January 26, Thirty Years on and Still No Grave

In Claremont, a wealthy suburb near Perth, three girls went missing from 1996 to 1997. Their disappearances left the city on edge. Ciara Glennon, Sarah Spiers, and Jane Rimmer vanished near two popular nightclubs in Claremont.

At the time, I was living in the next suburb to Claremont.  It was a time when people felt safe to go out at night. That all changed. The Claremont serial killer tormented Perth for over 26 years before being caught. 

January 26 was Australia Day. It also marks twenty years since Sarah Spiers went missing. Her body was never found. The killer is strongly suspected, but has never been charged with her murder.

Bradley Edwards was found guilty of abducting and killing two women: Jane Rimmer, 23, and Ciara Glennon, 27.  It took 25 years to bring him to justice.

The events

In 1995, Edwards abducted a 17-year-old girl from Claremont. He forced the girl into his van and brutally raped her in a nearby Cemetery.  The woman escaped. DNA taken from the rape at a hospital would eventually link Edwards to the assault.

The following year, he kidnapped and killed Jane Rimmer, 23, and Ciara Glennon, 27. In 1996, he was suspected of abducting and killing the third victim, Sarah Spiers. However, he was never convicted.  

Spears called Swan Taxis from a phone box. That was the last time she was heard. Three minutes later, when the taxi arrived, she was nowhere to be seen.

He then went quiet, leaving an entire city on edge.  Not knowing whether there was still a serial killer out there or not.  Turns out he was.  At the time of the abductions, he had remarried and become a stepfather.  He was a regular volunteer at his stepdaughter’s Little Athletics club.

Edwards tried to attack a worker at a Hollywood Hospital in 1990. This took place in Nedlands, which is near Claremont. He dragged her to a toilet block but then suddenly stopped.  Admitting to the attack, he blamed it on relationship problems.  He was sentenced to two years' probation and ordered to undergo a sex offender program.

At the same time, Edwards broke into the home of an 18-year-old girl in Huntingdale. He attacked her while she was asleep, but the police were unaware. The only piece of evidence he left was a semen-stained kimono. This would also become a critical piece of evidence in his conviction.

How Was Edwards Caught After 26 Years?

On December 22, 2016, police arrested Bradley Robert Edwards. He was charged with the willful murders of Ms. Rimmer and Ms. Glennon. In 2018, Edwards was further charged with the willful murder of Ms. Spiers. Edwards pleaded not guilty to all three charges.

DNA samples were screened after better testing methods were introduced. The kimono from the Huntingdale attack was tested. It matched DNA samples taken from under Ciara’s fingernails.  It also matched samples of DNA taken from the door of her Huntingdale home.

The final breakthrough happened when police found a drink that Edwards left behind. He had gone to the movies with his stepdaughter.

Silence Prevails

The Claremont serial killings happened between 1996 and 1997. They resulted in one of Australia's longest and costliest murder trials. In September 2020, Edwards received a life sentence. He will not be eligible for parole for 40 years.

Edwards was found guilty of murdering Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon. DNA evidence from their shallow graves linked him to the crimes. He was acquitted of murdering Sarah Spiers due to a lack of evidence. 

Both convictions resulted from some excellent forensic science and DNS testing. The outcome might have been different if there had been more notice of the first attack at the Hollywood hospital. The dismissal by WA police and Telcom, where Edwards worked, could have led to a different result. This might mean the Claremont serial murders wouldn't have happened.

On the evening of January 27, Australia Day, Sarah Speirs made a phone call from a public phone to Swan Taxis.  Minutes later, she was gone.  She has never been seen since, and her body has never been found.

A $1 million reward is available for anyone who has information that helps solve her murder.

You might think that, with nothing to lose and no chance for an appeal, Edwards would confess. He could easily tell the police where he buried Spears' body.

I guess sometimes even a tiny amount of decency is too much to ask. Especially of people with no conscience.

Till next time,

Calvin