Full Transcript for Case 91: Carly Ryan

00:05:09.480 of her bright, creative and playful nature. She wore pinks, 67 00:05:09.879 --> 00:05:13.040 greens and blues in a variety of patterns, layered with 68 00:05:13.120 --> 00:05:16.829 jewellery and band t-shirts. She dyed the front part of 69 00:05:16.870 --> 00:05:20.110 her fringe red, teased up the back, and framed her 70 00:05:20.189 --> 00:05:26.160 eyes with eyeliner. Personality-wise, Carly was far from the brooding 71 00:05:26.220 --> 00:05:29.939 and angsty type often associated with the emo scene. She 72 00:05:29.980 --> 00:05:32.199 was a fun-loving young girl who would go out of 73 00:05:32.240 --> 00:05:36.290 her way to make others around her smile. Compassionate and caring, 74 00:05:36.829 --> 00:05:39.709 Carly was always looking out for her friends, asking her 75 00:05:39.750 --> 00:05:43.110 mother for advice by saying, I'm worried about my friend. 76 00:05:43.850 --> 00:05:47.370 What can I do? she'd often tell her mum to 77 00:05:47.410 --> 00:05:49.750 take a break from housework, just so the two could 78 00:05:49.769 --> 00:05:53.149 put on some music and dance around together. Sonia was 79 00:05:53.230 --> 00:05:56.370 only in her early 30s, affording her a genuine sense 80 00:05:56.389 --> 00:06:05.300 of relatability to her teenage daughter. By 2006, the internet 81 00:06:05.339 --> 00:06:08.759 was branching out from its infancy into a sprawling, seemingly 82 00:06:08.860 --> 00:06:14.000 endless place of entertainment, knowledge and experiences. Although the internet 83 00:06:14.019 --> 00:06:15.899 had a long way to go to become the fully 84 00:06:15.959 --> 00:06:19.540 accessible and influential resource it is today, it was fast 85 00:06:19.579 --> 00:06:23.639 becoming a staple on many home computers. The seeds of 86 00:06:23.720 --> 00:06:28.370 online powerhouses and social media hangouts Facebook, YouTube, Reddit and 87 00:06:28.439 --> 00:06:32.110 Twitter were planted by 2006, but had yet to evolve. 88 00:06:34.009 --> 00:06:37.089 At the time, MySpace was the biggest social media platform 89 00:06:37.129 --> 00:06:39.990 in the world, surpassing even Google that year as the 90 00:06:40.029 --> 00:06:44.300 most visited website. The site offered users a platform to 91 00:06:44.339 --> 00:06:49.259 submit blogs, photos, music and videos on personalised profiles shared 92 00:06:49.300 --> 00:06:52.319 to their network of friends. It quickly drew in a 93 00:06:52.379 --> 00:06:55.730 younger generation looking to make connections far beyond the borders 94 00:06:55.750 --> 00:06:58.810 of their hometowns. There was still a lot yet to 95 00:06:58.870 --> 00:07:01.569 learn about the internet and what lurked within it, but 96 00:07:01.689 --> 00:07:05.730 users approached it with naive optimism, as did the older generations, 97 00:07:06.129 --> 00:07:09.129 who were coming to grasp this unquantifiable thing that seemed 98 00:07:09.230 --> 00:07:14.410 like the work of science fiction. Like her peers, Carly

99 00:07:14.470 --> 00:07:17.920 Ryan found herself drawn to spending time online, where there 100 00:07:17.959 --> 00:07:20.360 was always something to do or someone to talk to. 101 00:07:21.660 --> 00:07:24.079 Sitting at the family computer in the kitchen of her home, 102 00:07:24.620 --> 00:07:28.339 Carly scrolled through forums dedicated to her interests, chatted with 103 00:07:28.439 --> 00:07:32.050 friends through MSN Messenger, and posted selfies taken with her 104 00:07:32.089 --> 00:07:36.550 digital camera. Sonia would often look over her daughter's shoulder 105 00:07:36.689 --> 00:07:40.029 as Carly spent countless hours pursuing her favourite sites and 106 00:07:40.089 --> 00:07:44.829 exchanging messages back and forth with friends. For Sonia, knowing 107 00:07:44.870 --> 00:07:47.050 Carly was just in the other room tapping away on 108 00:07:47.089 --> 00:07:50.750 the keyboard came with a sense of relief. Stranger danger 109 00:07:50.790 --> 00:07:53.910 was associated with the outside world, where it was visible, 110 00:07:54.310 --> 00:07:58.629 brash and sudden. The online world seemed the safer option, 111 00:07:59.069 --> 00:08:01.370 where threats could easily disappear at the press of an 112 00:08:01.430 --> 00:08:05.769 off button. Carly spent a lot of time on her 113 00:08:05.790 --> 00:08:09.319 MySpace page. a digital art space she covered in photos 114 00:08:09.360 --> 00:08:12.699 of herself, lyrics from her favourite songs and art that 115 00:08:12.759 --> 00:08:17.089 resonated with her. It was online where Carly's friends introduced 116 00:08:17.129 --> 00:08:19.790 her to a user going by the name of Corrupt Koala. 117 00:08:20.889 --> 00:08:23.790 Corrupt Koala had been chatting with mutual friends of Carly 118 00:08:23.990 --> 00:08:26.529 and they had come to know him well. He was 119 00:08:26.550 --> 00:08:30.829 18-year-old Brandon Kane, a born and raised Texan who now 120 00:08:30.889 --> 00:08:36.350 lived in South Australia's neighbouring state, Victoria. Carly was quick 121 00:08:36.379 --> 00:08:38.590 to learn she had a lot in common with Brandon. 122 00:08:39.090 --> 00:08:42.210 The pair bonded over similar interests including their mutual love 123 00:08:42.250 --> 00:08:46.590 for music. Brandon was a musician himself and played the guitar. 124 00:08:47.370 --> 00:08:49.450 He carried himself as a bit of a rebel but 125 00:08:49.470 --> 00:08:53.370 with a soft emotional edge, just like the musicians Carly admired. 126 00:08:54.750 --> 00:08:57.549 She was fascinated by his American background and how he 127 00:08:57.570 --> 00:09:01.100 talked of travelling between his two homes, Australia and the USA. 128 00:09:02.889 --> 00:09:07.490 Brandon was older, more mature and well-travelled, offering Carly advice 129 00:09:07.549 --> 00:09:12.330 and support. When he remarked that she was cute, Carly 130 00:09:12.350 --> 00:09:18.190 was giddy. Over the following months, Brandon became omnipresent in 131

00:09:18.230 --> 00:09:22.649 Carly's entire life, not just her online one. They exchanged 132 00:09:22.740 --> 00:09:26.840 email addresses, instant messenger accounts, phone numbers and were chatting 133 00:09:26.899 --> 00:09:32.370 every single day. In the days before smartphones, video calls 134 00:09:32.429 --> 00:09:36.250 weren't commonplace, but Brandon sent Carly webcam footage of him 135 00:09:36.309 --> 00:09:39.909 on the computer whilst the two messaged each other. It 136 00:09:39.950 --> 00:09:42.330 was as close as possible to seeing him in the flesh. 137 00:09:44.289 --> 00:09:48.080 For Sonia, hearing about the young musician Carly befriended online 138 00:09:48.200 --> 00:09:51.379 didn't immediately alarm her, but she did find her daughter's 139 00:09:51.419 --> 00:09:56.000 sudden infatuation of him strange. Sonia glimpsed the images and 140 00:09:56.059 --> 00:09:59.970 footage Brandon was sharing of himself. There he was, tapping away. 141 00:10:00.090 --> 00:10:04.029 at his computer keyboard, a young man exactly as Carly described. 142 00:10:05.750 --> 00:10:09.909 Sonia's apprehension subsided, but she used her own MySpace profile 143 00:10:09.990 --> 00:10:15.789 to keep an eye on the pair. One of Carly's 144 00:10:15.830 --> 00:10:19.090 closest friends had recently started a relationship with a boy 145 00:10:19.129 --> 00:10:23.769 she'd originally met online. Carly witnessed the couple together, admiring 146 00:10:23.830 --> 00:10:27.509 the joy and happiness the pair emanated. Seeing an online 147 00:10:27.529 --> 00:10:30.049 relationship work out in the real world and wanting the 148 00:10:30.070 --> 00:10:33.769 same thing for herself, Carly embarked upon an online romantic 149 00:10:33.820 --> 00:10:38.639 relationship with Brandon. Brandon was equally eager to be Carly's boyfriend. 150 00:10:39.899 --> 00:10:42.120 Not wanting to stand in the way of Carly's happiness, 151 00:10:42.600 --> 00:10:46.370 Sonia accepted the relationship, She felt her teenage daughter was 152 00:10:46.409 --> 00:10:49.250 looking for confidence and validation and found it in the 153 00:10:49.289 --> 00:10:54.370 sweeping thrill of her first romance. The young couple were 154 00:10:54.409 --> 00:10:58.679 in constant contact, expressing their love for one another. Eventually, 155 00:10:58.860 --> 00:11:02.240 they started to make plans for the future together. Carly's 156 00:11:02.299 --> 00:11:05.080 face lit up whenever she spoke of Brandon to friends, 157 00:11:05.759 --> 00:11:07.940 and he became accepted as a part of her life. 158 00:11:09.019 --> 00:11:12.470 Their online social media pages were covered in affectionate messages 159 00:11:12.549 --> 00:11:16.679 to each other. All that remained was for them to 160 00:11:16.759 --> 00:11:20.480 finally meet in person. It was something Carly was incredibly 161 00:11:20.539 --> 00:11:23.820 eager to do, but Brandon lived an 80-hour drive away 162 00:11:23.960 --> 00:11:27.080 in a

different state, making plans to do so difficult. 163 00:11:28.379 --> 00:11:32.279 By late January 2007, Carly and Brandon had been in 164 00:11:32.350 --> 00:11:36.289 contact for 18 months. With her 15th birthday coming up, 165 00:11:36.649 --> 00:11:39.649 Carly saw the opportunity of meeting Brandon in person as 166 00:11:39.710 --> 00:11:43.129 the best gift she could ask for. She invited Brandon 167 00:11:43.169 --> 00:11:47.009 to her upcoming birthday party. occurring at her family home 168 00:11:47.090 --> 00:11:51.690 in Stirling. However, Brandon was quick to shut down her proposal, 169 00:11:52.309 --> 00:11:54.529 revealing he was going to be in the United States 170 00:11:54.549 --> 00:12:00.490 at the time and thus unable to attend. Carly was 171 00:12:00.590 --> 00:12:06.350 clearly upset. Coincidentally, Brandon explained his father Shane would be 172 00:12:06.389 --> 00:12:09.409 driving through Adelaide for work at the time of Carly's party. 173 00:12:10.090 --> 00:12:12.629 Brandon asked if his father could stop by her place 174 00:12:12.909 --> 00:12:18.519 and deliver birthday gifts on his behalf. Previously, Brandon had 175 00:12:18.580 --> 00:12:22.799 introduced his father Shane to Carly through MySpace. Shane was 176 00:12:22.840 --> 00:12:25.879 a former SAS commando who now worked as a security 177 00:12:25.899 --> 00:12:29.990 guard for celebrities. He'd once told Carly about his experiences 178 00:12:30.029 --> 00:12:34.090 working for goth rock musician Marilyn Manson, and being a fan, 179 00:12:34.470 --> 00:12:38.490 she was impressed. Carly was happy to interact with Shane 180 00:12:38.590 --> 00:12:41.879 and build a relationship with him. Being close to Brandon's 181 00:12:41.919 --> 00:12:45.710 family made Carly feel a part of his life. Shane 182 00:12:45.750 --> 00:12:48.129 was supportive of the young couple and seemed to have 183 00:12:48.200 --> 00:12:54.340 their best interests at heart. When Carly asked her mother 184 00:12:54.480 --> 00:12:58.139 if Shane could attend her birthday party, Sonia was unsure. 185 00:12:59.259 --> 00:13:03.389 Motherly instincts kicked in. She didn't know Shane well and 186 00:13:03.429 --> 00:13:05.730 was hesitant for a man she considered a little more 187 00:13:05.769 --> 00:13:09.750 than a stranger to come to her house. Carly told 188 00:13:09.809 --> 00:13:13.000 Sonia everything she knew about Shane, assuring her mother he 189 00:13:13.039 --> 00:13:16.759 was a good guy. Adding to his genuineness was Shane's 190 00:13:16.799 --> 00:13:19.940 work as a security guard to celebrities, a role that 191 00:13:19.960 --> 00:13:25.120 would only be given to someone trustworthy. Nevertheless, Sonia could 192 00:13:25.159 --> 00:13:27.340 hear the faint sound of alarm bells ringing in the 193 00:13:27.379 --> 00:13:30.779 back of her mind. She considered out loud if Shane 194 00:13:30.799 --> 00:13:35.440 was a predator. Carly quickly disregarded the suggestion, telling her

195 00:13:35.480 --> 00:13:41.899 mother she was being gross. After impassioned begging from her daughter, 196 00:13:42.470 --> 00:13:46.129 Sonia permitted Shane to come to the party on one condition. 197 00:13:47.110 --> 00:13:49.629 He would have to meet Sonia in a public place first. 198 00:13:50.570 --> 00:13:53.649 It seemed like the safest option. She wanted to get 199 00:13:53.690 --> 00:13:55.850 a better feel for the guy before letting him near 200 00:13:55.889 --> 00:14:02.389 her family. Shane happily agreed to the meet-up. In the 201 00:14:02.429 --> 00:14:05.200 days leading up to the party, Sonia met Shane on 202 00:14:05.220 --> 00:14:08.700 the main street of Stirling. He was a fairly unremarkable 203 00:14:08.759 --> 00:14:12.200 man in his late 40s, with slightly balding hair, a 204 00:14:12.240 --> 00:14:16.950 beer belly, crooked teeth and hunched shoulders. He explained he 205 00:14:16.990 --> 00:14:19.750 was in the area for work, a statement backed up 206 00:14:19.789 --> 00:14:21.990 by the polo shirt he wore that bore the logo 207 00:14:22.049 --> 00:14:26.330 of his security company. He was doing Brandon a favour 208 00:14:26.409 --> 00:14:29.549 of delivering birthday gifts to Carly, but thought it was 209 00:14:29.590 --> 00:14:31.909 a good idea that he finally meet the family of 210 00:14:31.950 --> 00:14:37.279 his son's affection. Sonia asked to see some form of identification. 211 00:14:38.159 --> 00:14:41.580 Shane gladly handed over his security badge confirming his name, 212 00:14:41.899 --> 00:14:46.769 address and occupation. Any doubt Sonia had about the man 213 00:14:46.870 --> 00:14:50.490 was quickly overshadowed by authentic evidence proving he was everything 214 00:14:50.529 --> 00:14:53.690 he claimed to be. She felt he was friendly enough, 215 00:14:54.250 --> 00:14:56.809 and Shane was happy to oblige to Sonia's request to 216 00:14:56.850 --> 00:15:01.549 calm all her concerns about him. As Shane didn't have 217 00:15:01.590 --> 00:15:04.830 a hotel booking, Sonia graciously invited him to stay at 218 00:15:04.870 --> 00:15:08.129 her place for the duration of his trip. It only 219 00:15:08.149 --> 00:15:13.269 seemed right, considering their children were dating. When Shane met 220 00:15:13.309 --> 00:15:15.730 other members of the Ryan family, he got along fine 221 00:15:15.769 --> 00:15:19.470 with everyone. Carly was most excited to meet him as 222 00:15:19.490 --> 00:15:23.240 she was his direct connection to Brandon. He handed over 223 00:15:23.269 --> 00:15:26.240 the birthday gifts his son had gotten for her. She 224 00:15:26.340 --> 00:15:30.039 opened them later, discovering Brandon had purchased her lingerie and 225 00:15:30.100 --> 00:15:34.000 a nurse's outfit. They weren't items Carly had asked for, 226 00:15:34.360 --> 00:15:37.120 but she was happy to receive them as Brandon wanted 227 00:15:37.159 --> 00:15:42.379 her to have them. it appeared Shane was eager to 228 00:15:42.440 --> 00:15:45.950 make a good impression on Carly on Brandon's behalf. In 229 00:15:45.970 --> 00:15:48.169 the days leading up to the party, he took her 230 00:15:48.210 --> 00:15:51.629 shopping at Rundle Mall in Adelaide City, sharing her with 231 00:15:51.690 --> 00:15:56.730 over $ 400 worth of gifts, including t-shirts, bags, underwear, a 232 00:15:56.789 --> 00:16:01.580 corset and fancy dress costumes. Anything Carly wanted, Shane would 233 00:16:01.600 --> 00:16:05.940 get for her. At one clothing store, a shop assistant 234 00:16:05.980 --> 00:16:08.720 suggested Carly go try on some clothing she was eyeing. 235 00:16:09.870 --> 00:16:12.370 Shane followed Carly to the change room, and the shop 236 00:16:12.409 --> 00:16:16.009 assistant witnessed him peering over the door, watching Carly inside. 237 00:16:17.029 --> 00:16:19.850 The assistant thought it was weird, but Carly didn't seem 238 00:16:19.909 --> 00:16:28.000 outwardly phased by the action. On the night of January 26, 2007, 239 00:16:28.000 --> 00:16:33.149 Shane joined Carly's friends and family members in celebrating her 240 00:16:33.370 --> 00:16:37.750 15th birthday at her home. Everything started off smoothly and 241 00:16:37.789 --> 00:16:40.889 Carly and her guests were having a great time. But 242 00:16:40.950 --> 00:16:45.350 as the night wore on, Shane started exhibiting noticeably strange behaviour. 243 00:16:47.009 --> 00:16:49.570 At one point, Carly was talking to an old friend 244 00:16:49.750 --> 00:16:53.269 who happened to be her ex-boyfriend. When Shane found out, 245 00:16:53.490 --> 00:16:56.529 he got visibly agitated and behaved in a way others 246 00:16:56.600 --> 00:17:00.740 could only describe as a tantrum. He later informed Carly 247 00:17:00.779 --> 00:17:03.039 he called and spoke to Brandon on the phone about 248 00:17:03.080 --> 00:17:07.000 her behaviour. Brandon expressed that he wasn't happy Carly was 249 00:17:07.059 --> 00:17:10.400 talking to her ex. Shane warned her to stay away 250 00:17:10.440 --> 00:17:13.740 from him, and Carly, wanting to keep her boyfriend happy, 251 00:17:14.180 --> 00:17:19.779 agreed to the demand. Shane's behaviour towards other guests also 252 00:17:19.819 --> 00:17:24.569 became increasingly inappropriate. He made other teenage girls uncomfortable when 253 00:17:24.609 --> 00:17:26.710 encouraging them to kiss each other in front of him, 254 00:17:27.450 --> 00:17:30.829 even demanding Carly kiss one of her friends, causing the 255 00:17:30.869 --> 00:17:36.500 girls to label him as creepy. Another partygoer overheard Shane 256 00:17:36.519 --> 00:17:39.549 tell Carly, I love you. I would never let anything 257 00:17:39.609 --> 00:17:44.849 happen to you. You're beautiful. Motivated to maintain a good 258 00:17:44.890 --> 00:17:47.809 relationship with the man she saw as her future father-in-law, 259 00:17:48.430 --> 00:17:51.470 Carly appeared to brush away any concerns she or others 260 00:17:51.579 -->

00:17:56.759 felt about Shane. Armed with mother's intuition, Sonia still had 261 00:17:56.779 --> 00:18:00.079 her doubts. Shane had been around for a few days now, 262 00:18:00.539 --> 00:18:03.369 and despite accepting the man into her home, she felt 263 00:18:03.410 --> 00:18:07.869 herself constantly on guard. She tolerated him, but with great caution. 264 00:18:08.670 --> 00:18:10.269 She was willing to give him the benefit of the 265 00:18:10.329 --> 00:18:13.230 doubt to make Carly happy and keep the peace, but 266 00:18:13.309 --> 00:18:20.839 never felt she could fully trust him. The morning after 267 00:18:20.880 --> 00:18:24.819 the party, Sonia walked past her daughter's bedroom. She peered 268 00:18:24.859 --> 00:18:28.000 inside to check on Carly, and was horrified to discover 269 00:18:28.039 --> 00:18:31.680 Shane was laying on her daughter's bed beside her. They 270 00:18:31.700 --> 00:18:34.900 appeared asleep, and although he was fully clothed and lying 271 00:18:34.960 --> 00:18:37.529 on top of the sheets, the scene was enough to 272 00:18:37.589 --> 00:18:41.750 deeply disturb Sonia. There was absolutely no excuse for it. 273 00:18:42.390 --> 00:18:47.990 The man had crossed the boundary. All of Shane's peculiarities 274 00:18:48.069 --> 00:18:52.890 flashed through Sonia's mind, now with sinister undertones, like the 275 00:18:52.910 --> 00:18:55.710 way his gaze lingered on her teenage daughter whenever they 276 00:18:55.750 --> 00:18:59.299 were together. It was enough to make Sonia's skin crawl. 277 00:19:00.299 --> 00:19:06.200 She was convinced that Shane was a predator. Enraged, Sonia 278 00:19:06.240 --> 00:19:09.220 demanded Shane leave her house, telling him he was no 279 00:19:09.240 --> 00:19:11.490 longer welcome and he was no longer to have any 280 00:19:11.549 --> 00:19:16.589 contact with Carly. Shane puffed up and got aggressive, defending 281 00:19:16.609 --> 00:19:20.670 himself against what Sonia was implying. He stormed through the 282 00:19:20.710 --> 00:19:26.859 house and grabbed his bag, leaving quickly in anger. Carly 283 00:19:26.890 --> 00:19:30.599 was incredibly upset by the events unfolding, crying and begging 284 00:19:30.640 --> 00:19:35.140 her mum to reconsider. She cared so passionately about Brandon 285 00:19:35.339 --> 00:19:38.799 and worried the fight between their parents would jeopardise their relationship. 286 00:19:40.920 --> 00:19:45.529 Sonia told her daughter firmly, Carly, something isn't right about this. 287 00:19:46.349 --> 00:19:51.259 Something doesn't feel right. At that moment, something seemed to 288 00:19:51.319 --> 00:19:55.119 click in Carly's mind. She sat down at the kitchen table, 289 00:19:55.660 --> 00:20:02.309 looked at her mother, and said, Okay, Mum. After things 290 00:20:02.349 --> 00:20:05.690 had calmed down, Carly broke down and confided in her mum. 291 00:20:06.259 --> 00:20:09.890 revealing Shane had unbuckled her pants, lifted her top and 292 00:20:09.930 --> 00:20:14.349 touched her inappropriately. He had also propositioned her for sex, 293 00:20:14.769 --> 00:20:19.470 explaining that Brandon wouldn't mind if they did it. Carly 294 00:20:19.490 --> 00:20:22.450 accepted the man was a creep, but wanted Sonia to 295 00:20:22.509 --> 00:20:25.430 talk things through with him, to quash any conflict for 296 00:20:25.470 --> 00:20:29.799 hers and Brandon's sake. But the news of Shane's perversions 297 00:20:29.930 --> 00:20:33.720 far outweighed her daughter's teen romance. Sonia just wanted to 298 00:20:33.740 --> 00:20:37.690 keep Carly safe and away from Shane, She obtained Shane's 299 00:20:37.759 --> 00:20:41.019 email address and sent him a heated message, once again 300 00:20:41.140 --> 00:20:43.400 warning him to stay away from her daughter or she 301 00:20:43.440 --> 00:20:47.880 would notify police about what he did to Carly. She 302 00:20:47.940 --> 00:20:53.690 received a response from Shane's email. He wrote, Bitch please. 303 00:20:54.289 --> 00:20:56.990 That email was so full of lies and hearsay and 304 00:20:57.049 --> 00:21:00.029 I am disgusted that someone of a reasonable intelligence could 305 00:21:00.049 --> 00:21:03.319 believe such crap to be true. The things you called 306 00:21:03.339 --> 00:21:06.220 me were totally defaming and I have forwarded the email 307 00:21:06.279 --> 00:21:10.000 onto my solicitor for further action. I sincerely hope you 308 00:21:10.019 --> 00:21:13.940 have insurance against lawsuits. You will need it. I will 309 00:21:13.960 --> 00:21:17.240 go into court as a decorated SAS officer, while you 310 00:21:17.259 --> 00:21:23.319 will go in as a bitch. Determined to keep Shane 311 00:21:23.359 --> 00:21:28.779 from contacting Carly, Sonia temporarily confiscated Carly's mobile phone, computer 312 00:21:28.960 --> 00:21:33.539 and internet access. It worked. To their relief, they didn't 313 00:21:33.579 --> 00:21:37.319 hear from him. As far as Sonia knew, Shane had 314 00:21:37.380 --> 00:21:43.309 taken her warning seriously. It was unknown whether or not 315 00:21:43.349 --> 00:21:45.970 Brandon was told what his father did to Carly during 316 00:21:46.049 --> 00:21:49.789 his stay at the Ryan house. Despite the actions of 317 00:21:49.829 --> 00:21:54.109 his father, Carly still had feelings for her boyfriend. She 318 00:21:54.150 --> 00:21:56.680 still hoped they would someday meet so she could clear 319 00:21:56.700 --> 00:22:03.970 things up between them. Less than one month later, at 320 00:22:04.069 --> 00:22:08.710 midday on February 19, 2007, Carly told her mum she 321 00:22:08.750 --> 00:22:10.730 was going to catch a bus into the city to 322 00:22:10.769 --> 00:22:15.539 meet up with friends. Carly made the trip into Adelaide 323 00:22:15.619 --> 00:22:18.680 often to go shopping around the Rundle Moor precinct and 324 00:22:18.779 --> 00:22:23.059 hang out with friends in the surrounding parklands. Afterwards, she 325

00:22:23.099 --> 00:22:24.779 told her mother she would spend the night at a 326 00:22:24.819 --> 00:22:29.259 friend's place. Carly put on a leopard print dress with 327 00:22:29.299 --> 00:22:32.119 a pair of black wedge heels. She grabbed her navy 328 00:22:32.160 --> 00:22:35.559 blue duffel bag, filling it with necessities for her sleepover. 329 00:22:36.279 --> 00:22:38.980 This included a change of clothes, a can of hairspray, 330 00:22:39.230 --> 00:22:42.269 her purse, mobile phone, and a tube of lip balm. 331 00:22:44.470 --> 00:22:47.329 Throughout her preparations, she stopped to give her mum four 332 00:22:47.410 --> 00:22:51.430 separate hugs. Sonia noticed her daughter had a funny expression 333 00:22:51.490 --> 00:22:54.589 on her face that morning, a look that she didn't recognise. 334 00:22:55.769 --> 00:23:00.099 Carly wasn't her typical cheerful self. Before she left at 335 00:23:00.130 --> 00:23:03.279 about 4pm, Carly rushed over to give her mum one 336 00:23:03.400 --> 00:23:09.380 final big hug. Her hold was noticeably tight. When she 337 00:23:09.420 --> 00:23:13.460 did pull away, Carly headed to the front door. As 338 00:23:13.500 --> 00:23:17.859 she skipped off the veranda, Carly called out, Love you mum. 339 00:23:20.519 --> 00:23:23.640 The following morning on February 20, the phone rang at 340 00:23:23.680 --> 00:23:28.640 the Ryan household. Sonia answered. The caller explained they had 341 00:23:28.700 --> 00:23:30.900 found a purse left on the footpath of a southern 342 00:23:30.920 --> 00:23:35.009 suburb of Adelaide. Assuming it was a piece of lost property, 343 00:23:35.210 --> 00:23:37.789 they looked inside for a form of ID and found 344 00:23:37.829 --> 00:23:42.710 a phone number, which rang through to Sonia Ryan. A 345 00:23:42.769 --> 00:23:47.400 sense of nervous panic prickled throughout Sonia's body. The purse 346 00:23:47.440 --> 00:23:52.859 was Carly's. The suburb Carly's purse was found in was 347 00:23:52.940 --> 00:23:55.769 not an area the teenager frequented, and it was nowhere 348 00:23:55.829 --> 00:23:57.730 near where she told her mum she was going to 349 00:23:57.769 --> 00:24:01.190 spend that night. If Carly had planned to go there, 350 00:24:01.430 --> 00:24:04.349 she would have been upfront about it. Carly wasn't one 351 00:24:04.390 --> 00:24:09.019 to lie to her mother. Sonia tried calling Carly's mobile phone, 352 00:24:09.500 --> 00:24:13.180 but there was no answer. She knew Carly had her 353 00:24:13.220 --> 00:24:15.500 phone on her when she left the house the day before. 354 00:24:16.400 --> 00:24:19.119 In fact, Sonia received a text message from Carly the 355 00:24:19.160 --> 00:24:27.109 night before that read, Mum, I'm okay. Everything's good. Sonia 356 00:24:27.150 --> 00:24:30.690 contacted Carly's friends, only to discover her daughter hadn't gone 357 00:24:30.730 --> 00:24:33.180 to the city to meet with who she said, nor 358 00:24:33.220 --> 00:24:35.160 did she spend the night at any of their houses. 359 00:24:36.180 --> 00:24:41.349 They had no idea where Carly was. Panic washed over Sonia, 360 00:24:41.660 --> 00:24:43.769 and she called the police to report her daughter as 361 00:24:43.809 --> 00:24:57.599 a missing person. Casefile will be back shortly. Thank you 362 00:24:57.660 --> 00:25:02.900 for supporting us by listening to this episode's sponsors. Having 363 00:25:02.960 --> 00:25:06.490 a great business idea is one thing. Getting it online 364 00:25:06.690 --> 00:25:10.609 is another. Shopify makes that part easy with everything you 365 00:25:10.690 --> 00:25:14.329 need to start selling from day one. That's exactly what 366 00:25:14.390 --> 00:25:17.730 Casefile team member Paulina found when she switched her online 367 00:25:17.750 --> 00:25:21.559 store to Shopify. She said the migration was simple, there 368 00:25:21.599 --> 00:25:24.420 were plenty of professional themes to choose from and lots 369 00:25:24.480 --> 00:25:28.500 of built-in features she hadn't had access to before. What 370 00:25:28.579 --> 00:25:32.829 really stood out was the checkout experience. Shopify checkout makes 371 00:25:32.890 --> 00:25:35.490 it quick and easy for customers to complete their purchase, 372 00:25:35.789 --> 00:25:39.069 while returning customers can check out with their saved details 373 00:25:39.250 --> 00:25:42.970 in just a tap. Because Shopify handles the setup and 374 00:25:43.049 --> 00:25:46.730 day-to-day essentials, you can spend less time managing your website 375 00:25:46.970 --> 00:25:52.490 and more time growing your business. With inventory integrations, responsive support, 376 00:25:52.710 --> 00:25:57.569 secure infrastructure and easy collaboration with developers, it's built to 377 00:25:57.630 --> 00:26:02.569 grow with you. With Shopify, nothing stands between your idea 378 00:26:02.750 --> 00:26:08.140 and a real business. So, go make it one. Start 379 00:26:08.259 --> 00:26:12.779 your free trial at shopify.com. 380 00:26:15.779 --> 00:26:16.779 Acast recommends. 381 00:26:18.250 --> 00:26:21.509 This is John from the David McWilliams podcast. Now, if 382 00:26:21.529 --> 00:26:26.069 you're looking to make sense of what's happening in the world, economically, politically, culturally, 383 00:26:26.470 --> 00:26:27.430 you'll find it here. 384 00:26:27.769 --> 00:26:29.950 We take the big ideas shaping your life and we 385 00:26:30.009 --> 00:26:32.690 break them down in a way that's clear, curious, and 386 00:26:32.910 --> 00:26:34.380 actually worth your time. 387 00:26:34.759 --> 00:26:36.839 New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday. 388 00:26:36.970 --> 00:26:40.480 Follow the David McWilliams podcast wherever you get your podcasts. 389 00:26:40.759 --> 00:26:44.839 Acast is home to the world's best podcasts, including Crime World, 390 00:26:44.859 --> 00:26:48.549 The Other Hand, on the one you're listening to right now. 391 00:26:54.789 --> 00:26:58.599 Thank you for

listening to this episode's ads. By supporting 392 00:26:58.670 --> 00:27:03.400 our sponsors, you support Casefile to continue to deliver quality content. 393 00:27:10.000 --> 00:27:13.339 At 6am on the morning of February 20th, Kim Gordon 394 00:27:13.400 --> 00:27:16.089 was enjoying a walk in her seaside hometown of Port 395 00:27:16.119 --> 00:27:21.289 Elliot on the Fleurieu Peninsula of South Australia. Located 80 396 00:27:21.289 --> 00:27:25.009 kilometres from Adelaide CBD, Port Elliot is a popular beach 397 00:27:25.049 --> 00:27:29.309 town frequented by holidaymakers and surfers. It's most well known 398 00:27:29.349 --> 00:27:32.990 for its swimming beach, Horseshoe Bay, a secluded stretch of 399 00:27:33.049 --> 00:27:36.799 pristine coast framed by two granite outcrops and surrounded by 400 00:27:36.859 --> 00:27:42.079 picnic areas. It was along Horseshoe Bay where Kim took 401 00:27:42.119 --> 00:27:46.440 her leisurely early morning walk. As she trudged the sandy stretch, 402 00:27:46.859 --> 00:27:50.920 the sun rose over the distant horizon. She noticed something 403 00:27:50.960 --> 00:27:54.940 in the water. It was a young female face down 404 00:27:54.980 --> 00:27:59.119 in the shallows. Panicked, Kim needed help to pull the 405 00:27:59.160 --> 00:28:02.259 girl from the water. She called out for help, but 406 00:28:02.299 --> 00:28:05.839 there was no one around. She sprinted to a nearby 407 00:28:05.900 --> 00:28:10.069 car park and found a local fisherman, Ian Slade. Ian 408 00:28:10.109 --> 00:28:12.299 rushed down to the shoreline and jumped into the ocean 409 00:28:12.339 --> 00:28:15.579 to pull the girl from the waves. The clothing on 410 00:28:15.619 --> 00:28:18.240 the young woman was in disarray and she had numerous 411 00:28:18.319 --> 00:28:24.599 bruises and lacerations to her neck, face and arms. Ian 412 00:28:24.640 --> 00:28:27.470 and Kim attempted to resuscitate the girl as an ambulance 413 00:28:27.509 --> 00:28:32.069 was called. When paramedics arrived, they quickly realised there was 414 00:28:32.109 --> 00:28:36.269 a little they could do. The young lady was pronounced dead. 415 00:28:37.309 --> 00:28:40.910 Her body, which contained no form of identification, was labelled 416 00:28:40.930 --> 00:28:45.509 by police as Jane Doe. Given the extent of the injuries, 417 00:28:45.829 --> 00:28:49.170 foul play was immediately suspected and a task force was 418 00:28:49.210 --> 00:28:54.519 quickly established. Police were quick to piece together Sonia Ryan's 419 00:28:54.559 --> 00:28:57.880 call about her missing daughter and the unknown deceased female 420 00:28:57.980 --> 00:29:02.740 found in Horseshoe Bay. Sonia Ryan opened her front door 421 00:29:02.779 --> 00:29:06.650 to be greeted by the police. One had tears rolling 422 00:29:06.690 --> 00:29:10.130 down his face, and she immediately knew he came bearing 423 00:29:10.210 --> 00:29:14.119 bad news. They informed her that a body matching the

424 00:29:14.160 --> 00:29:16.579 description of her daughter had washed up on a secluded 425 00:29:16.640 --> 00:29:20.099 beach in Port Elliot, about one hour's drive from Stirling. 426 00:29:22.440 --> 00:29:27.440 Sonia positively identified Jane Doe as her baby girl, Carly. 427 00:29:31.190 --> 00:29:35.319 An autopsy revealed Carly suffered 19 different injuries, including between 428 00:29:35.319 --> 00:29:38.930 6 and 8 around her head, likely caused by fists 429 00:29:39.190 --> 00:29:42.890 or a blunt object. She was found wearing different clothing 430 00:29:42.930 --> 00:29:44.690 to those which she had left her home in the 431 00:29:44.710 --> 00:29:49.450 day prior. Her tracksuit pants were inside out, and although 432 00:29:49.490 --> 00:29:52.880 her bra was on correctly, it appeared hastily clipped together. 433 00:29:53.680 --> 00:29:57.849 The lower clasp of the strap was undone. Her underwear 434 00:29:57.869 --> 00:30:01.269 had been removed and was found nearby, tangled up in 435 00:30:01.329 --> 00:30:07.170 belt suspenders. Cause of death was determined as drowning as 436 00:30:07.230 --> 00:30:11.299 a result of craniofacial trauma. The presence of sand in 437 00:30:11.339 --> 00:30:14.839 Carly's lungs suggested her assailant suffocated her face down in 438 00:30:14.859 --> 00:30:17.940 the sand before dumping her unconscious body in the ocean, 439 00:30:18.440 --> 00:30:23.380 where she eventually drowned. Experts concluded that Carly may have 440 00:30:23.420 --> 00:30:26.390 still been alive just half an hour before she was discovered. 441 00:30:29.420 --> 00:30:33.759 Police searched the shoreline, rocky outcroppings and jetty, and divers 442 00:30:33.799 --> 00:30:37.799 searched the water. Some items of jewellery belonging to Carly 443 00:30:37.819 --> 00:30:41.140 were found at a nearby lookout area known as Freeman's Knob. 444 00:30:43.380 --> 00:30:46.029 None of Carly's friends could provide any answers as to 445 00:30:46.069 --> 00:30:49.109 why Carly wound up in Port Elliot, nor did they 446 00:30:49.150 --> 00:30:52.670 have ideas who she may have met there. Some suggested 447 00:30:52.710 --> 00:30:55.109 Carly had been hanging out with a new group of people, 448 00:30:55.789 --> 00:30:58.619 ones they didn't know. and perhaps she drove down to 449 00:30:58.660 --> 00:31:03.700 the coast with them. Police information booths were set up 450 00:31:03.759 --> 00:31:06.279 in Port Elliot and the nearby town of Victor Harbour. 451 00:31:07.079 --> 00:31:09.799 The public were urged to come forward with any information 452 00:31:09.839 --> 00:31:12.430 that could help identify Carly's movements on the night of 453 00:31:12.490 --> 00:31:19.190 her death. Detectives spent hours analysing local CCTV footage taken 454 00:31:19.230 --> 00:31:21.710 the day of Carly's death in hopes to track her 455 00:31:21.750 --> 00:31:26.069 final journey. In footage collected from the nearby seaside tourist 456 00:31:26.089 --> 00:31:28.990 town of Victor Harbor, they spotted Carly in the presence 457 00:31:29.029 --> 00:31:33.289 of two men outside the Crown Hotel. The trio were 458 00:31:33.309 --> 00:31:36.009 then spotted at a fish and chip shop, and later 459 00:31:36.069 --> 00:31:40.279 at a local Subway food outlet. A worker at the 460 00:31:40.339 --> 00:31:43.640 fish and chip shop remembered the group stopping by. The 461 00:31:43.700 --> 00:31:46.039 older man with Carly asked for advice on a good 462 00:31:46.079 --> 00:31:49.839 place to have a drink. The worker suggested Horseshoe Bay. 463 00:31:51.059 --> 00:31:54.740 The same man also visited a supermarket As he purchased 464 00:31:54.799 --> 00:31:57.480 a pack of cigarettes, he asked the cashier a similar 465 00:31:57.539 --> 00:32:00.680 question about a place to have a drink. The cashier 466 00:32:00.740 --> 00:32:08.180 also recommended Horseshoe Bay. Two Port Elliot locals, Benjamin and Anna, 467 00:32:08.299 --> 00:32:12.380 went swimming at Horseshoe Bay at 8.30pm that night. The 468 00:32:12.400 --> 00:32:15.329 pair recalled a girl matching Carly's description sitting on a 469 00:32:15.410 --> 00:32:18.650 rock on the sandy shoreline. With her were two men. 470 00:32:19.569 --> 00:32:22.960 One looked older than the other. The younger male wore 471 00:32:23.069 --> 00:32:26.269 all black clothing and a black hat. The older male 472 00:32:26.329 --> 00:32:29.670 wore baggy denim jeans and a red shirt. They were 473 00:32:29.710 --> 00:32:36.450 both clean shaven and had short, dark hair. Benjamin and 474 00:32:36.519 --> 00:32:39.160 Dana sat just metres from where Carly and the two 475 00:32:39.220 --> 00:32:45.299 men were talking, but they couldn't hear the conversation. Around 9.45pm, 476 00:32:45.500 --> 00:32:48.829 Benjamin and Dana left the beach. When they reached the 477 00:32:48.869 --> 00:32:51.730 steep steps leading up and away from the shoreline, The 478 00:32:51.809 --> 00:32:54.950 older man with Carly flashed a torch at them, asking, 479 00:32:54.970 --> 00:33:00.809 Are you alright? Police pressed forward on identifying the two 480 00:33:00.869 --> 00:33:04.910 men seen with Carly. The South Australian Electronic Crime Unit 481 00:33:05.009 --> 00:33:08.910 investigated Carly's online presence, looking for links between her murder 482 00:33:09.049 --> 00:33:12.009 and her digital profile, believing she may have had online 483 00:33:12.059 --> 00:33:16.299 contact with her killer or killers. At the time of 484 00:33:16.359 --> 00:33:20.079 her death, Carly had three different MySpace profiles, but only 485 00:33:20.240 --> 00:33:23.619 one was visible to the public. She last logged onto 486 00:33:23.660 --> 00:33:27.809 the site the day before her body was found. Her 487 00:33:27.849 --> 00:33:31.150 profile page had since become a virtual memorial covered with 488 00:33:31.250 --> 00:33:36.930 grief-stricken messages from friends. Some read, We will all miss 489 00:33:36.950

--> 00:33:39.450 you Carly, for all the times that we spent together 490 00:33:39.789 --> 00:33:42.759 and all the laughs we shared. You cheered us up 491 00:33:42.819 --> 00:33:45.400 when we were having bad days and you always showed 492 00:33:45.460 --> 00:33:48.240 us the bright side of everything. You were such a 493 00:33:48.289 --> 00:33:51.009 wonderful person and you will forever live on in our 494 00:33:51.049 --> 00:33:56.490 hearts and memories. Rest in peace, Carly. You were an 495 00:33:56.529 --> 00:33:59.910 amazing girl and always managed to make me smile. You 496 00:33:59.950 --> 00:34:02.230 will be missed by everyone who ever had the privilege 497 00:34:02.269 --> 00:34:07.279 to meet you. I love you. Today I woke up 498 00:34:07.339 --> 00:34:09.739 hoping it was all a dream, but it did happen. 499 00:34:10.590 --> 00:34:13.550 I saw the newspaper today. Your pretty face was on 500 00:34:13.570 --> 00:34:20.849 the cover. I just started crying. As investigators scrolled through 501 00:34:20.889 --> 00:34:25.119 Carly's online content searching for clues, the media were doing 502 00:34:25.159 --> 00:34:33.340 the same. Carly's MySpace profile was full of artistic expression 503 00:34:33.440 --> 00:34:37.139 related to the emo subculture she was engaged in, including 504 00:34:37.199 --> 00:34:40.690 dark imagery and text. The media were quick to take 505 00:34:40.710 --> 00:34:43.139 the content out of context and paint a picture of 506 00:34:43.199 --> 00:34:46.539 Carly that was far from the outgoing, bubbly teen she was. 507 00:34:48.119 --> 00:34:52.079 They made unproven connections between the emo subculture and Carly's death, 508 00:34:52.639 --> 00:34:55.210 and in the harshest of cases, found a way to 509 00:34:55.250 --> 00:34:59.429 blame her interest in the scene for her death. Hungry 510 00:34:59.469 --> 00:35:03.449 for salacious information, reporters camped outside the gates of Carly's school. 511 00:35:04.840 --> 00:35:09.010 Morning students were confronted with prying questions as journalists digged 512 00:35:09.050 --> 00:35:12.349 into Carly's personal life, determined to find any sliver of 513 00:35:12.429 --> 00:35:16.750 information that would create a striking headline. The scrutiny became 514 00:35:16.829 --> 00:35:19.780 so intense, the media were officially told to get off 515 00:35:19.800 --> 00:35:26.400 the property and stop harassing students. Meanwhile, police were informed 516 00:35:26.440 --> 00:35:28.860 of the presence of a light blue car with Victoria 517 00:35:28.900 --> 00:35:32.260 State registration plates seen by witnesses in Port Elliot and 518 00:35:32.300 --> 00:35:36.130 Victor Harbour the day Carly was there. It was also 519 00:35:36.210 --> 00:35:39.309 spotted parked on the cliffs overlooking Horseshoe Bay the night 520 00:35:39.369 --> 00:35:44.000 before Carly's body was discovered. A security guard's ID was 521 00:35:44.079 --> 00:35:50.699 noticed on the passenger side dashboard. It was 11 days 522 00:35:50.800 --> 00:35:53.840 after Carly's body was found when police raided a home 523 00:35:53.940 --> 00:35:59.210 located in Rosebud West on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula, approximately 75 524 00:35:59.210 --> 00:36:04.190 kilometres southeast of Melbourne's CBD. Parked out front was the 525 00:36:04.230 --> 00:36:09.030 light blue car they had been searching for. Inside, they 526 00:36:09.090 --> 00:36:14.369 found 48-year-old Gary Newman. Newman was well known to Carly 527 00:36:14.409 --> 00:36:17.210 Ryan and her family, but they knew him by a 528 00:36:17.250 --> 00:36:17.889 different name. 529 00:36:19.190 --> 00:36:19.550 Shane. 530 00:36:21.150 --> 00:36:25.190 Shane was the father of Carly's online boyfriend, Brandon Kane. 531 00:36:26.510 --> 00:36:30.349 In reality, Shane was actually the alter ego of Gary Newman, 532 00:36:30.909 --> 00:36:36.309 a divorced father of three When police arrived to arrest 533 00:36:36.349 --> 00:36:39.750 him in relation to Carly Ryan's murder, Newman was sitting 534 00:36:39.789 --> 00:36:43.010 at the computer. He was logged into an online chat 535 00:36:43.050 --> 00:36:47.199 room and conversing with a 14-year-old girl in Perth, Western Australia. 536 00:36:49.010 --> 00:36:52.260 As for Brandon Kane, Carly's boyfriend whom she had been 537 00:36:52.320 --> 00:36:59.079 speaking with for 18 months prior, he didn't exist. Brandon 538 00:36:59.119 --> 00:37:02.530 was nothing more than another construct of Gary Newman's. who 539 00:37:02.570 --> 00:37:08.909 hid behind the persona online to groom young girls. For 540 00:37:08.909 --> 00:37:12.130 18 months, Newman methodically strung together an intricate web of 541 00:37:12.210 --> 00:37:16.409 lies to manipulate Carly Ryan. He bombarded her with messages 542 00:37:16.530 --> 00:37:20.699 from the fictitious Brandon, an identity he designed specifically to 543 00:37:20.739 --> 00:37:24.519 attract Carly, mimicking her own interests and playing on her 544 00:37:24.579 --> 00:37:29.719 personal insecurities and vulnerabilities. Newman went to great lengths to 545 00:37:29.739 --> 00:37:33.179 keep up the charade, Even the webcam footage believed to 546 00:37:33.219 --> 00:37:36.199 be Brandon typing at his computer to Carly was faked 547 00:37:36.260 --> 00:37:39.199 by Newman. It was just looped footage he had edited 548 00:37:39.239 --> 00:37:43.409 together of someone else. The security company he claimed to 549 00:37:43.449 --> 00:37:47.329 work for was also a fabrication. Newman had not only 550 00:37:47.369 --> 00:37:50.130 created a fake ID to play the part, but even 551 00:37:50.150 --> 00:37:52.530 went so far as to sew the fake company's logo 552 00:37:52.610 --> 00:37:55.929 onto a polo shirt. He wore it when meeting Sonia 553 00:37:55.969 --> 00:37:59.869 for the first time to uphold the lie. His deception 554 00:37:59.889 --> 00:38:03.309 was so intricately layered, Newman had literally thought of

everything. 555 00:38:04.190 --> 00:38:06.610 Even when Sonia had her doubts about him, he was 556 00:38:06.670 --> 00:38:11.010 always one step ahead, controlling the situation with more convincing lies. 557 00:38:14.159 --> 00:38:17.619 While executing the search of Newman's home, police found computer 558 00:38:17.659 --> 00:38:21.139 disks and hard drives with thousands of images of child pornography. 559 00:38:22.360 --> 00:38:25.559 Newman had kept thorough records of over 200 fake online 560 00:38:25.599 --> 00:38:29.860 profiles he created to groom young girls. Pages and pages 561 00:38:29.900 --> 00:38:32.619 of notebooks were filled with details of all his fake 562 00:38:32.659 --> 00:38:37.119 identities and phony accounts, including fake names, mobile phone numbers, 563 00:38:37.400 --> 00:38:41.050 social media pages and the passwords associated with each one. 564 00:38:42.409 --> 00:38:46.050 Police were astounded. They had never seen such a large-scale 565 00:38:46.110 --> 00:38:52.409 and elaborate set-up before. A deep dive into Newman's online 566 00:38:52.489 --> 00:38:55.250 identity revealed Carly was not the first girl he had 567 00:38:55.309 --> 00:38:59.710 preyed upon. He previously visited a 14-year-old girl in America 568 00:38:59.849 --> 00:39:02.809 whom he had also groomed online using a false identity. 569 00:39:03.710 --> 00:39:06.130 He had referred to her in messages as his princess 570 00:39:06.190 --> 00:39:13.440 and wife. She turned down his advances upon discovering the truth. Then, 571 00:39:13.960 --> 00:39:17.340 prior to meeting Carly, Newman arranged to meet another victim 572 00:39:17.380 --> 00:39:22.559 in Hong Kong, this time using the alias of Nash. Yet, 573 00:39:22.840 --> 00:39:25.820 that 14-year-old girl never showed up to their pre-planned meeting. 574 00:39:27.099 --> 00:39:32.340 Newman was infuriated. According to witness statements, he promised he 575 00:39:32.380 --> 00:39:35.019 would get revenge on the girl, saying he would leave 576 00:39:35.039 --> 00:39:43.710 her looking like packaged meat. Phone and internet records proved 577 00:39:43.829 --> 00:39:46.650 Newman was in contact with Carly for months prior to 578 00:39:46.710 --> 00:39:50.280 her death. On the day after her death, Newman logged 579 00:39:50.320 --> 00:39:54.119 into Shane's MySpace page and purged all interactions posted there 580 00:39:54.139 --> 00:39:58.639 between himself and Carly. Brandon's MySpace account was fully deleted, 581 00:39:59.260 --> 00:40:02.119 but it was able to be recovered, and messages between 582 00:40:02.159 --> 00:40:08.289 Carly and Newman, pretending to be Brandon, were exposed. Shane's 583 00:40:08.329 --> 00:40:12.409 MySpace page had only four friends listed. Only three were visible. 584 00:40:13.369 --> 00:40:16.260 One was Carly. A second was a girl named Jadie. 585 00:40:16.820 --> 00:40:18.920 and the third was a close friend of Carly of 586 00:40:18.980 --> 00:40:24.530 the same

age. Police believed Newman hadn't targeted Carly specifically. 587 00:40:25.489 --> 00:40:28.289 Evidence suggested he had attempted to groom various girls from 588 00:40:28.329 --> 00:40:32.550 Carly's friendship circle. Failing one attempt, he moved on to another, 589 00:40:33.090 --> 00:40:35.389 and kept making his way through his pool of potential 590 00:40:35.469 --> 00:40:42.329 targets until he snared someone. Carly. Brandon was Newman's blank canvas, 591 00:40:42.590 --> 00:40:44.860 whom he designed to appeal to whichever girl he was 592 00:40:44.889 --> 00:40:48.139 attempting to groom at the time. He scrolled through Carly's 593 00:40:48.199 --> 00:40:52.610 online profiles, noting her interests and favourite bands, making them 594 00:40:52.670 --> 00:40:59.269 Brandon's also. One of Carly's friends pursued by Brandon was Ashley. 595 00:41:00.110 --> 00:41:04.750 She stated, quote, We would talk about normal stuff, like 596 00:41:04.789 --> 00:41:07.260 what we did during the day, and then he would 597 00:41:07.300 --> 00:41:10.539 bring up sex stuff. I wouldn't talk like that and 598 00:41:10.599 --> 00:41:13.119 I didn't go along with it. That's when he said 599 00:41:13.159 --> 00:41:18.179 I was boring. When Ashley posted a picture on her 600 00:41:18.239 --> 00:41:22.619 profile page featuring Carly, Newman narrowed in on his new target. 601 00:41:23.579 --> 00:41:26.519 He told Ashley he thought Carly looked hot and asked 602 00:41:26.559 --> 00:41:31.820 for her email address. Handwritten notes by Newman were found 603 00:41:31.860 --> 00:41:35.769 in his home. They were titled Adelaide Slut, with Carly's 604 00:41:35.809 --> 00:41:40.530 contact details scrawled beneath. Alongside them he had written the words, 605 00:41:41.610 --> 00:41:47.119 Rest in peace Carly. Investigators believed after Newman had been 606 00:41:47.159 --> 00:41:50.460 kicked out of the Ryan house, he re-established contact with 607 00:41:50.519 --> 00:41:54.710 Carly through his Brandon persona. To bypass Sonia's attempts to 608 00:41:54.750 --> 00:41:57.949 stop him from contacting Carly, Newman would call the home 609 00:41:57.989 --> 00:42:02.909 phone while Sonia was at work. Using Brandon, Newman tricked 610 00:42:02.969 --> 00:42:06.110 Carly into meeting him the night of her death. He 611 00:42:06.170 --> 00:42:08.429 convinced her to lie to Sonia about where she was 612 00:42:08.489 --> 00:42:12.539 really going that night. Carly shared an open and honest 613 00:42:12.579 --> 00:42:15.389 relationship with her mum. but was forced to break that 614 00:42:15.449 --> 00:42:18.139 trust under the impression it was worth it to meet 615 00:42:18.179 --> 00:42:22.519 the love of her life. In reality, Newman was luring 616 00:42:22.599 --> 00:42:25.380 her to a secluded location that she was unfamiliar with, 617 00:42:25.980 --> 00:42:31.099 where he knew he could be alone with her. The 618 00:42:31.119 --> 00:42:35.219 MySpace profile Newman used to

pose as Brandon's father, Shane, 619 00:42:35.579 --> 00:42:38.539 contained a short bio providing a glimpse into the man 620 00:42:38.599 --> 00:42:42.929 behind the mask. It read, I may not be a 621 00:42:42.989 --> 00:42:45.469 kid anymore but I tend to act much younger than 622 00:42:45.530 --> 00:42:48.639 I am and never ever call this a midlife crisis. 623 00:42:49.380 --> 00:42:52.460 To me there is no such thing. All throughout our 624 00:42:52.500 --> 00:42:55.880 lives we are going through changes. Even people in their 625 00:42:55.900 --> 00:43:00.639 late teens and early twenties do. It's called evolution. I 626 00:43:00.699 --> 00:43:04.809 am forthright and self-opinionated and this annoys some people but 627 00:43:04.849 --> 00:43:07.610 they can either live with it or hate it. Either 628 00:43:07.650 --> 00:43:11.030 way they are not going to change me. I may 629 00:43:11.070 --> 00:43:13.610 not be a kid anymore but I tend to act 630 00:43:13.690 --> 00:43:16.769 much younger than I am. I do go for women 631 00:43:16.869 --> 00:43:26.340 somewhat younger than me, usually someone sexually adventurous. He described 632 00:43:26.380 --> 00:43:29.800 himself as having tattoos, multiple piercings, and that he was 633 00:43:29.840 --> 00:43:33.079 a former military commando trying to get his security licence 634 00:43:33.119 --> 00:43:36.550 back after some financial disasters and years of travelling the world. 635 00:43:37.929 --> 00:43:40.449 He mentioned having custody of a beautiful and loving son, 636 00:43:40.860 --> 00:43:44.599 that no one could ever take away from him. That 637 00:43:44.679 --> 00:43:48.000 son was a 17-year-old who was also arrested at Newman's 638 00:43:48.019 --> 00:43:51.880 home in relation to Carly Ryan's murder. He had recently 639 00:43:51.920 --> 00:43:54.679 been returned to Newman's custody after years in the foster 640 00:43:54.699 --> 00:43:58.420 care system. He was identified as being the younger male 641 00:43:58.500 --> 00:44:00.780 last seen with Carly on the night she was murdered. 642 00:44:01.980 --> 00:44:03.900 Due to the fact he was underage at the time 643 00:44:03.940 --> 00:44:07.400 of Carly's death, his full identity was protected and his 644 00:44:07.440 --> 00:44:13.849 name wasn't publicly released. Evidence was discovered that put both 645 00:44:13.909 --> 00:44:17.179 men at the crime scene. Sand was found on shoes 646 00:44:17.260 --> 00:44:20.800 belonging to both Newman and his son. Tests of the 647 00:44:20.860 --> 00:44:23.639 sand grains and shell fragments resulted in a match for 648 00:44:23.659 --> 00:44:28.480 the sand at Horseshoe Bay. Furthermore, the sand on Victoria's 649 00:44:28.539 --> 00:44:31.780 coastline where Newman and his son lived was completely different. 650 00:44:32.900 --> 00:44:36.199 Proving the sand on their shoes came from the crime scene. 651 00:44:38.670 --> 00:44:42.389 Witnesses around Victor Harbour were also able to positively identify 652 00:44:42.449 --> 00:44:44.730 Newman's son in a line-up as one of the men 653 00:44:44.789 --> 00:44:49.469 with Carly the afternoon of her murder. After the arrests 654 00:44:49.550 --> 00:44:52.289 were made, a memorial was held for Carly in the 655 00:44:52.329 --> 00:44:58.130 tranquil grounds of Centennial Park. Around 150 friends and family attended. 656 00:44:59.449 --> 00:45:05.159 Sonia Ryan described her daughter as special, loving, caring, humorous, strong, 657 00:45:05.739 --> 00:45:17.230 gifted and unique. Case File will be back shortly. Thank 658 00:45:17.250 --> 00:45:20.769 you for supporting us by listening to this episode's sponsors. 659 00:45:24.570 --> 00:45:27.170 We all tend to put things off, but some things 660 00:45:27.230 --> 00:45:30.710 are too important to leave until tomorrow. Like your hormonal 661 00:45:30.750 --> 00:45:33.699 health and fertility. At Irish Life Health, we make it 662 00:45:33.929 --> 00:45:36.579 easy to start today as the first health insurer to 663 00:45:36.619 --> 00:45:40.559 offer access to an advanced at-home fertility check. Search Irish 664 00:45:40.599 --> 00:45:44.920 Life Health. A better life with Irish Life. Female fertility 665 00:45:44.960 --> 00:45:48.079 assessment and consultation available on all health insurance hospital plans. 666 00:45:48.360 --> 00:45:50.900 Terms and conditions apply. Irish Life Health Jack is regulated 667 00:45:50.920 --> 00:45:51.940 by the Central Bank of Ireland. 668 00:45:56.119 --> 00:46:01.590 You parked perfectly first try. One smooth, flawless movement. And 669 00:46:01.630 --> 00:46:05.150 now you're sitting there for a second, just enjoying the moment, 670 00:46:05.590 --> 00:46:10.980 like you won something. That's human. At OnPust Insurance, we 671 00:46:11.039 --> 00:46:14.159 believe in being a little more human about car insurance. 672 00:46:14.820 --> 00:46:17.119 We know how important it is to stay protected on 673 00:46:17.159 --> 00:46:21.760 the road. Head to OnPustInsurance.ie today for your car insurance quote. 674 00:46:22.409 --> 00:46:26.889 We're human about insurance. Acceptance criteria, terms and conditions apply. 675 00:46:26.929 --> 00:46:29.789 When Direct Ireland Limited trading as OnPust Insurance is regulated 676 00:46:29.829 --> 00:46:32.289 by the Central Bank of Ireland, when Direct Ireland Limited 677 00:46:32.369 --> 00:46:34.070 is a wholly owned subsidiary of OnPust. 678 00:46:38.139 --> 00:46:41.920 Thank you for listening to this episode's ads. By supporting 679 00:46:42.000 --> 00:46:46.719 our sponsors, you support Casefile to continue to deliver quality content. 680 00:46:53.210 --> 00:46:57.010 Whilst awaiting trial, Gary Newman asked fellow inmates whether salt 681 00:46:57.050 --> 00:47:00.730 water destroyed DNA and queried whether they ever tried putting 682 00:47:00.789 --> 00:47:04.880 clothes on a dead weight. He wrote to relatives requesting 683 00:47:04.909 --> 00:47:07.000 they provide him

with a false alibi at the time 684 00:47:07.039 --> 00:47:12.989 of Carly's murder. The trial began 965 days after Carly 685 00:47:13.010 --> 00:47:18.190 Ryan's body was found. On October 19 2009, Gary Newman 686 00:47:18.309 --> 00:47:21.449 and his now 19-year-old son stood trial in the Adelaide 687 00:47:21.469 --> 00:47:29.610 Supreme Court. Both pled not guilty. Before proceedings began, Supreme 688 00:47:29.679 --> 00:47:33.219 Court Judge Justice Trish Kelly declared all evidence of Newman's 689 00:47:33.280 --> 00:47:37.579 predatory pursuit of other underage victims to be inadmissible and prejudicial. 690 00:47:38.559 --> 00:47:40.900 This was an act to keep the jury focused purely 691 00:47:40.980 --> 00:47:46.699 on evidence related to Carly. From the very beginning, Newman 692 00:47:46.739 --> 00:47:48.559 made it clear he wasn't going to make it an 693 00:47:48.619 --> 00:47:53.219 easy trial. He took the stand in January 2010, his 694 00:47:53.280 --> 00:47:58.699 testimony full of lies and conflicting stories. Initially, he blamed 695 00:47:58.739 --> 00:48:02.630 his obsession with the internet on bipolar and obsessive-compulsive disorders 696 00:48:02.690 --> 00:48:04.829 that caused him to go off for no reason at 697 00:48:04.889 --> 00:48:08.329 stupid things. He said he had since been medicated and 698 00:48:08.349 --> 00:48:13.409 become a better person. He justified his hundreds of fake 699 00:48:13.469 --> 00:48:17.250 identities as smart, stating he had taken expert advice and 700 00:48:17.369 --> 00:48:21.039 used bogus names when interacting online to avoid identity theft. 701 00:48:22.199 --> 00:48:25.480 He also claimed the 200 false identities he created were 702 00:48:25.539 --> 00:48:28.000 research for a book he was writing about the internet. 703 00:48:30.519 --> 00:48:33.730 Newman insisted he only had a parental relationship with Carly. 704 00:48:34.349 --> 00:48:37.530 He considered himself a stepfather figure to her, providing her 705 00:48:37.570 --> 00:48:41.349 with advice and chatting about movies and music. He claimed 706 00:48:41.389 --> 00:48:43.989 he always related well to young people, but it did 707 00:48:44.030 --> 00:48:49.210 not manifest into a sexual attraction. Despite admitting he found 708 00:48:49.309 --> 00:48:53.369 Carly attractive, Newman quickly added that he was asexual and 709 00:48:53.429 --> 00:49:00.440 therefore felt no sexual interest to anyone. The prosecution referred 710 00:49:00.480 --> 00:49:03.619 to the lingerie and fancy dress costumes Newman had gifted 711 00:49:03.690 --> 00:49:06.809 Carly for her birthday, demonstrating that he did in fact 712 00:49:06.829 --> 00:49:11.510 harbour a sexual interest in her. Furthermore, Newman displayed sexual 713 00:49:11.570 --> 00:49:15.400 jealousy during Carly's birthday party, becoming angry when seeing her 714 00:49:15.460 --> 00:49:21.619 interacting with her ex-boyfriend. When Sonia Ryan took the stand, 715 00:49:21.980 -->

00:49:24.980 she revealed to the court how Carly had disclosed Newman's 716 00:49:25.019 --> 00:49:30.900 inappropriate behaviour whilst he visited the Ryan household. Faced with 717 00:49:30.920 --> 00:49:35.139 the indisputable CCTV footage showing Newman, his son and Carly 718 00:49:35.179 --> 00:49:38.309 together on the afternoon of her murder, Newman was forced 719 00:49:38.349 --> 00:49:40.670 to admit he was with Carly the night of her death. 720 00:49:42.010 --> 00:49:44.369 Newman explained that he drove Carly and his son to 721 00:49:44.429 --> 00:49:47.860 a party in Port Elliot. Later in the night, Carly 722 00:49:47.889 --> 00:49:50.760 refused his offer of a lift back home, so he 723 00:49:50.780 --> 00:49:54.619 and his son left without her. According to Newman's story, 724 00:49:54.880 --> 00:49:56.860 Carly was alive and well when they left her on 725 00:49:56.900 --> 00:49:59.960 the beach and returned to Victoria. They didn't learn about 726 00:50:00.000 --> 00:50:05.239 her death until three days later. Newman also claimed that 727 00:50:05.260 --> 00:50:09.099 the co-accused, his son, was the sole creator and operator 728 00:50:09.159 --> 00:50:15.340 of the Brandon fake identity. According to Newman, news of 729 00:50:15.380 --> 00:50:18.840 Carly's death had broken his heart. He told the court 730 00:50:18.960 --> 00:50:22.480 he had called Crimestoppers with information, a claim that was 731 00:50:22.539 --> 00:50:26.880 proven to be false. It was clear to prosecutors that 732 00:50:26.920 --> 00:50:30.239 Newman lied with ease and without guilt, even when his 733 00:50:30.280 --> 00:50:33.880 deception was obvious to others. He dodged and weaved around 734 00:50:33.900 --> 00:50:36.760 the evidence presented, shaping a narrative that he was a 735 00:50:36.800 --> 00:50:40.480 sacrificial lamb to his son, only taking responsibility for the 736 00:50:40.519 --> 00:50:42.679 murder so that his son wouldn't have to spend his 737 00:50:42.739 --> 00:50:47.610 life behind bars. Yet, key evidence at the trial by 738 00:50:47.639 --> 00:50:50.690 another of Newman's sons gave jurors a stark look into 739 00:50:50.730 --> 00:50:55.210 the man's true behaviour. Newman's older son testified that Newman 740 00:50:55.250 --> 00:50:58.670 was furious after returning home from Carly's birthday party when 741 00:50:58.730 --> 00:51:02.190 Sonia had kicked him out. Newman told his sons that 742 00:51:02.230 --> 00:51:05.150 he wanted to go on holiday back to Adelaide, before 743 00:51:05.210 --> 00:51:09.130 commenting that he was going to fix Carly up. Newman 744 00:51:09.170 --> 00:51:13.280 wanted them to help him kill her. His sons didn't 745 00:51:13.320 --> 00:51:15.940 really believe he was capable of murder, so they shook 746 00:51:15.960 --> 00:51:19.579 it off as an empty threat. Nevertheless, his eldest son 747 00:51:19.599 --> 00:51:22.960 was shocked and disturbed at the mere suggestion. He moved 748 00:51:23.039 --> 00:51:25.920 out of the house shortly after, leaving behind a heated 749 00:51:26.039 --> 00:51:32.179 letter to his father, deterring him from hurting others. Newman's 750 00:51:32.260 --> 00:51:34.559 eldest son was shocked to learn a few days later 751 00:51:34.679 --> 00:51:37.840 that Newman had convinced his 17-year-old younger brother to go 752 00:51:37.860 --> 00:51:41.460 to Adelaide. Carly was reluctant to have anything to do 753 00:51:41.519 --> 00:51:44.760 with who she knew as Shane. Newman knew she wouldn't 754 00:51:44.800 --> 00:51:48.739 go somewhere with Shane alone. He needed Brandon to be real, 755 00:51:49.039 --> 00:51:52.159 to coax Carly to go with him. The part of 756 00:51:52.239 --> 00:51:58.309 Brandon was played by his teenage son. Upon his return 757 00:51:58.329 --> 00:52:01.070 to Melbourne, Newman bragged to his eldest son about the 758 00:52:01.090 --> 00:52:05.130 crime Newman showed off his discoloured knuckles and asked, do 759 00:52:05.150 --> 00:52:08.250 these look bruised to you? He boasted that he'd done 760 00:52:08.269 --> 00:52:11.230 the job and confessed he punched Carly in the face, 761 00:52:11.670 --> 00:52:14.690 pushed her into the sand, killed her and threw her 762 00:52:14.730 --> 00:52:21.769 into the water. In an outrageous display in court, Newman 763 00:52:21.829 --> 00:52:25.639 constantly argued with his lawyer. His lawyer actually tried to 764 00:52:25.679 --> 00:52:28.320 resign from the case on two separate occasions as he 765 00:52:28.360 --> 00:52:31.559 thought Newman was intentionally hindering his efforts at a fair trial. 766 00:52:33.619 --> 00:52:36.000 As the end of the trial drew near and Newman 767 00:52:36.059 --> 00:52:39.429 sensed things weren't going his way, he suffered an apparent 768 00:52:39.489 --> 00:52:43.150 seizure after he was labelled a liar. His behaviour and 769 00:52:43.170 --> 00:52:46.730 demeanour started to change and he was put under suicide watch. 770 00:52:51.750 --> 00:52:56.849 The co-accused, Newman's son, was more cooperative. He confessed to 771 00:52:56.869 --> 00:53:00.219 a social worker while in juvenile detention, admitting he and 772 00:53:00.260 --> 00:53:02.460 his father met up with Carly and had taken her 773 00:53:02.519 --> 00:53:06.389 to the beach. Using the mask of Brandon, his father 774 00:53:06.429 --> 00:53:09.269 tricked Carly into meeting them, telling her not to tell 775 00:53:09.309 --> 00:53:12.090 her mother as Shane would be there and Sonia would 776 00:53:12.130 --> 00:53:15.550 never agree to it. Carly was convinced to meet when 777 00:53:15.610 --> 00:53:18.030 Brandon stated that Shane was just giving him a lift 778 00:53:18.070 --> 00:53:20.559 to Adelaide and if he didn't take it, then they 779 00:53:20.599 --> 00:53:24.559 couldn't be together. Newman's son had only been in his 780 00:53:24.599 --> 00:53:26.860 father's custody for less than a month when he was 781 00:53:26.900 --> 00:53:29.440 invited to go to

Adelaide to play the part of Brandon. 782 00:53:31.719 --> 00:53:34.079 The son revealed that as the group sat and talked 783 00:53:34.119 --> 00:53:37.219 on the sandy shore of Horseshoe Bay, his father made 784 00:53:37.280 --> 00:53:40.900 an advance at Carly once again. When she got up 785 00:53:40.940 --> 00:53:43.800 and started to walk away, Newman stood and jumped on 786 00:53:43.840 --> 00:53:46.880 her from behind, pushing her into the sand and punching 787 00:53:46.920 --> 00:53:52.969 her in the head. With Carly incapacitated, Newman continued his attack. 788 00:53:57.210 --> 00:54:00.190 Newman's son admitted he helped his father cover up the crime, 789 00:54:01.360 --> 00:54:03.880 They even sent the text message to Sonia Ryan from 790 00:54:03.940 --> 00:54:08.090 Carly's mobile phone after her death. Pretending to be Carly, 791 00:54:08.889 --> 00:54:14.389 they wrote that everything was fine. Finally accepting there was 792 00:54:14.429 --> 00:54:17.239 no way out of his web of lies, Newman admitted 793 00:54:17.320 --> 00:54:20.039 he did attack Carly, but insisted that he had no 794 00:54:20.099 --> 00:54:24.260 intention of killing her. However, his fate was sealed when 795 00:54:24.300 --> 00:54:27.019 it was revealed a fingertip of a latex glove containing 796 00:54:27.059 --> 00:54:30.730 his DNA was found at the crime scene. This proved 797 00:54:30.750 --> 00:54:33.969 the murder was premeditated, as he arrived to the meet-up 798 00:54:34.050 --> 00:54:40.320 prepared with equipment necessary to cover up his crime. For 799 00:54:40.320 --> 00:54:43.199 12 weeks, the jury were told of the elaborate lies 800 00:54:43.280 --> 00:54:46.139 Newman maintained in order to win the heart of Carly Ryan. 801 00:54:46.960 --> 00:54:49.440 They heard about the extraordinary lengths he went to to 802 00:54:49.539 --> 00:54:54.309 uphold the fictitious character of Brandon Kane. Gary Newman showed 803 00:54:54.369 --> 00:54:56.989 no reaction when the court found him guilty of Carly 804 00:54:57.030 --> 00:55:00.699 Ryan's murder. he was sentenced to life in prison with 805 00:55:00.760 --> 00:55:06.519 a non-parole period of 29 years. Upon sentencing, Justice Trish 806 00:55:06.559 --> 00:55:12.090 Kelly said to Newman, quote, It was a terribly cruel 807 00:55:12.130 --> 00:55:16.650 thing you did to this beautiful, impressionable 14-year-old child. I 808 00:55:16.690 --> 00:55:19.909 say child because that is what she was, in love 809 00:55:19.949 --> 00:55:23.230 with the idea of the handsome, musically inclined and rather 810 00:55:23.309 --> 00:55:27.039 exotic Brandon Cain, who spent Christmas in the United States 811 00:55:27.059 --> 00:55:29.590 with and was coming home via Paris to be with her. 812 00:55:31.090 --> 00:55:35.440 The real man was an overweight, balding, middle-aged pedophile with 813 00:55:35.559 --> 00:55:39.079 sex and murder on his mind. When your deception came 814 00:55:39.159 --> 00:55:42.699 unravelled and

unstuck, you killed her, leaving in your wake 815 00:55:42.739 --> 00:55:50.750 a devastated and inconsolably grief-stricken mother, family and friends. After 816 00:55:50.769 --> 00:55:56.030 the sentencing, Sonia Ryan said, quote, I hope that he suffers. 817 00:55:56.570 --> 00:55:59.190 that he rots from the inside out, that he sees 818 00:55:59.230 --> 00:56:01.869 Carly's face every morning and is haunted for the rest 819 00:56:01.889 --> 00:56:05.940 of his miserable life. This has been a big media circus, 820 00:56:06.539 --> 00:56:09.019 but people need to remember Carly was a real person. 821 00:56:09.820 --> 00:56:14.300 A baby, a toddler, a child, a teenager, who did 822 00:56:14.380 --> 00:56:20.550 nothing wrong but to trust a traitor. It couldn't be 823 00:56:20.590 --> 00:56:23.369 proven just how much of a participant Newman's son was 824 00:56:23.449 --> 00:56:27.030 in the lead-up to Carly's murder. The prosecution argued the 825 00:56:27.090 --> 00:56:31.360 fake MySpace page associated with fictitious Brandon was operated by 826 00:56:31.409 --> 00:56:34.420 both Newman and his son, either in conjunction or at 827 00:56:34.460 --> 00:56:38.440 different times. It was also put forward that the two 828 00:56:38.480 --> 00:56:41.980 other private MySpace accounts linked to Carly were actually set 829 00:56:42.039 --> 00:56:44.699 up and run by Newman himself as a means to 830 00:56:44.739 --> 00:56:47.599 speak with her directly and without the knowledge or notice 831 00:56:47.659 --> 00:56:53.159 of others. Unable to determine the extent of Newman's son's 832 00:56:53.239 --> 00:56:56.480 plot or participation in the murder of Carly the jury 833 00:56:56.519 --> 00:57:00.610 acquitted him of both murder and manslaughter. They couldn't find 834 00:57:00.619 --> 00:57:03.690 him guilty of a lesser offence, such as assisting an offender, 835 00:57:04.190 --> 00:57:08.929 because he was never charged with that crime. Newman nodded 836 00:57:08.989 --> 00:57:11.849 and smiled when his son was acquitted, as his son 837 00:57:11.909 --> 00:57:16.269 mouthed thank you to the jurors. Outside court, his lawyer 838 00:57:16.309 --> 00:57:19.030 said his client was relieved and wanted to go back 839 00:57:19.070 --> 00:57:23.980 to his hometown and get on with his life. At 840 00:57:24.019 --> 00:57:26.119 the time of the trial, there had been a suppression 841 00:57:26.179 --> 00:57:29.219 order in place concealing the identities of both Newman and 842 00:57:29.239 --> 00:57:33.360 his son from the public. News publication The Advertiser later 843 00:57:33.400 --> 00:57:36.719 revealed they fought to have the identities of Carly's killers publicised, 844 00:57:37.050 --> 00:57:40.710 as the public had a right to know. They were 845 00:57:40.769 --> 00:57:43.349 able to strike a bargain with the Supreme Court, who 846 00:57:43.409 --> 00:57:46.949 lifted the order hiding Newman's identity. His name and face 847 00:57:46.989 --> 00:57:51.989

were quickly circulated throughout media outlets. However, as his son 848 00:57:52.030 --> 00:57:58.690 was acquitted, his identity suppression order was maintained. Journalist Sean 849 00:57:58.750 --> 00:58:01.829 Fuster wrote an article on Carly's death for the advertiser, 850 00:58:02.170 --> 00:58:06.050 titled The Masked Murderer and The Girl Whose Death Changed 851 00:58:06.070 --> 00:58:12.909 the Internet. In it he stated, quote, The boy's identity 852 00:58:13.030 --> 00:58:16.590 was forever consigned to the vault of South Australian state secrets. 853 00:58:17.610 --> 00:58:20.429 That meant the advertiser could not link him years later. 854 00:58:20.869 --> 00:58:25.199 to a series of grotesque sexual offending committed elsewhere. Nor 855 00:58:25.239 --> 00:58:28.579 could it report on the circumstances of those crimes, each 856 00:58:28.619 --> 00:58:35.610 of which horrifyingly mirrored the events preceding Carly's death. Once 857 00:58:35.639 --> 00:58:40.289 his identity was publicly revealed, Newman's ex-wife came forward, further 858 00:58:40.349 --> 00:58:44.349 exposing him as a violent sexual deviant. For the ten 859 00:58:44.389 --> 00:58:46.489 years of their marriage, she lived in fear of Newman, 860 00:58:46.909 --> 00:58:49.449 who would lash out at her with rage-fuelled bashings at 861 00:58:49.510 --> 00:58:53.670 any slight perceived indiscretion. She recalled the time he left 862 00:58:53.710 --> 00:58:55.989 her bloody when she wanted to go shopping with a friend. 863 00:58:56.929 --> 00:58:59.480 The beating was interrupted by the woman's mother, who called 864 00:58:59.539 --> 00:59:02.639 a doctor. When the doctor asked the woman if Newman 865 00:59:02.659 --> 00:59:06.119 had harmed her, Newman crushed her hand to keep her silent. 866 00:59:07.219 --> 00:59:12.210 The doctor didn't report it. Furthermore, his ex-wife revealed Newman 867 00:59:12.250 --> 00:59:16.230 liked extreme pornography featuring young women dressed as schoolgirls, and 868 00:59:16.250 --> 00:59:18.289 he had once plied a girl with alcohol in an 869 00:59:18.349 --> 00:59:22.730 attempt to rape her. She claimed that Newman's true identity 870 00:59:22.829 --> 00:59:27.869 was ignored by his family, friends, police, doctors, hospital staff, 871 00:59:28.309 --> 00:59:34.250 and the courts. Newman subsequently appealed his conviction on several grounds. 872 00:59:35.130 --> 00:59:37.449 One of those claimed Sonia Ryan should not have been 873 00:59:37.489 --> 00:59:40.670 allowed to give evidence at trial as he believed conversations 874 00:59:40.730 --> 00:59:43.949 she had with Carly were hearsay, including the one where 875 00:59:43.969 --> 00:59:49.320 Carly revealed she had been inappropriately touched. In April 2011, 876 00:59:49.320 --> 00:59:54.320 his appeal was rejected. Judges believed it was important the 877 00:59:54.360 --> 00:59:57.239 jury be provided with context about events leading up to 878 00:59:57.280 --> 01:00:00.780

the murder. and evidence that Newman intended to kill Carly 879 01:00:00.840 --> 01:00:10.130 was still overwhelming without Sonia Ryan's testimony. Carly Ryan was 880 01:00:10.170 --> 01:00:13.110 the first Australian to be murdered by an online predator. 881 01:00:14.750 --> 01:00:18.900 A day doesn't pass without Sonia thinking of her daughter. Quote, 882 01:00:21.199 --> 01:00:25.590 You can imagine from a mother's perspective. I asked myself constantly, 883 01:00:26.110 --> 01:00:28.449 how couldn't I see that she was in so much danger? 884 01:00:29.739 --> 01:00:32.739 The amount of depravity and controlling, the length she went 885 01:00:32.760 --> 01:00:35.800 through to get hold of her. I was no match 886 01:00:35.840 --> 01:00:39.579 for that. He used her best qualities to lure her 887 01:00:39.659 --> 01:00:44.960 to her death. The murder of her daughter left Sonia shattered. 888 01:00:46.000 --> 01:00:49.139 Since her birth, Carly had given Sonia reason to live. 889 01:00:50.360 --> 01:00:53.530 Now that she was gone, Sonia struggled to go on. 890 01:00:55.519 --> 01:01:00.300 Sonia Ryan, quote, When everything happened to Carly, it was 891 01:01:00.380 --> 01:01:02.980 like being pulled into some kind of black abyss that 892 01:01:03.019 --> 01:01:06.840 Gary Newman had created. I can't sit in that space 893 01:01:07.119 --> 01:01:09.539 because it's sitting in her suffering and it would just 894 01:01:09.599 --> 01:01:13.380 dissolve my soul. I think what people don't realise is 895 01:01:13.400 --> 01:01:18.000 the trauma and I wouldn't want them to realise. Unfortunately, 896 01:01:18.079 --> 01:01:22.199 these crimes continue to happen. Carly suffered terribly at the 897 01:01:22.239 --> 01:01:25.570 hands of a monster with no remorse. Where does that 898 01:01:25.610 --> 01:01:28.519 leave me as her mother? That leaves me in a 899 01:01:28.559 --> 01:01:31.739 position to either die or find the strength somewhere from 900 01:01:31.800 --> 01:01:36.159 within to fight. Fight not only for Carly, but fight 901 01:01:36.219 --> 01:01:38.860 for every single young person that is online trying to 902 01:01:38.920 --> 01:01:42.760 make connections. I believe this is what Carly would want 903 01:01:42.800 --> 01:01:49.019 me to do. Determined for her daughter's death not to 904 01:01:49.059 --> 01:01:53.320 be in vain, Sonia established the Carly Ryan Foundation. a 905 01:01:53.340 --> 01:01:59.730 not-for-profit organisation dedicated to promoting internet safety. Sonia has worked 906 01:01:59.829 --> 01:02:03.989 tirelessly for over a decade educating schoolchildren, families and the 907 01:02:04.050 --> 01:02:08.250 community about the dangers of online interaction and providing support, 908 01:02:08.670 --> 01:02:13.409 counselling and political advocacy. Her efforts earned her the title 909 01:02:13.449 --> 01:02:19.199 of 2013 South Australian of the Year. Sonia Ryan, quote, 910 01:02:21.010 --> 01:02:24.480 The internet is an amazing tool for education and communication, 911 01:02:25.019 --> 01:02:26.840 but we have to be aware of the dangers it 912 01:02:26.880 --> 01:02:30.599 can pose as well. Carly's story reminds us that not 913 01:02:30.659 --> 01:02:33.260 everyone online is who they say they are, and that 914 01:02:33.280 --> 01:02:36.199 we need to question what we're told, not just accept 915 01:02:36.260 --> 01:02:42.789 it and trust it. In June 2017, after a vigorous 916 01:02:42.829 --> 01:02:46.550 crusade at both state and federal level, Carly's law was 917 01:02:46.610 --> 01:02:49.710 passed into the Commonwealth Criminal Code by the Australian Government. 918 01:02:51.070 --> 01:02:53.090 The new law makes it a crime for an adult 919 01:02:53.130 --> 01:02:56.949 to use a carriage service to plan, prepare, cause harm to, 920 01:02:57.409 --> 01:03:01.210 or engage in sexual activity with a minor. It carries 921 01:03:01.269 --> 01:03:06.530 a 10-year maximum prison term for offenders. The first arrest 922 01:03:06.610 --> 01:03:09.070 under Carly's law was made just a few weeks later. 923 01:03:11.010 --> 01:03:15.519 In May 2018, Carly's law was further strengthened in South Australia. 924 01:03:16.260 --> 01:03:18.920 A tougher version of the law was passed. making it 925 01:03:18.960 --> 01:03:21.440 illegal for a person to lie about their age in 926 01:03:21.480 --> 01:03:24.219 an attempt to meet a child, even if they don't 927 01:03:24.260 --> 01:03:30.179 intend to commit a crime against the child. After Carly's 928 01:03:30.219 --> 01:03:33.659 law was enacted, a patchwork quilt made from the teenager's 929 01:03:33.719 --> 01:03:36.800 favourite clothes was hung up on a wall in Parliament House. 930 01:03:38.079 --> 01:03:40.239 Each piece of fabric is in the shape of a heart, 931 01:03:41.019 --> 01:03:44.760 a colourful display of reds, greens, blues, pinks and whites 932 01:03:45.079 --> 01:03:49.829 in polka dots, stripes and checkered patterns, At its centre 933 01:03:49.889 --> 01:03:52.829 is the largest heart, made from a green fabric with 934 01:03:52.889 --> 01:03:56.469 white dots, cut out from what was once Carly's favourite dress. 935 01:03:57.690 --> 01:03:59.829 She wore it during a mock wedding she once had 936 01:03:59.889 --> 01:04:03.340 with a friend. Just a fun and silly day she 937 01:04:03.380 --> 01:04:08.579 looked back on with joy. After the memorial quilt was unveiled, 938 01:04:09.139 --> 01:04:14.980 Sonia Ryan wrote a piece for the advertiser. Quote, My 939 01:04:15.000 --> 01:04:19.429 daughter's favourite pyjamas are hanging in federal parliaments. They're hanging there, 940 01:04:19.880 --> 01:04:23.219 in the hallways of power, when really the only hallway 941 01:04:23.280 --> 01:04:27.079 they should be hanging in is mine. But that'll never 942 01:04:27.119 --> 01:04:31.679 happen now. Aged just 15, my beautiful daughter Carly was 943 01:04:31.739 --> 01:04:34.659 murdered by a pedophile who lied about his

age online. 944 01:04:36.260 --> 01:04:38.880 I fought with every breath in my body for Carly's legacy. 945 01:04:40.019 --> 01:04:42.719 I met with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull as his government 946 01:04:42.780 --> 01:04:47.070 announced Carly's law. It'll end the loophole leaving kids vulnerable 947 01:04:47.110 --> 01:04:51.980 to predators. Police will better identify sick, predatory activity online 948 01:04:52.179 --> 01:04:57.059 to prevent horrific sex crimes against our kids. As I 949 01:04:57.079 --> 01:05:01.000 write this, sitting in Parliament under my daughter's pyjamas, I 950 01:05:01.019 --> 01:05:04.550 feel closer to her than ever, and also more determined. 951 01:05:05.849 --> 01:05:08.329 I'd hate any other mother to live through what I've endured. 952 01:05:09.289 --> 01:05:12.909 Carly's death will no longer be in vain. Together, we're 953 01:05:12.929 --> 01:05:15.670 stopping any other family going through the horrendous pain that 954 01:05:15.710 --> 01:05:19.760 mine has. If you have a daughter, go home and 955 01:05:19.820 --> 01:05:23.070 squeeze her tighter than you've ever squeezed her. Tell her 956 01:05:23.110 --> 01:05:26.489 you love her over and again, and know that she'll 957 01:05:26.510 --> 01:05:30.969 be safer from today thanks to a perfect, compassionate, forever 958 01:05:31.010 --> 01:05:38.789 young 15-year-old girl called Carly. Further adding to Sonia's grief 959 01:05:39.010 --> 01:05:41.719 was knowing Carly had her mobile phone on her prior 960 01:05:41.780 --> 01:05:44.500 to her murder, but was unable to find an opportune 961 01:05:44.539 --> 01:05:48.219 moment to call or text her for help. This inspired 962 01:05:48.300 --> 01:05:52.699 Sonia to create Thread. Thread is a safety app free 963 01:05:52.739 --> 01:05:56.000 to download on mobile phones. If the user feels at 964 01:05:56.059 --> 01:05:58.599 all in danger or threatened, they can send a discreet 965 01:05:58.639 --> 01:06:02.820 alert that reveals their location to trusted contacts and emergency services. 966 01:06:04.710 --> 01:06:07.510 It was important to Sonia to provide safer options for 967 01:06:07.550 --> 01:06:11.170 children to request help if needed, but not discourage parents 968 01:06:11.250 --> 01:06:13.489 from letting their children go out into the world and 969 01:06:13.550 --> 01:06:18.239 seek independence. The app is currently only available in Australia, 970 01:06:18.699 --> 01:06:21.280 but the Carly Ryan Foundation hoped to get funding to 971 01:06:21.320 --> 01:06:25.969 make it available worldwide. The name of the app was 972 01:06:26.030 --> 01:06:30.170 inspired by a fable that resonated with Sonia. The story 973 01:06:30.210 --> 01:06:32.230 of a daughter wanting to meet her suitor in a 974 01:06:32.269 --> 01:06:35.690 dark cave, and a mother who had her worries, but 975 01:06:35.730 --> 01:06:38.559 didn't want to stop her daughter from independence and discovery. 976 01:06:40.780 --> 01:06:43.039 It is the thread pulled from the mother's skirt that 977 01:06:43.079 --> 01:06:47.739 keeps them connected. regardless of where the daughter travels. The 978 01:06:47.780 --> 01:06:50.489 thread would also bring the daughter safely back to the mother, 979 01:06:51.690 --> 01:06:52.710 if she found danger. 980 01:07:26.440 --> 01:07:26.980 I'm sorry, Máitha. 981 01:07:27.000 --> 01:07:27.940 I have to go now. 982 01:07:27.980 --> 01:07:29.000 Good night and good night. 983 01:07:29.579 --> 01:07:31.699 I'll be back when I'm ready. As soon as I 984 01:07:31.719 --> 01:07:34.300 get home, I'll be back. And good night. I hope 985 01:07:34.340 --> 01:07:39.079 you'll be fine. Good night, Máitha. Good night. Good night. 986 01:07:39.099 --> 01:07:41.780 Good night. Good night. 987 01:07:41.840 --> 01:07:42.380 Good night.