Former criminal profiler investigates link between murder, unsolved cases and the highways of the Far North

Could multiple serial killers be roaming the highways and byways of the Far North? It’s a chilling thought, but something former homicide detectives and criminal profilers believe is a possibility.

COULD multiple serial killers be roaming the highways and byways of Far North Queensland looking for victims?

It’s a chilling thought, but something former homicide detectives and criminal profilers believe is a possibility with eight missing person cases currently unsolved with links to Cairns, Cape York and Atherton.

We’ve all heard of the “highway of death” between Townsville and Mt Isa on the remote Flinders Highway – the scene of at least 12 disappearances or murders between 1970 and 2018.

The Flinders Highway is known as the ‘highway of death’ for the 12 young people who have vanished or disappeared along it. Picture: Wesley Monts. Source: News Corp Australia

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Former criminal profiler Mike King has been investigating the link between a number of Far North cases and the notorious highway – including missing Julatten man Reece Kearney – as part of his new podcast series Mapping Evil.

“The interesting thing I saw as we got on the coastline, the people attached to the Flinders Highway homicides, they extended as far as the Kearney (case), who are really Far North up by Cairns,” he said.

“We started to map all of these missing persons and homicides and one thing came right to the surface… most of the victims are taken a pretty long distance, and sometimes up to the north and into some pretty remote areas before they are disposed of.

Criminal profiler Mike King. IMAGE: News Corp Australia/

“I thought maybe it would be better to start looking at the victimology and the victim selection process to determine if you have a single serial killer, or maybe there have been multiple serial killers, or it could be natural events, accidents, and this road becomes the boogey man.”

Two of the most recent – and intriguing – cases involve young men of similar age seemingly wiped from existence after travelling on the 800km stretch within 12 days of each other – one from Julatten (Kearney); the other on his way to Cairns.

The Captain Cook Highway at Smithfield. Picture: Brendan Radke

Less spoken about is the role the Captain Cook Highway, the Gulf Development Road and the Peninsula Development Road may have played in people vanishing without a trace, or falling victim to foul play.

Mr King, who is delving into Australian cases and comparing them to those he’s worked on in the US, says highways often bring “the victim and the predator into contact”.

He has tracked many serial killers over a decorated career, including sadistic highway serial killer Robert Rhoades, believed to be responsible for the torture and murder of between 50 and 500 women.

“They are not going to go somewhere where they are unfamiliar with or they’re fearful they might get caught,” he said.

“He wants to be successful. He’s not picking it because it’s not familiar to him.”

The ‘Backpacker Murderer’ – serial killer Ivan Milat. New GIS techniques are being used to unlock a number of cold cases he is suspected of being involved in. Supplied.

Mr King and software company Esri – which uses hi-tech geographic information to shed light on possible crimes – suggests the Flinders Highway is a “serial place” rather than the killing field of one transient killer after analysing the victimology of cases over the last 48 years.

“Everything is geography. Everything is a point on the map,” Mr King said.

“Flinders Highway is the perfect example. Are people being dumped at this road because it’s the same killer? Or just because it’s one of the most remote, quiet places out there?

“Geography really helps us understand, why is this person comfortable in this location?”

It comes as new geographical profiling techniques are being used to help solve a number of cold cases with links to Australia’s most notorious serial killer, Ivan Milat.

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Originally published as Former criminal profiler investigates link between murder, unsolved cases and the highways of the Far North