'Outback killer' dies taking details of Peter Falconio's death to his grave
Murdoch was previously diagnosed with terminal throat cancer in 2019 and was transferred to a palliative care unit in Alice Springs Correctional Centre, in Northern Territory, Australia. Murdoch shot and killed Brit backpacker Peter and his body has not been found in the years since.
Murdoch died overnight at Alice Springs Hospital after he was released from prison.
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Metro
an hour ago
- Metro
What is devil's breath? The truth behind the ‘world's scariest drug'
It's a drug with a terrifying reputation for leaving 'zombified' victims at the mercy of criminals. So-called devil's breath has allegedly been used to swiftly incapacitate people who are targeted for sexual assault and robbery, with one reported incident in London. The report came when a woman told how she believed she was targeted with the substance – also known as scopolamine – as she travelled on the Tube. Deborah Oscar, 30, described how she felt 'high' and 'sleepy' as a woman sitting beside her slowly waved a newspaper in an empty carriage. The content creator, from south east London, feared she was being targeted for robbery after running into two suspicious men in another carriage as she fled. However, a former British drugs intelligence head told Metro that the notion of devil's breath being used as a potent airborne incapacitant is likely to be an urban myth. Dr Les King said: 'Scopolamine is strictly called hyoscine as a medicine and it's allegedly used in Colombia for criminal purposes. 'But the evidence is very, very thin and there's no toxicology, blood or urine analysis, or any other body analysis, to show that people have been attacked with this substance. It all seems a bit unlikely to me. 'I've heard stories of business cards being impregnated with this substance and the recipient falling ill. 'That's really not just on. 'Although this substance is present in skin patches you can buy for travel sickness, it takes hours to absorb into your skin. 'My attitude as a scientist and a forensic scientist is: Where's the evidence for this? There is no evidence, it's all rumour.' Derived from plants native to South America, including the Brugmansia, the drug does have potent effects on humans. Stories abound of victims in Colombia and Ecuador being 'zombified' by criminals who then assault, rob or even kill their human prey. In 2012, the US State Department cited unofficial estimates of 50,000 scopolamine incidents a year in Colombia. More commonly known as burundanga in South America, it's even been called 'the world's scariest drug' by the UK Addiction Treatment Centres. The folklore surrounding the drug includes stories of it being used as a Nazi interrogation tool and in ancient Colombian times when it was said to have been given to the mistresses of dead leaders who were willingly buried alive with their lovers. The myth forms part of a fabric of well-documented ritual or shamanic use of such plants in the country. The name refers to the drug stealing someone's soul. In more recent times, the CIA trialled the drug unsuccessfully as a 'truth serum' in Cold War interrogations and it has taken on a number of medical uses, including for the relief of motion sickness. However, the clinically documented effects of the drug come from it being absorbed in liquid or powder form rather than being blown into someone's face or planted on a business card. In high doses scopolamine is incapacitating. Someone who has taken the substance will feel drowsy and might not remember what had taken place. Scopolamine has been associated with short and long-term memory loss and been used in research into Alzheimer's disease. Used for travel sickness, it comes in patches or tablets that prevent vomiting. NHS advice for this form of the drug says side effects can include blurred vision, dizziness and being unable to concentrate. One documented poisoning made UK headlines when Joel Osei used a fake dating app profile to entrap 43-year-old Irishman Adrian Murphy before killing him with an overdose of scopolamine. A can of Coca-Cola was found to contain traces of the substance and Osei's fingerprints were discovered on a bottle of whisky left at the scene. Osei was jailed for life with a minimum of 32 years in 2021. A published academic paper in 2013 did find that 'scopolamine has become a drug of common use for recreational and predatory purposes'. Jorge Sáiz and his co-authors found that devil's breath 'has become a drug of increasing use in Europe'. However, Dr King, who was the head of drugs intelligence at the former Forensic Science Service, is sceptical. In a response to the paper along with four scientific peers, he found: 'There is little doubt that when used in sufficient quantity, and added to food or drink, scopolamine has the ability to incapacitate. 'In Norway in 2008, there was an epidemic of poisoning caused by tablets containing scopolamine sold and used under the impression that they were Rohypnol tablets. 'On the other hand, suggestions that scopolamine can be unwittingly absorbed by skin contact with impregnated cards are considered to be a myth.' The NHS said it had 'no info or data on the usage of hyoscine/scopolamine.' Metro has contacted the European Drugs Agency to ask if there is any evidence of devil's breath use on the continent. More Trending 'The stories of people being hit in the back of taxis are pretty unlikely,' Dr King said. 'To begin with, where would you get such a concentrated amount of the drug from? 'Hospitals might have it, pharmaceutical companies might make it, but I've never seen any suggestion of it being stolen or diverted. 'This is not to say I'm not open-minded, but there's just no real evidence that any criminal activity is taking place.' Do you have a story you would like to share? Contact MORE: British girls 'were spiked with Devil's Breath zombie drug' before being raped MORE: Kids as young as 10 'being driven into county lines drug gangs by cost of living crisis' MORE: 'I'm a reformed drug smuggler – this is how mules will be feeling on flights'
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS British woman in her 20s 'is found dead behind church during family holiday to France'
A British woman in her 20s has been found dead behind a church in France. The woman, who has not been named, is understood to have been on holiday in Normandy at the time of her death. She was found around 9am this morning on rocks behind the St-Nicolas church in Barfleur, where she was reportedly staying with family in a rented cottage. Criminal investigators joined forensic and research reams, as well as gendarmerie, at the scene before the body was removed for autopsy this afternoon. Barfleur is a small fishing village of some 700 residents in the north of France, largely untouched by tourism and rated one of the country's most attractive communes. This news is breaking: more to follow.
Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
British expat gored in front of horrified crowd during bull run in Spain
Spectators at an event in Spain were left horrified after a British expat was injured by a bull who became separated from the pack. He remains in hospital after sustaining a leg injury A Brit expat has been hospitalised with a gored leg after he was rammed by a bull during a busy event. The man, aged 47, was watching the performance, organised by the Passio pels Bous bullfighting association, when a bull from the pack charged at him in the town of Pedreguer, Spain. The animal hurled the man against a protective barrier, injuring his leg. Workers at the event rushed over to help the resident and took him to a transport station. A doctor said that the man had also suffered major nose injuries. He was taken to Denia Hospital and underwent a CT scan but had suffered no internal damage. The man, who frequently attends bull events, remains in hospital at this time, reports Olive Press. It comes after five people were hospitalised on the first day of the Running of the Bulls festival in Pamplona old town. The victims, all described as men aged between 21 to 49, were injured after the animal escaped. One man sustained a serious chest trauma injury and multiple rib fractures. One person who took part described the ordeal and said: 'It was panic out there today. It's a miracle if only one person ended up getting gored. It could have been into double figures.' One of the bull's became separated from the rest of the animals and threw one runner into the air. The 90 stone ( 575 kilo) bull, called Caminante, slammed the man down onto the ground. A Red Cross representaive said one person had suffered a gore wound and had been among five people taken to hospital. The victim is said to have been gored in the arm.
