Witnesses would later recall having seen the two at some of the area's gay bars and clubs (which I referenced just a moment ago). Neil Muir's body had been so badly mutilated that he still barely resembled an entire being. Some time after they went missing, their bodies would each be found, often horribly mutilated. However, the medical examiners in Adelaide concluded definitively that Alan had died several hours before this happened. On this night, in particular, that included these three men. South Australia's overdue for another Mr B made contact with police two days after Alan Barnes was found. The Family Murders is the name given to a series of five murders speculated to have been committed by a loosely connected group of individuals who came to be known as "The Family".This group was believed to be involved in the kidnapping and sexual abuse of a number of teenage boys and young men, as well as the torture and murder of five young men aged between 14 and 25, in Adelaide, South . 4 had horrific injuries with clear signs of torture, abuse and confinement lasting up to 5 weeks. In the days after Neil Muir's body was discovered in separate black trash bags, police had received two separate phone calls alerting them to the victim's relationship with a local doctor. Of the five men that fell prey to this violent killer, at least two had been drugged with Mandrax, as had George. Of the young men whose stories I'll cover in this episode, he was by far the youngest, and his face showed it: he still had the youthful appearance of a child, and by all accounts, seemed to be your typical teenage boy. Over a span of several years starting in 1979 and into the 80s five young men, aged from 14 to 25, went missing in different areas of Adelaide. The ongoing investigation featured in an episode of Crime Stoppers which went to air on 2 March 2009. He was able to exploit and manipulate enablers, helpers and participants over a long period of time. That Monday - August 27th, 1979 - Neil Muir was seen alive for the last time. However, they quickly began to narrow in on the one avenue of the investigation that seemed most enticing to them at the time: Neil's dependency on drugs and alcohol. [16][22] The sedative-hypnotic drug Mandrax, popular in the 1970s disco scene, was found in Langley's blood. High profile lawyer and murder victim Derrance Stevenson regularly entertained teenage youths. His family knew this but accepted that there was little they could do to curtail this behavior; letting Alan grow and develop at his own pace as his adolescence came to an end. There are also notorious unsolved disappearances in Adelaide, including the Beaumont children. Later on, Ian would recall the argument cropping up around cigarettes, but that just proves the point of how nonessential it was. Add onto that abductions, drug-lacing, mutilations, victims held in captivity for weeks, and death by sado-masochism. Hundreds of sordid and terrifying crimes and only one man found guilty in relation to only one victim. They tried to hitch a ride on Grand Junction Road, a busy thoroughfare in Adelaide, before realizing that they were going to have no luck hitchhiking together. The next day was a Sunday, they both planned to hitchhike to Alan's home in Salisbury. This is an analysis of the information provided by Wendy Roles and Greg McInerney in the book The Family Murders: Dissected The Timeline 25 Aug (Sat) Michael B sees band-aid on Neil's leg at the methadone clinic during the day. However, Neil's life was far less glamorous; rumors persist to this day that, leading up to August of 1979, Neil was engaging in sex work to support his bad habits and lifestyle. The area around the scar had even been shaved away, implying that this a methodical decision by someone with surgical experience perhaps someone trying to rectify a mistake. Family Murders Are Adelaide's Most Horrific Unsolved Crime - PEDESTRIAN.TV They organized a helicopter search of the area, which O'Brien was present for, but unfortunately, the police were unable to find anything definitive. There was a bridge above where his body had been discovered, with a clearing of about a meter; implying that whoever had tried to throw him into the water below had missed the mark, but had not rectified their mistake. A farmer that lived nearby Middle Beach and Two Wells, roughly an hour north of Adelaide, had been cleansing his farmland during the advised winter months. This group was believed to be involved in the kidnapping and sexual abuse of a number of teenage boys and young men, as well as the torture and murder of five young men aged between 14 and 25, in Adelaide, South Australia, in the 1970s and 1980s. The bodies were found from 24th June 1979 and the fifth and last body on 24th July 1983. This caller alleged that the two older men had been driving around a 1963 EJ Holden sedan. by enjin | Feb 12, 2021 . He is 50 metres from his beautiful family home. Moments later, George lost consciousness, falling prey to the drugs that he had consumed. Like the other victims, Richard Kelvin's blood and organs were tested for any sign of drugs, with investigators hoping to find a connection to any of the prior victims. The Family Murders revolved around von Einem. After doing away with his old, dried-up crops, the farmer was looking over his land when he came upon the now-charred remains of young Peter Stogneff. But other than that, this friend had nothing new to offer police: he hadn't seen or heard from Alan since the two went their separate ways. Banquet: A Marvelous Book about "The Family Murders" in Adelaide Unfortunately, information gathered by police that fateful Tuesday began to cast doubt on the idea that Richard had willingly chosen to run away from home. In June of 1983, Richard Kelvin was approaching sixteen years of age. Stogneff's body had been cut into three pieces in a similar fashion to Muir. Neil Muir was someone that you could describe as a transient. This group was believed to be involved in the kidnapping and sexual abuse of a number of teenage boys and young men, as well as the torture and murder of five young men aged between 14 and 25, in Adelaide, South Australia, in the 1970s and 1980s. The Family Murders: 'Dissected' - Amazon.com.au He loved music - both playing it and listening to it - and had a good rapport with his friends, whom he hung around constantly. Add onto that abductions, drug-lacing, mutilations, victims held in captivity for weeks, and death by sado-masochism. Police didn't believe that this voice was Richard, as he was a teenager with a deep voice that had already cracked. Was Dr Millhouse involved in Neil Muirs murder. While the men in the river struggled to make it back to the shore, the group that had thrown them into the water made their escape before camera crews or onlookers could begin to gather. Ian and Paula, Mark's friends, drove away but would return just minutes later, cooler heads having prevailed. Mark Langley Australia - Australia -the Family, 1979-83, Adelaide, B S Von Einem [18] His skeletal remains were found in October 1982 later by a local farmer at Middle Beach, 50km north of Adelaide. The Family Murders are a series of violent and depraved sex crimes committed against five young men and boys in South Australia throughout the 1970's and 1980's. In 1988 Detective Trevor Kipling described a group of people whom he suspected as being responsible as "one big happy family" and vowed to do all that he could to bring them to justice. Australian police launch appeal to solve string of notorious killings stretching back to 1966, The Advertiser - Doctor found not guilty of Family murder of Neil Muir dies in NSW, Kimberly Riley & Jeremy Britt-Bayinthavong, Paul Skiba, Sarah Skiba, and Lorenzo Chivers, June & Jennifer Gibbons (The Silent Twins). The two were hiking through the area near the South Para Reservoir when they noticed something on the ground. Australia's most notorious unsolved serial killings. Progressive ideas began to spread out from Adelaide, but even then, progress itself was rather slow to catch on throughout large chunks of South Australia. He had been killed elsewhere and then transported to this location postmortem, implying that the killer had a base of operations for his or her dark deeds. This horrific sight was quickly reported to police, who arrived at the scene and immediately cordoned off the area around where the fisherman had reportedly discovered the floating trash bags. [21] Among the mutilations was a wound that appeared to have been cut with a surgical instrument that went from his navel to the pubic region and part of his small bowel was missing. When a warrant was eventually served on Dr. Millhouse's cottage in northern Adelaide, police found the same type of trash bags and rope that had been found with Neil Muir's remains. True Crime Conversations: The Family Murders Of Adelaide on - Apple Alan Arthur Barnes, aged 16, murdered in 1979. Victims - The Family Murders Make no mistake, Bevan Spencer von Einem is the architect behind all these crimes. He was also found to be wearing clothing that did not belong to him, and his original clothing was missing entirely. The Family Murders (Part Two: The Family) Unresolved On the final weekend of August 1979, Neil was spotted at both the Duke of York and Buckingham Arms ("The Buck"), two local gay bars that I referenced at the top of the episode. Because of this prime location, Adelaide has become one of the country's most populated areas, and more than a million Australians live in the city itself; which is split in half by the Torrens River, which runs through the center of Adelaide. For that reason, many of these men and women had to keep their sexuality confined to specific locations. Unfortunately, by the time they returned, Mark was nowhere to be found. Sadly, Neil's biggest vice was his ever-evolving drug addiction. Many of these people were directly involved in the abductions and rape of victims who survived. Dylan John Kovarskis murdered Nathan Russell in 2021 . Major Crimes was primarily responsible for serial killings, mass killings, and any other high-profile crimes that the local government wanted to be handled by a specialized task force. The severing of Neil's limbs and the mutilation of his body was originally believed to have been part of an effort to dispose of his body. Any person complicit in the abduction, rape and murders of the five victims, plus any person who visited the place of captivity when a victim was knowingly present, plus any person involved in the abduction, spiking and raping of teenage boys or young men with other members of The Family. So they tried to safely guard the parts of the investigation that they could. Through these connections, police were able to link all of these crimes together. Darko's brother dropped them at a bus stop near the corner of on Grand Junction Rd and Addison. Young Blood refers to the age of the victims who were brutally murdered. I first heard of the murders in an episode of an Australian television program called . Our locations section shows where all the events happened and where all the players lived. [6] Von Einem was also one of the last people seen with a fourth victim, Muir, following his abduction. In the latter half of the 1970s, South Australia had started to regulate drugs like Mandrax, known throughout most of the world as "Quaaludes." This was about 300 metres from his family home. This period saw the creation of gay clubs in Adelaide (such as a location known as the Mars Bar) and other clubs where all sexualities were welcome (such as the Duke of York or Buckingham Arms, known in the area as "The Buck"). Unfortunately, that Thursday, Peter never arrived at the mall to meet his friend. Case 166: The Family : r/Casefile - reddit However, that was very circumstantial evidence at best, and anything but definitive. Once in the car they would be offered a drink that was laced with a knockout drug. Mandrax was quickly gaining notoriety as a drug used in the commission of date-rape crimes, and the local government decided that the best way to combat their usage was to keep them regulated so that they had a record of everyone that was prescribed them. [5][9] The cold case review was completed in November 2010 with no charges being laid against any of the three key suspects. It's 1983, and a 15-year-old boy named Richard Kelvin is in a laneway in North Adelaide. Whatever it was, it looked like a human body but was somehow twisted and contorted in an inhuman nature. Boris left on a bus, and Richard started making his way back home a trip that was no more than four-hundred meters. In the days immediately after Neil Muir's death, Dr. Millhouse had gone on a bit of a self-described "bender." It shows the facts and most likely scenarios, but is fluid so when new information comes to light changes can easily be made. These individuals have come to be known as the "The Family" and are believed to have kidnapped and sexually abused over 150 boys and are believed to have tortured and murdered at least five teenage boys during a crime spree in Adelaide, South Australia. The Family Murders are a series of violent and depraved sex crimes committed against five young men and boys in South Australia throughout the 1970's and 1980's. In 1988 Detective Trevor Kipling described a group of people whom he suspected as being responsible as "one big happy family" and vowed to do all that he could to bring them to justice. He then explained to the investigator that he was a former lover of Neil's, from roughly four years beforehand, and had run into the man just days before his eventual murder. Five young men were mysteriously abducted in different . Neil's numerous tattoos had also been cut away from his flesh, and those patches of inked skin had been placed into his chest cavity along with his severed limbs. It was speculated that a foreign object had caused the internal perforations, leading to the belief that the killer had been a sexual sadist whose only intent was to cause physical pain. Only one suspect has been charged and convicted for the crimes: Bevan Spencer von Einem was sentenced in 1984 to a minimum of 24 years (later extended to a minimum 36-year term) for the murder of 15-year-old Richard Kelvin. It has been reported that the exposed skin on his face and neck had begun to wither away, leading to the theory that he had been killed shortly after going missing. Examiners discovered that just a few inches above his groin - just below his navel - Mark had a small surgical scar that had been sealed shut with staples and a specific type of Johnson & Johnson surgical tape. He never made it home. The body count had essentially doubled within a couple of months, and police were still unsure whether or not the cases were related. The fishermen probed the bags - a mystery just waiting to be unearthed - and quickly discovered that the bags held human remains. Listen to "The Family Murders (Part One: The Murders)" on Spreaker. [8] The reward carried an offer of immunity to accomplices, dependent on their level of involvement. The Family Murders is the name given to a series of five murders speculated to have been committed by a loosely connected group of individuals who came to be known as "The Family". The Family Murders is a well known and notorious series of crimes that occurred in Adelaide, Australia. A Breakdown of a series of murders that took place in Adelaide, South Over the next few days, it became apparent that Alan Barnes was not returning home. Stogneff still skipped school but never made it home. This included people that visited the same bars and clubs as Neil and perhaps knew him that way. Bevan Spencer von Einem is serving a life sentence for one of those murders. This site is constantly being updated as more is learned. Like the other victims, investigators would learn a lot from the status of Mark's remains. Description. Bevan von Einem was no exception he also preferred youths between the 15 and 19 year old age group. The "Family Murders" - Amateur Sleuth Like most of the victims targeted by this unknown subject, Richard Kelvin was a young and athletic young man, who seemed destined to have a long and rewarding life. This triggered a recurrence of his on-again/off-again bout with alcoholism, and within a week, he had checked himself into the Osmond House rehabilitation center but not before consulting with his attorney for any potential legal ramifications. Interview with a monster: The City of Corpses murders - news Only one suspect has been charged and convicted for a crime. As the 1970s entered their homestretch, Alan was beginning to enter the phase of his life where he experimented with drug and alcohol usage. When Boris had last seen Richard, walking away from the bus stop down the street from his home, he had still been wearing the collar, and it is has been theorized that the collar itself might have been a trigger for the deviant (or deviants) that ultimately decided to abduct Richard. It is estimated that over 150 youths and young men were abducted, drugged, and then raped. The Family Murders: 'Dissected' Kindle Edition - Amazon.com.au A span of 4 years. George, an impressionable young man, was enticed by the offer and accepted. He would literally go on to write the book about this terrifying saga, called "Young Bloods," which - if you're interested - is one of the best resources for this case. This caller told detectives that a man named Bevan Spencer von Einem was responsible for Alan's death, and his name was added to the list of potential suspects to explore. Richard Dallas Kelvin, (born 4 December 1967) aged 15,[23] murdered in July 1983. Once known as the "City of Churches," Adelaide began going through a stark progression in the 1960s. It was broad daylight, and both were assured that Alan would easily be able to find a ride to take him the few miles home. The victims were found in random locations throughout the state, their bodies neatly cut into pieces. The bags looked as if they had been dropped from the higher-up wharf, just like the body of Alan Barnes had been. He also happened to be a relative of Robin Millhouse, South Australia's former Attorney General who would become a Supreme Court Justice in 1982. This case includes mysterious attacks, brutal murders, and a dark conspiracy surrounding a secret group of elites that preyed on the young in the city. Kelvin was held captive for approximately five weeks[24] and a post-mortem examination revealed that he had died of massive blood loss from an anal injury,[25] likely caused by the insertion of a large blunt object. Peter Stogneff was a fourteen-year-old that lived with his family in a middle-class home, in a northeastern suburb of Adelaide. Trevor Peters lived two doors away from one of the transgender suspects and mixed in the same circles as a number of suspects. Only one suspect has been charged and convicted for the crimes: Bevan Spencer von Einem was sentenced in 1984 to a minimum of 24 years (later extended to a minimum 36-year term) for the murder of 15-year-old Richard Kelvin. George Duncan, one of the three men thrown into the Torrens, would drown that evening. Mark had driven there with his family, as they were attending the party alongside him, but he would leave with a couple of friends afterward to hang out and cruise around the city with the young adults trying to squeeze out every bit of the Adelaide summer that they could. Ten years von Einem's junior, Mr B helped von Einem pick up, drug, and rape several young men. Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS. Millhouse was charged and went to trial but was acquitted. On the afternoon of Sunday, June 5th, 1983, Richard was kicking around a soccer ball with his father Rob and his friend Boris at a park near his home. The Kelvins, though upset at the duration of time that had already passed, understood why the process was so delayed but were hopeful that their son would return home to them, safe and sound. But, just like the failure to properly drop Alan's body into the water, these bags had failed to make it to their intended location; still resting against the coast, instead of floating out to sea, where they'd have been lost forever. Just east of Adelaide, this area is well-known to Southern Australians, as it serves as a primary destination for the area's outdoorsmen and women. These people have no such bond, only an association that with time probably no longer exists". It was at around this time - the end of August - that Investigator Rod Hunter finally got around to interviewing Bevan Spencer von Einem, the man implicated by an anonymous caller in the murder of Alan Barnes. For obvious reasons, he didn't tell his parents, setting out that morning with his backpack and heading off like any other day. Richard was found wearing the same clothing that he had been wearing on the day of his disappearance, but in an unusual twist, was found to be wearing his family dog's collar. [3], Von Einem was convicted in 1984 of the murder of Kelvin and sentenced to life imprisonment. Investigator Hunter made note of this, finding it odd that one man would have connections to two separate murder investigations - especially two gruesome murders that shared such grisly traits. Mark had likely hitched a ride with someone, and his friends trusted that he would make it home. Case 166: The Family - Casefile: True Crime Podcast But underneath the surface, a monster lingered So the police began reaching out to people that worked or had otherwise been in the area. For that reason, this crime remains technically unsolved to this day. Police thought that these gruesome and violent actions had been part of an effort to easily transport Neil's remains out to sea, and dispose of them in a way that they'd degrade before being identified. His body also showed signs of beatings and torture. Some of the victims were brutally tortured, or horrifically mutilated or cut up. Gay people (in particular, gay men) began to become more comfortable in their own skin, and no longer had to suppress their sexuality in public. Neil Muir had suffered the same type of anal injuries as Alan, implying that a large, bottle-shaped object had been used to intentionally injure him, which caused a large amount of blood loss. Players - The Family Murders The older driver not only offered to give George a ride but offered to show him a good time with some ladies he knew. The Family Murders - Wikipedia There's a conviction in the last murder in the series, but I will include it due to the similarity and due to the man convicted being suspected in the other murders as well. When this young man woke up the next day, he was surprised to find himself both at home and in significant pain. A couple of black trash bags were floating on the low tide of the river's coast. Writing, research, hosting, and production by Micheal Whelan, Producers: Maggyjames, Ben Krokum, Roberta Janson, Quil Carter, Peggy Belarde, Laura Hannan, Damion Moore, Amy Hampton, Scott Meesey, Steven Wilson, Scott Patzold, Marie Vanglund, Lori Rodriguez, Jessica Yount, Aimee McGregor, Danny Williams, Sue Kirk, Victoria Reid, Sara Moscaritolo, Thomas Ahearn, Marion Welsh, Seth Morgan, Sydney Scotton, Alyssa Lawton, Kelly Jo Hapgood, Patrick Laakso, Meadow Landry, Rebecca Miller, and Tatum Bautista, Original music created by Micheal Whelan through Amper Music, Other music created and composed by Ailsa Traves, Young Bloods: The Story of the Family Murders by Bob OBrien, Crime Stoppers (South Australia) - Alan Arthur Barnes, Crime Stoppers (South Australia) - Neil Fredrick Muir, Crime Stoppers (South Australia) - Peter Stogneff, Crime Stoppers (South Australia) - Mark Andrew Langley, Crime Stoppers (South Australia) - Richard Kelvin, The Sydney Morning Herald - Adelaides Duncan case: letting some light shine in, The Sydney Morning Herald - Boys murderer refused High Court appeal, The Sydney Morning Herald - Macabre Adelaide (1), The Sydney Morning Herald - Macabre Adelaide (2), The Sydney Morning Herald - Murderer quizzed on death of youth, The Age - Men fled as Duncan died, court told, The Sydney Morning Herald - The Beaumonts, Kirste and Joanne: the mystery may be over, The Sydney Morning Herald - Witness feared threats to his life, The Age - Court told rape victim thought he would die, The Sydney Morning Herald - Family killings murder charge dropped, The Age - Lock up your sons in the worlds murder capital, The Weekend Australian - How Mother Goose ducked pedophile net, The Advertiser - Police seek von Einem associate, Perth Now - DNA tests for Family murder suspects, The Advertiser - $5M reward bid to solve Family murders, The Sydney Morning Herald - Reward doubled to solve Family murders, The Telegraph - Australian police reopen notorious 1970s Family murders case, The Sydney Morning Herald - Aussie pedophile deported from Indonesia, The Advertiser - Focus on three key suspects, The Advertiser - Revealed: The double life of a magistrate who sought young men, ABC News - Mother Goose sex trial starts in Adelaide, The Advertiser - Mother Goose claims he was set up by gay ex-prostitutes, The Advertiser - Doctor with alleged links to The Family identified as Stephen George Woodards, The Advertiser - Sex-case doctor Stephen George Woodards free to practise, ABC News - Mother Goose acquitted of sex charges, The Advertiser - Paedophile Peter Liddy fears prison attack, ABC News - Former TV entertainer sentenced for sex offences, The Advertiser - Lost diary gives South Australia police new lead into Alan Barnes murder by The Family, The Daily Mail - Will $13million reward solve the murders of 18 children? That evening, as Mark drove around with his friend Ian and Ian's girlfriend, Paula, an argument broke out. Bob O'Brien was an investigator for Major Crimes, who had just started working with the unit the year prior (1982). The head was tied to the torso with rope passed through the mouth and out through the neck. Also, like the other victims, Mark's cause-of-death seemed to be nearly identical: blood loss from an anal injury, caused by the forced insertion of an unknown item. This meant doing away with large plots of dried-out farmland in a prescribed burn to prepare for the upcoming spring bloom. Alan's body had fallen to the dirt below, twisting and contorting in such a way that - should he have been alive - would have surely resulted in death or serious injury. Millhouse would have. The victims ranged in age from 14 to 25, and most were found to have suffered brutal violence, sexual assaults, and/or body mutilation before their death. But he then set off again, likely headed towards the distant Rundle Mall, where he was due to meet up with his friend, Daniel, that day. This argument would carry on for a few minutes, while the trio was parked along War Memorial Drive, overlooking the Torrens River. Little is known about the unidentified man, but Roger James had his ankle broken when he was plunged into the river that May, and was only able to escape with the help of a friendly onlooker. It was the body of Neil Muir or, rather, what remained of him. Allegations would even surface that indicated Dr. Millhouse had been one of the people in the area that supplied Neil with prescription drugs, but that would remain an allegation for the foreseeable future. Some showed signs of prolonged captivity, while death came quick to others . [14] The hair around the area had been shaved as it would have been in an operation in a hospital. Meanwhile, as police struggled to answer these basic questions, the trial against Dr. Peter Millhouse remained a thing of the past. von Einem is serving life imprisonment. The son of popular local Nine Network news presenter Rob Kelvin, he was abducted a short distance from his North Adelaide home on 5 June. Unfortunately, from there, the trail would go cold for over a year at which point, another victim had already become ensnared in this tragic saga. The two had been dating for about a month now, and Richard had excitedly told his mother that he planned on proposing when his girlfriend and he were nineteen years old. Investigators were unable to pinpoint Peter's exact cause-of-death, or even estimate when he had been killed. Alan's friend made it back to his house within minutes, but unfortunately, Alan was not so lucky. This section explores the people who at this stage are thought to have been on the periphery. He vividly remembered hearing a young voice shout out (which we can assume was Richard) and a group of voices screaming in protest, almost in unison.