Crime Investigation Australia (2005)

Episode Overview

On August 11, 1978, a nightmarish event unfolded during an ordinary winter afternoon. Valda Connell, along with her four-year-old son Damien, returned home after picking up ten-year-old Sally from school. Their mundane day turned terrifying when they encountered John Ernest Cribb, a man armed with a knife, who forced them back to their car. Recently paroled after serving six years for armed robbery, Cribb drove north towards Taree, ignoring Valda's desperate pleas for her children's safety. Under the cover of night, he assaulted Valda while the frightened children remained trapped in the vehicle. In the early hours of the following morning, near Wingham, Cribb abandoned the family, tied up and gagged, in a secluded area before driving back toward Newcastle. Consumed by paranoia that Valda would expose him, he returned and, with ruthless intent, murdered them one by one.