1803: Constable Joseph Luker: the First Police Officer Killed on Duty in Australia
Constable Joseph Luker, a British convict transported to New South Wales on the Third Fleet in 1791, served out his sentence and joined the Night Watch, the colony’s fledgling police force. Read more →
1809: Thomas Dowlan Hanged in Sydney for Burglary at Hawkesbury
Thomas Doolan, described as an old offender who had been tried several times in the colony, was convicted of forcibly breaking into the house of John Styles at Hawkesbury. Read more →
1877: Martin Cash, the Bushranger Who Cheated the Gallows, Dies at His Farm
Martin Cash, Irish-born convict and bushranger, died on 26 August 1877 at his farm cottage in Glenorchy, Tasmania, aged 68. Read more →
1953: Serial Killer John Balaban Hanged at Adelaide Gaol for a String of Murders
John Balaban, a 29-year-old Rumanian industrial chemist living in Adelaide, admitted in the Criminal Court in July 1953 to murdering at least five people. Read more →
1981: Harold Shipman Kills Elderly Patient With a Fatal Injection After She Fell Ill in Her Garden
In August 1981, 81-year-old Elizabeth Ashworth felt unwell while gardening at her home on Peel Street in Hyde, England, and asked her neighbours to call a doctor. Read more →
2016: The Chinese Jack The Ripper Serial Killer Caught After 28 Years Through a Relative’s DNA
Gao Chengyong was arrested at his grocery store in Baiyin, Gansu, in August 2016 after a DNA test on his uncle flagged a close familial match to an unidentified serial killer. Read more →
