7 Backpackers, 1 Forest, 1 Survivor

This episode follows the Backpacker Murders: the disappearances of seven young travellers, the discoveries in Belanglo State Forest, the survival of British backpacker Paul Onions, and the investigation that led police to Ivan Milat. The case turned on a pattern that took years to recognise. Travellers went missing from routes out of Sydney. Bodies were found months apart in the same forest. A roadside attack first treated as isolated later became a crucial part of the investigation. Paul Onions had escaped a man who used the name Bill and drove a four-wheel drive later connected in reporting to Milat's silver Nissan Patrol. Milat was arrested after police raids in May 1994. During searches of homes connected to Milat and some relatives, police found weapons, clothing, camping equipment, and other items belonging to victims. In July 1996, a jury found Milat guilty of all seven murders. Questions about other disappearances and whether anyone else was involved remained unresolved, but no further murder conviction followed. Episode page: https://crimepath.com/episodes/they-k... Website: https://crimepath.com Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... #truecrimecommunity #truecrimestories #missingperson #coldcase Source List National Film and Sound Archive, `Evidence presented in Backpacker murder trial`: https://www.nfsa.gov.au/collection/it... ABC News / Australian Story transcript, `Into the Forest - Part 1`: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-07-1... ABC News, `Ivan Milat terminal cancer diagnosis ends solitary confinement`: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-1... The Guardian, `Ivan Milat's chilling serial backpacker murders still haunt Australia after death`: https://www.theguardian.com/australia... CNN, `Ivan Milat, Australia's notorious serial killer, dies aged 74`: https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/28/au... Associated Press archive: https://web.archive.org/web/201906260... Sydney Morning Herald archive, `Back into heart of darkness`: https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/b...