Falconio murder suspect in court

A mechanic suspected of murdering British tourist Peter Falconio was sent to northern Australia today, where he is expected to be formally charged with murder.

At a brief hearing in Adelaide Magistrates’ Court, chief magistrate Kelvyn Prescott ordered Bradley John Murdoch, 45, to appear in court in the northern city of Darwin tomorrow in relation to the suspected murder. He was expected to be flown across the nation under tight police guard.

Police in Darwin issued an arrest warrant for Murdoch after DNA tests linked him to the suspected killing of Mr Falconio in July 2001.

Mr Falconio is believed to have been killed after he and girlfriend Joanne Lees were flagged down by a gunman as they drove along the Stuart Highway in central Australia on the night of July 14, 2001.

Ms Lees managed to escape and report the attack to police, sparking one of the biggest manhunts in Australian history.

Despite police and Aboriginal trackers scouring an area in central Australia the size of France, Mr Falconio’s body has never been found.

Murdoch’s arrest earlier this week followed his acquittal on unrelated rape charges in a court in Adelaide.