Unravel

When Mark Haines dies, news of the teenager's death spreads quickly through Tamworth and beyond. His family are on summer holidays in different parts of the state and rush home to be together in grief. While the family mourns and Mark's body is in the morgue, their town is in full party mode. The Tamworth Country Music Festival is on and Australia is celebrating 200 years of colonisation. For Mark...

Just outside Australia's country music capital, a young man's body is found on the train tracks, surrounded by shattered Christmas presents and discarded wrapping paper. For decades, the mystery has haunted Tamworth.  After Unravel's first season Blood on the Tracks brought national attention to the case and won a Walkley award, a new inquest was launched. Now, Muruwari and Gomeroi journalist Alla...

Back in 2018, our first season Blood on the Tracks investigated the suspicious death of 17-year-old Mark Haines, whose body was found on the railway line outside Tamworth in January 1988. Since Allan Clarke first reported this story, there's been a fresh inquest, with new witnesses and explosive allegations. Dive back into Blood on the Tracks. We're republishing the original series plus a brand ne...

Go behind the scenes of the podcast with reporter Alicia Bridges, who answers questions about how she investigated Mr Big. Asking the hard questions is Rachael Brown, the host of the ABC's first true crime podcast, Trace. They discuss some of the challenges and dilemmas around reporting on the story, how Alicia came across the case, and some of the things that didn't make it in to the podcast.

As Alicia Bridges investigates the beginnings of an epic deception, she finds it spans across continents. At the heart of the deception is an upside-down world of gang crime, and a series of dilemmas. What secrets should stay secret? How far would you go to catch a killer? One man is in jail, convicted for murder. But are there other people behind bars who might be innocent, here or overseas? In C...

A knife is found near a drain, but is it the one police looking for? A man is put on trial, and the court hears the evidence against him. But as each side mounts their case, which piece of evidence will really matter when the time comes for the jury to decide?

A life filled with diamond deals, drug money, bribes and corruption is strange enough. But the truth is even stranger. Deeper forces are at work, with a bigger purpose. Mr Big's web of secrets is revealed. As Alicia digs further into what happened in this case, the ingenious techniques of the gang are laid bare, and a series of strange scenarios begins to make sense as part of a larger picture.

Mr Big, the mysterious head of a criminal gang, calls a meeting at Crown Towers Casino and demands to know everything about the murder of Mary Cook. For hours, two men talk. Lies are told, and a confession emerges. But how do you tell the truth from the lies? And who is Mr Big?

If you're under investigation, the last thing you should do is commit more crimes. But this suspect is on a slippery slope. Small jobs become bigger jobs. Fake diamonds, huge sums of cash, and guns pass hands. A network of corrupt cops, government and court officials and shady underworld figures seem to form a gang with far-reaching tentacles.

Everyone says one man in the neighbourhood, Terry Britton, is dangerous. But could there be someone else who wished Mary harm? Terry has a temper and a history of violence. He threatened Mary Cook and her kids. Then Mary was murdered, and her house was set alight. But police are also looking into someone else: a much quieter man with no serious criminal record. When detective Ron Iddles interviews...

A killer is caught on tape talking about a murder with a mysterious crime boss. Earlier, on a summer's night in suburban Melbourne, a mother of three is stabbed, and her house is set on fire. Firefighters race to the house, but the blaze is too intense. Police begin their investigation close to the home of the victim, Mary Cook. Journalist Alicia Bridges looks into the case. She will spend years t...

On a secretly recorded tape, a confident-sounding man boasts of his influence with corrupt police. He sounds like a crime boss, or some kind of underworld Mr Big. He says he can help make problems with the law go away. But first, he wants the truth about a murder. But who is Mr Big? Alicia Bridges investigates. Mr Big is the latest season of Unravel, the ABC's award-winning true crime podcast.

Go behind the scenes of the podcast with co-reporters Crispian and Alex as they describe how they made this season of Unravel True Crime . More Information Host and co-reporter: Crispian Chan Co-reporter: Alex Mann Producer and researcher: Dunja Karagic Research and fact checking: Johnny Lieu Rollout producer: Amelia Mertha Theme and music composition: Martin Peralta Sound design and additional mu...

Crispian and Alex find troubling signs among current-day extremist groups. Meanwhile, in this episode of Unravel True Crime the restaurant kids discuss how they processed what happened to their families.

Crispian and Alex hit the road to track down the gang's leader, Jack Van Tongeren. It turns out that Jack's past contains some big surprises. Meanwhile, in this episode of Unravel True Crime a former member of the gang reveals its secrets.

A decade later, the gang reemerges. In this episode of Unravel True Crime, Crispian and Alex come face to face with a former follower of the gang at a men's health and yoga retreat, sparking a bizarre and emotional reckoning. More Information Host and co-reporter: Crispian Chan Co-reporter: Alex Mann Producer and researcher: Dunja Karagic Research and fact checking: Johnny Lieu Rollout producer: A...

A risky undercover operation strikes at the heart of the firebombing gang. But in this episode of  Unravel True Crime , hatred reverberates around the city, and lives are lost.  (Audio of Russell Willey courtesy of Anthony Buckley AM, from the film ‘Nazi Supergrass’)

As police struggle to keep up with a wave of terrorism, unlikely defenders emerge to confront the city's gangs. In this episode of Unravel True Crime, activists are badly beaten, and the neo-Nazi gang is starting to push its luck, but the police still can't nail anyone over the restaurant firebombings.

The city has been blanketed in threatening posters. The list of suspects narrows as the fire bombers' potential motivations become clearer. In this episode of Unravel True Crime , Police become suspicious of a hardened and fanatical group of neo-Nazi activists, who are thumbing their nose at law enforcement and threatening Asian communities in Perth.

Chinese restaurants are being firebombed in the dead of night. As the attacks spread, police scramble to work out what is happening in the city. In this episode of Firebomb , host Crispian Chan sets out to investigate the events surrounding the fire that destroyed his family's restaurant.

Chinese restaurants are being firebombed in the dead of night. The police arson squad is racing against the clock to stop the next attack. Along the way, there are buried weapons, secret informers, punks, ninjas, and political manoeuvres. As the rest of Australia celebrates the nation's bicentenary, a campaign of terror is getting underway in Perth. Now, in this deeply personal season of Unravel T...

After the confrontation in the supermarket carpark, Ollie is left feeling confused — has he been charmed just like everyone else in this story? Will Lezlie fail to keep her promises to Ollie or leave him and his family hanging?

Ollie and Simon have criss-crossed California to find themselves parked in a supermarket car park staking out where Lezlie supposedly works. They may only have one shot to talk to her and finally get some answers. It doesn't go the way Ollie imagined.

Ollie and his brother Simon follow the trail of broken dreams and failed restaurants to Paso Robles, California. It's apparent Lezlie's exploits didn't stop when she left New Zealand. Ollie discovers his former sister-in-law had manufactured an image of a successful restaurateur in Hawaii, Lake Tahoe and New Zealand. Her exotic CV and exciting stories pull a new family into her web — with disastro...

Following the trail to Lezlie Manukian, Ollie and his other brother Simon end up in California. With a muscle car and loud Hawaiian shirts, the brothers look every bit like '80s TV detectives as they head off on their very first stakeout. But, when the trail runs cold, they decide to chase down a lead at Lezlie's first restaurant in the resort town of Lake Tahoe. Meanwhile, Lezlie's emails become...