WA Police fail in attempt to get jailed Claremont killer Bradley Robert Edwards to disclose Sarah Spiers’ fate

Claremont killer Bradley Robert Edwards has refused to give police any information about missing 18 year-old Sarah Spiers during jailhouse interviews. Outgoing WA Police Commissioner Chris Dawson confirmed to The West Australian that police had kept their promise, and continued their efforts to locate Ms Spiers, who disappeared from Claremont in January 27, 1996. That has included interviews with Edwards specifically asking him to reveal anything he might know about what happened to the 18 year-old after she vanished. But he has refused to reveal a thing. Edwards was convicted of murdering two other young women — Jane Rimmer and Ciara Glennon — whom he snatched from the Claremont streets in 1996 and 1997. But Justice Stephen Hall acquitted Edwards of Ms Spiers’ murder, despite evidence from witnesses who heard screams on the night she went missing and a car nearby which resembled a model Edwards had access to. “The evidence of his propensity to kill may make him a likely suspect, or even the probable killer, but it does not exclude the real possibility that some other person killed her,” Justice Hall concluded. “If an inference consistent with innocence is open then the accused cannot be found guilty.” On the steps of the court just moments after that verdict, Mr Dawson — who is to become the State’s new governor — vowed police would “never give up trying to locate Sarah.” This week, he said that vow remained in stone. “Look, yes he has (been interviewed) — but I can’t say much more. I can confirm he has been interviewed since his conviction. I will add; we will never give up,” Mr Dawson said. And he reflected on the Claremont case, solved after nearly 30 years while he was at the helm of the State’s police, as an “incredible investigation”. “Although, you know, we’ve, we’ve not yet been able to solve to the point of conviction, or find Sarah Spiers — certainly, that was a highlight in terms of what I think the team achieved,” Mr Dawson said. “So we’d had this team of nearly 600 officers over a 20 year period. And we had many different senior investigating officers and teams. I kept very closely briefed on it, particularly in my time over 10 years as a deputy commissioner. “Like everyone, I was very, very pleased when Edwards was arrested. There was a mountain of work to be done, post his arrest obviously, and I give credit to the DPP. “As well as (now) Judge Barbagallo and her team, who worked very closely with our homicide squad, and our forensic people as well. “It was a very big team effort and while you can praise individuals, I think collectively, it was such a thorough complex investigation — one of the biggest criminal investigations ever in Australia, with hundreds of witnesses and tens of thousands of of exhibits. “It was really the culmination of a couple of decades of work. The most important thing for me is bringing justice to the victims and the victims’ families.” Talking on radio after the verdict, Ms Spiers father Don spoke about the frustration of Edwards’ reluctance to reveal his secrets. “He was actually sitting right there with all the answers, I found that very frustrating,” Mr Spiers said. “He never spoke. Never went in the witness box once, never spoke about anything once. “It’s definitely not over yet, the Commissioner’s reassured us that it’s not over. They will continue to pursue in regards to Sarah.” During the seven-month trial, the only words heard from Edwards were during his recorded police interview which was played to the court. He declined to give evidence in person. And following his conviction, he also refused to cooperate with a psychiatrist tasked with attempting to delve into the mind of WA’s most notorious killers. Senior police close to Macro investigation confirmed to The West Australian this week that Edwards has maintained his silence. “But we keep trying and remain hopeful,” they said. *Read the full interview with outgoing WA Police Commissioner Chris Dawson in The Sunday Times tomorrow.