Meet the NT's wannabe Hannibal Lecter

The Northern Territory has seen some of the country’s worst killers come through its borders, but few are as scary as Andy Albury.

The 60-year-old is currently serving a life sentence behind bars in the NT and thankfully won’t ever be released.

In 1983, Albury brutally murdered NT woman Gloria Pinden on Mitchell St in Darwin’s CBD. The savage nature of the slaying shook hardened detectives.

This was no ordinary murder. Ms Pinden was stabbed 28 times, had both her nipples cut off and also had one of her eyeballs removed.

A bloodied cowboy shirt was found in a bin near the crime scene. It was the type worn by 'ringers' or stockmen of the era, and detectives were sure it belonged to the killer.

Investigators started asking around Darwin’s hotels and pubs, and their inquiries soon led them to Albury, who was found drinking at the Vic Hotel.

It didn’t take long for Albury to confess to the crime when he was brought in for questioning. This, however, was not a man who felt remorse for what he had done.

With casual indifference he described in detail to detectives what he had done to Ms Pinden.

I started to kick her, and hit her, then I got one stubble beer bottle top and started to cut her. After I finished cutting her, I pulled out her eye and left her there.

When asked in the police interview why he had killed her, the 22-year-old abattoir worker’s response was especially chilling.

It doesn’t worry me what I kill - they’re all blood and guts inside.

Albury has been diagnosed with psychopathic personality disorder. One psychiatrist diagnosed him with schizophrenia, but that has been disputed by others.

He has admitted to at least 13 other murders, but how many of those confessions — if any — are true is unknown. Even half would put him on par with the likes of serial killer Ivan Milat.

What is agreed upon is that Albury should never be released from prison. In a letter he wrote to Chief Justice Brian Martin, Albury stated that he was “unstoppable”.

I do not understand what the meaning of the word kindness is, it’s never been shown to me so why in the f*** should I show it. This is not some sort of weird attempt at justification for killing - I do what I do by choice or urge. I will kill again, it’s what I do for an occupation. Yours sincerely Andy Albury

Albury has also had a disturbing fixation on Hannibal Lecter. He’s asked prison officers if he can watch the movie Silence of the Lambs to 'learn' off the fictional serial killer.

Unsurprisingly, the requests have been refused. But Albury's violent tendencies have remained with him in prison.

In 1988, he put a garden hoe through the head of inmate John Michael Knox, claiming deceased The Doors singer Jim Morrison ordered him to spill blood.

On another occasion he used a cricket bat during a friendly game to crack the skull of another inmate who was playing chess nearby. He’s also sent death threats written in his own blood to NT ministers.

Words: Meagan Dillon Producer: Andrew Piva Learn more

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