Shoe prints on car window provide clue to murder mystery

COULD multiple footprints found on the passenger door of the white Holden Commodore driven by a gatecrasher, provide a clue as to who is responsible for the death of teenager Nathan Garriock? LISTEN TO THE INVESTIGATIVE PODCAST.

• Chapter One - The Party
• Chapter Two - The Hunt For The Driver
• Chapter Three - The Inquest

SEVENTEEN year-old Nathan Garriock is pronounced dead at 1.37am on June 15 2003.

His parents are told by police their son died from severe head injuries after being run down by a gatecrasher, who got behind the wheel of a white Holden Commodore and charged through a crowd of teenagers celebrating an 18th birthday party.

EPISODE TWO: THE HUNT FOR THE DRIVER

The white Holden Commodore was driven by a 22 year old gatecrasher. The man was asked to leave Nathan’s best mate, Jay Kneller’s, party, but instead, he jumped into a friends car and drove it into a group of teenagers who were standing on Remembrance Drive, about six houses away from the party.

Joan Garriock and her youngest child Nathan, who was killed on June 15, 2003

The Holden Commodore that was driven into a crowd of teenage partygoers

Returning from the hospital, Nathan’s mum Joan Garriock says she had been thinking for hours about why Nathan’s body didn’t have more injuries, considering they were told by police and medical staff he had been run down by a car travelling at high speed. Wouldn’t he have some kind of bruising, cuts or scratches at least?

“He was just lying there, I couldn’t see any injuries, I was trying to lift the blanket to lift his feet, to hold him,” says Mrs Garriock.

The crime scene on June 18, 2003

A few days later, police officers gathered in Mrs Garriock’s lounge room. She asked them what they knew and why her son didn’t have any more injuries

“I just said to him, how do you know that Nathan was hit by the car?”, says Mrs Garriock. “I said, ‘wouldn’t he have any injuries on him or anything broken or anything?’ and an officer just looked at me and said’ oh, we didn’t actually say that, we just presumed it’.”

Police officers examine the scene, June 18 2003

Police tell the Garriock family Nathan’s autopsy revealed he died from severe head injuries. The report states Nathan had trauma to the right side of his face and a massive y-shaped fracture through the top of his skull.

And Mrs Garriock was right, Nathan’s autopsy revealed he had no other broken bones on his body.

Police say it is now unlikely Nathan died from injuries sustained from the impact of the car driven by the gatecrasher, but that someone hit Nathan across the head.

Multiple footprints found on the passenger side window

A crime scene investigator discovers multiple shoe prints on the rear passenger window and spends months checking people’s shoes to match the impressions.

WHAT THE CSI FOUND

In his police report, the CSI says: “ On Friday September 26, I made a number of inked impressions from the outsole o f the Etnies brand right sports shoe, the property of Nathan Garriock.”

Nathan Garriocks Etnies shoe

“I concluded that the questioned impressions on the rear passenger side door window of the white Holden Commodore could only have been made by the known Etnies brand right sports shoe which was worn by Nathan Garriock on the day of the incident.”

Conclusive proof Nathan was not hit or killed by the impact of the car, but alive and well enough to repeatedly kick the rear passenger window.

So the question now is, who inflicted the fatal blows to Nathan’s head?

In the next episode of Gatecrash: The capture of the man who was driving the white Holden Commodore. What he says to police as he’s being arrested is going to blow the whole police investigation wide open.

If you know anything about the death of Nathan Garriock, you can make an anonymous phone call to Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

or email [e-mail]

@Nic_Hogan

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EPISODE ONE — THE PARTY — OUT NOW

EPISODE TWO — THE HUNT FOR THE DRIVER — OUT NOW

EPISODE THREE — THE INQUEST — OUT NOW

EPISODE FOUR — FINDING ANSWERS — COMING SOON