An Arrest in the Backpacker Murder Case

Title:
An Arrest in the Backpacker Murder Case
NFSA ID
249795
Year
1994
Courtesy
Seven Network
Access fees

An HSV 7 News bulletin on 30 May 1994 reports that Ivan Milat has been charged with the murder of seven young backpackers whose remains were found in the Belanglo State Forest in NSW.

The charges were announced after Milat appeared in court on robbery and weapons charges on 23 May 1994. A UK man, Paul Onions, who had been backpacking in Australia in 1990, positively identified Milat as the person who attacked him in January that year. Onions escaped from Milat by flagging down a passing motorist and he immediately reported the attack to local police. 

Following Onions' positive identification, large-scale searches were undertaken on Milat's home, as well as those of his family members, which uncovered a great deal of evidence implicating him.