The Crime Couch with Rochelle Jackson

The 29th of May 2011 is a date that changed Queensland Police Detective Sonya Leeding's world forever. This was the night her husband, Damien - also a Queensland Detective - was shot and killed during a botched armed robbery. Since that fateful night, Sonya's life has never been the same. The Detective Senior Constable's written a book, Blue Widow by Ocean Reeve Publishing. Blue Widow is a ballsy,...

Annette in't Hout is one of three fulltime Senior Chaplains working with Victoria Police. There's also about 85 volunteer Chaplains across the state. This year the Victoria Police Chaplaincy commemorates it's 50-year anniversary of making a difference to the men and women in blue. Annette grew up in Griffith, NSW with Barbara McKay as her Sunday school teacher. She wanted to pursue a career in tex...

Tim Egan is not your average police member. The retired AFP Superintendent has served 34 years in three continents. Before joining the Northern Territory Police, Tim was a mine worker, timber millhand, builder's laborer and bank clerk. His role "in the job" proved just as varied. The 85-year-old worked in some of Australia's most remote police stations, as an Alice Springs Prosecutor and an Inspec...

Sheree Moore still hears the gunshots from the Queen Street shootings involving killer Frank Vitkovic. It's not something you ever forget, she says. Sheree was on duty in December 1987 when the Queen Street massacres took place. The former Sergeant and Crime Scene Investigator worked in suburban stations, at Dandenong, and did temp duties at the CIB, AIS and Drug Squad. She set up "Project Clarend...

Well, it's the end of Season 3 on The Crime Couch. This is a compilation of the 39 episodes during 2023. You'll hear from former Detective Senior Constable Carl Stella, retired members Colleen Woolley, Graeme Simpfendorfer, Val Smith, Highway Patrol Senior Constable Alex Prestney and true crime author Megan Norris. Sadly, this year marked the passing of several retired members like Detective Serge...

Working in Victoria Police's Major Crime Squad was not for sissies, according to Ian "Doss" Dosser. He recalls going through doors with a nine-pound door-key and loaded firearms when chasing armed robbers.  The former Detective Chief Inspector initially worked at the usual round of suburban CIB's including the Heidelberg Crime Cars, before joining "The Majors". Doss also worked in the Homicide Squ...

Wendy Cowling is a former Victoria Police Sergeant with 34 years under her belt. She began at the Russell Street Policewomen's Division and had mentors like Joan Paffett, Sandy Langlands, Myrene Purcell and Jill Wood.  She was an operational policewoman most of her career; gazetted at Cheltenham General Duties and worked in General Duties throughout Melbourne's south-east.  Wendy was promoted to S...

Well, 2023 has been a big year on The Crime Couch. We’ve featured some intriguing, fascinating current and retired police members, and other interesting individuals. This is the last of a 2-parter, featuring “The Best of” my interviewees this year; including former Detective Chief Inspector Ian "Doss" Dosser, retired Detective Sergeant Geoff Shepherd, retired Superintendent Geoff Tulloch, former E...

2023 has been a huge year on The Crime Couch. We've interviewed the most intriguing and fascinating current and former police members and interesting individuals. This is part 1 of a 2 parter; "The Best of The Crime Couch" featuring some of the females I've interviewed this year, such as former Victoria Police Detective Christine "Chris" McIntyre, retired member Senior Sergeant Janet Low, former S...

Christine "Chris" McIntyre was the first female to join the infamous Breaking Squad. The gutsy officer had an extraordinary career; once leaping on the back of a crook attempting to put a sleeper-hold on him as he held her partner at gunpoint! Christine also recalls hiding in a broom cupboard from crims when working undercover in BCI. The former Victoria Police detective led the way for women in t...

Graeme Simpfendorfer was working at a county bank when armed robbers busted in. As police dramatically arrested the offenders when they did a runner - Graeme knew exactly what he wanted to do. He joined Victoria Police "working the beat" across Melbourne, before becoming a detective.  The former Detective Sergeant joined the Homicide Squad before leading teams in the Armed Robbery Taskforce. Graem...

Trevor Collins and a fellow Victoria Police's Major Collision Investigation Unit (MCIU) detective once crawled along a road hunting for a red paint flake after a tragic hit run collision where an 84-year-old woman was killed.  He found it and was able to trace the paint flake back to the vehicle driven by an offender who was later found, charged and convicted.  The former Detective Leading Constab...

Trevor Collins spent more than two decades dealing with the horror and anguish of road trauma in Victoria Police's Major Collision Investigation Unit.  The former Detective Leading Senior Constable is a brilliant collision investigator and qualified by the courts as an expert in the field. Trevor was passionate and dedicated about ensuring justice was not only seen to be done but achieved for the...

Ed Pollard's had a fascinating career in Victoria Police. The Senior Sergeant worked extensively at inner-city stations before joining the Police Air-Wing as an Observer. Ed then qualified as a Prosecutor which led to him working at the State Coroner's Assistant Unit and tours to Bali, after the bombings and Thailand, after the tsunami. He's specialised in DVI or Disaster Victim Identification and...

Maureen Blue has retired after nearly fifty years with Victoria Police. She's worked in sworn and unsworn roles and is an expert in management, behavioural issues, education and training.  Maureen's a specialist in people management and dispute resolution and been working as a Senior Instructor at People Development Command. In her 14 years at the Academy, she's trained over 4,000 Sergeants. Maure...

Steve Cook is an experienced investigator with more than 16 years working in law enforcement. He's currently a Senior Inspector with RSPCA Victoria in the Major Investigations team. Steve's role includes responding to reports from the public, investigating animal cruelty and attending properties "one up" across the state. Prior to working at the RSPCA, Steve worked in animal care and the media. He...

Carl Stella was a Detective Senior Constable with Victoria Police for more than 30 years. He followed his grandfather who was a police officer in Italy. He joined the Highway Patrol before having a serious motorbike collision, eventually returning to the CIB. Carl did his rounds as a suburban detective but always aimed to get into the Crime Squads. He succeeded, working in the Major Fraud Group an...

Esther McKay is a former NSW Police Force Detective Senior Constable who specialises in forensic services. She spent years at murder scenes, traffic accidents and major crime investigations. Her areas of expertise include crime scene, vehicle and document examination.  The grueling work, huge hours and her relentless commitment to the job eventually took its toll. Esther was discharged from the po...

One Australian woman dies at the hands of an intimate or former partner every week in Australia. What's less known is that one Australian child is killed each fortnight at the hands of as parent or stepparent. Megan Norris has republished a book, "Look What You Made Me Do" which features nine cases of "spousal revenge" where fathers or stepfathers have taken the lives of their own children. Megan'...

I first met Esther McKay in 2005 at a writer's festival. We were both authors talking about our new true crime books. Esther is a former NSW Police Force Detective Senior Constable whose life journey has been fascinating.  She worked for 17 years in the job specialising in forensic services. Esther entered that tough, male-dominated world determined to hold her own. But it took a huge cost. She wa...

The Crime Couch is back! With a new sponsor, Police Care Australia. It's an online portal where current, former police and family members can get support and counselling with professionals that understand police. Ken "Ashy" Ashworth was one of the hard men in the job. He retired as a Victoria Police Detective Inspector, was awarded an APM and two Chief Commissioner's Commendations. Ashy worked in...

Russian-based hacker groups, phishing, data-breaches and ransomware attacks have become part of today's workplace. This week on The Crime Couch, former Detective Leading Senior Constable Christopher McNaughton talks about cyber-criminals, the latest trends and how our internet-enabled devices like the fridge can be used against us! Chris left Victoria Police and joined the corporate sector running...

This is part 2 of an interview I did 20 years ago with former Victoria Police Detective Superintendent Alan Pleitner. I interviewed Alan when writing Billy "The Texan" Longley's biography. He was a Detective Senior Constable in the Homicide Squad when Melbourne's waterfront war was underway. Alan talks about the role of the Homicide Squad Detective and how they work hard to bring justice to the vi...

Senior Constable Alex Prestney knows more than most about road trauma. The Victoria Police officer lost his brother Joshua in the Eastern Freeway crash on the 22nd of April 2020. Joshua was one of four Victoria Police members tragically killed in the accident.  Alex is articulate, publicly expressing what he's going through. He's even returned to his role in Highway Patrol. I can't even imagine ho...

This week from the vault, part one of a two -part interview from 2003 with former Victoria Police Detective Superintendent Alan Pleitner. Alan was a Detective Senior Constable in the Homicide Squad when Melbourne's waterfront war was exploding. He'd grown up in the country and worked as a young Constable in the inner city. I interviewed Alan when writing Billy "The Texan" Longley's biography in 20...