Shandee's Story
SHE WAS just 23
1989
2017
A TRUE CRIME PODCAST BY HEDLEY THOMAS
Shandee Blackburn was left to die after a frenzied knife attack as she walked home.
A mystery figure running hard towards the popular young woman in the seconds before she was savagely cut down near her mother’s house was captured briefly by security cameras.
Detectives went after Shandee's former boyfriend, a champion amateur boxer with jealousy and trust issues. He denied wrongdoing and pointed an accusing finger at a man with a violent record and a shaky alibi.
Video trailer
Shandee Blackburn was a bright and fun-loving 23-year-old woman with a lilting laugh and a cheeky smile. Her death after a ferocious knife attack in 2013 has appalled the community of Mackay for eight years. Shandee's family want answers. They want her killer brought to justice.
Subscribers to The Australian have exclusive first access to episodes of Shandee's Story via The Australian app. Subscribe to The Australian here.
Shandee Renee Blackburn is born in Brisbane. She grows up in the sugar and mining town of Mackay with her mother Vicki and sister Shannah.
2011
Shandee meets John Peros, a talented amateur boxer, at the Envy Nightclub in Mackay. They start dating.
John Peros is acquitted of murder by a jury in a 12-day Supreme Court trial in less than two hours. William Daniel is a witness.
2019
Coroner David O'Connell holds an inquest into Shandee's death. The inquest hears evidence not presented at John's murder trial.
2012
Shandee Blackburn and John Peros break up. Shandee moves to the Gold Coast in March. John sees a psychologist and two psychiatrists. Shandee returns to Mackay in October. She starts dating Arron Macklin.
2013
Shandee is murdered. Police investigate her ex-boyfriend John Peros. In April, police discover a new lead - a local man with a criminal history named William Daniel.
2020
The Coroner names John Peros as Shandee's killer.
2014
John Peros is arrested and charged with murdering Shandee.
Shandee's Story is investigated and written by Hedley Thomas.
Audio and music production by Blacksmith & Co.
Additional reporting by David Murray and Isaac Irons.
Additional research by Isaac Irons.
Video trailer by Gwyn Dixon, 3P Studio.
Editorial Director, Claire Harvey.
Digital execution by Isabel Trujillo and Kellie Southan.
Marketing by Alice Bradbury, Dean Roffe and Jarrah Petzold.
Audio compiling, Lia Tsamoglou and Nicholas Adams-Dzierzba.
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SHANDEE'S STORY
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Anyone with information about the murder of Shandee Blackburn can contact Hedley Thomas confidentially here
To share what you know with Crime Stoppers, call 1800 333 000.
EPISODE 1
Latest episode
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EPISODE 2
Sweating Bullets
EPISODE 3
Toxic Love
SUGAR TOWN
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EPISODE 4
STEALTH MODE
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Listen to the episode and explore related stories ›
EPISODE 5
Willy D
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EPISODE 6
Losing It
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EPISODE 9
Fast Hands
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EPISODE 8
Charge
Sugar Town
• At long last, another shot at justice ›
• ‘Test again for blood in suspect’s car’ ›
• Key witnesses notably absent at trial ›
• Accused’s abusive letter to murder victim ›
Sugar Town
Episode 13 is available now exclusively to subscribers to
The Australian via the podcast player in The Australian app.
Not a subscriber? Subscribe to The Australian here.
EPISODE 7
Bad Science
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EPISODE 10
BLOOD
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EPISODE 12
Herring and Shark
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Sugar Town
EPISODE 13
UNHEARD EVIDENCE
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EPISODE 14
Renewed Hope
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EPISODE 11
LOLLIES
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• Suspect’s vehicle ‘matches’ CCTV car ›
• New clue could link chief suspect’s car to murder ›
• ‘Give my ute back,’ murder suspect demands of coroner ›
Running
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EPISODE 16
EPISODE 15
Spin Cycles
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Episode 18 is available now exclusively to subscribers to
The Australian via the podcast player in The Australian app.
Not a subscriber? Subscribe to The Australian here.
• Memory failures marred murder suspect’s inquest evidence ›
• Suspect’s vehicle ‘matches’ CCTV car ›
• New clue could link chief suspect’s car to murder ›
• ‘Give my ute back,’ murder suspect demands of coroner ›
Running
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EPISODE 16
Through The Cracks
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EPISODE 17
Episode 19 is available now exclusively to subscribers to
The Australian via the podcast player in The Australian app.
Not a subscriber? Subscribe to The Australian here.
• First police officer on scene says DNA ‘a top priority in murder probe’ ›
• Shandee Blackburn's legacy will be enduring, and positive ›
• Memory failures marred murder suspect’s inquest evidence ›
• Suspect’s vehicle ‘matches’ CCTV car ›
• New clue could link chief suspect’s car to murder ›
• ‘Give my ute back,’ murder suspect demands of coroner ›
STORIES FROM THIS EPISODE
Finally, seven months after the first disclosures in episode 7 of the podcast by Dr Kirsty Wright about grave concerns over the testing of DNA in Shandee's case and in hundreds of others, a remarkable breakthrough. The Premier of Queensland announces a far-reaching public inquiry to be led by one of Queensland's most respected legal figures and he'll be armed with vast powers and a team of lawyers and investigators to get to the truth in the DNA laboratory. Vicki and Shannah Blackburn were briefed by the premier and the health minister who said they wanted to ensure public confidence in the criminal justice system. A public inquiry became unavoidable after police went public with alarming details about what they were discovering in the lab's handling of evidence and DNA in hundreds of sexual assault cases, triggering a review of rapes going back four years. Major changes are tipped to come from the inquiry which is forecast to run for six months. Vicki says Shandee would be exclaiming 'yes!'
EPISODE 19
Shandee's Legacy
Fair Go
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EPISODE 18
Episode 19 is available now exclusively to subscribers to
The Australian via the podcast player in The Australian app.
Not a subscriber? Subscribe to The Australian here.
• First police officer on scene says DNA ‘a top priority in murder probe’ ›
• Shandee Blackburn's legacy will be enduring, and positive ›
• Memory failures marred murder suspect’s inquest evidence ›
• Suspect’s vehicle ‘matches’ CCTV car ›
• New clue could link chief suspect’s car to murder ›
• ‘Give my ute back,’ murder suspect demands of coroner ›
STORIES FROM THIS EPISODE
DNA scientist Dr Kirsty Wright is shown how public servants and DNA laboratory managers behind closed doors have been minimising the serious concerns raised in the podcast series. A raft of internal documents responding to Kirsty's revelations become available and these show the immediate refusal of the managers of the laboratory to start a proper audit or acknowledge anything has gone awry. Many documents are heavily redacted but are likely to be flushed out as the new Commission of Inquiry gathers momentum. Kirsty's other efforts to ensure scrutiny of the lab are revealed along with interviews of key witnesses who hadn't spoken to the podcast before. The episode is expected to be the last in Season 1 of Shandee's Story. A new season, Shandee's Legacy, is likely to start during the public inquiry run by retired Supreme Court Justice Walter Sofronoff QC.
EPISODE 20
ShOOT THE MESSENGERS
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The Australian's podcast, Shandee's Story, exposed shocking failures at Queensland’s state-run DNA laboratory and prompted a major public inquiry.
Now, the team that brought you The Teacher’s Trial – Hedley Thomas, Claire Harvey, David Murray, and Matthew Condon – are back to cover the bombshell evidence heard in the inquiry’s public hearings.
Season 2 of Shandee’s Story, called Shandee’s Legacy, will be published for the duration of the inquiry.