South Australia murder houses: From Kapunda to Elizabeth North, find out where they are
From country cottages to suburban bungalows, these are the homes where the great Australian dream turned into the grisliest sort of nightmare. WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT
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They might have unassuming facades, but these houses across South Australia have been marred by tragic murder cases.
From stabbings to brutal bashings, the horrors that have unfolded behind the walls are seriously disturbing:
HOMINGTON RD, ELIZABETH NORTH
It was at this brick home that police discovered the body of Beverley Hanley, in 2010.
The 64-year-old grandmother had been beaten with a cricket bat and stabbed multiple times, and the killer had ransacked her house and fled with her handbag.
In May this year, Ms Hanley’s nephew was charged for her murder and extradited to Adelaide from Victoria where he was living in Mildura.
When his aunt was killed, he was living just a few streets away.
MURRAY ST, CALLINGTON
In September 2010, retired nurse Pirjo Kemppainen called police to report a glass door had been smashed by a rock at her house.
Sixteen hours later, her brother found her dead in the laundry.
Two youths were accused of killing the 63-year-old in what has come to be known as one of the most shocking crime’s in the state’s history.
They were both just 14 at the time, and became known as A and B due to a suppression order.
B was eventually found guilty, and later told a court he had wanted to kill someone since he was in Year 1.
After smashing the door, B entered the property and proceeded to stab and bash the pensioner more than 120 times.
He describe his violent act to a court in graphic detail.
“I put the knife in her stomach,” B told the court, pausing to mime the action.
“I tried to stab her twice in the stomach and then I repeatedly stabbed her in the head.
“She was screaming.”
If B avoids institutionalisation, he will be eligible for release in 2025.
SOMERFIELD AVE, REYNELLA
The head and hands of pensioner Vonne McGlynn have never been found after she was murdered at her home in 2008.
Angelika Gavare stalked the 84-year-old and broke into her home before knocking her unconscious.
Her murderous act was driven by greed, and she hoped use Ms McGlynn’s identity to steal her house and money in order to make a better life for herself and her two daughters.
She returned later that evening, dismembering her elderly victim before dumping the body parts at a nearby creek bed.
In court, Gavare’s mother Inara Dombrovska testified against her, saying she confessed to the murder at a Christmas celebration that same year.
Gavare was sentenced to at least 32 years behind bars in 2011.
HARRIET ST, KAPUNDA
Jealousy and anger drove Jason Downie to murder 16-year-old Chantelle Rowe and her parents in 2010.
Downie — a loner who Chantelle had befriended — became sexually infatuated with the teenager. One night, knowing her boyfriend wasn’t with her, he broke in through a bathroom window and commenced his killing spree.
In crime scene described by one veteran cop as the “worst [he] had seen”, Chantelle’s father Andrew was found with 29 stab wounds. Her mother, Rose, received 50.
Knife pieces were found in their bodies.
Downie then found Chantelle hiding under her bed and proceeded to stab her multiple times.
Despite her efforts to resist him when she regained consciousness, he stabbed her with a second knife and raped her.
A day before the one-year anniversary of the killings, Downie pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to life in jail with a 35-year non-parole period.
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Originally published as South Australia murder houses: From Kapunda to Elizabeth North, find out where they are
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