Australian Court Rules to Release Youngest Serial Killer in Notorious Snowtown Murders
The South Australian government’s challenge failed after the commissioner found no basis to overturn the parole board’s release decision.
- On Tuesday, the Court of Appeal in South Australia upheld the Parole Board's decision to release James Vlassakis, the youngest perpetrator of the Snowtown killings, after serving 26 years.
- Vlassakis pleaded guilty to four of the 11 murders in the notorious "bodies in the barrels" killings, which involved twelve deaths between 1992 and 1999.
- As a key prosecution witness, Vlassakis testified against John Bunting and Robert Wagner, who were found guilty of 11 and 10 murders respectively.
- After the South Australian government requested a review, the Parole Administrative Review Commissioner determined the Attorney-General failed to establish valid reasons to overturn the Parole Board's decision.
- In May, the Court of Appeal revoked a 25-year-old suppression order, allowing publication of Vlassakis's image and description following his involvement in the killings at age 18.
33 Articles
33 Articles
Australian court rules to release youngest serial killer in notorious ‘Bodies-in-Barrels’ murders
An Australian court ruled Tuesday that one of three serial killers convicted over the murders of 11 people in one of the country’s most notorious criminal cases can be released from prison, rejecting a state government’s bid to block his parole.
'Bodies in Barrels' Serial Killer Is About to Be Freed
An Australian court ruled on Tuesday that one of three serial killers convicted over the murders of 11 people in one of the country's most notorious criminal cases can be released from prison, rejecting a state government's bid to block his parole. The victims were killed over seven years, and most of their bodies were found in 1999 in barrels of acid in Snowtown, a small town north of the South Australia state capital, Adelaide, per the AP. The discovery led the crimes to become known as the "Bodies in Barrels" murders. Three judges of the South Australia Court of Appeal upheld a parole board decision made last month to release the youngest of the three convicted murderers, James Vlassakis.
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