Peter Falconio killer Bradley John Murdoch dies in Alice Springs

The man convicted of murdering British backpacker Peter Falconio has succumbed to throat cancer in Alice Springs Hospital.

He was an intimidating man mountain who oozed malevolence and cast fear into the heart of anyone unfortunate enough to meet him.

He was a master manipulator and perpetrator of one of the most high-profile and terrifying crimes in Australian history - a crime for which he steadfastly refused to admit his guilt.

He has been variously described as a murderer, rapist, bigot and a violent psychopath who spent the last 23 years of his life behind bars, switching between jails in Darwin and Alice Springs.

And so few tears will be shed with the news that Bradly John Murdoch has died.

The man convicted of murdering British backpacker Peter Falconio succumbed to throat cancer in Alice Springs on Tuesday, July 15, 2025. He was 67.

In a statement after Murdoch’s death the Northern Territory Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro urged anyone with information about the case to contact CrimeStoppers.

“It is disappointing for the Falconio family that this case remains unresolved and they are still without the closure they deserve,” Mrs Finocchiaro said.

Bradley Murdoch (centre) at his wedding at the age of 26 in 1984. After the marriage break up, the bride, Diane, was removed from this photo, which shows his dad Colin and mother Nance. Falconio

“We remind the public that the reward for information relating to the disappearance of Peter Falconio has been recently increased.

“Your information could help to deliver justice and answers to Peter’s loved ones.”

Colleen Gwynne, the lead investigator in the disappearance of Falconio, described Murdoch as a “run of the mill Outback-type” but with a dark, psychopathic side.

“Anyone who were to meet Bradley Murdoch for a very short amount of time, particularly a woman, would probably think he’s quite charming because that’s what his reputation was,” she said.

“He had many female friends, they said he was a charming man.”

But he was a man with an insatiable appetite for methamphetamines who steadfastly refused to reveal the whereabouts of Falconio’s body.

Murdoch was born in Geraldton, WA and lived in Northampton before moving to Perth when he was 12 and then back to Geraldton when he was 15.

In 1995, Murdoch was convicted in WA for firing a rifle at a group of Aboriginals who were having a celebratory barbecue in the riverbed at Fitzroy Crossing after a grand final win.

His arms were tattooed with racist insignia, including one image of a black man being lynched.

Bradley John Murdoch (C) surrounded by police arrives at Darwin Airport from Adelaide 24 November 2003. Picture: AFP PHOTO/David HANCOCK

He had various other run-ins with the law before the Falconio case but rocketed to national prominence after news broke of the ordeal of the British backpacker and his girlfriend, Joanne Lees.

Mr Falconio and Ms Lees were driving north on the Stuart Highway between Alice Springs and Darwin on July 14, 2001 when Murdoch, driving in a white four-wheel drive, waved down their Kombi van.

After stopping, Mr Falconio walked to the rear of the van, and Ms Lees heard them discussing sparks coming from the exhaust.

Mr Falconio returned to the driver’s door and asked Ms Lees to revved the engine.

This was the last time she saw him alive.

When she revved the engine, she heard a loud bang.

She later testified in court that Murdoch then appeared at the driver’s door, pointed a gun at her, pushed her onto the passenger seat and ordered her to put her head down and her arms behind her back.

He then bound her wrists with a cable tie, forced her out of the van, attempted to bind her ankles with electrical tape, punched her, taped her mouth and forced her into the back of his four-wheel drive.

Joanne Lees, girlfriend of Peter Falconio leaves the Northern Territory Supreme Court on December 13, 2005 in Darwin. Picture: Ian Waldie/Getty Images

Ms Lees escaped when she heard Murdoch momentarily walk away from his car.

She hid in the scrub for about five hours before flagging down a passing truck.

Despite his good understanding of the Outback, Ms Gwynne thinks Murdoch might not even know where Mr Falconio’s final resting place is.

“There is potential that with the stress that he was under, the fact that Joanne escaped and he had a victim that was now at large, that he may through the stress - he may have forgotten exactly where he disposed of the body,” she said.

Murdoch was arrested in Port Augusta for the suspected rape and abduction of a woman and her 12-year-old daughter.

The arrest provided a legal avenue for police to obtain his DNA - the same DNA found on Ms Lees’ shirt and on the gearstick of the Kombi.

In November, 2003 he was acquitted in the SA district court of the rape, at which time NT police attempted to arrest him inside Victoria Square building.

They were stopped by Judge Michael David who told them people cannot be arrested inside course houses in SA.

In ridiculous scenes, Murdoch ran from the courtroom and tried to flee the building down the stairs, being pursued by NT police.

Bradley John Murdoch handcuffed is placed in back of vehicle by police after his arrest District Court in Adelaide. Picture: Michael Milnes

SA police, meanwhile, charged into the building from the front doors and ran up the stairs trapping Murdoch between them on the middle balcony.

He was handcuffed and marched backward down the stairs to the cells.

As international news media gathered at the side of the building for the prison van to leave, NT police brought Murdoch out the front door where The Advertiser’s Michael Milnes was waiting with a camera.

His photo not only netted Milnes multiple journalism awards but also earned him and court reporter Sean Fewster the front page of the London Times the next morning.

Murdoch was subsequently placed on trial in Darwin for the murder of Mr Falconio and assault of Ms Lees.

Grant Angie KC, who represented Murdoch at his trials in Darwin and in SA, said it had been a “privilege” and “career-changing experience”.

Mr Angie said he hoped Murdoch had been “appropriately palliative cared for” in his final days.

The case had caused enough pain and it was time for peace, he said.

“It would be inappropriate for me to make any comment about the verdict of the jury and accordingly I will not do so,” he said.

Peter Falconio (inset) and Colleen Gwynne. Pictures: File

On December 13, 2005 he was found guilty of these charges and sentenced two days later to life in jail, with a non-parole period of 28 years.

Subsequent appeals were unsuccessful but he maintained his innocence until his death and refused to reveal the whereabouts of Mr Falconio’s body.

Murdoch’s court case dominated headlines both in Australia and England and his crimes were part of the inspiration for the 2005 Australian horror film Wolf Creek.

Ms Gwynne, who once described Murdoch as “the devil” who stood over her intimidatingly, yelling and spitting in her face, said his death might spark a break in the case as the convicted killer, who stood at 196cm, had “intimidated” people who knew key information.

“That’s why the reward is very important because you’ve got the motivation of the money,” she said.

“I imagine that if someone does know, they probably wouldn’t be willing to come forward with information because of loyalty to Murdoch or even maybe intimidation or guilt that they haven’t come forward sooner.”

NT Police offered a $500,000 reward for anyone with information on the location of Mr Falconio’s body.

Bradley John Murdoch being led out after court after he was found not guilty of raping in SA. Picture: Michael Milnes

In 2016, the NT passed a “no body no parole” law, which prevents killers imprisoned on murder charges from getting parole if the victim’s body is not found.

Former NT Attorney General John Elferink was NT Attorney General when the government passed the “no body, no parole” law - offered his sympathies to the Falconio family.

“Your heart goes out to the Falconio family because they will now know no place to which they can grieve and memorialise their son and his demise,” he said.

“Murdoch has left the Falconios with no comfort whatsoever.”

He said Murdoch had “lived as he died - selfish, self absorbed and indifferent”.

Mr Elferink, now a defence lawyer, was also the former NT corrections minister, and said he saw Murdoch in prison during visits when he was in the role.

“I had no particular desire to engage with the man at any level,” he said.

He said he still holds hope Mr Falconio’s final resting place will be found, but the discovery “is remote at best, impossible at worst”.

“I’ll never say never, because you can’t, but at the end of the day I think that the last practical resolution to this matter has passed with the death of Murdoch,” he said.

Former NT corrections minister Gerry McCarthy described Murdoch as “a big man” with “setback, steely eyes” who towered over him.

Prosecutor Rex Wild is on record as calling Murdoch a “big bastard” and a “nasty bloke” who scared him.

Originally published as Peter Falconio killer Bradley John Murdoch dies in Alice Springs