SOMBRE PIANO MUSIC
Parrish! Don't open...
EXPLOSION
NICK: The eyes are opening.
At least someone survived.
Grace...
Nick...
Nick's here with Homicide. He's leading the investigation.
Oh, Jesus.
TOM: I want the Baxters.
They destroyed my station, killed my people and murdered my wife
and they will pay for it.
Check his pulse when you got here?
Didn't see much point.
What the hell happened? Accident with a jack.
Accident, my arse! No!
You bastards!
You listen to me, coppers!
That fat bastard killed my son!
What's he doing here?
This is not right. What is he doing here?
He murdered my son! Calm yourself.
You'll be under arrest...
I'm the bastard, Baxter. That's news to you, is it?
Barry Baxter, you're under arrest.
(cries)
Grace Curtis was a...
Grace.
Yeah, let's all hear about Grace, eh?
Let's all drink to Grace
who was no doubt as good in the sack as in the pulpit.
Had enough grief tonight, Barry. Out you go.
Wife of the man who murdered my son in cold blood.
(gasps)
You murdering pig bastard.
TYRES SCREECH
Hello, Senior Sergeant Croydon.
Tarni Baxter.
What brings you back here?
Just want my car back.
Your car, I believe, Miss Baxter.
Tarni Baxter.
(splutters)
Goodbye, Tarni.
ROCK MUSIC
Come on, PJ, you feel like a boogie?
Yeah, I'm dancing on the inside.
Um, PJ...
Sarge.
Hold the music.
Has the access code been changed?
Um, yep.
Well, what's the new one?
Um...
Kelly, I'll handle this.
I need my day book. Let me in.
You know the protocol.
I don't care about the protocol.
Look, I'd like to help you,
but there's no room for discretion, okay?
But this is my station. Not at the moment, it isn't.
If your suspension's lifted, different story altogether.
Until then, you cannot come in.
I am not a murderer.
Tom, I am not passing judgment.
I'm just following the rules, at least until the coronial inquest.
Tom, don't make it hard.
I'm just doing my job.
Alright, look, er...
Just a general reminder,
Senior Sergeant Croydon is not to be admitted to the station
under any circumstances, okay?
He looked terrible, Sarge.
He's under a lot of pressure.
Well, there's no way the boss is a murderer.
He just wouldn't do a thing like that.
I've got some reports to catch up on.
Yeah, get those Penalty Notice figures
as soon as you can too, okay?
Hey, where are you off to?
I'm taking a bit of personal time, okay?
Hey, boss?
I'm not your boss, O'Rourke.
I just wanted to say I'm really sorry about before.
If it was me, I would have let you in.
I'm not in the mood for small talk.
Let's talk about the big stuff, then.
I want you to know
that everyone at the station is on your side.
Not everyone.
Well, I am.
And I know you didn't kill anyone.
How?
Well, you know, because I just do.
Have it your way.
THEME MUSIC
And then he closed the door in my face.
Well, you tried.
He obviously doesn't want to see anyone at the moment.
I don't get it.
He's cut himself off from everyone, even Chris.
You'd just think you'd have your friends around right now.
Different people handle things in their own way.
He's been going through hell.
Why go through it alone? Hey, what's up?
The boss's back.
How is he? Not good.
No, he's awful. He just looks so sad.
I just wanted to give him a big hug.
Well, rather you than me.
So, how did you guys go? Oh, yeah, good.
143 stolen items from yesterday's burg.
And Joss is about to type them all into LEAP.
Oh, is that right? Why me?
'Cause you're the probationary constable.
That sucks. Oi, where are you going?
I'm getting a drink, okay? No, it's not okay.
Evan, leave him to me.
He just wants to play cops and robbers.
Joss, you okay?
Oh, yeah. If you've got paperwork, give it to me, 'cause I love it.
Paperwork's part of the job.
Well, that's not why I joined the force, is it?
So why did you join?
To solve crimes, to use my brain.
I know they don't think I've got one
but they don't give me a chance, do they?
If you had the chance, where do you see yourself heading?
You must have a plan.
I mean, everyone needs a plan.
I was a senior connie a month ago but I wanted to be a sergeant,
so I took the exam and here I am.
I mean, okay, I'm only an acting sergeant for now,
but one day soon, if I stick to my plan...
I want to be a detective.
Yeah?
Yeah, but don't, don't say anything,
because people will think I'm dreaming or something.
It's a goal, not a dream. There's a huge difference.
You reckon? Yeah, absolutely.
A goal's something concrete you can work towards -
you can make it happen.
Yeah? Yeah, why not? You're a smart guy.
Don't tell them that.
You'll have to show them, won't you?
Yeah, but I just don't know how to, that's the problem.
I don't want to spend half my lifetime doing paperwork, you know?
Well, why don't I do this for you?
Yeah? Mm-hm, just this once.
Alright. Thanks, Sarge.
Lindy.
Yeah. Lindy.
Hey. Hey, yourself.
So, how was your Chrissy?
Ah, it was uneventful. What about you?
Oh, pretty quiet one.
Is that the Strano brief?
Yeah, it is. Yep.
Could I just grab a copy of that? Mm-hm.
All you have to do is ask.
Patrick, how are ya? Nick!
I drove by the Brown Owl on my way into town.
If I still lived here, I'd be the Michelin man.
Sadly for you, out of jam doughnuts,
so I took the liberty of getting a vanilla slice...
Oh, lovely. ..or two.
How have you been? Not too foul. How's Tom?
He's just resurfaced. Tried to get into the station.
Yeah?
Haven't seen him for weeks. No messages, no postcards?
Mate, we're the enemy.
You've got another enemy to worry about. That's why I'm here.
Here you go. You can set your clock by this one.
Who is she? Greta Conroy.
She's a coroner's assistant.
What's she doing here? Mate, she's got a big job.
She's here to nail Tom's arse to the wall.
Only got the file yesterday. Right.
Hello, Greta. Gee, you're a long way from Southbank, aren't you?
Detective Sergeant.
What brings you... Did you hear about the vanilla slice?
No, I was just meeting with Acting Senior Sergeant Jacobs.
PJ, would you close the door, please?
I'm here to find out if the coroner
is wasting valuable time and money on this inquest.
Bit late for that, isn't it?
From what I can gather,
you've got a pretty strong circumstantial case
against Tom Croydon.
So, my question is, why haven't you charged him with murder?
Well, it's very simple, Greta, you see.
We don't exactly have an airtight case.
Yeah, look, none of us wants a murder charge.
Well, it's clear what you want, but let's talk about the facts.
From my reading of the file, you've got the evidence.
Greta, not enough to make a case.
No, there are gaps in key areas.
An inquest would definitely be the way to go.
There's no point launching an inquest
if there's a murder charge in the offing.
That's a very good point, actually.
Because we don't want to interrupt the coroner's golf day.
Yeah, thank you.
Look, either way, I've got traumatised staff out there.
They need a resolution.
I'd like to go through this step by step.
How many times must you go over the same ground?
Until I'm satisfied.
Where do you want to start? Out at the scene.
The trout pools are over there, and according to his statement
Senior Sergeant Croydon entered the house from the rear.
That's where he found Ryan Dekker with the gun.
Allegedly.
(chuckles) Yeah, allegedly.
And then he came to find you at the Christmas party.
Isn't this all in the report or...? Humour me.
Yes, he said he heard shots.
I was running past the front of the house
and someone took a couple of shots at me.
You said you cuffed Dekker to the chimney.
I did.
And the rifle was on that window sill.
It's not there now.
No.
She must be fitter than I thought.
So, Tarni shot at you?
We're wasting time. They're probably still in the house.
Tarni, why not come out now before you get yourself in any deeper?
Dekker?
Tell her to put the gun down and come out
before she gets you into anymore trouble.
You don't want to go down for attempted murder too, do ya?
How low is this girl prepared to go?
Huh?
Tarni took a shot at you then...
..and killed him.
Obviously.
How the hell would she know where the gun was?
What is this? Ah, you are?
Helen Morris. My husband, Frank, and I own the trout farm.
And do you live here? No, next door.
What's going on? I came here to talk to Ryan.
Look, I'm...I'm sorry, but Ryan Dekker has been shot.
Shot? Who? Why?
Did you hear anything unusual in the last hour?
Unusual? Like what?
Like gunshots?
Gunshots?
No, I've been home all afternoon. I didn't hear a thing.
Now, here we are, two months later and you haven't yet found the rifle?
Well, what I understand, they're still looking.
How hard have you tried?
What's that supposed to mean?
Well, correct me if I'm wrong,
but if Senior Sergeant Croydon had shot Ryan Dekker,
he wouldn't want the rifle to be found.
So, now it's a cover-up. A conspiracy theory, is it?
Well, I don't believe anything he's said.
This dog business sounds like pure fantasy.
Didn't I read in the brief that he said he'd gone to the farm
to confront Tarni Baxter because she'd exhumed his dead dog?
Yeah, that's right.
Looks like Tarni's capable of absolutely anything.
What sort of low-life's capable of doing something like...
She's taken him away.
(forcefully) She's taken him away.
Did you check the dog's grave?
And?
He was still buried there.
And Senior Sergeant Croydon's explanation
was that the Baxter girl had broken in again...
..taken his poor deceased dog away and re-buried it.
And you believed him again?
If you'd met Tarni, you'd know it's a distinct possibility.
Detective Hasham, you believed Senior Sergeant Croydon?
No, I didn't believe him.
I still believe Senior Sergeant Croydon killed Ryan Dekker.
What do you think you're doing? Do want me to lie?
To that bloody thing, yes. He's capable of it.
I asked you to look after him. What do you want?
To follow him home? Whatever it took.
Sorry to interrupt. Not a problem, Greta.
Shall we continue?
Listen, I don't mean to be rude, but this is a bloody circus.
Read the bloody report - it's all in there.
You conducted the interview with Senior Sergeant Croydon.
I need to hear your account.
Where's Tarni Baxter?
She could be halfway to Cairns,
the way you lot are running this investigation.
You were gung-ho about Tarni, weren't you?
She killed my dog, dug him up and hung him up.
Why would she do that? To lure me out to the farm.
The problem with that story
is your dog's still buried in your backyard.
What did you do when you got to the trout farm?
I've been through all this. One more time.
No, read my statement. I want you to tell me.
You know what this looks like?
It looks like you have taken care of Ryan Dekker and maybe even Tarni.
Now, unless you set us straight,
we're going to be forced to draw our own conclusions.
Since when have I cared what you think?
I'm just trying to help you, you silly old bugger.
If you're going to charge me with something, do it.
I thought not. I'm leaving.
MARK: We gotta give him the benefit of the doubt until we find Tarni.
She could be in a ditch with a meat axe through her head.
This Baxter thing is out of control.
Troy got squashed by his own car, then Tarni goes missing
and her boyfriend cops a bullet in the head.
She'll turn up. But where and in what condition?
I'll get the troops onto it.
I've tried all Tarni's mates. I'll try Dekker's now, okay?
Lenny Dysart? Who wants to know?
I'm Constable O'Rourke and this is Constable Peroni.
You're a mate of Ryan Dekker's?
Hey, look, I don't know nothing about no dope plants, alright?
We're looking for Tarni Baxter. Who?
Tarni Baxter. Yeah, haven't seen her.
So, you do know her? Maybe, a little bit.
Think she might be Ryan's chick.
But she don't know nothing about no dope plants either, alright?
Can you tell her we've got some news for her?
Yeah, what?
We have to tell Tarni first.
If you tell me, I can tell her. If I see her, of course.
He's got a point.
Lenny, I'm afraid there's been a bit of bad news.
Ryan Dekker's been murdered.
Holy shit! He was murdered!
Mm-hm. He was shot in the head.
Look, she never said anything to me.
Lenny, do you mind if we take a quick look around?
I said she ain't here, alright?
Yeah, we heard you. We just don't believe you.
Hello, Tarni.
Sorry, mate!
What are the cops doing here? They want to kill me!
Don't let them kill me!
Just back off, you guys, alright.
No, no! Get away from me.
Your mate Croydon tried to drown me.
You expect us to believe that? He's a maniac!
He won't stop until my family is dead.
Just stick to the facts.
Is that door locked?
I don't want him to sneak in here and try and kill me again.
Just tell us what happened.
He turned up at the trout farm, he had a gun.
He was raving like a lunatic, saying he was going to kill us.
Why? How should I know why?
Senior Sergeant Croydon says you defiled his dog, Digger.
Well, he's lying.
What happened when he got to the trout farm?
I saw him force Ryan into the house.
Lucky for me, he hadn't seen me,
so I hid behind the shed and I waited.
For how long? I don't know - a few minutes.
And then he came back out.
What happened next, Tarni?
I made a run for it.
He chased me all the way to the trout pond.
And I panicked because I can't swim, you know, and it was freezing cold
and my hands were going numb and I could hardly...
What did Senior Sergeant Croydon do?
Well, the next thing I know he's pushing my head under with his foot.
Goodbye, Tarni.
I couldn't breathe. I was gonna drown.
So, I just, I played dead,
and obviously it worked because he went away.
Went away, where?
How would I know? My head was under the water.
What happened when you came up for air?
I made it to the edge and I... I clung on,
and that was when I heard the gunshot from inside the house.
That was when I knew that he'd killed Ryan.
Then I saw him come back out of the house, get in his car and leave.
What did you do? Where did you go?
I got outta there. I went to Lenny's.
I wasn't gonna hang around, waiting for him to come back.
You've got to admit, it's possible.
Come off it! Pushing her head under with his foot?
He hasn't been himself lately. Tell me about it.
It's been even worse since Tarni got back to town.
A couple of days ago I found him in a hotel in Melbourne.
He was passed out in his own spew.
Well, a man's got to have a hobby.
Come on, it doesn't mean he's gone and killed someone.
You know, I don't know, I really don't.
Come on, let's go. Where?
He won't help himself, so we've gotta go prove Tarni's lying.
So, how are we going to do that? It's easy, mate.
You want to see my shoes? If you don't mind.
There you go.
Very fetching. Where are the other ones?
What other ones? All of them.
Have you ever thought about getting a shoe rack happening here,
some sort of order system?
I had no idea they were going to be scrutinised.
Mate, you've got more shoes than Imelda Marcos.
Ready to talk?
They're still wet.
GRETA: How did Tom Croydon explain the wet shoe?
He didn't.
He refused to talk?
He said he couldn't remember how it got wet.
Look, it doesn't sound good,
but there could be a lot of explanations.
Or there could be just one.
Tarni Baxter was telling the truth - Tom Croydon tried to drown her.
Look, Tarni is one thing, but Ryan Dekker is another.
As I said before, we've got no evidence.
Still, a wet shoe speaks volumes.
It doesn't speak to Dekker's death.
Not directly, no,
but it could establish the Senior Sergeant's state of mind.
If he attempted to drown Tarni Baxter,
he was certainly capable of shooting Dekker.
There's no evidence of that.
There's also no evidence that Tarni Baxter shot her own boyfriend.
Is that what anyone in this room really thinks happened?
You all think he did it.
Senior Detective Hasham was at least honest enough to admit it.
I have to table my report with the coroner,
and I think you should know
I'm going to advise her to pursue Senior Sergeant Croydon vigorously.
Good on you, Greta, you go do that.
Luckily, the coroner isn't emotionally involved.
I hope she'll get the to truth.
I do understand it's hard when there's a friend involved.
Oh, cheers, Greta. Thanks very much.
PJ, what was she talking about?
Does she think the boss is a murderer?
Let's not get into this, okay?
But didn't you tell her she was wrong?
No, PJ, come on! You're his friend, you've got to have faith!
Don't you think I've tried, Kelly?
To tell you the truth, I've tried my guts out,
but I cannot ignore the facts anymore.
Oh, PJ! Come on!
They can think what they like but they don't know him like us.
Do you think this makes me happy?
Look, everything is pointing to him.
No, see, I can't believe that.
I know he's been a pain, he's been getting up my nose,
but he's still the same man.
Is he?
You can't give up on him, PJ.
BUZZER SOUNDS
Can I help you?
You had better.
And you are?
I'm actually bloody furious.
Julian Whitelaw, SC.
54 Boronia...
..Street.
And what can I do for you?
My neighbour has just torched all my bonsai.
Bonsai trees?
Yeah, trees.
There was a Sciadopitys verticillata in there.
It cost me $11,000.
We've got a criminal damage by fire.
I'll just get my folder.
I'd rather send the uniforms out if that's alright.
Sure. I'll just wrestle with the toner cartridge.
Keep me posted. I'll take it.
Suse?
Evan. I'd like you to take Joss.
Really? Hm-mm.
And, Evan, give him a bit of a go, okay?
So you say there were 19 bonsai trees?
Worth $80,000.
I'm sorry?
I was about to build a torii gate to my Shinto shrine.
T-O-R-Y?
I-I.
The timber just arrived from Japan.
Keyaki beams, worth $17,000. Look at them.
Now, Keyaki. That's c-e...
No?
It's Japanese. You think it starts with a 'C'?
Japanese elm, for your purposes.
I am assuming you can spell 'elm'.
So how many beams were there?
18. They cost me $17,000.
Yes, you've already mentioned that.
Oh, what the hell? What happened.
My beams are ruined and the bonsai with it.
So, who are you?
Mac Greer, master builder.
Mac was going to commence work on the torii gate
first thing in the morning.
In the afternoon. I've got a job to finish off first.
Well, morning, afternoon, midnight -
it's an irrelevancy now.
There isn't going to be any torii gate.
Not thanks to that loathesome old goat next door.
He did it. You make no mistake.
Alright.
Does that remind you of anybody?
I donated that suit to the opportunity shop.
Three days later, here it is.
No law against putting up a scarecrow, is there?
Is there a law against it?
Not as far as I know. Right. Then bugger off.
There is a law against arson, O'Grady.
Still banging on about your fire, are you?
Look, Mr Whitelaw believes you were involved.
Mr Whitelaw's a wanker.
You know what he done?
He cut down two decent big Aussie gum trees
just to put in his midget Jap garden.
Plants. Midget plants for a midget brain.
Right, that's it! I'll have you!
Right, that's enough! What are you doing?
Stop it! Come back to the station.
It's okay, mate. He'll get his.
Can you tell us where you were this afternoon?
I was at home. Where else?
Were you alone?
Except for the topless dancing girls. Of course I was bloody alone.
Did you see anything unusual next door?
I thought I did see someone in the wacko's backyard.
Can you describe them?
It was hard to see anything through the fence.
And besides, I'm no nosy parker.
Whoever it was was kind of shadowy.
Shadowy?
Like I said, I didn't get a good look.
Then I smell the smoke.
Did you ring the firies?
Not on your life.
If them midget plants is gonna go up in flames, I'm all for it.
You ever seen them things? A tree the size of a cat. It ain't natural.
Look, Mr O'Grady, I'm sure you can understand
why Mr Whitelaw might suspect
that you had something to do with the fire.
I don't give a rat's arse what that plummy-voiced ponce suspects.
I didn't do it.
I assume you don't mind us coming out and taking a look around?
You assume wrong, son.
You're not coming anywhere near my place
unless you got a bloody warrant.
Lindy, just spoke to the firies.
They reckon an accelerant was definitely used -
probably kero.
You can bet your life
Percy's got some floating around in his back shed.
Every old bloke's got kero.
It's hypothetical anyway.
He won't let us search.
Joss, you may have time to help me type this list.
It's taking a little bit longer than I thought.
What about this bonsai case?
You can't do anything for the moment.
Well, I thought we might explore another angle.
What other angle?
I reckon bonsai man might have done it himself.
Torched his own plants? Why not?
He might be after the insurance.
He kept on crapping on about how much it all cost him.
I reckon you're barking up the wrong tree, mate.
The wrong tree. Cute.
Look, we should at least check out his movements.
Okay. Get him in.
There's been an armed robbery at the video store. There were shots fired.
Shots fired? Yep. Kelly, you want to come?
I was over here dusting the nostalgia section
when this guy came in with a gun.
Can you describe him?
He was wearing a balaclava, so I couldn't really see his face.
But he was kinda heavy-set.
Heavy-set?
Well, fat.
Anyway, he wanted me to open the till but I refused at first.
That's pretty courageous.
Then he lost his temper. That's when he fired the shot.
Just one? After that I did whatever he said.
Where did he shoot? Here, in art house.
It passed through all these videos.
Look, see this hole in '2001'?
And it lodged in 'Picnic at Hanging Rock'.
I haven't touched it. I know it's evidence.
Bag it.
Um, is the security system working?
It's switched on, but I can't access the equipment, sorry.
It's locked away in a cupboard.
Only Bryce, who's the boss, has got the key,
and he's not back until tomorrow.
He got away with $584.
Prints? None.
We're lucky we got the bullet.
We'll have the Ballistics report first thing tomorrow
if the bullet's there within two hours.
I'll take care of that. Thanks, Suse.
How did you go with Mr Bonsai?
He was in Melbourne when the fire started,
at a legal lunch with 93 witnesses.
Doesn't mean he didn't hire someone else to light it.
Except he doesn't have a motive
because he never added the bonsai or the temple gate to his insurance.
Joss, I could still do with help typing up this list of stolen goods.
Can't we do it tomorrow? Okay.
You coming to the pub?
No. There's something I need to take care of. I really should...
Alright. You don't need to give me a speech, just say 'no'.
So I'm not the only masochist.
Oh, go on. You might have better luck than me.
See you.
Joss, you're on Inquest.
Aw, do I have to?
Yes. I don't mind doing the inquest.
Alright, it's all yours.
Um, Jonesy...
Sarge, this is the Ballistics report from the video store robbery,
and the bullet is from the same gun that killed Ryan Dekker.
AMY: You're kidding.
I knew he didn't do it. He's off the hook.
Just hang on a minute, will ya?
PJ, Amy, my office.
Let's go through the implications.
It's great because this means the boss didn't kill Dekker.
No, hang on...
Or, at the risk of being shot down,
it means that he killed Dekker and he's committed armed robbery.
He wouldn't be so stupid.
Amy's right. We've gotta examine every angle.
We've got a murder weapon
that's turned up from a crime committed two months ago.
We've got an inquest into that crime starting in...
Two hours time. That's right.
..with the boss in the dock and everything pointing to him.
We've gotta find the rifle
'cause that's the only thing that'll clear the boss.
Get onto it, quick smart.
We should get the divers to start dredging the river.
Take weeks, even if we had a rough idea where the rifle was dumped.
What about start searching the tip? Not enough time.
We gotta do something.
There's no point looking for the rifle.
What've we got on the robber?
Nothing so far, no prints, no ID.
You get the robber, you get the rifle.
Easier said than done.
Come on, look.
Some fat bloke knocks over your local video shop for some change.
Get a list of likelies happening.
There must be something you've missed.
There is a security video but we haven't seen it yet.
Why not? Cabinet's locked.
That's why the Lord invented crowbars.
Heavy-set offender.
It's not him. I'm just saying...
If Tom was going to knock over anything it'd be a pie shop.
Is Tom left-handed? Nuh.
Film lover, obviously. Yeah, very discriminating one.
Hey, uh, those DVDs on the counter, did you pick them up?
We didn't know that he'd touched them.
They're still there, are they? Let's go.
Amateur hour, is it, hey?
EVAN: Lindy?
Thinking about this arson case,
I think I might have missed something.
What are you talking about? We looked everywhere.
Won't hurt to have another one. Go on, get going.
Both of you.
I have never encountered such ineptitude.
The arsonist is next door
but you're insisting on pursuing red herrings.
I'm afraid we don't have enough evidence to charge Mr O'Grady.
Why aren't you looking for some?
Because he won't let us search without a warrant.
Oh, I don't believe this!
Look, if you just calmed down...
Does anyone else have access to your property while you're away?
No, and I always keep the gate firmly locked.
What about your builder? Except the builder.
I gave him a key so he could oversee the timber delivery.
Mac would never do anything like that - he loves his timber.
He said he couldn't bear to see the Keyaki beams left on the footpath.
And these are the Keyaki beams?
Yeah, what's left of them.
Between us, Shinto, Shih tzu, it's all Greek to me,
but I was looking forward to working with quality timber, that's for sure.
Mr Whitelaw tells us that you organised the importation.
I got it from the best timber merchant in Keyaki.
It was beautiful stuff.
Beautiful price tag as well.
My word, 15 grand's worth.
15?
That's interesting,
because Mr Whitelaw tells us that it was $17,000.
Yeah.
A bloke's gotta make a living.
Mr Greer, were you insured for the timber's loss?
I'd be a mug if I wasn't.
Right. It's just the charred remains didn't look like Japanese elm to me.
Anyway, we'll soon find out. We've sent it away for tests.
I don't know why you're trying to pin this on me.
Oh, look, it all makes sense.
You pocket the $15,000 insurance,
you stash the Japanese elm in your workshop
then you sell it on for a further profit of $30,000 -
$32,000 with your mark-up.
That's not bad for a bit of heavy lifting?
I'm just trying to make a buck. Is that a crime?
In this case, yes.
Congratulations, Evan. Nice work.
Excuse me, I helped. Yeah, of course you did.
Why don't you grab yourself a cuppa?
Ta. Did you want one? Yeah.
Now, I need someone to type up a description
of all the bonsai trees that were destroyed in the fire.
We have to make sure the spelling is right.
Hey, what's with the powwow?
They're dusting the videos from the robbery.
Jeez, why did he leave this one? It's a great movie, this one.
You think? 'Dambusters', mate.
It's a classic. PJ, anything?
I got a partial.
We haven't got a lot of time to track down that rifle.
I'll get this to Fingerprints. Can we slow down the inquest?
You could run over the coroner. C'mon, get cracking.
Alright, I'm gone.
Kelly? I know, the inquest.
Give you a lift.
Not long now.
You'll be right.
Yeah, I know I will be 'cause I'm innocent.
Course you are, mate, course you are.
It's your word against Tarni's.
You'll be right.
CORONER: The first witness is Matthew Baxter.
Mr Baxter, you're familiar with Senior Sergeant Croydon?
Yeah, I know him.
And you're convinced, are you not,
that Senior Sergeant Croydon has some kind of vendetta against your family?
Yeah, that's correct. He tried to kill my sister.
Don't worry, Tarni. Can't touch you now.
Mr Baxter, please restrict your remarks to myself or the coroner.
Yes.
Were you in contact with your sister
around the time of Ryan Dekker's death?
Yeah, Tarni used to call me at the prison.
And what did she say to you, Mr Baxter?
That Tom Croydon was out to get her.
Well, she told me that he totalled her car,
he tried to plant dope on Ryan.
She was terrified!
Whatever.
And then she called me on the 18th of December last year.
She was real upset, told me that Tom Croydon had tried to drown her.
Got this from Fingerprints at St David's.
Did they find a match?
You'll never guess.
Surprise, surprise.
Shall we?
You say your dead dog was exhumed?
You've read the inquest brief.
Just answer the questions I put to you, Senior Sergeant.
Your dog was exhumed.
He was strung up over my kitchen table.
So how do you explain
that when you returned to the house with Senior Detective Hasham,
there was no sign of the exhumed dog?
She obviously got back before us, took him away.
She wanted to make me look like a liar.
'She' being? Tarni Baxter.
He is a bloody liar. I never touched his mangy dog!
Miss Baxter.
I've never even been near his house!
So, Senior Sergeant Croydon, you're saying this young, slender girl here
exhumed your dead dog and somehow managed to hang it in your house.
With Ryan Dekker's help.
Why would they do that?
To lure me out to the farm, to ambush me. And it worked.
And what happened when you got to the trout farm?
I parked my car a bit away from the house,
went down through the bush, across a paddock.
Tarni was standing out the front of the house talking to Dekker
through the front window.
He had a rifle.
And what happened then?
She moved away. I managed to get the drop on Dekker.
Handcuffed him to the flue.
And where was Ms Baxter in all of this?
I didn't see her again after that.
I searched all over the farm but I couldn't find her anywhere.
I went back to my car, and as I was driving past the front of the house
someone took a couple of shots at me.
He's lying! He tried to kill me!
Ms Baxter.
He pushed my head under with his foot!
You'll have your turn on the stand.
But he is a murderer!
I said that's enough.
Why won't anyone listen to her? This bastard nearly killed her!
I want these people removed from the court.
Out. Come on, out now.
But he's lying!
Court adjourned for five minutes. You may step down.
This sucks! I'm the victim!
Yeah, she's the victim here! Out, out.
Lenny Dysart?
Yeah, who's asking?
We'll take it from here, Constable.
I'm Senior Detective Hasham. This is Senior Detective Fox.
You're under arrest for armed robbery.
Lenny, this is a warrant.
We're going to find that rifle.
See? I told you there was no rifle here, didn't I?
And I didn't do no robbery neither. Good on you, mate.
Feel a bit nervous, are you, Lenny? Nuh.
Do you always sweat this much, mate? I mean, could be a glandular problem.
My wife's a doctor. I know about these things.
Should get it looked at, honestly.
Lenny, we've got your fingerprints...
..and the missing DVDs!
Hey, I never seen them before, alright?
That's a beauty. That's an absolute cracker, Lenny.
PJ - in here.
One .22 calibre rifle.
Same used to kill Ryan Dekker.
Lenny, you stupid idiot!
Bag it.
Come on.
I know nothin' about Ryan's murder.
Mate, just a little tip -
if you're going to lie, at least keep it grammatical.
Ryan and Tarni and me were mates.
That's it.
She comes to my house that day, she's soaking wet and freaked out.
That's all I know.
You didn't find it suspicious that she had a gun?
She didn't have no gun. PJ: Lenny.
I'm telling the truth!
I reckon Tarni asked you to dispose of the gun
and you stuck it behind the bookshelf instead.
Nah, no way.
Where'd you get it, then?
Go on, take your time.
Maybe you should even phone a friend.
Look, I told you before, I ain't sayin' nuthin'.
Well, maybe he really doesn't know.
It's doubtful. He's lying through his teeth.
Look, Tarni gave him the rifle and he's trying to protect her.
Just heard back from the firearms registry.
The rifle is owned by a Frank Morris.
Frank Morris who owns the trout farm?
Yes, I own a rifle.
A .22? That's right.
Well, where is it? I don't know. It's missing.
I kept it locked up in a cupboard but now it's gone.
How long has it been gone?
I don't really know. I hardly ever used it.
Why didn't you report it missing?
I didn't want to lose my shooters' licence.
Frank, we've gotta go.
Look, I've got to get my wife to the inquest.
She's supposed to be giving evidence.
We're going to need you to come to the station.
But my evidence?
Mrs Morris, I'll take you to the inquest.
Ah, well, I walked over to see Ryan about some trout farm business.
As soon as I got to the caretaker's cottage I heard yelling.
I was curious. Maybe I shouldn't have been.
But I tried to hear what they were saying.
Then I heard a shot.
I didn't know what to do.
I hid and then I saw Tom Croydon come from the cottage.
(softly) What?
He was carrying a rifle.
My husband's rifle.
Mrs Morris, I'm going to ask you to step down.
As much as I don't like to waste the court's time and resources
I think we need to abandon this inquest
in favour of a murder investigation.
I'm satisfied Thomas Croydon has a case to answer
and I'm directing Homicide
to do what they should have done all along,
which is pursue this line of inquiry to its logical conclusion.
Captioned by the Seven Network Email - captions@seven.com.au Phone - (03) 9697-7777