NT’s worst mass murderer Douglas Crabbe up for parole

A SURVIVOR of the Territory’s worst mass murder has renewed calls for its perpetrator to never be released ahead of his parole hearing next month

Douglas Crabbe drove his truck into the Inland Hotel at Uluru in 1983, killing five people. PICTURE: Supplied

A SURVIVOR of the Territory’s worst mass murder has renewed calls for its perpetrator to never be released ahead of his parole hearing next month.

Douglas Crabbe, now 69, was convicted of murdering five people after driving a Mack truck through a brick wall at the Inland Hotel in Uluru on August 18, 1983.

Douglas Crabbe drove a truck into a crowded bar at Uluru.

Crabbe was initially sentenced to five consecutive life sentences, without the possibility of release.

He was later given a 30-year non-parole period by the NT Supreme Court and has since been moved to Perth on compassionate grounds.

The Western Australian Prisoners Review Board (PRB) will review Crabbe’s eligibility for parole in the coming weeks.

Survivor Lydia Hannah said Crabbe should never be released and be made to serve his original life sentence without release.

“He’s a mass murderer and killed five people and maimed 16 others and history shows we don’t know what happens when people come out again,” she said.

“I would like to see him serve the sentence he was originally given for the crime.

“I don’t think it’s appropriate for mass murderers to walk our streets. It was a horrific crime, in the top three mass murder incidents in Australia.”

Ms Hannah was standing with four of her friends next to the wall of the Inland Hotel when Crabbe ploughed through with a 25-tonne truck. The impact killed her friends and left Ms Hannah in a critical condition with severe head injuries. The injuries left Ms Hannah on a two-year journey to recovery.

“At the Inland Hotel that night, I was there as a patron standing near the door with four of the people that were killed.

“There was only one that was killed that I didn’t know and the other four were with me.

“One of the reasons I’ll talk about it is for them because the victims get forgotten about it in all this. He didn’t use a gun or a bomb; he used a prime mover, a 42-wheeler Mack truck, which is horrific when you think about it ploughing into a hotel full of people.”

She said every time Crabbe’s release was raised she relived the memories of the horrific events.

“He was never to be released. He was never charged for all the mayhem he caused to everybody else.

“He got charged with the five murders but there was a lot of other people that were hurt, and it was very traumatic for all the rescuers and the medical team because of the physical carnage.”

PRB executive officer Angela Delaney said prisoners’ life sentences were reviewed four to six weeks prior to their statuary review date.

A spokeswoman for WA Attorney-General Michael Mischin said he would not comment until receiving the report from the PRB.

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