi
409, a white Holden Commodore station wagon. He could not recall
exactly what years he drove it. He drove it from Friday afternoon to
Sunday night, mainly in the Northbridge area. He said that he did not like
going to Claremont or Club Bayview and would only go to the Ocean
Beach Hotel in Cottesloe if he had a drop off there. If he had a fare down
that way he would travel back to the city on Stirling Highway.1931
2124 Mr Ladbrook stated that the taxis he drove were licensed to carry
four passengers. He would not take more because he did not want to get
booked for overloading. People did try to get him to take more than four
passengers but he always refused. He was interviewed by WA Police on
15 September 1997 and he said that he was usually driving Taxi 409. He
could not recall whether he was working on 8 June 1996. He produced a
list of the computer dispatch jobs for Taxi 409 between 8 and 9 June
1996. There is a log job recorded for a pick-up in Attadale at 19.53 on
8 June 1996 with a drop off in West Perth at 20.15. The next job recorded
is at 11.08 on 9 June 1996 from Whitfords. He did not recall where the
taxi was between those jobs.1932
2125 The other relevant vehicle described as a station sedan in the agreed
schedule is Taxi 541. The evidence about this taxi was given by Scot
Griffin. Mr Griffin was the operations manager for Black and White
Taxis from 1991 to 1998. During that time he recalled that he provided
the police with some records, including details for 8 and 9 June 1996. He
provided the details of the booked fares for Taxi 541, which does not
include a fare in Cottesloe.1933
1930
ts 8184; exhibit 30451.
1931
ts 9657 - 8.
1932
ts 9658 - 9; exhibit 01653, exhibit 01654. See also the evidence of Scot Griffin: ts 9569, 9572; exhibit
15106.
1933
Page 548
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2126 The State submits that Taxi 541 is a white 1995 VS Holden
Commodore station wagon manufactured with a 15i interior trim and
relies on Mr Porritt's evidence about VINs in support of that submission.
Mr Porritt gave evidence that WA Police provided him with a list of VINs
and at their request he confirmed the trim of each of them. However, the
list of VINs was not tendered in evidence. Nonetheless, it is possible to
infer that Taxi 541 had a 15i trim as Mr Porritt produced another
document which contained details of those vehicles on the list that had
25i trim and Taxi 541 is not amongst them.1934
2127 There is other evidence about the taxi Ms Rimmer took from the
Ocean Beach Hotel to The Continental. The bar manager from the hotel,
Jarrod Turner, said that he called Swan Taxis for Ms Rimmer and her
friends. Two of her friends gave evidence that the taxi they took from the
Ocean Beach Hotel was a sedan.1935
Ms Glennon – home, work and vehicles

2128 On 16 March 1997 Senior Sergeant Alexander Wells attended the
Glennons' home in Mosman Park with Sergeant Norrish, SC Benson and
Constable Morrell to collect items to assist in the investigation. Snr
Sgt Wells kept the exhibit list and the exhibits have his initials (AW). The
exhibit list includes the following items which were subsequently
examined by the ChemCentre: a hair brush and hair sample (AW2), a
second hair brush (AW4), a hair brush, a hair scrunchie and piece of tissue
(AW11) and a fibre sample from carpet (AW13).1936
2129 On 12 April 1997 Sgt Hemelaar and Snr Sgt Wells went to the
Glennons' home to collect fibre samples that were to be sent to the
ChemCentre. Sgt Hemelaar kept an exhibit list. They seized fibres from
different rooms as well as some objects and clothing items and some
items from Ms Glennon's backpack. Of the items collected, the following
were later examined by the ChemCentre; a bra from a purple backpack
(RH5), three hair ties (RH6, RH7, RH8), two friendship bands (RH9,
RH10), fibre from a pair of socks (RH11), fibres from a blanket (RH15),
fibres from a toy rabbit (RH20) and carpet fibres (RH23).1937
2130 On 14 April 1997 Sgt Hemelaar examined Mr Glennon's Mercedes
vehicle and took a fibre sample from it. He recorded this on an exhibit
1934
ts 7839; exhibit 14883; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The Fibre Evidence, 150 [190.3].
1935
ts 2259, 2265, 2279 - 80, 2285; State Submissions filed 17 June 2020, The Fibre Evidence, 150 [190.4].
1936
ts 3742 - 5; exhibit 13611, exhibit 30265, rows 1160 - 1206.
1937
ts 3225 - 6, 3783 - 4; exhibit 13808.
Page 549
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list. This fibre does not appear to have been examined by the
ChemCentre.1938
2131 Later that day Sgt Hemelaar and Snr Sgt Wells attended
Ms Glennon's office at Blake Dawson Waldron. They examined her work
area and collected fibres or possible fibre sources that might assist in the
investigation of samples that they had collected. Snr Sgt Wells kept an
exhibit list and the exhibits have his initials (AW). They took samples
from Ms Glennon's office: from a blue office chair, a white office chair
and the carpet. They took samples from the conference area, her diary
and from a brief wrapping ribbon. They also examined a Holden Barina
sedan belonging to Mr Fearis. The exhibits collected include the
following items subsequently sent to the ChemCentre: carpet fibre
sample from Ms Glennon's office (AW2) and fibre sample from
Ms Glennon's chair (AW4). The exhibit list also includes a sample taken
from The Continental Hotel, which I will return to later in these
reasons.1939
2132 On 30 April 1997 Sgt Hemelaar and Snr Sgt Wells returned to the
Glennons' house to collect further samples. An exhibit list was again kept
and seven items were taken from the sewing room and given exhibit
numbers with Sgt Hemelaar's initials (RH). None of these fibres appear to
have been examined by the ChemCentre.1940
2133 Later that day Sgt Hemelaar returned to Ms Glennon's work address
and met with Mr Fearis. Two further samples were taken: a blue ribbon
from Ms Glennon's diary and another fibre sample from the brief
wrapping ribbon. The fibre sample from the blue ribbon (RH1) was
subsequently examined by the ChemCentre.1941
2134 The ChemCentre examined a number of the items seized from

Ms Glennon's home and workplace. They have been identified in the
previous paragraphs. None of the fibres recovered from these items
corresponded in properties to the Telstra exemplar clothing, Bruck swatch
or Holden VS Commodore fibres of interest.1942
1938
1939
ts 3228 - 30, 3785; exhibit 13810, exhibit 30265, rows 1261 - 1266.
1940
1941
ts 3232; exhibit 08177, exhibit 30265, rows 1257 - 1260.
1942
ts 9232 - 7; exhibit 30265, rows 1160 - 1194, rows 1207 - 1266.
Page 550
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Police uniforms
2135 Melissa Tomlinson is a systems development officer in materials
management at the procurement, planning and service branch of the
WA Police. She commenced working for the WA Police in 2006 and has
held her present positon for 10 years. A statement of Ms Tomlinson was
read in to evidence.1943
2136 Ms Tomlinson was asked to locate information regarding police

uniforms worn in the 1990s. She produced documents from police
records that relate to procurement of uniforms. She has no firsthand
knowledge of such procurement as she was not working in that area at the
time.1944
2137 The documents indicate that in 1999 a contract to supply police

uniforms was entered into with Stewart and Heaton Clothing Pty Ltd.
Prior to that time the Supply Branch of WA Police were responsible for
sourcing and distributing uniforms. Uniform items were made in
accordance with specifications that included the type of fabric to be used.
These specifications were amended over time and the amendments were
incorporated into the specification document.1945
2138 The specification for a pale blue short-sleeve shirt for the relevant
period is dated August 1992. That specification states that the fabric to be
used was a blended yarn consisting of 65% semi-dull polyester and 35%
combed cotton. There were eight amendments to the specification up to
May 1998, but those amendments did not affect the fabric to be used.1946
2139 In 1995 testing was undertaken on a polyester cotton fabric that was
being considered for use in manufacturing shirts. This fabric was 65%
polyester and 35% cotton and coloured sky blue. In January 1996,
8,000 m of the fabric was delivered to the police.1947
2140 No specifications for coveralls issued to police officers in the 1990s

were located, however a handbook with information relating to equipment
entitlements in the relevant period was found. The handbook was issued
in 1993 and incorporated amendments up to April 1997. The handbook
shows that different types of coverall were issued according to the needs
and specialisations of particular officers. 'Medium blue' cotton coveralls
1943
ts 9805.
1944
ts 9806.
1945
ts 9806 - 7.
1946
ts 9809; exhibit 03013.
1947
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were available to all uniform personnel and approved operational units

within the Perth metropolitan area. Navy blue polyester/cotton coveralls
were issued to the Weapons Training Section. Blue 100% cotton
coveralls were issued to the Arson Squad and the Photographic Section
(fire examination officers only). Blue polyester/cotton coveralls were
issued to the Drug Receival Unit Manager, the Manager of Camp
Mornington, Station Desert Patrols within the Kalgoorlie/Geraldton
region, the Emergency Operations Group and the CIB Motor Squad.1948
2141 A review of coveralls used by WA Police was conducted in 2002. At

that time two types of coverall were approved for use, a 'sax blue'
polyester coverall made by KingGee that was approved for use by general
duties officers and a navy blue 100% cotton coverall made by KingGee
that was approved for use by Arson Squad officers. A 'purpose designed'
navy blue polyester/cotton coverall issued to the Forensic Branch was no
longer available at that time. The records indicate that only 50 of the
latter coveralls were purchased and that they were made by Stewart and
Heaton.1949
2142 Mr Powell obtained fibres from a number of police uniform items for
the purposes of comparing them to the critical fibres. In particular, he
obtained fibres from a light blue police disposable overshoe (collected in
1997), a pair of dark blue dress trousers (in use from 1999 to present), a
dark blue jumper (in use 1999 to present), a pair of epaulettes (in use from
1999 to present), a light weight shirt (in use from 2005 to present),a
heavy-weight shirt (in use from 2005 to present), a baseball cap (in use
from 2007 to present), blue coveralls (in use from 2010 to present), a polo
shirt (in use 2010 to present), a wide-brim hat (in use 2010 to present), a
cropped jacket (in use 2011 to present), dark blue cargo pants (in use 2011
to present), a khaki shirt (in use 2000 to 2005), light blue police overalls,
dark blue police overalls, blue police overalls, two police badges and three
pairs of dark blue police trousers. The items for which no usage period
was provided all related to fibres collected from those items in 2019.
2143 The fibres collected from the items were all examined and the
relevant information included in the ChemCentre database. None of these
fibres corresponded in properties to the critical fibres or to the control
fibres from the Telstra exemplar clothing, the Bruck swatch or the Holden
VS Commodore.1950
1948
ts 9810; exhibit 03016.
1949
ts 9812; exhibit 03017.
1950
ts 9302; exhibit 30265.
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State Mortuary
2144 Mr Powell examined items described as exemplars from the State
Mortuary. He said that these items were to be used as elimination
samples. The items are a green mortuary sheet, blue washcloth, plastic
apron, pink-orange face mask, another blue and white face mask, green
King Gee overalls, white King Gee overalls with red stitching, white Hard
Yakka overalls, a white Ensign gown, blue and white Ensign towel, white
Ensign towel, blue hairnet, white protective arm sleeve cover, white
mortuary sheet, pink-orange sheet, multi-coloured sheet, blue theatre
scrubs shirt (dark blue) and blue theatre scrubs pants (dark blue).1951
2145 Mr Powell recovered fibres from the items that were made of textile
fabrics. The coloured fibres he recovered were put onto the database.
None of the fibres recovered corresponded in properties to any of the
critical fibres.1952
2146 Mr Powell also received some items that were from Ensign, who he
understood to be a supplier of material to the State Mortuary. The items
he received are blue theatre scrubs shirt (light blue), blue theatre scrubs
pants (light blue) and blue theatre scrubs pants (dark blue). These items
were examined and fibres recovered from them. None of the fibres
corresponded in properties to the critical fibres.1953
2147 The ChemCentre also examined fibres from the zipper of the body
bag that had been used to convey Ms Glennon and they were not found to
be consistent with any of the critical fibres or the Telstra exemplar
clothing, Bruck swatch, or the Holden VS Commodore.1954
The Continental Hotel

2148 As noted above, Sgt Hemelaar and Snr Sgt Wells also attended The
Continental Hotel on 14 April 1997 for the purpose of obtaining a fibre
sample. They took a sample from the second floor because they had been
told that was where Ms Glennon had been that evening. The sample
appears on the same exhibit list that was kept when they attended
Ms Glennon's workplace earlier that day.1955
2149 This sample was subsequently examined by the ChemCentre and no

fibres were found to have corresponding properties with the Telstra
1951
ts 9302 - 3.
1952
ts 9304.
1953
ts 9304.
1954
ts 9233; exhibit 30265, row 1195.
1955
ts 3228, 3230, 3785; exhibit 13810.
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exemplar clothing, Bruck swatch or Holden VS Commodore fibres of

interest.1956
Other vehicles on the ChemCentre database

2150 Mr Powell said that the ChemCentre database included 1,542 fibres
that had been collected from known vehicles (not including the control
fibres obtained from 1BPX-080). These fibres were collected from cars
located at wrecker's yards or police holding yards. The make and model
of the cars from which these fibres were taken was recorded and, in most
cases, the VIN and the interior of the car were photographed.1957
2151 The vehicles ranged from a 1986 model Holden Commodore to a

2016 Toyota Hiace van. There was a total of 720 fabric samples of which
402 were from cars manufactured between 1986 and 1996. These figures
do not represent the number of cars from which samples were taken
because multiple samples were taken from some cars. The number of cars
tested in that period was estimated to be 124, but that did not take into
account a number of cars for which the date of manufacture was
unknown.1958
2152 Mr Powell said that in addition to 1BPX-080 he had identified other

possible sources of the grey polyester fibres on the database. These were
nine other VS Holden Commodores or equivalent Toyota Lexcens and
two VT Holden Commodores. The VT Commodores could be excluded
as a possible source as they were not manufactured until after the alleged
offences. Six of the VS Commodores had 25i trim, two had 15i trim and
for one the trim was unknown (because the VIN could not be accessed).
No other possible sources for the grey polyester fibres were identified in
the database.1959
2153 The only other identified possible sources of the light grey
polypropylene fibres were seven VS Holden Commodores. Four other
vehicles had fibres which had similar properties but were not considered
to correspond. Those four vehicles were three Ford Falcons and a Toyota
Camry. No other possible sources for the light grey polypropylene fibres
were identified in the database.1960
1956
ts 8306, 9305; exhibit 30265, rows 2061 - 70.
1957
ts 9307 - 8.
1958
ts 9310.
1959
ts 9318.
1960
ts 9320.
Page 554
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
2154 The only other identified possible source of the dark grey
polypropylene fibre were seven VS Holden Commodores and one 1997
Toyota Camry. The cabin area carpets from the Commodores had fibres
that corresponded to this fibre. Three other vehicles had fibres that had
similar properties but were not considered to correspond. Those three
vehicles were a Ford Falcon, a Holden Apollo and a Toyota Camry. No
other possible sources for the dark grey polypropylene fibres were
identified in the database.1961
2155 The only identified possible source of a combination of the light and
dark grey polypropylene fibres were the seven VS Holden Commodore
vehicles already mentioned. Those vehicles all had 25i trim.1962
2156 The only other identified possible source of the blue-grey

polypropylene fibre was a 1996 Toyota Lexcen station wagon with
25i trim. The corresponding fibre from that vehicle had been taken from
the rear of the rear seat.1963
2157 In cross-examination Mr Powell accepted that of the total number of
cars tested in the 1986 to 1996 period 48 were Commodores or Lexcens.
The total number of samples taken in that period was 484, of which 203
came from Commodores or Lexcens.1964
Interpretation of the results
Ray Palmer – evidence summary

2158 Dr Ray Palmer is an independent forensic science consultant with
over 35 years' experience in the field of fibre evidence. His qualifications
are a Bachelor of Science with honours, a Master of Science and Doctor
of Philosophy. He was awarded his PhD in 2016 and his doctoral thesis
was on the evaluation of fibres in major crime. His expertise was not
challenged.1965
2159 Dr Palmer has been working as an independent consultant since

2018. Between 2011 and 2018 he was employed as a senior lecturer and
program leader in forensic science at Northumbria University in the
United Kingdom. Between 1985 and 2011 he worked for the Forensic
Science Service of England and Wales (FSS). He commenced at FSS as a
scientific officer in 1985. In about 2005 he was promoted to the position
1961
ts 9322.
1962
ts 9322.
1963
ts 9323.
1964
ts 9341.
1965
ts 9470, 9472.
Page 555
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
of principal forensic scientist responsible for service delivery of fibre

evidence. At that time there were six FSS laboratories that dealt with
fibre evidence and he was based at the Huntingdon Laboratory, near
Cambridge.1966
2160 Dr Palmer is the author a number of scientific papers on the subject

of fibre evidence, both in regard to analysis and interpretation of such
evidence. He has also contributed material to reference texts on the
subject. He has experience in the recovery and examination of fibres.
This has included on cases designated of national concern in the UK that
have involved large investigations comparable to this case. He has given
evidence in court many times on the topic of fibres found at crime
scenes.1967
2161 Prior to giving his evidence Dr Palmer was provided with:
1. a spreadsheet setting out the examinations and findings of the

ChemCentre in relation to fibres, including critical fibres;
2. video footage and photographs of the Wellard and Eglinton
disposal sites;
3. video footage and photographs of the post-mortem examinations

of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon;
4. photographs of the VS Holden Commodore 1BPX-080 and a

summary of the history of that car;
5. statements of the witness Craig Porritt;
6. transcript of the evidence of Liberty Wagner-Chavez;

7. a summary of the production of Telstra uniforms from 1993
onwards;
8. a summary of the examination of Ms Glennon's hair prior to its

submission to the ChemCentre;
9. details of the quality management systems employed by the

ChemCentre;
1966
ts 9470 - 3.
1967
ts 9473 - 4.
Page 556
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
10. a report of Roger Robson dated 19 December 2019;1968
11. the results of shedability testing undertaken by the ChemCentre;

and
12. an ownership history of the Holden Commodore 1BPX-080 and
details of the forensic examination of that vehicle.1969
2162 Dr Palmer said that fibre evidence was a well-established part of the
examination of crime scenes at the time he commenced with FSS in 1985.
He said that fibres were usually very small particles almost invisible to the
naked eye. They are often a fraction of the width of a human hair. Fibres
can be distinguished on the basis of chemistry, dye and morphology and
there is large range of possible variety.1970
2163 Having watched the videos of the crime scenes and the post-mortem
examinations Dr Palmer said that very little regard appeared to have been
had for the preservation and collection of trace evidence at these
locations. The practices that were employed at the time had inevitably led
to a loss of material on the bodies. The practices were typical for their
time and reflected what was being done in other jurisdictions. There was
a general lack of knowledge at that time of how trace evidence should be
collected and preserved.1971
2164 Dr Palmer suggested a number of things that could have been done to
better preserve trace evidence. These included putting bags over hands
and the head or hair of the deceased. He also said that there were
occasions where examiners ran their hands thorough the hair, moved it or
washed a portion, without taking steps to capture any fibres that were
dislodged. This inevitably meant that some material would have been
lost. That fact conditions the interpretation of the evidence in the sense
that it affects what might be expected and why fibres are found in certain
proportions.1972
2165 In regard to the shedding characteristics of different materials,
Dr Palmer said the tendency of a fabric to shed fibres may vary over time.
A fabric that is subject to lots of use or wear can change its rate of
shedding, depending on the type of material. In some cases shedding may
increase, in other cases it may decrease. Over an extended history fabric
1968
Mr Robson was an expert retained by the defence, but who was ultimately not called as a witness.
1969
ts 9475 - 6.
1970
ts 9477.
1971
ts 9477 - 80.
1972
ts 9480.
Page 557
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
such as carpet may become literally threadbare. Loss of fibres over time
may result in the fabric not shedding as much as it used to. On the other
hand damage may cause an increase in shedding over time. Fabric used in
cars is designed to be durable, particularly in those areas subject to more
friction, such as floors. Car carpets are designed for heavy traffic and to
retain their colour. Polypropylene is used in car carpets because it is a
strong fibre type. Other fibres, such as polyester, are used in clothing or
car seats as they are more pleasant in close contact with the skin.1973
2166 Dr Palmer was aware of the comparisons undertaken by the

ChemCentre and the conclusions that certain critical fibres corresponded
as to their properties. He said the term he would use is 'indistinguishable'
– meaning that it is not possible to distinguish between the two fibres in
question using the tests that were performed. Where the ChemCentre
used the term 'similar' he would use 'within range', but he said this was
merely a matter of semantics and the essential meanings of the terms was
the same.1974
2167 Dr Palmer had the opportunity to review the photographs and MSP
graphs produced by the ChemCentre. He said that based on his own
examination he agreed with the conclusions reached by the ChemCentre
as to fibres corresponding or being similar.1975
2168 As to the database created by the ChemCentre, Dr Palmer said that

he was aware of it and the methodology behind it. He said that such
databases are incredibly useful tools. When he was with FSS they were in
the process of commissioning such a system, but that was not achieved
before that agency was closed down. He said that a database of this sort
had particular utility at the investigation stage where it could assist with
the laborious process of trying to determine whether collections of fibres
from different sources have any correspondences or similarities. Like any
database it is dependent on the data within it and how representative it is.
Where caution has to be employed is in using the database to evaluate
how common a particular type of fibre is or how likely it is to encounter a
fibre of that type. Its use in that regard is possible, provided it is used
with other sources of information, such as peer-reviewed published data.
He believed that the database had been used appropriately by the
ChemCentre in this case.1976
1973
ts 9483 - 5.
1974
ts 9490.
1975
ts 9491.
1976
ts 9492 - 3.
Page 558
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
2169 Dr Palmer said that where fibres are found at different locations and
they appear to have similarities there can be difficulties in determining
whether they could have come from the same source without having a
reference sample from that possible source. This is because without a
reference sample it is not possible to know what variations are consistent
with that source. He then referred to the Telstra pants and the Telstra blue
swatch as putative sources and noted that there were variations in size and
colour in the fibres making up those fabrics. Knowing that, it was
possible to say whether the critical fibres were consistent with that source,
notwithstanding some variations in size and colour. That is, without a
putative source it is not possible to know whether slight differences
between fibres are significant or are likely to fall within the variation that
might be expected of fibres coming from that source. He said that it was
his understanding that this was why in the initial examination of some of
the critical fibres they were described by the ChemCentre as similar rather
than corresponding.1977
2170 Dr Palmer said that the use of sticky tape to collect fibres was the
usual and accepted method for collecting fibres, though this depended on
the nature of the surface and the amount of debris present. He was aware
of the method used by the FBI of scraping a garment with a spatula and
collecting the material that fell off and placing into a petri dish. He said
this was also a useful method, though not a method routinely used in
Europe because it was not 'very efficient'. He said that with hair that was
matted with vegetation and the products of decomposition taping would
not work and a method involving washing the hair and filtering the run off
had been successfully used by him in the past to recover fibres, though
again this was a method that was not as efficient as taping. In referring to
efficiency he explained that he meant how many of the fibres on an item
were likely to be recovered by the method. Taping is accepted as having
the highest recovery rate of 90% or more, whereas other methods might
only recover 60 to 70%. However, what methods could be used depended
on the nature of the surface that had to be dealt with.1978
2171 In evaluating the significance of fibre evidence Dr Palmer said that

there were a number of resources a person conducting a forensic
examination could call upon. The first of these is peer-reviewed research
as to the frequency of certain fibre colour combinations. Second, the
examiners own experience. Third, the known circumstances of the case,
because fibre evidence, like all forensic evidence, is context sensitive.
1977
ts 9493.
1978
ts 9494 - 5.
Page 559
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
The circumstances of the case will often condition what it is expected. He

gave the example of a date rape as opposed to a stranger rape; in the
former case fibres might not be particularly probative because the parties
are likely to have been in legitimate contact whereas in the latter case they
may be more probative because there is no suggestion of legitimate
contact.1979
2172 Dr Palmer referred to the case work and assessment model of

interpretation. He said that this model requires the examiner to consider
both the prosecution and possible defence versions of the events. An
evaluation is made as to the chances of finding the evidence if the
prosecution's version is correct as compared to the chances of finding the
evidence if the defence version is correct. That is, which is more likely to
explain the presence of the trace evidence.1980
2173 Dr Palmer was asked about the transfer and persistence of fibres over
time. He said that there had been many published studies on these issues,
including studies to examine how well fibres are transferred to different
surfaces and how long they persist on those surfaces. These studies have
involved surfaces such as clothing, skin, simulants for dead bodies, hair,
seats and surfaces in outdoor areas.1981
2174 When considering whether a collection of fibres could have occurred
coincidentally or adventitiously, other studies are relevant. Three types of
studies are relevant in this regard; fibre population studies, colour block
studies and target fibre studies. Fibre population studies catalogue what
fibres are present on particular surfaces and in what relative quantities.
Dr Palmer said that these studies show that the main fibre type that is
likely to be encountered is blue or grey cotton and then blue polyester.
Whilst he did not have exact figures to hand, he gave as an example that
80% blue and grey cotton and 20% blue polyester might be found in a
sample. He said that it was important to understand that this only
provided information as to relative rarity at a generic level and that not all
fibres within a group were the same. It was useful in telling a scientist
what the relative expectations are of finding a particular colour group.
But this should not be used to found an opinion on how rare a particular
fibre is, because no instrumental analysis is undertaken in a population
1979
ts 9496.
1980
ts 9497.
1981
ts 9497 - 8.
Page 560
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
study and there may be other distinguishing characteristics of a particular

fibre that are not taken into account in that study.1982
2175 In a population study published in 2004 Dr Palmer and a colleague

examined fibres found in head hair. In this study black and grey polyester
fibres accounted for about 5% of the fibres found and no polypropylene
fibres were found. Another finding was that, counter-intuitively, people
with longer hair were found to have less fibres in their hair than those
with short hair. He suggested that possible explanations for this are that
longer hair tends to be blown about in the wind, that those with longer
hair groom it more and that fibres on those with long hair tended to stay
on the surface rather than getting pushed to the hair roots. However,
whilst the quantity of fibres differed, the relative proportions of types of
fibres was comparable.1983
2176 Colour block studies involve the instrumental analysis of fibres

falling within the same colour group to determine whether it is possible to
discriminate between fibres in that group based on other characteristics.
In one study referred to by Dr Palmer blue polyester fibres were examined
and it was found that a high degree of discrimination between fibres was
possible using instrumental analysis. That study was conducted at a
government laboratory in Wiesbaden, Germany and published in 2005.
The study involved taking over 200 samples from blue polyester garments
and comparing the fibres obtained. Over 32,000 comparisons were
conducted and only three random matches were found. Other studies
have also confirmed that a high degree of discrimination is possible
between fibres that are from ostensibly similar materials. Dr Palmer said
that based on these studies a polyester fibre picked at random was highly
unlikely to match by coincidence.1984
2177 Target fibre studies involve determining the likelihood of finding an

exactly corresponding fibre to one which has been examined thoroughly.
He had published two studies of this type. The first was a study that
looked at cinema seats as recipient surfaces. The second looked at public
access areas in an urban conurbation, such as public transport, pubs and
cinemas. The object was to look for fibres in areas where there was a lot
of contact with a large proportion of people. Tape samples were taken in
both studies and the fibres obtained compared with a known target fibre.
In the most recent study done by Dr Palmer the targets included fibres that
at a generic level would be considered common, such as blue polyester
1982
ts 9497 - 500.
1983
ts 9501 - 2.
1984
ts 9505 - 7.
Page 561
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
and acrylic, but when analysed none of the collected fibres matched a
target. In particular, about one hundred blue polyester fibres were found
that appeared similar to the target under the microscope but when tested
analytically they were found not to match. The result of these studies
(and others conducted by other scientists) was that the chances of finding
another fibre that is an exact match for the target fibre (that is, an
adventitious match) is 'very, very low'.1985
2178 Dr Palmer was asked about the significance of finding a combination

of fibres on a surface. He said that if only one colour fibre type is
involved the chance of an adventitious match is low. If there is
combination of different colour fibre types the chance of a match is even
lower. He said that this shows that the likelihood of a particular
combination of fibres occurring by chance is remote.1986
2179 Reference was made to a target fibre study conducted by another

scientist that specifically looked at grey polyester automotive fibres. A
hundred similar fibres collected from garments were compared to a grey
polyester fibre from a vehicle. No match was found and the conclusion
was that fibres of this type are of 'high evidential value' because the
likelihood of finding an adventitious match was 'quite low'.1987
2180 Dr Palmer also made reference to transfer and persistence studies.
These studies examine the dynamics of how fibres are transferred from
one item to another and what factors are relevant to the persistence of
fibres on a particular surface. In other words, how likely a fibre is to be
transferred and how long it would be expected to persist on an item.
Factors relevant to transfer include how likely an item is to shed its
component fibres. Some fabrics do not shed fibres readily, others shed
copiously. Another factor is the nature of the surface. Some surfaces, for
example a leather jacket, are not likely to retain transferred fibres as well
as others, for example a knitted garment. He said that latex gloves might
be expected to retain some fibres depending on whether they have some
static charge, but generally smooth surfaces do not retain fibres (and that
was his own experience). Another factor is the force and duration of the
activity that has caused the transfer. Close physical contact is more likely
to result in the transfer of fibres.1988
1985
ts 9507 - 8.
1986
ts 9509.
1987
ts 9509 - 10.
1988
ts 9511 - 2.
Page 562
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
2181 Factors relevant to persistence include the nature of the surface and
post-contact activity. For example, if clothing is left in a laundry basket
the fibres on it will likely be retained, but if the clothing is worn during
vigorous physical activity this will accelerate the loss of fibres. Lapse of
time and the environmental conditions are also relevant considerations.
The significance of these factors is affected by the type of surface under
consideration. All of these factors will affect the expectations as to
whether fibres will be found and this informs the significance of the
observations made.1989
2182 Dr Palmer said that studies of persistence (including some conducted
by himself) showed that, in general terms, 80% of fibres transferred to a
garment are lost within the first few hours. Another study showed that the
skin of living individuals behaves very much like a textile garment, such
that 80% of fibres on skin are also lost within the first few hours
(depending on the nature of any activity that the person engaged in). If a
person showered or bathed all fibres were lost.1990
2183 Dr Palmer referred to a study that considered the persistence of fibres
on deceased individuals. In this study pig carcasses were used as a human
simulant. What this study showed was that if left outdoors the loss rate
for fibres from a naked body was approximately 80% in the first two days.
Fibres would be lost due to the effects of wind and rain, and animal and
insect predation.1991
2184 As regards hair, Dr Palmer said that current literature and studies
showed that fibres can persist in the hair of individuals for up to three
days if the hair is washed and up to seven days if the hair is not washed.
Even after washing a small proportion of fibres can remain. It can take
several washes to remove fibres in hair. Whilst there were no studies
specifically on the hair of deceased people, Dr Palmer said that he had
personal experience in this regard and that there were a number of
documented cases in the literature where significant amounts of fibre had
been retrieved from the head hair of deceased persons who had been
deposited outdoors. A survey amongst European scientists working in
this area had revealed that, based on the participants experience, there
was generally a high expectation of finding fibres in the hair of dead
people deposited outside. In a case in which Dr Palmer was involved
fibres were recovered from the hair of two deceased women who had been
1989
ts 9512 - 3.
1990
ts 9514.
1991
ts 9514 - 5.
Page 563
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
deposited in a river and whose bodies were not recovered for two and four
weeks respectively.1992
2185 Dr Palmer was asked about automotive fibres and said that such
fibres had been studied quite extensively. He described a car as a
'semi-closed system', as it is generally accessible to very few people.
Generally when fibres are transferred to a car seat they tend to stay in the
car, but be redistributed due to the opening and shutting of the doors.
Habitual users may wear the same garments repeatedly resulting in a pool
of fibres that relate to that user's home environment. Sometimes the fibres
will get into inaccessible places and it is entirely possible that such fibres
can persist almost indefinitely. Whilst fibre loss is generally exponential,
in a car it is more linear because fibres are shielded and trapped.1993
2186 As to the bodies of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon, Dr Palmer said that

the fact that they had been exposed to the elements, including wind and
rain, over an extended period of time would have resulted in significant
loss of fibres. That might have been mitigated to some extent by the
covering of vegetation. The fact that Ms Rimmer was naked would affect
the ability of fibres to be retained on her body. The procedures employed
during the recovery and post-mortem would have exacerbated the fibre
loss. He cannot give an absolute figure as to the amount of material likely
to have been lost, other than to say there would have been a 'quite
substantial loss of material'.1994
2187 Dr Palmer had been informed of the anti-contamination procedures
that had been used at the ChemCentre and said that they were the standard
kind of procedures that are (or should be) in place in most forensic
laboratories throughout the world. These included keeping victim and
accused material in separate areas and using PPE including lab coats that
are specific to these rooms. In this case the critical fibres were recovered
long before the accused and his vehicle were identified and the critical
fibres had been preserved on tapes and slides. The time difference
between the critical fibres being found on the victims and the obtaining of
the reference samples was in the order of years. There was also time and
spatial separation in the case of examination of samples obtained from
each of the victims. For these reasons Dr Palmer considered that the
1992
ts 9516.
1993
ts 9517.
1994
ts 9518 - 9.
Page 564
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
possibility of the fibres being present as the result of contamination is

remote.1995
2188 In regard to KJG, Dr Palmer said that having regard to the fact that
the accused had pleaded guilty to the attack upon her, that it was a
prolonged and violent assault and that the accused was an employee of
Telstra at that time who likely wore a uniform on a regular basis, the
finding of blue polyester fibres on her shorts that corresponded to fibres
used in the construction of Telstra uniforms was not an unexpected
finding. He noted that fibres representative of Telstra uniforms would be
expected to be found in a car used by a Telstra employee.1996
2189 In regard to Jane Rimmer, Dr Palmer said that the small number of
some fibres found (blue polyester and blue propylene) had to be viewed in
the context of the particular circumstances. He referred in this regard to
the factors which he had mentioned earlier in his evidence as being likely
to have resulted in loss of fibres. He said that in these circumstances the
fibres recovered were likely to be remnants of those that were originally
transferred. He said what was important was the combination of fibres,
that is the blue polyester, grey polyester and blue propylene. The broader
the combination the less likely it is to have occurred through chance. In
his view it is highly unlikely that the combination of fibres found in
Ms Rimmer's hair occurred by chance.1997
2190 Reference was made to the absence of rayon fibres in Ms Rimmer's

hair. Dr Palmer said it was unwise to place any significance on that
absence given the likelihood that fibres had been lost. He said it was
possible that rayon had been present but has been lost thorough the
mechanisms referred to earlier.1998
2191 Dr Palmer concluded that he would not expect to see the

combination of critical fibres found in Ms Rimmer's hair unless she had
been in contact with the interior of the Holden Commodore 1BPX-080.1999
2192 In regard to Ciara Glennon, Dr Palmer was aware that 33 blue

polyester fibres, six blue non-delustered rayon fibres, three blue-grey
polypropelene fibres, seven light grey polypropylene fibres and one dark
grey polypropylene fibre were recovered from her hair and 11 blue
polyester fibres were recovered from her shirt. He said that these results
1995
ts 9519 - 20.
1996
ts 9521.
1997
ts 9522 - 3.
1998
ts 9523.
1999
ts 9523.
Page 565
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
were consistent with the donor garment for the blue polyester and rayon
fibres being made from material like that of the Telstra blue swatch. The
non-detection in the car of any rayon was not a matter which he
considered to be significant. Whilst the rayon had shed more in tests
conducted by the ChemCentre, Dr Palmer said that it would be very
unwise to extrapolate from that test to what might persist in a vehicle over
a 20 year period. Furthermore no shedding test could accurately
reproduce the transfer conditions as they were not known.2000
2193 Dr Palmer concluded that he would not expect to see the

combination of critical fibres found in Ms Glennon's hair and on her shirt
unless she had been inside the Holden Commodore 1BPX-080.2001
2194 As to the absence of any fibres from Ms Glennon's clothes in the

vehicle, Dr Palmer said that the extended history of the car since the
alleged events and the unknown nature of her contact with the car (such as
to be able to say whether any transfer of fibres was likely), meant that it
would be unwise to place any significance on that fact.2002
2195 As to the polypropylene fibres, Dr Palmer said that car carpets would
require 'a fair degree of sustained forceful contact' or 'at least sustained
contact' with an item to result in the transfer of fibres. He said that in his
opinion the numbers here, bearing in mind that they are probably a
remnant of what was initially transferred, suggest that the transfer was by
primary contact. He was less inclined to say the same thing about the
polypropylene in Ms Rimmer's hair as it was a single fibre.2003
2196 Dr Palmer said that even mass produced garments can produce fibres
that differ in their characteristics. In particular, whilst the colour of a
fabric may appear to stay the same over time the dye recipe may change
for different batches. Whilst the colour is uniform the difference in the
recipe can be detected using analytical tools.2004
2197 As to other possible sources, Dr Palmer was aware that various items
from Ms Rimmer's home had been examined, including hairbrushes.
Various items from Ms Glennon's home and workplace had also been
examined. No fibres matching the critical fibres were found. He said that
2000
ts 9524 - 6.
2001
ts 9526.
2002
ts 9526.
2003
ts 9527 - 8.
2004
ts 9581, 9590 - 2.
Page 566
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
it was relevant in evaluating the evidence if anything was found in the

home (or work) environment that could explain the findings.2005
2198 Dr Palmer returned to the Case Work and Assessment and

Interpretation model that he had referred to earlier in his evidence. He
said that this was developed by FSS in the 1980s to address operational
difficulties. A report identified that a number of inconclusive and
ineffective examinations were being carried out. The model was
developed and rolled out in the early 1990s. It required reporting officers
to pre-evaluate a case by looking at the circumstances to establish what
evidence type was likely to answer the issues that arise. In some cases
DNA or fibre evidence could not assist in answering the critical questions,
in other cases it might. The scientist would communicate with the
investigative team to develop an examination strategy. The outcome of
examinations would be reported to see if this met expectations in terms of
efficiency and probative value. If not, further examination might be done.
Once examinations were complete a report would be prepared using
logical evaluative reasoning based on Bayesian inferences. What this
required the scientist to do was to consider what the probability of these
findings was if the prosecution case was true as opposed to the probability
of the findings if the defence case was true. An evaluation is then made
of whether the evidence supports the prosecution perspective or the
defence perspective. The system was designed to be robust, transparent
and impartial.2006
2199 The model also includes a scale of support. This is essentially a

seven-point scale that places a qualitative value on how well the evidence
supports a proposition. The range is: no evidence, weak evidence,
moderate evidence, moderately strong evidence, strong evidence, very
strong evidence and extremely strong evidence. This scale has been
agreed for use by the UK Association of Forensic Service Providers.
A similar scale is used in other jurisdictions, such as Germany and
Sweden.2007
2200 Applying that model to this case, Dr Palmer compared the

proposition that Jane Rimmer had been in contact with the interior of
1BPX-080 with the proposition that she had not. Having considered the
circumstances of the case, the possibility of adventitious match and his
own experience and knowledge, he came to the conclusion that the
combination of fibres found on Ms Rimmer was such that it was 'much
2005
ts 9593.
2006
ts 9594 - 5.
2007
ts 9597 - 8.
Page 567
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
more likely' that she had been in contact with the interior of the car than
that she had not. In his opinion the findings of the ChemCentre provide
strong support for the view that Ms Rimmer had been in contact with the
interior of the car, rather than she had not.2008
2201 Dr Palmer then compared the proposition that Ciara Glennon had
been in contact with the interior of 1BPX-080 with the proposition that
she had not. Again he considered the circumstances of the case and the
factors previously referred to. His evaluation was that the evidence very
strongly supports the proposition that she had been in contact with the car,
rather than that she had not. He said that the larger number of fibres and
greater variety resulted in a slightly stronger level of support than in the
case of Ms Rimmer.2009
2202 Dr Palmer also expressed the view that it was highly likely that the
blue polyester fibres on KJG, Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon come from the
same source. He said he would not expect to see corresponding fibres on
these three sources if the matters were not related.2010
2203 In cross-examination Dr Palmer said that whilst he had not re-done
the comparison exercise from scratch, he had looked at the photographs
and MSP's for each of the critical fibres as well as the spreadsheet
prepared by the ChemCentre. He said if two fibres are said to differ or be
distinguishable this means that could not have derived from a particular
exemplar or source. In making such an assessment it is essential to have a
sample of the exemplar or source to establish exactly what variation exists
between fibres in that source. If fibres do not come within the range of
variation in the source then they can't have come from that source
(provided that the reference sample is representative of the garment or
item in question).2011
2204 Dr Palmer agreed that the critical blue polyester fibres were a better
correspondence in terms of diameter with the fibres from the Telstra Navy
swatch than with the fibres from the pants. However, the pants were not
excluded as a putative source. This is because there was some overlap in
the ranges for the two items.2012
2205 Dr Palmer accepted that it was usual to collect many more fibres than
were examined. An evaluation of which fibres were likely to have
2008
ts 9597 - 8.
2009
ts 9599.
2010
ts 9599.
2011
ts 9604 - 6.
2012
ts 9607 - 9.
Page 568
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HALL J
evidentiary significance would be made at an early stage. Generally,

colourless fibres are ignored because they have little discriminating
power. It was put to him that the total number of fibres found in
Ms Rimmer's hair was 1350 (later corrected to 1150), and he said that it
was not unusual to find that amount of fibres in a person's hair and in
some instances it is entirely possible that there could be more. He said
that it was impossible to say how many fibres were present at the time of
Ms Rimmer's death.2013
2206 Dr Palmer accepted that there was only limited data in regard to
fibres being transferred to, retained in and lost from, human hair. He said
that there were three historic studies and some more recent work that he
was in the process of preparing for publication. He agreed that the
published data was confined to living subjects. There was no published
experimental findings in relation to the loss of fibres from deceased
humans exposed to environmental factors. As regards the study of pig
carcasses, this related to the loss of fibres from the skin. He said that in
that experiment the carcasses were completely out in the open. As far as
he was aware, that is the only study about the relationship of weather
factors on the loss of fibres on a thing left in the open. However, he said
that there was a lot of anecdotal evidence as to the effect of the elements
from casework in which he has been involved.2014
2207 Dr Palmer had been provided with weather information relevant to

the locations in which the bodies of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon were
found. He agreed that the vegetation covering and shielding Ms Rimmer's
body would have affected the degree to which wind was a factor in fibre
loss and mitigated that loss to a degree that cannot be quantified. In the
case of Ms Glennon, she was exposed for a shorter period and there was
much less rain, and the area was more exposed, though she was covered
with vegetation.2015
2208 Dr Palmer was taken to the video of the post-mortem examination of

Ms Rimmer and identified instances of washing of a portion of hair,
removal of debris from the hair and shaking of drapes, which could have
resulted in the loss of fibres. He agreed that these instances fall short of
proper practices for the preservation of fibres.2016
2013
ts 9611.
2014
ts 9612 - 3.
2015
ts 9614.
2016
ts 9617 - 22.
Page 569
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
2209 Dr Palmer was asked about the Wellard site and agreed that there
were instances of individuals present not wearing protective clothing and
handling vegetation without gloves. He agreed that there was definite
potential for the contamination of Ms Rimmer's remains with fibres from
the bodies, clothing and hair of people intimately involved with the
examination of her body. He also agreed that the same was true in
relation to the handling of Ms Glennon's remains.2017
2210 Dr Palmer accepted that even in laboratories with state of the art
anti-contamination practices the possibility of contamination can never be
entirely ruled out. The best that can be done is to establish practices that
minimise the possibility of contamination. He regards the practices of the
ChemCentre as being standard practice for contamination mitigation. In
light of those practices, he considers that the possibility of fibres being
transferred from exhibits relating to one victim to those relating to another
victim is remote. However, the gathering phase occurred in a different
environment.2018
2211 As to the possibility that automotive fibres corresponding to the
critical fibres could have come from a vehicle driven by a member of the
mortuary staff, Dr Palmer said this could be a possibility but he could not
say whether it was a 'real possibility'.2019
2212 When asked whether the smaller numbers of blue polyester fibres on
KJG and Ms Rimmer meant that the possibility of contamination in
respect of these fibres was greater, Dr Palmer said that this largely
depends on the nature of the possible contamination. In the present case it
was necessary to consider all of the fibres that were present. He was
asked about a specific instance involving the Wellard site. Sgt Mott the
police photographer at that site gave evidence that he believed that he had
driven to the site in a police issue white Commodore station wagon and
had used disposable overalls from a plastic bag in the back of the vehicle.
It was put to Dr Palmer that there was a possibility that fibres from the
cargo area of the vehicle could have transferred onto the overalls. He
agreed that that was a possibility that could not be discounted but whether
such a fibre could have ended up in Ms Rimmer's hair depended on how
close Sgt Mott came to the hair. He said that without physical contact
transfer of fibres was less likely. Studies have shown that secondary,
2017
ts 9623.
2018
ts 9624 - 5.
2019
ts 9626.
Page 570
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
tertiary and subsequent transfers of fibres tend to result in a rapidly

diminishing numbers of fibres.2020
2213 Dr Palmer accepted that fibres can be introduced into a car by a

one-time user – though he would expect them to be in much smaller
numbers than for a habitual user. He was asked about the possibility of
either Ms Rimmer or Ms Glennon leaving fibres in the car if they had
been in it. He said that this was possible but that any fibres would not be
present in the same copious amounts as a habitual user and consequently
the potential for them to get into an inaccessible area would be 'much,
much less'. For this reason he did not it was significant that in this case
there were no fibres found in the car that were consistent with having
come from Ms Glennon's clothing.2021
2214 It was put to Dr Palmer that, given that fibres can persist in hair for
up to three days if the hair is washed and up to seven days if the hair is
unwashed, it could not be said for certain that a given fibre or fibres found
in a deceased person's hair got there in the hours before death. He said
that whilst the fibres could not be pinned down to a particular time frame,
most fibres in the hair will be from the person's home environment and
those that are not are likely to have come from the environments in which
the person was last. People tend to be protective of their heads and
extraneous contact with the head tend to be much less frequent than with
other parts of the body. Other than fibres from a person's home the fibres
most likely to be in their hair will be from people and places they have
recently encountered.2022
2215 Dr Palmer agreed that the more closely the shedding characteristics
of a possible source match the proportions of the fibres found on the
exhibit the stronger the support for it as a source may be. Conversely, the
less they match, the weaker the support may be. In this context the
shedding test on the Telstra pants showed that over 80% of the fibres shed
were delustered rayon, whereas no fibres of this type were found on KJG,
Ms Rimmer or Ms Glennon. Dr Palmer agreed that this weakened the
proposition that pants of the type tested were the source of the critical
fibres. However, it helps support the proposition that a fabric with the
qualities of the Telstra Navy swatch is a more likely source. This is for
two reasons, first that the swatch contained no delustered rayon (only
2020
ts 9626 - 32.
2021
ts 9637 - 8.
2022
ts 9671 - 4.
Page 571
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
non-delustered rayon) and, second, that the blue polyester fibres were a
better match for the size range found in the swatch.2023
2216 It was put to Dr Palmer that other Telstra workers may have used the
vehicle during the period it was allocated to the accused. Furthermore, it
had been assigned to someone else in Telstra from December 1988 until
being sold in June 2000. He accepted that fibres found in the car were
more likely to come from more recent users of it. It was also a factor that
there was a protocol within Telstra for cars to be thoroughly cleaned
before being returned. As to whether this meant that fibres found in the
car were less likely to have come from garments worn by the accused, he
said that all that could be said was that the fibres in the car were likely to
have come from a habitual user and that the fibres are representative of
fabrics used to make Telstra uniforms. He agreed that over time fibres in
the car were more likely to be from more recent users.2024
2217 In regard to the automotive fibres, Dr Palmer confirmed that, whilst
some other vehicles that could be a potential source for some of the fibres,
the 25i variant of Holden Commodore interior finish was the best match
because it was the only one that had the combination of fibres represented
in the fibres taken from Ms Glennon's hair. Furthermore, the blue-grey
polypropylene fibre from Ms Rimmer's hair matched with fibres from the
cargo area and this makes station wagons the consistent source as opposed
to sedans. This interior finish was also used in the rebadged Toyota
Lexcen equivalent of the Holden Commodore.2025
2218 It was put to Dr Palmer that the relatively small number of grey
polyester fibres found on Ms Glennon has an impact on the strength of the
proposition that she was in the car. This was in the context that the grey
polyester component of the car seat fabric was found to shed prolifically
in the shedding test. Dr Palmer agreed with the proposition put to him,
when considered against the circumstances of the case.2026
2219 Dr Palmer was aware that none of the Telstra exemplars that were
tested came from clothes belonging to the accused. He was also aware
that other samples, including from a pair of Telstra shorts and another
swatch, provided fibres that with either different or only similar to the
2023
ts 9683 - 5.
2024
ts 9686 - 7.
2025
ts 9689 - 90.
2026
ts 9690.
Page 572
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
critical fibres. The other swatch was excluded because it contained no

rayon.2027
2220 As to the absence in the car of any fibres from Ms Glennon's clothes,
Dr Palmer did not think this was significant in the circumstances. He said
it was neutral in that it neither supported nor refuted the possibility that
she was in the car. He did not agree that it weakened that possibility in
any way. He also did not think it was significant that no fibres consistent
with car fabrics were found on Ms Glennon's clothes. This was due to the
particular circumstances, including the outdoor deposition of her body and
the subsequent handling of her remains. The history of the car has a
bearing on the likelihood of finding fibres from Ms Glennon's clothes in
the car, but it has no bearing on the likelihood of finding fibres from the
car on Ms Glennon's clothes.2028
2221 Dr Palmer agreed that in a 2019 report he had concluded that the two
blue polyester fibres found on the shorts of KJG did not assist in
establishing whether the accused had assaulted her. However, they are
relevant to whether the case of KJG is related to the cases involving
Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. This is because that type of fibre is
common to all three cases. He accepted that it was the only type of fibre
that was common. The Holden Commodore 1BPX-080 had not been
manufactured at the time of the offences against KJG.2029
2222 It was put to Dr Palmer that if the fibres on KJG's shorts do not come
from a source associated with the accused then they could not assist in
determining whether that case is related to the others. He said that this
proposition had to be considered in the context of the expectations
regarding adventitious matches. He said that his understanding was that
the blue polyester fibres found on the three women were indistinguishable
and this meant that if there was a different source it would be 'a very big
coincidence'. He accepted that if one of the fibres from KJG's shorts
differed from the blue polyester fibre found on Ms Rimmer that would
influence the conclusion that the cases were connected.2030
2223 Dr Palmer agreed that the known fact that the accused worked for
Telstra at the time of the offences against KJG affected the question of
whether he may be the source of the fibres on the shorts, because those
fibres were consistent with having come from a Telstra garment. He said
2027
ts 9690 - 1.
2028
ts 9692.
2029
ts 9692 - 3.
2030
ts 9693.
Page 573
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
that the transfer could have been primary, secondary or a combination of

both. He accepted that for primary transfer the accused would have to
have been wearing a Telstra garment at the time of the offending. If the
accused was not wearing a Telstra garment that would exclude a direct
transfer. It was then put that if the accused was not driving his own
Telstra car that would mean that someone else was the source of the fibre
(that is, that fibres in the vehicle were likely to be from the habitual user,
another Telstra employee). Dr Palmer did not accept that this was
necessarily true, pointing out that if the accused had been wearing
different clothing which had been in contact with his Telstra uniform (for
example in the wash), or if he had been in his own car recently, these
fibres could easily have transferred onto the clothes he was wearing and
subsequently transferred to the victim. He agreed that there were three
possible ways in which the fibres on the shorts could have originated from
the accused, first if the clothes he was wearing were the source, second if
the clothes that he was wearing had been in contact with other clothes that
were the source, or third if the accused had contributed fibres to the car
environment. If those ways are ruled out then there must be another
source. Dr Palmer accepted that if the vehicle into which KJG was put
was a vehicle habitually used by another Telstra worker or workers who
wore uniforms of the same type, then they would be a potential source of
those fibres.2031
2224 It was put to Dr Palmer that the fibres on the shorts could have been
picked up earlier in the evening whilst KJG had been socialising at
various venues with friends. He said that this was 'extremely unlikely'
and was a scenario that 'begs credibility'.2032
2225 Dr Palmer agreed that the critical car fibres could have come from
the accused's car or another car with same upholstery and trim. The
likelihood that they came from another car will depend in part on the
frequency of that car. The fewer such cars that existed at the relevant
time, the less likely it is that there are alternative sources of the fibres,
other things being equal. A table of the samples entered on the
ChemCentre database was put to Dr Palmer and he agreed that there were
two identified vehicles in the relevant time frame that were capable of
contributing both light grey and dark grey polypropylene fibres and that
this assisted in assessing the possibility of finding fibres of those types.
However, the utility of this information was dependant on whether the
2031
ts 9694 - 6.
2032
ts 9696.
Page 574
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
samples taken were representative of the total number of cars in Western

Australia at the relevant time and this was not known.2033
2226 Dr Palmer was asked about the possibility of chance or adventitious

matches in respect of the fibres found on Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon.
He agreed that prior to their disappearance both women had been in busy
public places and were likely to have had numerous non-crime related
contacts with different textile material during this time. These contacts
may have resulted in fibres not related to their home environments being
transferred to them. Both women had been in The Continental Hotel,
albeit at different times, at times when it was very full of patrons.
Dr Palmer accepted that in such an environment there was potential for
long hair to come into contact with other people. It was then put that if
two people have been in the same place with the same group of people in
the hours before their death then the fibres found on them are more likely
to be common to them both. Dr Palmer said that this would be so if they
were present at the place at the same time, but he did agree that even
without that time factor there was an increased chance that there would be
common fibres. He also agreed that it potentially increases the chance
that the critical fibres (or at least some of them) are chance matches, but to
what extent it was impossible to say. However, he said that the time
difference was a ' big factor' and in his assessment the circumstance that
both women had been at the same place prior to their deaths would only
have a 'minimal' effect on the likelihood of their having common
fibres.2034
2227 Finally in cross-examination, Dr Palmer was asked whether other
groups of common fibres might raise the possibility that those fibres are
common to some other person who had been in contact with the women in
the hours before their deaths. He said that this was difficult to say as any
such other fibres could have been adventitious matches.2035
2228 In answer to questions that I put to him, Dr Palmer accepted that

other VS Holden Commodore vehicles used by Telstra employees were
likely to have had the same combination of fibres as that found in
1BPX-080. He said he had expressed his opinions specifically in regard
to 1BPX-080 because that was the question he was asked to address.
However, he said that he would expect to make similar findings and
2033
ts 9697 - 701.
2034
ts 9702 - 5.
2035
ts 9706.
Page 575
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
conclusions in respect of other VS Commodore vehicles habitually used

by Telstra employees if they had the same 25i variant trim.2036
2229 In re-examination Dr Palmer said that the number and type of critical
fibres found could potentially be explained by the particular
circumstances applicable in each case, which were not known. He also
said that whilst environmental factors would have caused fibre loss, he
thought it highly unlikely that there would be no fibres left on the bodies
of either Ms Rimmer or Ms Glennon by the time of their discovery.2037
2230 Dr Palmer said that the possibility of contamination by police or

mortuary staff was a 'very, very important' part of evaluating the
significance of the critical fibres. In regard to the specific scenario
involving Sgt Mott, the chances of contamination had to take into account
that car carpets do not shed copiously, the fact that Sgt Mott had not been
in contact with the hair of Ms Rimmer, and the chances that his actions
would result in a transfer of fibre. Taking those factors into account he
considered the likelihood that the blue-grey polypropylene fibre was the
result of contamination in the way suggested was 'very remote'. More
generally he assessed the possibility that the findings in respect of
Ms Rimmer were attributable to contamination was 'remote'.2038
2231 In regard to Ms Glennon, Dr Palmer said that he had considered the
location in which her body was found and the distance that those in
attendance had to walk from their cars to get to that location. He said that
he had viewed the scene video and did not see anyone come into contact
with the hair or shirt of Ms Glennon. Contamination would have to occur
by fibres 'floating in the air'. He had regard to the numbers of fibres
found, in particular the 44 blue polyester fibres, in considering the
possibility of contamination. He assessed the possibility that findings in
respect of Ms Glennon were attributable to chance as the same as that for
Ms Rimmer (that is, remote).2039
General conclusions – fibre evidence

2232 The critical fibres had a complex history. In particular, many of the
critical fibres that the prosecution asserts were from the hair of
Ms Rimmer or the hair and t-shirt of Ms Glennon were not identified at
the time their bodies were found. Rather they were found during
examinations that occurred many years later and after some of those
2036
ts 9707 - 9.
2037
ts 9712 - 4.
2038
ts 9714 - 7.
2039
ts 9718 - 20.
Page 576
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
samples had been transported and examined for other purposes over a
lengthy period. This raises an issue as to whether the critical fibres can be
proven to have been on the bodies of the Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon at
the time they were found.
2233 I have set out the evidence as to the history of each relevant sample
in detail. Although the records have some deficiencies and the relevant
witnesses often had little independent recollection, there is no room for
serious doubt that each of the relevant critical fibres was obtained from a
sample that can be traced back to the bodies of Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon. I am also satisfied that those fibres were on the bodies when
found.
2234 The critical fibres from the shorts of KJG were also not identified
until long after those shorts were seized, however the examination and
movement history of the shorts is comparatively much simpler. I am
satisfied that the shorts on which the fibres were found were those that
KJG was wearing at the time of the Karrakatta offences. I am also
satisfied that those fibres were on the shorts when found.
2235 The critical fibres from 1BPX-080 were discovered relatively soon
after that vehicle was seized. The examination of the vehicle and the
identification of the fibres is well documented. I am satisfied that the blue
polyester critical fibres alleged to have come from that vehicle did, in fact,
do so. Of course, the more important issue in regard to these fibres is how
they came to be in the car, and I will deal with that question later in these
reasons.
2236 In respect of the types of critical fibres found these were grouped in
accordance with their composition and colour. There were a total of
60 blue polyester fibres: two found on the shorts of KJG, one from
Ms Rimmer's hair, 33 from Ms Glennon's hair, 11 from Ms Glennon's
shirt and 13 from 1BPX-080. There were also six blue non-delustered
rayon fibres from Ms Glennon's hair. The significance of these fibres
depends on whether there is evidence that they have common features and
whether those features enable an inference to be drawn as to their likely
source. I accept the evidence of Mr Powell that all of these fibres
correspond in properties to control fibres from the Telstra pants. That
alone would prove only that Telstra pants of the type examined are a
possible source of the critical fibres. Whether clothing of that type is a
likely source depends on the evidence as to the manufacture of the
constituent material and whether it is likely that the characteristics of the
fibres are distinctive.
Page 577
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HALL J
2237 I am satisfied that the fabric from which Telstra uniforms were made
was bespoke, that is, it was manufactured and dyed specifically for use in
making Telstra uniforms. Although the specifications for the material
changed over the years, it remained standard to Telstra. In particular, the
dye used was known as 'Telstra Navy' because it was used in the
manufacture of Telstra clothing. The vast majority of the fabric produced
in the fabric type and colour that best matched the Telstra pants was used
to make Telstra uniforms. Only very small quantities were sold to other
manufacturers. Although the possibility that an identical yarn and dye
was developed and used cannot be absolutely excluded, this evidence
supports a conclusion that the likely source of the fibres was Telstra
clothing. That conclusion is supported by the fact that 13 of the fibres
were found in 1BPX-080, a car known to have been owned by Telstra and
used by its employees, including the accused. It is also supported by the
fact that Dr Palmer said that it is highly unlikely that polyester fibres
chosen at random will match by coincidence and that no other fibres from
another known source have been found which correspond to these fibres.
It is true that Dr Palmer cannot quantify the degree to which a fibre of a
particular type is rare or common, but his evidence that fibres can be
distinguished when analysed and that chance matches are unlikely was
significant evidence that was unchallenged.
2238 I acknowledge and accept that the Telstra pants (and the Telstra
swatch) were never owned or used by the accused and have no direct link
to him as an individual item. No Telstra clothing worn by the accused at
the relevant time has been located. Nor are there complete records
remaining as to what clothing he ordered. The only records that have
been produced show that the accused ordered Telstra clothing, including
pants and shorts in late 1995. However, it is not in doubt that he was
employed as a technician by Telstra at the time of counts 7 and 8 and I am
satisfied that it is likely that he wore such clothing in the course of his
work, including when using his work vehicle. It is also likely that fibres
from the clothing were shed and were present within that vehicle at the
relevant time.
2239 The defence submit that the absence of delustered rayon fibres in the
car or on either of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon weakens the proposition
that a garment like the Telstra pants could have been the source of the
fibres. This is because the shedding test done on the pants showed that
rayon in the pants (which included both delustered and non-delustered
rayon) shed in much greater proportion than blue polyester. The
proportions of fibres shed and the absence of any delustered rayon in the
critical fibres was said to be inconsistent with the pants being a source.
Page 578
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
Of course, as Dr Palmer noted in his evidence, nobody was suggesting

that the pants tested were the actual source of any of the critical fibres.
However, this evidence raises a question as to whether pants of a similar
type, made of the same material, are a likely source.2040
2240 In my view this defence submission frames the issue too narrowly.
The issue is not whether pants like those tested were the source of all of
the critical fibres. The issue is whether the likely source of these fibres
was Telstra uniforms more generally. In this regard, Mr Powell noted that
the Telstra swatch was a better match because it did not contain delustered
rayon, that is, the absence of delustered rayon could be explained if the
accused was wearing uniforms constructed from the material represented
by the swatch. In any event it would be simplistic to assume that the
accused only wore one item of Telstra uniform over the period that he
used the car. Much more likely he wore different items over that period.
That is supported by the existing order forms (which show that he ordered
both shorts and pants). It cannot now be determined how often he wore
uniforms that contained delustered rayon. That does not detract from the
fact that the fibres that were found do correspond to fibres from materials
used to make Telstra uniforms.
2241 There is also an issue with relying on the shedding test done in 2019
to support an inference as to what is likely to have been deposited more
than 20 years earlier. As Dr Palmer said, the shedding qualities of fabric
can change over time and he would not place great reliance on the
shedding test done on the pants as indicating what the shedding qualities
of those pants were in 1996/97. Furthermore, no persistence testing of the
fibres was undertaken because it was impossible to replicate the
circumstances that applied here. Thus it is not known whether rayon
fibres will necessarily persist for that period of time.
2242 The fact is that some articles of Telstra clothing contained some
types of fibres and not others. The blue polyester was common to the
pants, the swatch and a pair of shorts that was also tested. As I have
noted, it is likely that the accused wore a range of clothes whilst using the
car. The blue polyester fibres are likely to have come from more than one
item of clothing. Given that the shedding characteristics of all of that
clothing at the time is not known and that the persistence of fibres of a
certain type is also not known, it is not possible to infer that the absence
of rayon fibres in the car is necessarily of significance. The absence of
rayon fibres on Ms Rimmer has to be seen in the context that only one
2040
Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, Fibre Evidence, 21 [73].
Page 579
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
blue polyester fibre was found on her, in these circumstances there could
be no expectation of necessarily finding any rayon fibres. The absence of
delustered rayon fibres on Ms Glennon has to be seen in the context that
any contact that she had with the car or the person that abducted her was
likely limited to this single occasion. What that person was wearing at the
time and what mix of fibres were then present in the car is not known. In
these circumstances, again, there could be no expectation of necessarily
finding delustered rayon fibres on Ms Glennon. None of this detracts
from the evidence that the fibres found correspond to fibres from known
Telstra clothing and that the chances of an adventitious match are low.
2243 As to the other types of fibres, there were a total of 23 grey polyester
fibres: one blue-grey polypropylene fibre, seven light grey polypropylene
fibres and one dark grey polypropylene fibre. Of these 20 of the grey
polyester fibres and the blue-grey polypropylene fibre were from
Ms Rimmer's hair and the other fibres were from the hair of Ms Glennon.
Again, the significance of these fibres depends on whether there is
evidence that they have common features and whether those features
enable an inference to be drawn as to their likely source. I accept the
evidence of Mr Powell that all of these fibres correspond in properties to
control fibres from 1BPX-080. That alone would prove only that a
VS Holden Commodore station wagon was a possible source of the
critical fibres. Whether a vehicle of that type is a likely source depends
on the evidence as to the manufacture of the constituent materials and
whether it is likely that the characteristics of the fibres are distinctive. I
should note that I place no reliance on the evidence of Mr Porritt and
Mr Laino regarding whether fibres of a particular type would be found in
other fabrics, it was evident that they were referring to the overall colour
of the fabrics and not to individual fibres.
2244 The defence submit that the vehicle fibre database is small and
skewed heavily in favour of Holden vehicles.2041 It is true that Holden
vehicles form the largest part of the vehicles tested, but there was no
suggestion that this was deliberate and it may represent the relative
proportions of vehicles that were in existence at the time. Indeed
Mr Powell said that the focus was on vehicles 'manufactured before the
crimes'.2042 However, I accept that the database is not comprehensive and
this reduces the weight that can be accorded to the fact that only a
relatively few cars produced fibres that matched the critical automotive
fibres. I place much more weight on the evidence of Mr Powell and
2041
Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, Fibre Evidence, 29 - 37 [92] - [112].
2042
ts 8250.
Page 580
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
Dr Palmer as to the discriminating power of fibres of this type and the

likelihood of finding adventitious matches, particularly where a
combination of vehicle fibres is found. The evidence of the database is
not required, but it does add weight to the conclusions reached as to the
likely source of critical vehicle fibres.
2245 I am satisfied that the seat fabric and carpets of the 1996 VS Holden
Commodore were specifically manufactured for that model car. The trim
had an individual code, 25i, which was recorded as part of the VIN for the
vehicle. I accept that some of the individual types of fibres were also
found in other models of car, but this particular combination of fibres was
not found in any other model of car that had been tested. Although the
possibility that some other untested type of car may have the same
combination of fibres cannot be absolutely excluded, this evidence
supports the conclusion that the likely source of these fibres was a
VS Holden Commodore station wagon with 25i trim (or the Lexcen
equivalent).
2246 As to the exclusion testing that was undertaken, the defence submit
that it was not comprehensive and that, therefore, there is a possibility of
adventitious sources of the critical fibres that have not been discovered. I
accept that not every place or surface that the victims came into contact
with was tested. However, some of the most likely sources were. Not
only were no other sources of these critical fibres found, no other fibres
corresponding in qualities to the critical fibres were found, including in
the hairbrushes of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. This has relevance in
considering the likelihood, both that the fibres came from the vehicle in
which they were abducted and that they were acquired at some time
shortly before their deaths. In any event, whether or not exclusion testing
had been done, the evidence of Mr Powell and Mr Palmer as the
likelihood of adventitious matches remains.2043 The evidence of the
exclusion testing is not required, but it does add weight to the conclusions
reached as to the likely source of the critical fibres.
2247 I accept that this is an area where delay or lapse of time has
adversely affected the ability of the accused to defend himself. In
particular, the inability to test any clothes actually belonging to the
accused at the relevant time, the incomplete records as to what clothes the
accused ordered and the fact that 1BPX-080 was not examined at the
relevant time, are matters which disadvantage the accused. This requires
that the evidence be approached with special care. I have done so, and, in
2043
Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, Fibre Evidence, 37 - 49 [113] - [155].
Page 581
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
particular taken into account those disadvantages before drawing any

inferences or conclusions from the evidence.
Conclusions – fibre evidence of KJG

2248 The blue polyester fibres on the shorts of KJG correspond to fibres
from Telstra clothing. This is significant because those shorts were seized
soon after the sexual assault. Furthermore the accused has admitted that
offence and that he was employed by Telstra at the time. There must be at
least a possibility that the fibres were transferred at some point in the
course of the attack. If so, it may be relevant in assessing the significance
of other fibres of the same type found on Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon.
2249 Although KJG had very limited opportunity to see her attacker she
describes his clothing as being a light t-shirt and jeans. This suggests that
he was not wearing a Telstra uniform at the time. There is a possibility
that casual clothes worn by the accused could have fibres from Telstra
clothing on them (as a result of being washed together or being transferred
whilst driving in a vehicle that contained such fibres). The more likely
source, however, is the van used to abduct KJG. The accused was not
allocated a van by Telstra at that time but it is likely that any van he used
was obtained from the Telstra pool. It is likely, therefore, that the van was
a work vehicle and as such contained fibres from Telstra uniforms worn
by those who used it. These facts make it probable that the fibres on the
shorts were deposited whilst KJG was being conveyed in the back of the
van. This does not discount the possibility that the fibres originated from
some other Telstra worker who had used the van.
2250 The defence submits that no link can be made between the fibres
found on KJG and clothing worn by the accused. If the fibres came from
the van then there is a real possibility, if not probability, that they
originated from another Telstra employee or employees. This being so it
is suggested that this evidence is of no assistance in identifying the person
who killed Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon.2044
2251 I accept that a direct link between the fibres on KJG and clothing
worn by the accused cannot be made, but that is not where the relevance
of this evidence lies. Its relevance is that blue polyester fibres of this type
were transferred in the course of an abduction by the accused. Whether or
not the fibres originated from the accused their presence allows for an
inference to be drawn that fibres of this type are capable of being
transferred where a Telstra work vehicle is used in this manner. The fact
2044
Defence Submissions filed 26 June 2020, Fibre Evidence, 6 [25].
Page 582
[2020] WASC 339
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that these fibres were transferred onto KJG's shorts, either from the van or
from the accused himself, is relevant in considering the likelihood of it
happening in other cases.
2252 The possibility of some other pre-existing source is unlikely given
that KJG had no close contact with any other person who worked for
Telstra, according to her uncontested statement. I also consider it unlikely
that the fibres were acquired in the course of some innocent social contact
earlier in the night. Whilst the mere possibility of such a transfer can
never be entirely discounted, the known violent contact with the accused
and the van he was using offers a much more probable source and
mechanism for the transfer of the fibres.
2253 The possibility that the fibres were introduced onto the shorts after
they were seized by the police is not a possibility that is reasonably open.
For such a contamination event to be a reasonable explanation there
would have to be an opportunity for it to occur, an available source of
fibres of this type and a viable mechanism by which it could occur. For
almost the whole of the period that the shorts were in the custody of the
police, PathWest or the ChemCentre prior to the discovery of the fibres
they were contained in a brown paper bag and held in secure storage. The
bag was not sealed and there were opportunities for contamination when
the shorts were examined, but on none of those occasions was there any
identified source of fibres of this type, nor a mechanism by which
contamination could have occurred.
Conclusions – fibre evidence of Jane Rimmer

2254 The evidence does not establish that the blue polyester fibre found in
Ms Rimmer's hair could only have come from clothing worn by the
accused. However, it does establish that the fibre corresponds to fibres
from fabric used in the manufacture of Telstra uniforms. To this must be
added the evidence that the fibre did not match any others in the
ChemCentre database. Dr Palmer's evidence as to the unlikelihood of an
adventitious match was convincing and is accepted.
2255 The fact that there was only a single blue polyester fibre is a relevant
consideration. The more fibres of a particular type found in a particular
location the less likely that they are present as a result of contamination or
chance. Conversely the possibility that a single fibre is the result of
contamination or chance must be greater. However in assessing whether
there is an innocent explanation available it is important not to view this
fibre in isolation. The fact that fibres consistent with coming from a
VS Holden Commodore vehicle were also found in the hair is relevant
Page 583
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
given that there is a likely known source that would account for all of
these fibres – namely a car of that make and model regularly driven by a
Telstra employee.
2256 As to the 20 grey polyester fibres and the blue-grey polypropylene
fibre, I am satisfied that the likely original source was a VS Holden
Commodore station wagon. That conclusion is supported by the
comparison of these fibres with others from a vehicle of that make and
model, the evidence as to manufacture of the fabric and carpets for
Holden, the limited number of matches found for this combination of
fibres and the fact that these fibres were found in combination with
another that corresponded with fibres from uniforms of a type known to
have been used by Telstra employees (in circumstances where cars of this
type were known to be used by Telstra). The polypropylene fibre is of
particular significance because it is characteristic of the carpets used in the
cargo area of VS Holden Commodore station wagons (and the equivalent
Lexcen). There are some other models of car that would account for the
grey polyester fibres, but none that have been located that would account
for both types of fibre. The value of the database is limited for reasons I
will mention shortly, but this does not detract from the evidence regarding
the unlikelihood of an adventitious match. Again, I recognise that there is
only a single polypropylene fibre, but it must be viewed in the context of
the other fibres found in the hair.
2257 In regard to the database used by the ChemCentre, this was not the
basis for the conclusion that the fibres matched. It was used only to
identify possible other matches which could then be subjected to
comparison. A database of this nature is unlikely to be comprehensive as
to all fibres ever produced and may be limited by the number of samples
and the manner of their collection, however it is at least relevant that a
limited number of matches were made. It should also be noted that the
match to a VS Commodore was discovered prior to the accused being
identified as a suspect and it being established that he was driving such a
car at the relevant time. This tends against any possibility that there was a
confirmation bias in the testing, that is, that there was conscious or
unconscious bias in favour of looking for similarities in the fibres that
confirmed the prosecution case. It is also relevant that a match between
the fibres found on Ms Rimmer and those found on Ms Glennon was
made before the accused was identified as a suspect and before Telstra
uniforms were identified as a possible source.
2258 As to how this collection of fibres came to be in the hair of

Ms Rimmer, I am satisfied that the fibres came into her hair in the hours
Page 584
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immediately prior to death. In this regard I have taken into account the
evidence of Dr Palmer in regard to the persistence of fibres. I have also
considered other possibilities, in particular that of contamination. The
fact that no fibres of these types were found in Ms Rimmer's hair brush
and that she had had her hair cut shortly before she disappeared are also
relevant factors.
2259 If the fibres can be reasonably explained by some other mechanism

then an inference consistent with guilt cannot be drawn. Contamination
as a possibility must be capable of explaining not merely the individual
fibres or individual types of fibres, but the fact that this combination of
fibres was found on the deceased. No source of all of these types of fibres
has been found other than the VS Commodore formerly driven by the
accused. However, Dr Palmer conceded that other vehicles of this make
and with the same interior fitout, habitually driven by Telstra workers,
would also be likely to have the same collection of fibres. That does not,
of course, mean that the evidence lacks probative value.
2260 The only specific contamination scenario that was put to Dr Palmer
was in relation to the polypropylene fibre. This fibre was found to
correspond in properties to a sample taken from the rear cargo area of
1BPX-080. The fact that there was only one fibre of this type was relied
upon by the defence to suggest that there was greater chance of
contamination. Reference was made to the evidence that Sgt Mott had
arrived at the scene in a Holden Commodore vehicle. He had put on
disposable overalls at the scene, those overalls having been stored in the
rear of the car. This raised a possibility that a fibre of this type had
adhered to the overalls, been transported to the vicinity of the body and
then been dislodged to settle in Ms Rimmer's hair. Whilst Dr Palmer
accepted that this was a possibility he considered it unlikely given that
Sgt Mott was the photographer at the scene and did not come into direct
contact with the body. Having watched the video I accept that that
assessment is correct, even taking into account that a transfer of a fibre
could possibly occur without actual contact.
2261 Although no other contamination scenarios were put, opportunities

for contamination were identified in cross-examination of witnesses. This
included at the Wellard scene, the State Mortuary and the ChemCentre. I
have considered those possibilities, but in my view they do not provide a
plausible explanation for the fibres. There is no credible alternative
source for fibres of these types, nor, in particular, this combination of
fibres. Whilst other possible sources for individual types of fibre were
identified it is in my view implausible that unknown multiple sources of
Page 585
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
adventitious matches resulted in this combination of fibres when there is a

single known possible source that explains it.
2262 Contamination can never be entirely excluded, and the real question
here is whether it is a reasonable possibility. In my view there is a bare
possibility that some individual fibres could have been the result of
contamination when considered in isolation. But that possibility is
diminished to the level of implausibility when the collection of fibres is
taken into account. It is not a realistic possibility that a collection of
fibres like this would occur by chance. On the other hand there is an
entirely plausible explanation that is consistent with the prosecution case.
2263 The next issue is what this evidence reveals about the person who
killed Ms Rimmer. It can be inferred that Ms Rimmer was abducted and
taken to Wellard in a car and that she was killed there. The fibres assist in
identifying the car involved. I am satisfied that the car in which
Ms Rimmer was abducted was a VS Holden Commodore station wagon
that was habitually driven by a Telstra employee. In saying this I do not
discount the possibility of direct transfer from a person wearing Telstra
clothing or who has close contact with such clothing. That car could have
been the one driven at the time by the accused (though it may not have
been the only car meeting that description that was in existence at the
time).
2264 It is important to identify with some exactness the relevance of the

fibre evidence. I am satisfied that the fibres on Ms Rimmer are derived
from a VS Holden Commodore station wagon and Telstra clothes. They
are likely to have come from the same source and to have been transferred
into her hair in the hours before her death. From this can be drawn a
conclusion that sometime shortly before she died she was in a VS Holden
employee. The fibres cannot be directly or exclusively linked to the
accused or the particular car he was driving. That does not mean they do
not have probative value in identification.
2265 This is not direct identification evidence (like DNA evidence) that
points to a particular individual. Rather it is evidence that identifies
certain characteristics that are likely to be possessed by the person who
attacked Ms Rimmer. That is, it is evidence that points to her attacker
being a person who was driving a VS Commodore that was habitually
driven by a Telstra worker or workers or was wearing Telstra clothes.
The fact that the accused worked for Telstra and had such a vehicle at the
time means that he possesses these particular relevant identifying
Page 586
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
characteristics. That evidence does not alone prove identity, but it is

circumstantial evidence that can be added to other evidence in order to
determine the question of identity.
Conclusions – fibre evidence of Ciara Glennon

2266 In regard to the 44 blue polyester fibres found on Ms Glennon's shirt
and in her hair and the six blue non-delustered rayon fibres found in her
hair, I am satisfied that the original source was a Telstra garment or
garments. That conclusion is supported by the comparison of these fibres
with others from the Telstra pants and the Telstra swatch, the evidence in
regard to the manufacture of the fabric and garments for Telstra, the
limited number of matches found and the fact that these fibres were found
in combination with others that correspond with fibres from a car of a type
known to have been used by Telstra employees.
2267 The evidence does not establish that fibres of this type can only have
come from clothing worn by the accused. However, it does establish that
the fibres correspond to fibres from fabric used in the manufacture of
Telstra uniforms. To this must be added the evidence that the fibres had
few matches in the ChemCentre database. Dr Palmer's evidence as to the
unlikelihood of an adventitious match was convincing and is accepted.
2268 As to the three grey polyester fibres, seven light grey polypropylene
fibres and the single dark grey polypropylene fibre found in Ms Glennon's
hair, I am satisfied that the original source was a VS Holden Commodore.
That conclusion is supported by the comparison of these fibre with others
from vehicles of that make and model, the evidence as to manufacture of
the fabric and carpets for Holden, that only limited matches have been
found for these fibres and the fact that these fibres were found in
combination with others that corresponded with fibres from uniforms of a
type known to have been used by Telstra employees (in circumstances
where cars of this type were known to be used by Telstra).
2269 The absence of grey polyester fibres on Ms Glennon's shirt was an

issue raised by the defence as being inconsistent with the known shedding
qualities of this type of fibre. The suggestion was that if Ms Glennon had
been in the car it was likely that her clothes would have come into contact
with the seat and thus acquired grey polyester fibres. A number of
possibilities to explain the absence of these fibres were raised. One was
that Ms Glennon may have been wearing her jacket (which was not
recovered) and that would act as a barrier to fibres attaching to her shirt.
On the other hand there were some suggestions that she may have had her
jacket tied around her waist at some stage. In any event, Dr Palmer said
Page 587
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
that the deposition of the body in an open area and the impact of
environmental factors make it likely that fibres were lost. In Dr Palmer's
view the absence of grey polyester fibres on Ms Glennon's clothes was a
neutral factor. I accept that conclusion.
2270 In regard to the database used by the ChemCentre, as I have noted in

respect of Ms Rimmer, this was not the basis for their conclusion that the
fibres matched. It was used only to identify possible other matches which
could then be subjected to comparison. The comments I made earlier in
regard to that database apply equally to these fibres.
2271 As to how this collection of fibres came to be in the hair of
Ms Glennon, I am satisfied that the fibres came into her hair in the hours
prior to death. In this regard I have taken into account the evidence of
Dr Palmer in regard to the persistence of fibres. I have also considered
other possibilities, in particular that of contamination. The fact that no
fibres of these types were found in her home and work environments,
including in her hair brush, is also a relevant factor.
2272 If the fibres can be reasonably explained by some other mechanism
then an inference consistent with guilt cannot be drawn. Contamination
as a possibility must be capable of explaining not merely the individual
fibres or individual types of fibres, but the fact that this combination of
fibres was found on the deceased. No source of all of these types of fibres
has been found other than the VS Commodore formerly driven by the
accused. However, Dr Palmer conceded that other vehicles of this make
and with the same interior fit-out, habitually driven by Telstra workers,
would also be likely to have the same collection of fibres. This does not
mean that the evidence lacks probative value.
2273 No specific contamination scenarios were put to Dr Palmer as an

explanation for the fibres found on Ms Glennon. However opportunities
for contamination were identified in the cross-examination of witnesses.
This included at the Eglinton scene, the State Mortuary and the
ChemCentre. I have considered those possibilities, but in my view they
do not provide a plausible explanation for the fibres. There is no
identified alternative source for fibres of these types, nor, in particular,
this combination of fibres.
2274 Contamination can never be entirely excluded, and the real question
here is whether it is a reasonable possibility. As with Ms Rimmer, there is
a bare possibility that some individual fibres could have been the result of
contamination when considered in isolation. But that possibility is
Page 588
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
diminished to the level of implausibility when the collection of fibres is

taken into account. It is not a realistic possibility that a collection of
fibres like this would occur by chance. On the other hand there is an
entirely plausible explanation that is consistent with the prosecution case.
2275 I turn to consider what this evidence reveals about the person who
killed Ms Glennon. It can be inferred that Ms Glennon was abducted and
taken to Eglinton in a car. The fibres assist in identifying the car
involved. I am satisfied that the car in which Ms Glennon was abducted
was a VS Holden Commodore that was habitually driven by a Telstra
employee. That car could have been the one driven at the time by the
accused (though it may not have been the only car meeting that
description that was in existence at the time).
2276 As with Ms Rimmer, the relevance of the fibre evidence needs to be

precisely identified. I am satisfied that the fibres on Ms Glennon are
derived from a VS Commodore and Telstra clothes. They are likely to
have come from the same source and to have been transferred into her hair
in the hours before her death. From this can be drawn a conclusion that
sometime shortly before she died she was in a VS Commodore that was
habitually driven by a Telstra employee. The fibres cannot be directly or
exclusively linked to the accused or the particular car he was driving.
That does not mean they do not have probative value in identification.
2277 This is not direct identification evidence (like DNA evidence) that
points to a particular individual. Rather it is evidence that identifies
certain characteristics that are likely to be possessed by the person who
attacked Ms Glennon. That is, it is evidence that points to her attacker
being a person who was driving a VS Commodore that was habitually
driven by a Telstra worker or workers. The fact that the accused had such
a vehicle at the time means that he possesses these particular relevant
identifying characteristics. That evidence may not alone prove identity,
but it is circumstantial evidence that can be added to other evidence in
order to determine the question of identity.
Conclusions – fibre evidence of 1BPX–080

2278 The presence of blue polyester fibres that correspond to fibres from
the Telstra pants in a car that the accused is known to have driven (that is,
1BPX-080) is consistent with the conclusion that a car habitually driven
by a Telstra employee will accumulate some fibres from the clothes they
wear. The possibility that the blue polyester fibres in the car came from
some other Telstra worker who used it cannot be discounted. Indeed, it is
a real possibility given that the car was owned by Telstra for another two
Page 589
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
years after the accused had it. This does not diminish the significance of
the findings, because the existence of the fibres in the car shows that
habitual use by Telstra employees results in fibres of this type
accumulating in the car.
2279 Whether or not the particular blue polyester fibres found in the car
originated from clothes worn by the accused, it is likely that fibres of this
type were in the car when he had it. I say this based on my earlier finding
that he was working for Telstra at the time of counts 7 and 8 and was
likely to have worn Telstra uniforms at that time. It is important to note in
this regard that the significance of this evidence is not that any of the
critical fibres can be directly linked to the accused. Rather they are
relevant to the issue of whether either Ms Rimmer or Ms Glennon was in
a vehicle of that type habitually used by a Telstra employee prior to their
deaths.
2280 The persistence of the fibres some 20 years after the accused (and at
least 16 years after any other Telstra worker) last used the car is
explicable bearing in mind the locations in which all but one of them were
found, the right-hand side bracket of the driver's seat and under the rear
bench seat. These were areas that were clearly less accessible (and
therefore less easy to clean). That fibres of this type were found in the car
supports the prosecution contention that both Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon were in that car (or at least a car of that make and model
habitually used by a Telstra worker).
Arrest of the accused and his police interview

2281 At about 7.30 am on the morning of 22 December 2016 police
officers attended the house of the accused in Kewdale. Entry was first
effected by officers of the tactical response group. The accused was at
home at the time and was restrained by the officers. Shortly thereafter
investigating officers, including DSS Marrapodi, entered the house and
the accused was formally arrested, told why the police were there, advised
of his rights and provided with a copy of a search warrant for the
premises.2045
2282 The initial conversation at the house between with the accused and
the police was video recorded and a copy of the recording was tendered in
2045
ts 9824 - 6.
Page 590
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
evidence.2046 On being told the reasons for his arrest the accused acted
with apparent shock and surprise:2047
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Alright. That's for you. I'm going to inform you
now that you are under arrest on suspicion of the wilful murder of Ciara
Glennon - -
EDWARDS: What?
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Jane Rimmer - - -
EDWARDS: What the fuck?
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Sarah Spiers.
EDWARDS: What?
S/SGT MARRAPODI: For the aggravated sexual and abduction of [KJG]

in 1995 in Rowe Park.
EDWARDS: the fuck? What the fuck's going on?
S/SGT MARRAPODI: In Rowe Park, and for the break and enter and
indecent assault in 1988 of [AH]?
EDWARDS: Who?
2283 Later in the conversation, when asked if there is anything that he

wished to ask the accused said 'I don't know. Why, why me?' When
asked whether there was anything he wanted to say in relation to the
allegations he said 'I'm innocent'. When asked if there was any property
in his house belonging to any of Ms Spiers, Ms Rimmer or Ms Glennon,
he said 'Why would there be anything like that in there, in here?' When
told that the police would be executing a search and that he would then be
taken to police headquarters the accused said 'why me…why are you pi-,
just picking on me? Why are [you] choosing me?'2048
2284 There is no evidence of anything being found in the search that is
relevant to the determination of the issues in this case.
2285 The accused was taken from the house at approximately 9.00 am and
arrived at the Cold Case Homicide Squad offices in Pier Street at 9.20 am.
He was placed into an interview room. An interview commenced at
2046
Exhibit 02629.
2047
Exhibit 30650.
2048
Exhibit 30650.
Page 591
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
9.53 am and concluded 11.27 pm the same day, with a number a breaks.
The interviewing officers were DSS Marrapodi and DSS Capes.2049
2286 The accused consistently denied the allegations put to him and
maintained his innocence. He said that that he was 'not involved in
anything like that'. He specifically denied any involvement in the alleged
murders of Ms Spiers, Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. In regard to the
Karrakatta offences he said 'I don't know anything about any of this'. In
regard to the Huntingdale offences he said that he 'vaguely' knew AH as a
girl from school, but said that he could hardly remember her. The only
thing he could remember about AH was going for a swim at her house
when they were in primary school. He denied ever going back to her
house on any other occasion. He said he knew nothing of a break-in at
AH's house in 1988, adding 'and I think that would be something you'd
remember'.2050
2287 The accused gave an account of his married life, saying that he split
up with EB in 1997 after he became aware of her affair with DF (the year
appears to be an error, as other evidence indicates that the separation was
in late 1995 to early 1996). He then lived alone at the house in Fountain
Way, Huntingdale for 'maybe a couple of months'. He could not afford
the mortgage payments on the house so he did some work on it with a
view to selling it and moved back to live with his parents. He stayed there
until he and his second wife, CG, bought the house in Kewdale in August
2000. He met CG in April 1997 and they married in December 2000. In
the intervening period he said he had a relationship for a 'few months'
with KM. He and KM did not live together (he was still living with his
parents when this relationship was current). This was the only
relationship he had in the period between the separation from his first wife
and meeting his second wife.2051
2288 The accused said that at the time of his first marriage he had
part-private use of a Telstra work vehicle. He said that this meant that he
could drive the vehicle after hours and on weekends. An amount was
deducted from his wages for this use. He said that he would be allocated
a car for a period of time, but it would have to be surrendered if he went
on leave. On return from leave another car would be allocated. He said
that these cars came from the 'the pool of vehicles that everyone uses'. He
said the first vehicle that he was allocated was probably a van, a
Mitsubishi L300 or a Nissan. They were always white and normally had
2049
ts 9828 - 9.
2050
Exhibit 02627, p 13, 16, 22.
2051
Exhibit 02627, p 27 - 8, 32, 41.
Page 592
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
logos on the side. There were restrictions on what you could do with the
vehicle, including not going more than 75 km of your home. There was
no requirement to document the use made of the vehicle, except for
logging mileage.2052
2289 The accused worked for Telstra from 1988 until his arrest. He said
his role remained largely the same throughout his employment, namely
the installation of telephone systems. This was only for corporate and
government clients. This included the Health Department and police, but
he was more involved with banks and, later, technology based groups. He
said that there could be overtime because some clients wanted the work
done after hours.2053
2290 When asked if he had clients in Claremont the accused said 'not
really, no'. He was a 'little bit' familiar with Claremont and knew that
there was a Bankwest branch on the corner 'where the shopping area is'.
He knew this because Bankwest was a customer and 'we'd look after the
phones'. However he said that was only in more recent times, from 2009.
He said his association with Claremont prior to that was 'not much'. He
denied frequenting the Claremont area, having any friends that live there
or having any reasons to drive through the area at night time. He knew
that there were nightclubs in the area, but said 'I've never been to them'.
He had not been to Club Bay View or The Continental Hotel, but had
been to the OBH in the late 1980s.2054
2291 A little later in the interview the accused was asked again about
Claremont. His responses to these questions need to be quoted in full as
they are relied upon by the State as being a lie:2055
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Mmhmm. So do you know Claremont that well?
EDWARDS: Oh, little bit.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Do you know your way around Claremont?
EDWARDS: I can get to it.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Right. And I know I asked you this before but,
um, did you go to Claremont at night time? Yes or no?
EDWARDS: I can't remember.
2052
Exhibit 02627, p 49 - 53.
2053
Exhibit 02627, p 21, 57.
2054
Exhibit 02627, p 60 - 2.
2055
ts 9864 - 6; exhibit 02627, p 65 - 6.
Page 593
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
S/SGT MARRAPODI: You can't remember?
EDWARDS: Well, I don't know why I would go to Claremont at night

time.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Alright. Well, I guess it's a question – do you

recall going to Claremont of the night time?
EDWARDS: No.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Can you think of any reason why you'd be driving
around Claremont at night time?
EDWARDS: No.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: No?
EDWARDS: Nup.
2292 When asked whether he had been to Karrakatta Cemetery the

accused said that he had there recently for a burial service and a war
memorial service, but could not remember any reasons for attending there
prior to that. He said that he could not recall being there in 1995 and did
not know where Rowe Park is. He said that he had never been to the
cemetery late at night or in the early morning. He denied knowing KJG or
anything regarding the Karrakatta sexual assault. He said he was not
aware of that matter.2056
2293 When asked about other cars that he had been allocated by Telstra,
he said the thought there were Commodores, Camrys and a Ford Raider or
Ranger. He said that the Commodores and Camrys were all wagons.2057
2294 When asked whether he was aware of the disappearance of three

girls from Claremont the accused said 'I think everyone's aware of that'.
However, he denied any involvement in those disappearances and said he
was 'a hundred and ten – twenty per cent positive' about that. He also
denied any knowledge as to who was involved.2058
2295 When asked if there was any reason why his DNA would be
associated with any of these offences, the accused said 'No. No. Why?
Why would it be?'. He denied knowing where Eglinton is or ever having
2056
Exhibit 02627, p 66 - 7.
2057
Exhibit 02627, p 71 - 2.
2058
Exhibit 02627, p 73.
Page 594
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
been to Pipidinny Road. He said he knew where Wellard is but denied

having been to Woolcoot Road.2059
2296 The accused provided a sample of his DNA by way of a buccal swab
at 11.52 am and the interview was suspended shortly after. The interview
resumed at 2.54 pm. He was then shown some maps and repeated his
denials of having been at Karrakatta Cemetery in 1995 and ever having
been to Rowe Park. He marked a map of central Claremont showing the
location of the Bankwest (or Commonwealth) branch at which he had
worked. When asked whether he had worked at any of the locations
within that area in 1995, 1996 or 1997, he said 'I'm not sure. I don't think
so'. He recalled an occasion when he had worked at the bank to replace a
faulty switch on the first floor. This work had taken a couple of hours and
was done during the day. He said he knew nothing of the payphone on
Stirling Street and was positive he had never been there during the course
of his employment.2060
2297 When shown a map of Eglinton, the accused repeated that he had
never been there. He said he had driven along Wanneroo Road to go to
Yanchep for an outing with his second wife and step-daughter, sometime
after 1997. He said that he had done some work in Two Rocks or
Yanchep sometime between 2002 and 2007. He also said that he had
been there on an occasion in the late 1990s to pick up his brother who had
a girlfriend in the area (or to help his brother find a light switch on their
parent's car).2061
2298 When shown a map of Wellard, the accused denied having been in
the vicinity of Woolcoot Road and said he did not recognise 'any of it'.
He said he did not recall attending the area for any purpose in 1996.2062
2299 The interview was suspended at 4.38 pm and resumed at 8.16 pm.
By that time the police had obtained the results of the DNA test. When
the accused was told that his DNA was a 'positive match' he said 'How
could that be?' and 'I don't understand. I didn't do, I didn't do any of this.'
When told specifically that there had been a match with DNA obtained
from KJG the following exchange occurred:2063
2059
Exhibit 02627, p 74 - 5.
2060
Exhibit 02627, p 79, 82 - 4, 86 - 7.
2061
Exhibit 02627, p 89 - 91.
2062
Exhibit 02627, p 93.
2063
Exhibit 02627, p 155.
Page 595
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
S/SGT MARRAPODI: On the 12th of February 1995 [KJG] was abducted

from Rowe Park. She was taken to Karrakatta Cemetery where she was
raped.
EDWARDS: Wasn't me.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Your DNA - - -
EDWARDS: I don't understand what you're saying.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: - - - has been matched to DNA obtained from

[KJG]. Your DNA. No one else's. Yours.
EDWARDS: I didn't, I wish I could explain it.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Tell me what happened, Bradley. What

happened?
EDWARDS: I don't know what happened. I wasn't there.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Do you understand what I have just said to you?

Your DNA.
EDWARDS: Yeah, you keep saying it but it's not going to change
anything.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: The DNA came from semen. Explain.
EDWARDS: How can I explain it? I don't know what you, you mean by
explain it. What do you, you're assuming I've done it.
2300 The accused was then told about the results of the tests as compared
to DNA taken from Ms Glennon and the following exchange occurred:2064
S/SGT MARRAPODI: You sure? Ciara Glennon, twenty-seven years of
age. Taken from Claremont on the 14th of March 1997. Murdered and
dumped on Pipidinny Road in Eglinton. The male DNA profile from the
(KJG) matter is the same as the DNA profile recovered in this matter here.
What happened, Bradley?
EDWARDS: I don't know. Wish I could explain it and say I was

wherever. I don't know.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Brad, your daughter said that your most prized
virtue is your honesty. This is your chance to show that she's right.
EDWARDS: I'm being honest.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Did you hear what I just said?
2064
Exhibit 02627, p 155 - 6.
Page 596
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
EDWARDS: Yes. I heard what you said.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Your daughter, your daughter has said your prized
virtue is your honesty.
EDWARDS: I don't know what to say.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Are you a man that accepts responsibility for his
actions?
EDWARDS: Yes, I am.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Now is the time to accept your responsibility.
EDWARDS: I accept responsibility for stuff I've done, not stuff I haven't
done.
2301 The accused was then told about the results of testing in the
Huntingdale matter and was shown a photograph of the Kimono:2065
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Mmhm. Do you know what that is?
EDWARDS: No.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: It's a kimono, a dressing gown.
EDWARDS: Yep.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: You should know what it is.
EDWARDS: Why?
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Your DNA has been located in a number of

locations on that item. Your DNA. No one else's. Yours.
EDWARDS: Impossible. Never seen that before.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Never seen it before?
EDWARDS: No.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Hadn't worn it?
EDWARDS: No…….
………..
S/SGT MARRAPODI: It's her bedroom there. That item was left there.
She was attacked in her bedroom, Bradley.
2065
Exhibit 02627, p 157 - 8.
Page 597
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
EDWARDS: I didn't do it.
S/SGT MARRAPODI: Tell me about, about where this came from.
EDWARDS: I don't know what it is or where it's from.
2302 The interview was terminated at 11.27 pm. The interview was edited
to remove parts that were of no relevance (either as a result of agreement
between the parties or rulings by me). I have not taken any of the edited
parts into account or been influenced by the fact that the interview has
been edited.
Alleged lies
2303 As noted, there is a passage in the interview the effect of which,
when seen in context, is that the accused denied having been to Claremont
in 1996 and 1997. The prosecution case initially was that this was a lie
told out of a consciousness of guilt. In closing address senior counsel for
the State said that this was no longer pressed and that any lies told in the
interview were only relied on as going to the credibility of the accused.
That is, lies told in the interview, if proven to be so, are only relevant in
assessing the credibility of exculpatory claims made by him.2066
2304 The alleged credibility lies are those relating to denials of the
Huntingdale and Karrakatta offences and the denial regarding familiarity
with Claremont in 1996 and 1997. The lies regarding the Huntingdale and
Karrakatta offences are not disputed, in light of the pleas of guilty to those
offences. It is not open to question that the accused made statements
regarding the Huntingdale and Karrakatta offences that were knowingly
untrue. The alleged lie regarding Claremont depends upon other evidence
to show that what the accused said was untrue. In this respect the
prosecution relies on the evidence of CG regarding transactions on the
joint bank account and the evidence of Michael Chivell as to the location
of ATM machines and the meaning of entries on bank statements.
Conclusions – alleged lies and denials

2305 The passage relied on by the prosecution is not in clear terms an
absolute denial of ever having been in Claremont in 1996 and 1997. The
accused is vague in his responses, saying to some questions that he cannot
remember. When asked if he had any reason to go there at night he says
he doesn't think so. The answers are at least equivocal.
2066
ts 10220.
Page 598
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
2306 The evidence that the prosecution relies on to prove that the
Claremont statements are untrue is the evidence regarding ATM use. The
prosecution do not rely on proof of the offences, because of course if the
offences were otherwise proven then there would be no need to prove that
this statement was untrue. It must be borne in mind that the accused was
being asked in 2016 about whether he had been to Claremont some
20 years earlier. A person may reasonably have difficulty in being able to
answer such a question with certainty.
2307 The evidence relied on by the prosecution to prove that the accused
had in fact attended Claremont in 1996 and 1997 is also problematic in
that it is not original bank records, but a copy of them written by CG. The
accuracy of her copy cannot now be verified. However, even assuming
that it is correct and that an inference can be drawn that the accused used
an ATM in Claremont at the relevant time, the nature of his proven
attendance there is confined to that fact. If all the accused did in
Claremont was use an ATM then that is the type of activity that is so
banal in its nature that it might easily be forgotten. For that reason I am
not satisfied that even if the answers were untrue they have been proven to
be deliberately so.
2308 For those reasons the alleged untruthful statements regarding
familiarity with Claremont are not capable of being used as a credibility
lie.
2309 There are a number of other alleged credibility lies in the interview.
In particular, the denials by the accused of the commission of the
Huntingdale and Karrakatta offences and of the factual circumstances
related to those offences. In respect of those untruths they were in
unambiguous terms and can readily be identified as deliberate lies, given
that the accused has since admitted his guilt of those matters. Those lies
can only be used only in assessing whether the accused is to be believed
when he says other, exculpatory, things. In this case that relates to things
said in the recorded arrest conversation and the interview (as there was no
evidence given on oath).
2310 I have given consideration to the denials by the accused of
involvement in the murders. I take into account that these denials were
clear, unequivocal and spontaneous. They were consistently maintained
over the length of the interview, even when the accused was confronted
with the DNA evidence. However, I am unable to place any reliance on
the tone, content and demeanour of the accused in making these denials
because his denials in relation to the Huntingdale and Karrakatta offences
Page 599
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
had the same qualities. I also take into account that the denials of
involvement in the murders were not made on oath and were not subjected
to the rigours of cross-examination. Whilst this does not mean that the
denials are irrelevant it does affect the weight to be given to them. In my
view they have very little weight. Whether or not guilt of the murder
charges is proven depends on an assessment of the whole of the evidence,
including the denials.
2311 The other evidence in the case may establish guilt to the necessary
standard notwithstanding the denials. I should also add that my
assessment of the credibility of the denials is not a factor that I have used
against the accused in determining whether or not he is guilty.
Homicide pattern analysis evidence
Deborah Cunningham – evidence summary

2312 Deborah Cunningham is an intelligence analyst with WA Police.
She has been employed in that role since 2008. She has been assigned to
the Cold Case Homicide Squad since 2015. Her role is to analyse crime
data to look for patterns and trends.2067
2313 In the latter half of 2019 Ms Cunningham was tasked to compile and
tabulate data for all homicide related offences occurring in WA from
1 January 1988 to 22 December 2016. This resulted in the production of a
spreadsheet. The offences included in the spreadsheet were murder,
attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, and driving causing death. The
information was obtained by interrogating WA Police databases, some of
which were legacy or obsolete systems. The two relevant
decommissioned systems were still accessible in archival data stores,
though the method of searching differed from system to system. 2068
2314 Initially three spreadsheet were created, one for each of the systems
searched (the two decommissioned systems and the current system). A
manual process was then used to bring the data into a single format and a
master Excel spreadsheet was created that contained all of the relevant
data. Excel was used so that various filters could be applied to the data.
The information was cross-checked against other police records.
Ms Cunningham was also able to access records to see if there were any
relevant Coroner's findings in respect of incidents, that is, anything that
2067
ts 9727.
2068
ts 9728.
Page 600
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
could provide more information as to the outcome of a matter. The Excel

spreadsheet in final form represents about four months of work.2069
2315 The information in the spreadsheet includes date of the incident,

place of the incident, nature of the charge, victim name, victim age, victim
gender, outcome of court proceedings, outcome of any inquest, whether
there was any relationship between the offender and the victim, name of
any offender, age of any offender and gender of any offender. If more
than one person was charged in respect of a particular death this was also
shown in the spreadsheet. The total number of matters (that is, deaths) on
the spreadsheet is 1533.2070
2316 Ms Cunningham was asked to apply four filters to the data contained
in the spreadsheet. The first of these was a filter for the place of the
offence, being 18 suburbs described broadly as the western suburbs of
Perth. Only 12 of the 18 suburbs were recorded as being the location of
incidents on the list. After this filter was applied the total number of
incidents on the list that were recorded as having occurred at one of the
nominated suburbs was 31. The second filter applied was to remove all
incidents involving male victims. This reduced the number of incidents
to 17. The third filter was to remove all incidents involving
murder/suicide or attempted murder/suicide. This reduced the number of
incidents to 12. The fourth filter was to remove incidents where a
conviction had been recorded. This reduced the number of incidents to
six. The six victims in the final group are Pamela Lawrence, Sarah
Spiers, Jane Rimmer, Ciara Glennon, Susan Christie and Corryn
Rayney.2071
2317 Ms Cunningham said that the spreadsheet included cases where

homicide was suspected but no-one had ever been charged. However, it
did not include cases where a person had gone missing. She explained
that the case of Sarah Spiers was an exception to this because there is a
charged suspect.2072
Stephen Perejmibida – evidence summary

2318 Detective Sergeant Stephen Perejmibida was the supervisor of the
Missing Persons Unit of the Homicide Squad at WA Police between 2015
and 2017. In that role one of his responsibilities was to coordinate and
2069
ts 9730 - 1.
2070
ts 9732 - 7.
2071
ts 9737 - 40.
2072
ts 9742 - 3.
Page 601
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
maintain a database of all long-term missing persons and unidentified

human remains.2073
2319 A long-term missing person is a person who has not been seen for
90 days. If a person is reported missing the initial investigations are
conducted at a local level. If the person remains missing after 90 days the
case file is referred to the Missing Persons Unit and the details entered
onto the database. A file can, however, be referred earlier than 90 days if
all inquiries have been exhausted before that time. The files remain open,
though sometimes an inquest is held. The missing person records go back
to 1953. Det Sgt Perejmbida was responsible for consolidating various
records into a single missing persons database.2074
2320 For the purposes of this trial Det Sgt Perejmibida was requested to
prepare a spreadsheet from the database listing all long-term missing
persons who went missing between 1 January 1988 and 22 December
2016. The list was broken up into categories, being lost at sea, lost on
land, cold case homicide and unidentified human remains. The
spreadsheet includes details of the missing person's name, age, gender,
date the person went missing and place the person went missing from. A
total of 175 people were identified, of whom 79 were missing at sea and
96 on land. Of those missing on land 12 were females.2075
2321 The spreadsheet also identified those missing person cases that were
with the Cold Case Homicide Squad because they were considered
suspicious. Of such cases those involving females were Julie Cutler,
Radina Djukich, Sarah Spiers, Sarah Davey, Peta Webber, Magdalene
Dempster, Lisa Browne, Petronella Albert, Hayley Dodd, Lisa Govan,
Sarah McMahon, and Susan Christie. Ms Cutler was last seen at the
Parmelia Hilton Hotel in the Perth CBD in 1988. Ms Djukich was last
seen in North Beach. Ms Davey was last seen in Broome in 1997.
Ms Webber was last seen in Albany in 1997. Ms Dempster was last seen
in Esperance in 1998. Ms Browne was last seen in Northbridge in 1998.
Ms Albert was last seen in Broome in 1999. Ms Dodd was last seen in
1999. Ms Govan was last seen in Kalgoorlie in 1999. Ms McMahon was
last seen in Claremont in 2000 (though her car was later found at the
Swan Districts Hospital). Ms Christie was last seen in Jolimont. Charges
are pending against other accused in the cases of Ms Djukich and
2073
ts 9747.
2074
ts 9747 - 9.
2075
ts 9749 - 53.
Page 602
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
Ms Dodd. A person was charged in relation to Ms Christie, but the case

was later discontinued.2076
2322 Det Sgt Perejmibida was asked to filter the group of 12 missing
women referred to in order to identify those who went missing from the
'western suburbs', being the same list of 18 suburbs used by
Ms Cunningham. This reduced the list to three, being Sarah Spiers, Sarah
McMahon and Susan Christie.2077
2323 Det Sgt Perejmibida was also asked to identify the number of
unidentified human remains that have been located since the
disappearance of Sarah Spiers. There have been no female remains found
in that period.2078
Peter Clements – evidence summary

2324 Detective Sergeant Peter Clements worked at the Homicide Squad
between 2004 and 2006 and again from 2013 to 2018. He was the officer
in charge during the latter period. At that time there were five
investigative teams and a missing persons team. The Homicide Squad
maintained records for all long-term missing persons, suspicious deaths
and homicide offences reported and investigated. A suspicious death was
considered to be one that does not appear to be as a result of natural
causes and there is some indication of third party involvement.2079
2325 Det Sgt Clements had been provided with the spreadsheet prepared
by Ms Cunningham and confirmed that the contents of it appeared to be
correct. He said that for the period 1 January 1988 to 22 December 2016
there were six cases in the western suburbs where the victims were female
and no conviction had been recorded. The victims in those cases were
Pamela Lawrence, Sarah Spiers, Jane Rimmer, Ciara Glennon, Corryn
Rayney and Susan Christie. In respect of Pamela Lawrence a man had
been charged and convicted, but this was later set aside on appeal.
Another man, Simon Rochford, was then identified as a suspect during a
cold case review. Mr Rochford was in custody at the time of the
disappearance of Ms Spiers, Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. In respect of
Ms Rayney, she was last seen in Bentley and her body was recovered
from Kings Park.2080
2076
ts 9754 - 6.
2077
ts 9757.
2078
ts 9758.
2079
ts 9761.
2080
ts 9762.
Page 603
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
2326 Det Sgt Clements said that the only matters that he was aware of
whilst he was the officer in charge of the Homicide Squad that involved
young women last seen alive in the early hours of the morning in the
Claremont area were those relating to Ms Spiers, Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon.2081
Conclusions – homicide pattern evidence

2327 The stated purpose of this evidence is to show that the features that
the prosecution rely on are distinctive because they only occur in a very
limited number of cases. The argument is that this makes it more likely
that only one perpetrator is involved. The defence raised an objection to
the relevance of this evidence and also questioned the validity of the data
relied on insofar as it drew on the outcome of cases that could not be
conclusive evidence in the context of this trial.
2328 The defence agreed that the evidence could be received provisionally
and any determination as to its admissibility and weight deferred. In
fairness to the parties, at the conclusion of the evidence I indicated that
my preliminary view was that this evidence was not relevant, though I
said that I would permit further submissions to be made on this issue. I
gave some oral reasons for my view.
2329 In closing the State said that it accepted my preliminary view and did
not seek to persuade me that the evidence did have relevance. I took this
as a concession that the evidence was not admissible and, accordingly, I
have not taken it into account. However, for completeness, I will state the
reasons why in my view the evidence is not relevant.
2330 The fact in issue that this evidence must relate to is whether the three
alleged murders were committed by a single perpetrator. For the evidence
to have any relevance to that issue it must be capable of making it more
likely that one person committed the three alleged offences. It can only
do that by adding something to the evidence that is already available.
2331 The methodology used by the witnesses was to apply filters to the
data. In particular to filter by gender of the victim, time period of the
offences and geographical area of the offences. There are assumptions
contained in those filters that, although unstated, are self-evident. The
filter for gender assumes that a perpetrator who kills multiple victims is
more likely to only kill victims of the same gender. The filter for
geographical area assumes that a perpetrator who kills multiple victims is
2081
ts 9763.
Page 604
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
more likely to do so in the same geographical area. The filter for time
period assumes that a perpetrator who kills multiple victims is more likely
to do so within a relatively short period of time. If these assumptions are
not made then it is not apparent why the filters were chosen.
2332 What this reveals is that filters have been applied which reflect the
already known similarities between the three alleged murders. It is
therefore unsurprising that these filters have produced a subset that
includes the alleged murders, but that proves nothing over and above any
significance that the similarities may themselves have. Either those
similar factual circumstances are sufficient to make it more likely that the
same person is the perpetrator or they are not. The data analysis does not
add any weight to those circumstances.
2333 There appeared to be a suggestion that if the subset produced by

applying the filters only includes the three alleged victims, or only those
victims and a small number of others for whom other explanations for
death are available, that this makes it more likely that the same person
committed the offences. The implication is that if there are no or few
other homicide cases with the same features that this indicates the
distinctiveness of those features and makes it more likely that the same
person committed them. However, this does not take into account that
abduction-murders are rare in any event. The fact that an offence of a
particular type is rare does not make it any more or less likely that two
such events were committed by the same person (unless there is
something else distinctive about them). This is because where events of a
particular type are rare it is usually impossible to discern whether features
that they share are distinctive or merely coincidental.
2334 No doubt this sort of analysis has value in an investigation or for

intelligence purposes, but it is no substitute for evidence that links an
accused person to a particular offence. Its value is in helping police and
prosecutors to form a hypothesis that can be tested by considering the
available evidence. There may appear to be a pattern in the data, but
whether it is real or not must be subject to confirmation by independent
evidence.
Page 605
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
Defence evidence
2335 The accused elected not to give evidence. Nor did he call any
witnesses. This was his right and cannot be used to form or lend weight
to any inferences adverse to him.2082
2336 The defence case consisted of the tender (by consent) of weather data
in relation to the Gosnells area.2083 The data is in the form of a chart from
the Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology setting out the
maximum temperature in degrees Celsius for 'Gosnells City' in WA.
Relevantly, this shows that the maximum temperature on Friday
26 January 1996 was 28.5°C and on Saturday 27 January 1996 was
29.5°C. The highest temperature in Gosnells that month was 42.7°C on
17 January 1996.
2337 The significance of this evidence is that it is inconsistent with

Ms Cook's recollection that 27 January 1996 was a very hot day and that
the accused assisted her husband in attempting to fix the air-conditioner at
their house before they both went to work together at Dumas House. This
raises a question as to whether Ms Cook's recall of these events is reliable.
This has to be viewed in the context that Mr Travis's records show that the
accused commenced work at 8.00 am but that Mr Cook did not commence
until 10.00 am, making it unlikely that they arrived at work together. A
more detailed analysis of this evidence appears earlier in these reasons.
Conclusions
Different courses of reasoning
2338 I am satisfied that the evidence establishes that each of the victims
was abducted and killed. The real issue is the identity of the killer or
killers.
2339 The evidence of identity is strongest in respect of the killing of Ciara

Glennon. There is also some forensic evidence in respect of the identity
of the killer of Jane Rimmer. However, in the case of Sarah Spiers there
is no forensic evidence at all. The prosecution case on count 6 critically
depends on establishing that the person who killed Ms Glennon and
Ms Rimmer must also have killed Ms Spiers or that those two other
killings provide propensity evidence that together with other evidence is
sufficient to establish that the accused killed Ms Spiers.
2082
ts 9870 - 1.
2083
Exhibit 30655.
Page 606
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
2340 There are two suggested courses of reasoning in respect of each

charge. In respect of Ms Glennon and Ms Rimmer the first course of
reasoning is to determine whether similarities between their cases justify a
conclusion that they were killed by the same person and, if that conclusion
is reached, to then use evidence from both cases to determine the identity
of that killer. The second course of reasoning is to look at Ms Glennon's
case first and, if the identity of her killer is proven, to then use that as
propensity evidence in respect of the other charges. This course of
reasoning would then turn to the case of Ms Rimmer to determine whether
the evidence in that case, together with the propensity evidence,
establishes the identity of her killer.
2341 In respect of Ms Spiers the first course of reasoning is to determine

whether similarities between her case and that of the other two justifies a
conclusion that they were killed by the same person and to rely on
evidence as to identity from all of the cases to establish the identity of her
killer. The second course of reasoning is to use proof of the other cases as
propensity evidence and to then consider whether that evidence, together
with that relating specifically to Ms Spiers, establishes the identity of her
killer.
2342 In respect of all courses of reasoning the Karrakatta propensity
evidence is relevant evidence to the issue of identity which has significant
probative value. The probative value derives from the nature of the
proven tendency, that is, a tendency to violently attack and abduct young
women from the Claremont area. However, the weight to be accorded to
that evidence is different in each case due to similarities or differences
that exist.
2343 In particular, in the case of Ms Rimmer the additional factor of a

proven sexual motivation lends the Karrakatta evidence added weight. I
have considered whether that additional factor makes a difference to the
outcome, that is, whether the conclusions in respect of Ms Rimmer would
be different if a sexual motivation for her killing was not proven, and
come to the conclusion that it does not. The same outcome is reached on
the evidence whether or not the sexual motivation is proved.
2344 In the case of Ms Spiers, the additional factor, that (on the
prosecution case) she must have been lured into the vehicle and given her
desired destination and that the pretence of taking her to that destination
must have been maintained until the suburb of her destination was
reached, is a difference with the Karrakatta incident that reduces the
weight to be given to that evidence.
Page 607
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon – first course of reasoning

2345 In respect of Ms Glennon and Ms Rimmer I have reached the
following conclusions as to the first course of reasoning:
1. there are significant similarities between the circumstances of their
disappearances and deaths. Those similarities are that:
(a) both Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon were young women;
(b) both attended venues in the Claremont area to socialise

on their own;
(c) both went missing in the early hours of a weekend

morning;
(d) they both went missing within a nine month period from
June 1996 to March 1997;
(e) in both cases they were killed in a similar manner, that is
by a sharp-force injury to the area of the neck;
(f) in both cases there were defensive wounds indicating that
they had sought to defend themselves from an attacker
armed with a sharp weapon;
(g) the bodies of both were deposited in semi-rural locations

on the outskirts of the Perth metropolitan area;
(h) the position of the bodies and the covering of them with
plant material from surrounding vegetation was similar;
and
(i) both had fibres on them that were consistent with them
having been in a VS Holden Commodore car that was
habitually used by a Telstra employee;
2. those similarities establish beyond reasonable doubt that the same
person killed both Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon;
3. that the evidence as to the identity of the killer includes the DNA
evidence, the fibre evidence and the propensity evidence. Of these
the DNA evidence is critical to the prosecution case. I am
satisfied that the evidence establishes beyond reasonable doubt
that the DNA of the accused was under the nails of Ms Glennon's
Page 608
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
left hand and that it got there in the course of a violent struggle
that occurred sometime shortly before her death;
4. the fibre evidence establishes that each of Ms Rimmer and

Ms Glennon were in a VS Holden Commodore car that was
habitually driven by a Telstra employee in the time shortly before
their deaths. I am also satisfied that the accused drove such a
vehicle at the relevant times;
5. the propensity evidence of the Karrakatta incident, which is all

that I have relied on for this purpose, establishes that the accused
the Claremont area;
the killer of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon was the accused; and
7. the circumstances of the abductions and the nature of the wounds
to kill each of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon.
Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon – second course of reasoning

2346 The second course of reasoning in respect of Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon leads to the same ultimate conclusions. Applying that course
of reasoning I draw the following conclusions:
1. that Ms Glennon was last seen in Claremont in the early hours of
15 March 1997;
2. when last seen she was in the vicinity of a white VS Holden
Commodore;
3. that Ms Glennon was killed by a person wielding a sharp

4. that it has been established beyond reasonable doubt that the DNA
of the accused was under the nails of Ms Glennon's left hand and
that it got there in the course of a violent struggle that occurred
sometime shortly before her death;
5. the fibre evidence establishes that Ms Glennon was in a

VS Holden Commodore car that was habitually driven by a Telstra
Page 609
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J

6. the propensity evidence of the Karrakatta incident, which is all

that I have relied on, establishes that the accused had a tendency to
violently attack and abduct young women from the Claremont
area;
the accused was the killer of Ms Glennon;

to kill Ms Glennon;
9. Ms Rimmer was last seen in Claremont in the early hours of

9 June 1996;
10. that Ms Rimmer was killed by a person wielding a sharp
11. the fibre evidence establishes that Ms Rimmer was in a VS Holden
12. the propensity evidence of the Karrakatta incident establishes that
the accused had a tendency to violently attack and abduct young
women from the Claremont area. The additional propensity
evidence of the killing of Ms Glennon establishes that that
tendency developed to killing the abducted young woman using a
sharp instrument and disposing of the body in a semi-rural
location;
13. having regard to the fibre evidence and the propensity evidence,
including that relating to the killing of Ms Glennon, I am satisfied
beyond reasonable doubt that the accused was the killer of
Ms Rimmer; and
to kill Ms Rimmer.
Page 610
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HALL J
Did the accused kill Ciara Glennon

2347 For the reasons I have given I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt
that the accused was the killer of Ms Glennon. I find that he abducted her
on the early morning of 15 March 1997 in Claremont as she was walking
home. He used his work vehicle, a VS Holden Commodore station wagon
to drive her from the area. It is not possible to determine exactly how he
managed to get Ms Glennon into the car.
2348 At some point a violent struggle ensued in which Ms Glennon

scratched or clawed at the accused, thereby getting some of his DNA
under her nails. The accused had a knife or other sharp object, which he
used to attack her. Ms Glennon tried to fend off the attack and incurred a
defensive injury to her arm. The accused then stabbed or slashed her with
the sharp instrument, causing one or more fatal injuries to her neck.
Given the pattern of blood soaking on her clothes it is likely that the fatal
wound or wounds was inflicted at Eglinton.
2349 The accused then disposed of the body of Ms Glennon in bushland at
Eglinton. He chose a semi-rural location and put her body on the ground
before covering her with vegetation he gathered or broke off from
surrounding trees and bushes. His intention in so doing was to minimise
the chances of her being found and his offence being discovered.
Did he do so intentionally
2350 Any conclusion as to intention must be based on an inference drawn
from the circumstantial evidence. The intention of a person can be
inferred from their actions. In this case the relevant actions, based upon
my factual findings, are as follows:
1. that the accused abducted Ms Glennon, that is, that he held her
against her will (either after using deceit or violence to get her into
his car);
2. that the accused was armed with a sharp implement;
3. that there was a violent struggle in which Ms Glennon sought to

defend herself from the accused and in the course of which she
incurred broken fingernails and an injury (or injuries) to her right
arm;
4. that the accused inflicted one or more wounds to the neck of

Ms Glennon that were sufficient to cause her death; and
Page 611
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
5. that the area of the neck where the wound or wounds were
inflicted is one that includes major arteries and veins such that a
sharp-force injury to that area is highly likely to cause a
life-threatening injury.
2351 Based on these findings in my view the only reasonable inference is

that when the accused struck Ms Glennon with the sharp instrument he
intended to kill her.
Did the accused kill Jane Rimmer

2352 For the reasons I have given I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt
that the accused was the killer of Ms Rimmer. I find that he abducted her
on the early morning of 9 June 1996 in Claremont. He used his work
vehicle, a VS Holden Commodore station wagon to drive her from the
area. It is not possible to determine exactly how he managed to get
Ms Rimmer into the car. He then drove her to Wellard.
2353 At some point a violent struggle ensued. Ms Rimmer was able to
scream but the accused had a knife or other sharp object, which he used to
attack her. She tried to fend off the attack and incurred a defensive injury
to her wrist. The accused then stabbed or slashed her with the sharp
instrument, causing one or more fatal injuries to her neck. Given the
screams it is likely that this struggle occurred at Wellard.
2354 The accused then removed Ms Rimmer's clothing and disposed of
her body in Wellard. He chose a semi-rural location and put her body on
the ground before covering her with vegetation he gathered from the
surrounding area. His intention in so doing was to minimise the chances
of her being found and his offence being discovered.
Did he do so intentionally
2355 As with Ms Glennon, any conclusion as to the intention of the
accused when he killed Ms Rimmer must be based on an inference drawn
from the circumstantial evidence. The intention of a person can be
inferred from their actions. In this case the relevant actions, based upon
my factual findings, are as follows:
1. that the accused abducted Ms Rimmer, that is, that he held her
against her will (either after using deceit or violence to get her into
his car);
2. that the accused was armed with a sharp implement;
Page 612
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
3. that there was a violent struggle in which Ms Rimmer sought to

defend herself from the accused and in the course of which she
incurred an injury (or injuries) to her left wrist;
4. that the accused inflicted one or more wounds to the neck of
Ms Rimmer that were sufficient to cause her death; and
5. that the area of the neck where the wound or wounds were
inflicted is one that includes major arteries and veins such that a
sharp-force injury to that area is highly likely to cause a
life-threatening injury.
2356 Based on these findings in my view the only reasonable inference is

that when the accused struck Ms Rimmer with the sharp instrument he
intended to kill her.
Did the accused kill Sarah Spiers

2357 It was an admitted fact that Sarah Spiers is dead. That admission did
not involve any acceptance of knowledge of the circumstances of her
death on the part of the accused. It was merely an acceptance of a fact
which was readily capable of proof. The evidence clearly supports that
conclusion. There was evidence that Ms Spiers disappeared on the
morning of 27 January 2016 and has not been seen since. She has not
operated bank accounts, contacted her family or travelled overseas. The
only possible conclusion is that she is dead and that she died on or about
the date she disappeared.
2358 I am also satisfied that she was abducted and killed by some person.
There is no other satisfactory explanation for her disappearance and the
absence of her body. Accident would not readily explain the absence of a
body. Suicide can be discounted as there is nothing to indicate that she
had any thoughts in that regard. The circumstances can only be explained
by her having been killed and her body concealed. Thus, as with all of the
counts, the principal issue is identity. The question is, has it been proved
beyond reasonable doubt that the accused killed Sarah Spiers?
2359 There is no evidence specific to the disappearance of Ms Spiers that

is capable of proving that the accused was her killer. The absence of a
body means that the prosecution case is significantly more limited than in
the case of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. Facts known in respect of the
other victims, such as how they were killed, where and how their bodies
were disposed of and what the forensic evidence from their bodies
Page 613
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
indicates as to the identity of their attacker, are absent in the case of

Ms Spiers.
2360 The prosecution case on the first course of reasoning depends on the
State being able to prove that the same person killed all of the alleged
victims. The State relies on a number of broad factual similarities
between the disappearance of Ms Spiers and that of Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon. The issue is whether these similarities are sufficient to
prove the prosecution case on count 6 beyond reasonable doubt. The
prosecution case on count 6 on this course of reasoning critically depends
on the prosecution being able to prove that the only reasonable inference
is that the person who killed Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon also killed
Ms Spiers. The points of similarity must be sufficiently cogent and
compelling as to exclude any other reasonable possibility. That is, it must
be proven that there is no reasonable possibility that someone other than
the accused murdered Ms Spiers.
2361 In respect of Ms Spiers I have reached the following conclusions as
to this course of reasoning:
1. there are some similarities between the circumstances of

Ms Spiers disappearances and death and that of Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon. Those similarities include that:
(a) all of Ms Spiers, Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon were young

women;
(b) all attended venues in the Claremont area to socialise with
friends and were last seen in that area before leaving on
their own;
(c) all went missing in the early hours of a weekend morning;
(d) they all went missing within a 14 month period; and
(e) they were all abducted and killed;

2. those similarities are of a more general nature and are far fewer
than those that exist as between Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon.
They do not allow a conclusion to be reached beyond reasonable
doubt that the person who killed Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon
must necessarily be the same person as killed Ms Spiers. A
possibility or even probability in that regard is not enough to
support a conclusion beyond reasonable doubt;
Page 614
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
3. accordingly, evidence as to the identity of the killer of Ms Rimmer

and Ms Glennon cannot assist in identifying the killer of
Ms Spiers on the first course of reasoning.
2362 The prosecution case on the second course of reasoning depends on
the State being able to prove that the accused is the killer of Ms Rimmer
and Ms Glennon. That is a necessary but not sufficient condition for the
proof of count 6. That is to say, on this course of reasoning the accused
could not be convicted of count 6 unless he is found guilty of counts 7 and
8, but proof of those counts may not in itself be enough to prove his guilt
on that count. If those counts do no more than show that the accused has
a propensity to abduct and kill young women then that may make it more
likely that he is the killer of Ms Spiers. But it may not be enough to prove
that he is the killer to the criminal standard of proof. To be convicted of
this count it must be proven that he is beyond reasonable doubt the killer.
Evidence that proves identity in this way must amount to more than proof
that the accused has a tendency to kill, it must be capable of identifying
the accused as the killer of this alleged victim.
2363 The prosecution case in respect of count 6 relies on the evidence of

the Mosman Park screams. For reasons I have given earlier, there is
significant doubt as to whether these screams were those of Ms Spiers and
the evidence relating to the screams contains a number of important
inconsistencies. Furthermore, if it is accepted that Ms Spiers went
missing from Stirling Road between 2.06 am and 2.15 am and that it is her
screams that were heard in Mosman Park then this is not consistent with a
'blitz attack' such as that upon KJG. Mosman Park is not adjacent to
Claremont and the only fact that could link the screams to Ms Spiers is
that it is known from the call to the taxi company that she was seeking to
travel to Mosman Park that night. It must follow from this that the
screams could only be Ms Spiers if she gave her destination to the driver
of the car, believing that she would be driven there. If the State's case is
that Ms Spiers was lured into the car under the pretence of being given a
lift and gave Mosman Park as her destination then this creates an obvious
inconsistency with the Karrakatta offences, the immediately preceding
propensity incident that the State relies on (putting aside the Telstra
Living Witness Project incidents for the moment). That is, this is a very
different method than was used in Karrakatta.
2364 There is also a question as to whether this methodology is consistent

with what is known of the murders of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon.
Although it is established that the accused is responsible for their deaths
and that he used his Telstra vehicle to abduct them, it is not known how
Page 615
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
they each came to be in the car. That is, there is no direct evidence that
they were lured into his vehicle on the pretence of being offered a lift.
The Wellard screams might be thought to have some similarity, however
there is an obvious difference – Wellard was not Ms Rimmer's intended
destination: it is the place she was killed. Accordingly, the Wellard
screams do not necessarily imply the same methodology as the State
suggests must have been employed in the case of Ms Spiers (that is, a
luring into the car on the pretence of being offered a lift). The defensive
wounds to Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon are consistent with each woman
having had some opportunity to resist before they were killed, but more
than that it is difficult to say. It would be speculative to suggest that they
must have each been lured into the car and later attacked.
2365 The description of the car seen by Mr Stewart in Mosman Park at

best only identifies a pale coloured Toyota station wagon. The evidence
is insufficient to support a finding that the screams came from that car or
that it was the Telstra vehicle that was being driven by the accused at that
time.
2366 The Telstra Living Witness Project witnesses do not assist because it
is impossible to conclude that the same person was responsible for all of
the incidents or that the person who was the driver in any of them was
clearly the accused. This position does not improve if this evidence is
only considered at a later stage (that is, after it is proved by other evidence
that the accused is responsible for the murders of Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon) because, whilst in light of conclusions in respect of counts 7
and 8, it may be more likely that the accused was engaged in conduct like
that described by the Telstra Living Witness Project witnesses, there
remains the problem that a number of the descriptions of the driver are
plainly inconsistent with the accused. The prosecution cannot choose to
rely on only some of the incidents and ignore others that are inconsistent
with its case. It needs to explain the inconsistencies. If those
inconsistencies leave open the possibility that someone else was offering
lifts or 'prowling' in the area in a white vehicle late at night then the ability
of this evidence to implicate the accused is effectively lost. This is
because for the inference to be open that the accused was the driver in any
of the incidents the prosecution must exclude as a possible inference that
it could be someone else. That possibility cannot be excluded given those
descriptions of the driver which are plainly inconsistent with the accused.
2367 This means that if the State's case in respect of count 6 relies upon
Sarah Spiers being lured into the vehicle then this is a characteristic that
cannot be connected by the known evidence to any other proven incident
Page 616
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
involving the accused. This tends to show how little is known of the
details of Ms Spiers's abduction and death. It also highlights that what is
known does not uniformly point to the same perpetrator.
2368 This means that on the second course of reasoning the only evidence
as to identity that remains is the propensity evidence. That means the
Karrakatta propensity evidence and also the evidence as to the killings of
Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon.
2369 The propensity established by counts 7 and 8 is similar to that proven

by the Karrakatta offences, but has important additional elements. In
particular it is a propensity to abduct and kill lone young women walking
away from the Claremont area on a weekend evening and then dispose of
their bodies in semi-rural locations in a distinctive manner. The
similarities with the disappearance of Ms Spiers are that she was alone in
the early hours of the morning in Claremont and was abducted and, as I
have found, killed. As to how she was abducted and killed and how her
body was disposed of nothing is known. I have already referred to the
fact that, assuming the Mosman Park screams were Ms Spiers, they
indicate differences in the methodology used to abduct her but there are
substantial difficulties in coming to a conclusion that the screams were in
fact her.
2370 The propensity established by counts 7 and 8 makes it more likely

that the accused was the killer of Ms Spiers, but that propensity evidence
alone cannot establish his guilt of count 6. However likely it is that a
person who killed two other women in the same area in similar
circumstances also killed Ms Spiers, what is required in a criminal trial is
proof beyond reasonable doubt. There must be some evidence to show
that the accused not only had such a tendency but acted upon it on this
occasion. The prosecution accepted that something more was required
and pointed to the Telstra Living Witness Project evidence and the
Mosman Park screams evidence. However, as I have already found, that
other evidence is incapable of implicating the accused.
2371 There are other factors that weigh against the prosecution case on
count 6. The most important of these is the evidence regarding
opportunity. The evidence is that the accused would have had very
limited opportunity to abduct Ms Spiers, kill her and dispose of her body
in a manner similar to that of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon. Ms Spiers
was abducted sometime between 2.15 am and 2.30 am on the morning of
27 January 1996 and the accused attended work in West Perth at 8.00 am.
This would afford the accused only between five and six hours to commit
Page 617
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
the offence and dispose of the body. Although not impossible, this is a
tight time frame and reduces the likelihood that the accused is responsible.
2372 The prosecution has failed to establish beyond reasonable doubt that
the accused killed Ms Spiers. The evidence of his propensity to kill may
make him a likely suspect, or even the probable killer, but it does not
exclude the real possibility that some other person killed her. If an
inference consistent with innocence is open then the accused cannot be
found guilty.
2373 To summarise, as regards the second course of reasoning in respect

of Ms Spiers I have reached the following conclusions:
1. Ms Spiers was last seen in Claremont in the early hours of

27 January 1996;
2. she must have been abducted and killed, but the circumstances in
which she was taken and how she died are unknown;
3. there are inconsistencies in the evidence of the Mosman Park
screams that prevent a conclusion that those screams were
Ms Spiers. However, even if they were they can only be explained
by her abductor luring her into the car and taking her to her
intended destination in a manner that is inconsistent with the
Karrakatta propensity evidence;
4. the evidence in regard to a car seen near a telephone box in
Mosman Park does not permit a conclusion to be drawn that it was
the source of the screams or that it was a car of the same make or
model as that driven by the accused at the time;
5. this leaves only the propensity evidence, being the Karrakatta

evidence and the evidence of the killing of Ms Rimmer and
Ms Glennon. The Karrakatta evidence establishes that the accused
the Claremont area. The killing of Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon
establishes that the tendency developed to killing the abducted
young woman using a sharp instrument and disposing of the body
in a semi-rural location; and
6. that evidence is incapable of proving beyond reasonable doubt that
the accused is the killer of Ms Spiers.
Page 618
[2020] WASC 339
HALL J
Verdicts
2374 On count 6, that on or about 27 January 1996 at Claremont and
elsewhere the accused wilfully murdered Sarah Ellen Spiers, I find him
not guilty.
2375 On count 7, that on or about 9 June 1996 at Claremont and elsewhere

the accused wilfully murdered Jane Louise Rimmer, I find him guilty.
2376 On count 8, that on or about 15 March 1997 at Claremont and

elsewhere the accused wilfully murdered Ciara Eilish Glennon, I find him
guilty.
2377 There will be a judgment of acquittal on count 6 and judgments of

conviction on counts 7 and 8.
I certify that the preceding paragraph(s) comprise the reasons for decision of the
Supreme Court of Western Australia.
ALA & KR
Associates to the Honourable Justice Hall
23 SEPTEMBER 2020
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[2020] WASC 339

JURISDICTION : SUPREME COURT OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA

CITATION : THE STATE OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA -v-

HEARD : 95 DAYS BETWEEN 25 NOVEMBER 2019

DELIVERED : 24 SEPTEMBER 2020

FILE NO/S : INS 164 of 2018

BETWEEN : THE STATE OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA

BRADLEY ROBERT EDWARDS

Evidence Act 1906 (WA), s 31A

Count 6 – not guilty

Prosecution : Ms C Barbagallo SC, Ms T M Payne, Mr B M Hollingsworth,

Prosecution : Director of Public Prosecutions (WA)

Case(s) referred to in decision(s):

The State of Western Australia v Edwards [2018] WASC 419

Failure to cross-examine (Browne v Dunn) .......................................................................... 74

Huntingdale offences .......................................................................................................... 141

Conclusions – propensity evidence – Telstra Living Witness Project ................................... 182

Jane Rimmer – finding of her body ........................................................................................ 223

Craig Porritt – evidence summary ...................................................................................... 271

George Paton – evidence summary ................................................................................ 324

Issue 10 – RH21 twig B.................................................................................................. 377

1BPX-080 – collection and history of critical fibres .......................................................... 506

Peter Clements – evidence summary .................................................................................. 603

2 It is a trial like no other because of the combination of its length, its

beyond reasonable doubt. Those principles are unqualified, immutable

7 The accused, Bradley Robert Edwards, is charged with wilfully

10 Ciara Glennon was last seen in Claremont just after midnight on

13 There are two suggested courses of reasoning in respect of each

16 In respect of Ms Glennon and Ms Rimmer I have reached the

(a) both Ms Rimmer and Ms Glennon were young women;

(b) both attended venues in the Claremont area to socialise

(c) both went missing in the early hours of a weekend

(e) in both cases they were killed in a similar manner, that is

(f) in both cases there were defensive wounds indicating that

(g) the bodies of both were deposited in semi-rural locations

7. the circumstances of the abductions and the nature of the wounds

1. that Ms Glennon was last seen in Claremont in the early hours of

2. when last seen she was in the vicinity of a white VS Holden

8. the circumstances of the abduction and the nature of the wounds

9. Ms Rimmer was last seen in Claremont in the early hours of

11. the fibre evidence establishes that Ms Rimmer was in a VS Holden

12. the propensity evidence of the Karrakatta incident establishes that

18 Those findings lead me to conclude that the accused abducted

20 The accused removed Ms Rimmer's clothing and disposed of her

was walking home. He again used his work vehicle, a VS Holden

23 The accused then disposed of the body of Ms Glennon in bushland at

1. there are some similarities between the circumstances of

(c) that all went missing in the early hours of a weekend

(d) that all went missing within a 14 month period, from

(e) that they were all abducted and killed;

must necessarily be the same person as killed Ms Spiers. A

25 As regards the second course of reasoning in respect of Ms Spiers

1. Ms Spiers was last seen in Claremont in the early hours of

3. there are inconsistencies in the evidence of the Mosman Park

4. the evidence in regard to a car seen near a telephone box in

5. this leaves only the propensity evidence, being the Karrakatta

1. On count 6, the charge of wilful murder of Sarah Spiers:

2. On count 7, the charge of wilful murder of Jane Rimmer: guilty.

Organisation of the reasons

1. principles relating to trial by judge alone;

2. charges that were the subject of the trial;

3. pleas of guilty to counts 1 - 5;

8. admissions made by the accused;