Crime Junkie is examining the Bowraville Murders, a triple homicide involving three children from the small Australian town of Bowraville in New South Wales.
Three Aboriginal children who lived on the same street were murdered in the space of five months in 1990 and 1991. All three murders occurred following a party in the community.
Each case was initially treated separately, and as a missing persons case, and unfortunately, the murders were never solved.
The NSW police have been dogged with accusations of racism and indifference toward the case; however, the case remains open, and there is a reward of $1 million for any information that leads to an arrest.
On September 13, 1990, 16-year-old Colleen Walker-Craig vanished after leaving a party. Her body was never recovered, but in April 1991, a person fishing on the Nambucca River pulled up a pair of jeans and a belt, which the cops concluded belonged to Colleen.
Police divers found more of Colleen’s clothing on the river bed, which had been weighted down with rocks.
Murders of Evelyn Greenup and Clinton Speedy followed Colleen Walker-Craig disappearance
In the meantime, on October 3, 1990, Colleen’s cousin, four-year-old Evelyn Greenup, was shockingly abducted from her bed during a party at her house. Evelyn’s mother had put her to bed at around midnight, but by the morning, she was gone.
Watch the Latest on our YouTube ChannelEvelyn’s remains were discovered the following April in bushland less than three miles from her home.
The final victim was 16-year-old Clinton Speedy, who, following another party in January 1991, went with his girlfriend to a caravan belonging to Jay Hart. The next morning, Clinton’s girlfriend woke up early to find her boyfriend and Hart were both missing.
Clinton’s remains were found the following month about 5 miles from Bowraville. A pathologist concluded that two injuries to Clinton’s skull were caused by blunt force trauma.
Jay Hart has remained the only suspect in Bowraville Murders
The cops focused in on Jay Hart as the sole suspect. Hart was a laborer from Bowraville who spent a lot of time hanging around the Aboriginal neighborhood, and he attended the parties.
Hart was put on trial and acquitted of the murders of Clinton and Evelyn. The NSW police still suspect Hart is the killer and have been involved in a decades-long legal battle to retrial him.
Hart denies any involvement in the three children’s deaths.
Following the increase on a reward to $1 million, Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said, “The murders of Colleen, Evelyn and Clinton have never been forgotten by the local community or police – and I hope further increasing the reward for information reflects this.”
Doherty added, “We know there are people out there who have not approached police and have information about who is responsible; now there is an even greater financial incentive to change that.”
INFAMOUS: The Bowraville Murders is available to download now on Crime Junkie.