Australia Western Australia - Edgar Allan Cooke: A serial killer's voice from the grave

A serial killer's voice from the grave
ABC News
By Tracey Stewart
Updated about an hour ago (as at 15:36 AEDT 14 November 2017)

‘It was a straightforward news report that gave no indication of the scale of the revelations that were to come.

"In Perth today, a youth was arrested and charged with wilfully murdering a young girl by running her down with a car in Shenton Park last night," the ABC newsreader told viewers on February 10, 1963.

Rosemary Anderson's death was one of a series of horrific killings whose dots were yet to be joined to serial killer Eric Edgar Cooke.

It was also one in a series of devastating miscarriages of justice.

The subsequent conviction of Ms Anderson's boyfriend, John Button, for her manslaughter would become a significant chapter in a saga of wrongful convictions in Western Australia which is explored in the new ABC podcast series ’Wrongful', produced by broadcaster Susan Maushart.’

Read more at:

http://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2017-...ial-killer-voice-heard-53-years-later/9122724

Listen to ‘Dead unlucky: The John Button story here:

http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/earshot/wrongful-the-john-button-story/9065942

Related:

‘Wrongful’ will be featured on Earshot on RN from December 18. The podcast series is available to download here:

http://www.abc.net.au/radionational...ngful-stories-of-justice-denied-and-redeemed/

"The hungry young Eric who grew up describing himself as the freak of the family took to wandering the streets to escape his father’s cruelty and to steal food. School was more of the same — the children taunted him, mimicking his speech. He was expelled from Subiaco Primary School in his first year for stealing.

He joined Scarborough Junior Surf Life Saving Club at 14, and his desperation for inclusion and admiration led him to steal a watch and have it engraved to look like an award: To Cookie from the boys of the SJSLC. On discovery of this theft, and suspicion over other thefts from lockers, he was rejected by the club.

Though accident prone while attention seeking, he grew into a cunning and adroit criminal, becoming a particularly deft cat-burglar who could get through the narrowest or highest windows, break one piece of stained glass door or remove one louvre to reach the key inside, and, after propping open a back door for a quick getaway, stealthily steal in the presence of the owners.

Leaving school at 14, he learnt his way around the streets through his first job as a delivery boy for Central Provision Stores in North Perth. He stole to supplement the few shillings pocket money left after he gave his wages to his struggling mother."
.............

"He prowled most weekends, cunningly reading The West Australian’s wedding notices and breaking into the brides’ homes in the knowledge no one would be there, and he studied the floor plans of big houses from The West’s weekly home architecture features to know his way around them."

https://thewest.com.au/news/the-making-of-a-serial-killer-ng-ya-284009

https://goo.gl/images/cHUU9W

meticulously said:

"The hungry young Eric who grew up describing himself as the freak of the family took to wandering the streets to escape his father’s cruelty and to steal food. School was more of the same — the children taunted him, mimicking his speech. He was expelled from Subiaco Primary School in his first year for stealing.

He joined Scarborough Junior Surf Life Saving Club at 14, and his desperation for inclusion and admiration led him to steal a watch and have it engraved to look like an award: To Cookie from the boys of the SJSLC. On discovery of this theft, and suspicion over other thefts from lockers, he was rejected by the club.

Though accident prone while attention seeking, he grew into a cunning and adroit criminal, becoming a particularly deft cat-burglar who could get through the narrowest or highest windows, break one piece of stained glass door or remove one louvre to reach the key inside, and, after propping open a back door for a quick getaway, stealthily steal in the presence of the owners.

Leaving school at 14, he learnt his way around the streets through his first job as a delivery boy for Central Provision Stores in North Perth. He stole to supplement the few shillings pocket money left after he gave his wages to his struggling mother."
.............

"He prowled most weekends, cunningly reading The West Australian’s wedding notices and breaking into the brides’ homes in the knowledge no one would be there, and he studied the floor plans of big houses from The West’s weekly home architecture features to know his way around them."

https://thewest.com.au/news/the-making-of-a-serial-killer-ng-ya-284009

https://goo.gl/images/cHUU9W

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Hi Meticulously - nothing excuses the crimes Eric Cooke committed. He hurt so many people and their families. Personally I don't agree with the death penalty. I'm sure if he had committed the same crimes these days he would certainly be put away for life. Nowadays they seem to try to rehabilitate prisoners. I wonder would he have been given that opportunity?

After reading about Eric Cooke's childhood It made me feel sick. He didn't stand a chance at growing up 'normal'. Of course there had to be severe punishment for his crimes and if not death by hanging then life in prison - never to be released. I just feel sad for the life he had as a child and of course for his victims and families. MOO

Annalise said:

Hi Meticulously - nothing excuses the crimes Eric Cooke committed. He hurt so many people and their families. Personally I don't agree with the death penalty. I'm sure if he had committed the same crimes these days he would certainly be put away for life. Nowadays they seem to try to rehabilitate prisoners. I wonder would he have been given that opportunity?

After reading about Eric Cooke's childhood It made me feel sick. He didn't stand a chance at growing up 'normal'. Of course there had to be severe punishment for his crimes and if not death by hanging then life in prison - never to be released. I just feel sad for the life he had as a child and of course for his victims and families. MOO

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"Hi Meticulously - nothing excuses the crimes Eric Cooke committed. He hurt so many people and their families."

Hi Annalise, i quoted from an article , that is not my opinion .
If its my opinion i will say so [emoji6]



Picture from this link.
https://thewest.com.au/news/the-making-of-a-serial-killer-ng-ya-284009

"Like the procession of coppers before them who had manned the clandestine observation post for 17 days and nights, the pair did their best to ignore the cold.

It was Sunday September 1, and the sweltering heat of the summer of 1963 was long gone.
But the fear born in that season of murder had not fled with the warm nights.
As autumn moved into winter, the temperature in Perth kept dropping, and so did the bodies......

The man who brazenly shot five people on Australia Day, the one they called the Night Caller and the Nedlands Monster, was still on the loose.....

The shadowy figure got out of his car. He walked up to a Geraldton wax bush. He reached for the butt of what he thought was the rifle he had used to murder his most recent of eight victims, young Shirley McLeod, shot in the head while she was babysitting in a Dalkeith home.

The trap was sprung........

"We ran (at him) from either side to stop him getting back to the vehicle or making a run for the river," Mr Skehan said. "He was surprised. We wrestled him down. He had white women's gloves on. He had women's panties in his pockets."

https://thewest.com.au/news/australia/how-the-cops-caught-a-killer-ng-ya-343606

Hi Meticulously - I wasn't implying that the article was your words. I was just replying to how I felt after reading the article. Sorry if it sounded like I thought it was your opinion

Annalise said:

Hi Meticulously - I wasn't implying that the article was your words. I was just replying to how I felt after reading the article. Sorry if it sounded like I thought it was your opinion

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Ok thanks annalise .
I just read the book by Estelle Blackburn called "Broken Lives" about eric cooke . theres some interesting stuff and i will try share it on this thread.

"THE woman who uncovered Darryl Beamish's story of injustice says today's $425,000 ex gratia payment made by the State to him was not enough in comparison to other payouts.

Estelle Blackburn, whose investigations led to Mr Beamish's murder conviction being quashed, said he should have received the same $3.25 million payment awarded to Andrew Mallard.

"How can you compensate for such terrible trauma? you just can't,'' Ms Blackburn said.

"But I do think he deserves more - 15 years is a life sentence and people forget what Fremantle Prison was like in those days.

"There wasn't TV and computers and visits every weekend.

"He suffered terribly, as did John Button, and as did Mallard.''

Mr Beamish, who is deaf and mute, was wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for 15 years for the wilful murder of Cottesloe socialite Jillian Brewer in 1959.

Serial killer Eric Edgar Cooke later confessed to the crime but Mr Beamish was not released until 1977."

"Ms Blackburn told PerthNow she was relieved when she found out an application of $500,000 had been lodged by Mr Beamish.

"I'm delighted because he originally said he would not apply for compensation and I was a bit sad about that because I thought he deserves something,'' she said.

"He's a simple, humble man but compensation will make his life easier and make the state or the justice system sit up and think, 'gee, if we get it wrong so badly, we're going to have to pay for it'."

https://www.perthnow.com.au/news/ju...lls-short-ng-91985f4fb6a1155c87c983d13a5faec6

"Cooke was the 154th and last person hanged in WA and by that time the preparation for an execution was done in minute detail.

About 10 days earlier, Cooke was measured and weighed so the length of rope needed could be calculated. And then the men who would accompany him on that final walk were selected."


"As the prison clock chimed eight times, the swift final walk began, with the four guards and Cooke pausing only to place a cloth hood over his head.

Only Mr Campbell, who is still a tour guide at the long-closed jail, knows who pulled the lever to end Cooke's life.

Only Mr Campbell heard Cooke's last words but he will not reveal that either, except to say the killer accepted his fate."

https://thewest.com.au/news/wa/cookes-final-walk-still-echoes-ng-ya-379777

http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/wa-hanging-story---1964-full-report-never-broadcast/2841630

"John Penlington goes to Western Australia to report on the hanging of Eric Edgar Cooke.

After questions were raised by Labor politician Harry May, ABC management decide that this story on capital punishment cannot be shown, and issues a statement saying that the ABC has "no intention whatsoever of running a story on capital punishment".

Penlington and Allan Ashbolt publicly confirm their intention to do a story on Cooke with the intention to broadcast on October 24.

John Penlington is suspended and Executive Producer Allan Ashbolt never returns to Four Corners.

Watch the unseen segment and read about the controversies surrounding this story."

This is the last one .

This is a horrific admission by cooke .

https://youtu.be/s0fFAeNPftY

https://odcom-af2f697ae796a410887ed3ae6d3dc32e.read.overdrive.com/

Estelle Blackburn's
Broken lives book review

Map of crimes

http://wan-info.anittel.net/westonline/COOKE/

meticulously said:

This is the last one .

This is a horrific admission by cooke .

https://youtu.be/s0fFAeNPftY

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omg he is a monster

https://youtu.be/rFkazMhGo2s

Rosemary Anderson death