Stunning breakthrough in unsolved murder of woman after nearly five decades

Nearly 50 years after the murder of a young mother whose body was set on fire, police have made a stunning breakthrough.

West Australian police have made a breakthrough in the cold case murder of a woman nearly five decades ago.

They say the man linked to the killing of Kerryn Tate may be connected to the murders of two other Perth women.

Ms Tate was last seen alive on the morning of December 29, 1979, after spending time with her friends in Cottesloe and Swanbourne at a dance at the North Cottesloe Surf Life Saving Club the night before.

Her body was found the next day in the Canning Dam catchment area, about 800m south of the Brookton Highway, after forestry workers were called to the area to investigate a small bushfire.

The post-mortem found Ms Tate had suffered severe head and facial injuries from a large piece of wood and had been set on fire.

Kerryn Tate was last seen alive with friends before her body was located in the Canning Dam catchment area in December 1979. Picture: WA Police

Police located an unknown man’s DNA at the crime scene, and while police believe the man was the offender, 45 years after the crime, the case went cold.

After extensive inquiries into a database of more than 10,000 people, police have now linked suspect Terrence Fisher’s DNA profile to evidence found on Ms Tate’s body.

Mr Fisher died from cancer in 2000 at the age of 50, but police now believe he could also be connected to the murders of two other women.

If he were alive, police believe Mr Fisher would be able to assist with inquiries into the 1986 murder of mother-of-two Barbara Anne Western and 1991 murder of Kerry Suzanne Turner.

Ms Western, 38, was last seen on June 27, 1986, after a night with friends in East Victoria Park. Her remains were found by wood collectors nearly five years later a few hundred metres from Ms Tate’s remains.

Ms Turner, 18, was last seen hitchhiking outside now-defunct Pinocchio’s bar in Murray St, Perth, on June 29, 1991.

Her remains were found a month later, 7km from the bodies of the other two women.

While WA Police believe Mr Fisher may have been able to provide information about the two murders, they say it’s “too early” to determine whether he was a serial killer.

“We are certainly exploring the possibility of any links to similar crimes; it would be irresponsible of us, as investigators, to not explore these similarities,” Detective Acting Senior Sergeant Dion Selby told the Cold Case Western Australia podcast.

Barbara Western was last seen on June 27, 1986 after a night with friends in East Victoria Park. Picture: Crime Stoppers WA

Kerry Suzanne Turner was last seen hitchhiking outside Murray St, Perth, on June 29, 1991. Picture: Crime Stoppers WA

Police hope the breakthrough would “send a very clear message” that authorities have “never stopped trying to find the person responsible for her murder, countless investigators have worked tirelessly on this case”.

“Unfortunately, we may never know the motivations for this horrific crime, but with the public’s help we may be able to finally bring some comfort to the Tate family,” WA Police Acting Assistant Commissioner Paul Coombes said.

Ms Tate was born in Victoria in 1957 and moved to Avalon Beach in NSW after her first birthday.

Known as a “vivacious, friendly and intelligent” person who often hitchhiked, Ms Tate was a mother of twin girls. Tragically, one of her daughters, Amber, died at 20 weeks due to SIDS in 1977, prompting her to move to WA from NSW in 1978.

Ms Tate was 22 years old when she was last seen alive and was house sitting at a Brookton Highway property in Karragullen before her death.

Police have linked Terrence Fisher’s DNA profile to evidence found on Ms Tate’s body. Picture: WA Police

Detectives were able to name Mr Fisher as a suspect thanks to the investigative genetic genealogy team who uploaded the unknown DNA found at the place of Ms Tate’s remains into a public genealogy database, which produced a “number of generic relatives”.

After sorting through a family tree of more than 10,000 people, detectives whittled their search down to Mr Fisher.

“The use of investigative genetic genealogy is allowing us to solve more cold cases than ever. It’s a resource intensive process, but it’s one the major crime team is committed to,” Mr Coombes said.

“It’s still a relatively new investigative technique but with time and as new technology becomes available, these methods will only further complement traditional detective work.”

He worked as a tradie. Picture: WA Police

Trained as a carpenter and employed by the Public Works Department, Mr Fisher worked as a tradie on government buildings throughout Perth and rural areas.

Outside work, he was known to be an avid sailor, taking part in offshore racing and frequently attending the Fremantle Sailing Club.

This information may be critical to help solve one of WA’s “most notorious cold cases”.

“We are trying to build a picture of Mr Fisher’s regular movements, of his routine. For example, we know he regularly attended a sailing club in Fremantle,” Sergeant Selby said.

“We know he had served in the army and was a carpenter by trade.

“We know he lived in Rivervale and Manning areas at the time of Ms Tate’s murder.

“There is much we know about him but we want to know more.”

Ms Tate’s relative Annemarie Tate urged anyone with information to come forward.

“If you’ve got any recollection, memory, thoughts, or something went on that made you a little bit suspicious of him at that time, please come forward,” she said

Originally published as Stunning breakthrough in unsolved murder of woman after nearly five decades