COFFEE AND CRIME AU PODCAST
Explore Our Captivating Australian True Crime Case Archive

The Shandee Blackburn case began with one walk home in Mackay and eventually exposed serious problems in Queensland's forensic DNA system.

A subscriber deep dive into John Peros, the investigation, his 2017 acquittal, the later coronial findings and why the DNA evidence became so important.

A new subscriber episode follows the people who kept asking questions after the trial ended and the way Shandee's case continued to drive scrutiny of Queensland's forensic system.

A closer look at the CCTV, witnesses, missing handbag, DNA evidence, criminal trial, coronial findings and the forensic questions that made Shandee’s case significant far beyond Mackay.

The Shandee Blackburn story is now on Coffee & Crime AU. A case shaped by CCTV, witnesses, a missing handbag and forensic evidence that later became part of a much wider examination of Queensland's DNA laboratory.

The Shandee Blackburn story is available now for Early Access subscribers. Follow her final walk, the investigation, the 2017 acquittal, the later coronial process and the forensic DNA questions that followed.

How could Keli Lane carry three babies to term while almost everyone closest to her carried on as normal? The Other Babies follows the hidden pregnancies, the lawful adoptions, the false histories given to hospitals and social workers, and the paperwork that finally forced Keli’s separate worlds into the same room. Content warning: infant disappearance and presumed death, surveillance, discussion of adoption and concealed pregnancy, and the criminal justice process.

There is a temptation, when telling the story of Katherine Knight, to begin at the end. With John Price. With Aberdeen. With the crime that made her name infamous. But by the time Price entered Knight's life, there was already a long history behind her. Three men, in particular, occupied important places in that history. David Kellett. David Saunders. John Chillingworth.

In this subscriber deep dive, we go beyond the story of Kerrie Palmer and into the evidence that shaped one of Queensland’s most difficult criminal cases. Four men were ultimately convicted of manslaughter, but none were convicted of murder. So why? This episode follows the evidence piece by piece — the money dispute, the search for Kerrie, Coral Tree Court, the vehicles, telephone records, DNA, blood evidence, the movements between locations, the statements given by t

A missing man. A homicide investigation. A trial that raised difficult questions about criminal responsibility.

On 27 January 2003, 20-year-old Kerrie Palmer disappeared on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. Three days later, his body was discovered in sand dunes at Mudjimba. What followed was a police investigation that eventually resulted in five men being charged in connection with Kerrie’s death. But the story that emerged in court was considerably more complicated than the simple description of a murder case. The investigation would eventually lead to a Supreme Court trial, ye

Many people assume there must have been obvious warning signs that were overlooked, but the reality is far more complicated. Tiahleigh's death prompted widespread reviews of Queensland's child protection system, the foster carer approval process, and the Blue Card system. Those reviews weren't just about understanding what had happened—they were about determining whether the system itself could be strengthened to better protect vulnerable children.

Most Australians know Rick Thorburn as the foster father who murdered 12-year-old Tiahleigh Palmer.