Unsolved Mark Dixie - Former Claremont murders suspect

[Kurve]

Mark Dixie, one of Britain's most depraved killer rapists entered Australia in the 1990s initially staying in Sydney before travelling to Perth where he was known to frequent the western suburbs clubs and pubs through the period of the Claremont murders.

It was revealed later by DNA match and after he'd been deported from Australia, that while in Perth he'd broken into a girls unit where she was subjected to a prolonged and incredibly vicious stabbing and rape, she was lucky to survive. His later victim back in Britain, Sally Ann Bowman was not as fortunate.

Dixie is under attention by our press again as it's been revealed that he was questioned in 1997 over another attack on a woman who was walking home. He was let go without charge.

The police claim he was in WA 1996 to 1999 but nobody knows exactly when he arrived in WA, driving a car that wasn't registered to him and using the alias of Shane Turner. Dixie may have been in the area as early as when Sarah Spiers went missing.

This article claims Dixie was deported for overstaying his visa which might be the official line but he'd been arrested in WA for a sex pest offence and gave the police his alias. He appeared in court under that alias before the police realised who he was.

 

[BFew]

From the Post Newspaper, 1 March 2008, with lots of quotes from Robin Napper, a former British detective superintendent brought to Australia to introduce the use of DNA technology.

I note Today's Dixie article in the West omits Claremont from the list of Perth suburbs that Dixie was reported to have lived in during the 1990's.
The closest they got in their partial list, was Subiaco.

Hey Bret (Christian), if you're reading this, are you sure that Dixie was ever living in Claremont?

Hey Phil/Tim (Clarke), if you're reading this, any particular reason(s) why you left Claremont off your list of where Dixie is reported/alleged to have lived in Perth in the 90's? Maybe you can quote or investigate the Post's claim about this in a follow up article on Dixie

POST Newspapers Online: Headline News

web.archive.org

'Could Dixie be the Claremont killer?'

'a former chef, who lived in Claremont during the 1990s'

'WA police say they have ruled out Mark Dixie as the Claremont killer because he was unlikely to have been in WA when the woman thought to be the first victim, Sarah Spiers, went missing.'

'he was here from March 1996 to April 1999,'

'British police ... have they have criticised them for deporting Dixie without trying to prosecute him for the Leederville attack or investigating his background further.'

'Dozens of unsolved murders of women, sex attacks and missing women have been recorded for the time Dixie was in Perth.
Police have said they cannot rule him out of many of them.'

 

[BFew]

Mark Dixie, one of Britain's most depraved killer rapists entered Australia in the 1990s initially staying in Sydney before travelling to Perth

Here's an archived article with a good timeline on some of what was known about him up, to 2008. Including a reference to Dixie having also lived in QLD and him travelling through Melbourne and Adelaide to Perth, and names of 5 of his other aliases.

Given that my last post had the Post newspaper as saying that Dixie once lived in Claremont in the 1990's and that the below extensive article claims that WAPOL don't believe that Dixie was responsible for the Claremont Murders because his method was always to attack victims close to his home, maybe that means it is likely that Dixie only started living in Claremont (if he ever did) after March 1997 when Ciara Glennon was murdered (by Bradley Robert Edwards who was convicted of her murder at his 2019/20 Trial by Judge, after pleading not guilty of this abduction/murder).

Mark Dixie. The Murder of Sally Anne Bowman by Peter Stubley

mark dixie sex killer of sally anne bowman

web.archive.org

'Dixie then took the name Mark James McDonald, using his stepfather's surname, but throughout his life has used five known aliases including Mark Phillip Dixie, Mark James Down, Steven McDonald and Shane Turner.'

'He was even suspected of being the notorious Claremont serial killer ..... detectives in Western Australia and in Britain do not believe Dixie is responsible, largely because his method was always to attack victims close to his home.'

 

[Power Raid]

how nuts to have two crazies running around claremont at the same time

 

[Fortune Cookie]

I'm pretty sure from memory that 'Shane Turner' worked at the Captain Sterling (on Stirling Hwy Nedlands) cooking around that time. I also recall some newspaper article where a member of a share house, recalled a mysterious lodger who was a chef who left suddenly.
Gosh, I'm wracking my brain where I may have seen this. Does this ring any bells with anybody else?

 

[Kurve]

I'm pretty sure from memory that 'Shane Turner' worked at the Captain Sterling (on Stirling Hwy Nedlands) cooking around that time. I also recall some newspaper article where a member of a share house, recalled a mysterious lodger who was a chef who left suddenly.
Gosh, I'm wracking my brain where I may have seen this. Does this ring any bells with anybody else?

He was definitely working in/around the Claremont area, the Captain Sterling rings a bell. It's not far from the Conti and I have it from a very reputable source that he was spotted in there. No doubt in my mind he was there.

 

[Kurve]

'He was even suspected of being the notorious Claremont serial killer ..... detectives in Western Australia and in Britain do not believe Dixie is responsible, largely because his method was always to attack victims close to his home.'

On doing the research a couple of years ago, of all the crimes he was accused of I didn't notice a car playing a role. He either broke into their house or stalked on foot before he launched.

 

[BFew]

How many did sick chef Mark Dixie kill in WA?

BRITISH police believe the sex monster who raped and stabbed a model to death near London probably killed in WA, where he once worked as a chef.

www.news.com.au

'UK detectives praised WA Police for its assistance in the Bowman case. But they said other state police forces were not as cooperative and Dixie's other convictions elsewhere in Australia were not able to be produced in court.'

What other non-WA convictions?

 

[BFew]

http://What other non-WA convictions?

This one Sydney one for starters.

WA police defend role in Dixie probe

West Australian police have defended their role in the investigation of a convicted British sex murderer who was deported when his alias was finally uncovered.

www.smh.com.au

'February 24, 2008
he was using the alias Shane Turner, and it was not until his fingerprints were matched to a conviction in the Sydney area under the name Mark Dixie that police realised his identity and deported him for overstaying his visa.'

'WA Police Deputy Commissioner Murray Lampard said on Sunday Dixie was closely investigated at the time and eventually ruled out as a suspect.
"Mark Dixie was considered part of the macro investigation and ruled out by police," Mr Lampard said in a statement.'

 

[BFew]

WA police defend role in Dixie probe

West Australian police have defended their role in the investigation of a convicted British sex murderer who was deported when his alias was finally uncovered.

www.smh.com.au

February 24, 2008
'A West Australian police officer also travelled to London to help detectives with their investigation, which led to a sample of Dixie's DNA being sent back to WA where it was matched to the unsolved rape and attempted murder of a student in Perth.'

Looks like WAPOL did not get a useable sample of Dixie's DNA when they arrested him for the early 1997 Victoria Park women attack.

 

[Kurve]

How many did sick chef Mark Dixie kill in WA?

BRITISH police believe the sex monster who raped and stabbed a model to death near London probably killed in WA, where he once worked as a chef.

www.news.com.au

'UK detectives praised WA Police for its assistance in the Bowman case. But they said other state police forces were not as cooperative and Dixie's other convictions elsewhere in Australia were not able to be produced in court.'

What other non-WA convictions?

The only other one I stumbled over iirc was break and enter or theft in NSW.

 

[BFew]

'February 24, 2008
he was using the alias Shane Turner, and it was not until his fingerprints were matched to a conviction in the Sydney area under the name Mark Dixie that police realised his identity and deported him for overstaying his visa.'

Which is possibly this Manly one

Police check for links to killer Dixie

Police in New South Wales have ruled out the possibility that convicted British murderer Mark Dixie committed any sex attacks or similar crimes while he was in the state in the mid-1990s.

www.abc.net.au

'23 February 2008
Police in New South Wales have ruled out the possibility that convicted British murderer Mark Dixie committed any sex attacks or similar crimes while he was in the state in the mid-1990s.

'This morning a New South Wales Police spokesman said a database check had only found an outstanding warrant alleging Dixie stole from his Manly employer in 1995.
Queensland police say they have received no advice at this stage that Dixie could be involved in crimes in that state.'

 

[Power Raid]

How many did sick chef Mark Dixie kill in WA?

BRITISH police believe the sex monster who raped and stabbed a model to death near London probably killed in WA, where he once worked as a chef.

www.news.com.au

'UK detectives praised WA Police for its assistance in the Bowman case. But they said other state police forces were not as cooperative and Dixie's other convictions elsewhere in Australia were not able to be produced in court.'

What other non-WA convictions?

the rape and near murder of the thai woman

 

[BFew]

the rape and near murder of the thai woman

I specifically said non-WA. Like events that happened anywhere in Australia except in WA.
The Thai women attack was in WA.

 

[BFew]

With such a lengthy string of convictions in the UK before he moved to Australia, makes you wonder how he was ever let in, in the first place in 1993.

Were any of Dixie's pre-1993 convictions in the UK, of a nature that would not normally get you entry into Australia in 1993?

UK reports: Profile: Mark Dixie, A history of sexual violence - 22 February 2008

'The Old Bailey heard that, when he was 17, he was convicted of indecent assault and assault occasioning actual bodily harm on a Jehovah's Witness who called at his flat.

'Dixie's criminal record is far more lengthy than the jury was ever entitled to hear when considering the case. In May 1986, when he was 16, he was charged with robbery and indecent assault after he and an accomplice held a knife to a woman's throat and fondled her breasts. He was eventually convicted of just robbery after the indecent assault charge was left on file.'

'In 1988, he was found guilty of indecent assault and two counts of indecent exposure. In court on that occasion, he asked for five similar offences to be taken into consideration. The following year, he was found guilty of indecent exposure after masturbating at a woman's car window. There were other, non-sexually motivated convictions in the UK in the late 80s and early 90s before Dixie moved to Australia in 1993.'

 

[Fifty n Closing]

Following

 

[utility]

With such a lengthy string of convictions in the UK before he moved to Australia, makes you wonder how he was ever let in, in the first place in 1993.

Computer/data systems were not as advanced. He probably gave a false declaration. It's not like lengthy background checks would be done for every arrival.

 

[Power Raid]

I specifically said non-WA. Like events that happened anywhere in Australia except in WA.
The Thai women attack was in WA.

I recall from memory it was alleged he was involved in an attack of an english girl at a back packers in Sydney (Kings Cross area)

 

[one eyed spy]

Here's an archived article with a good timeline on some of what was known about him up, to 2008. Including a reference to Dixie having also lived in QLD and him travelling through Melbourne and Adelaide to Perth, and names of 5 of his other aliases.

Given that my last post had the Post newspaper as saying that Dixie once lived in Claremont in the 1990's and that the below extensive article claims that WAPOL don't believe that Dixie was responsible for the Claremont Murders because his method was always to attack victims close to his home, maybe that means it is likely that Dixie only started living in Claremont (if he ever did) after March 1997 when Ciara Glennon was murdered (by Bradley Robert Edwards who was convicted of her murder at his 2019/20 Trial by Judge, after pleading not guilty of this abduction/murder).

Mark Dixie. The Murder of Sally Anne Bowman by Peter Stubley

mark dixie sex killer of sally anne bowman

web.archive.org

'Dixie then took the name Mark James McDonald, using his stepfather's surname, but throughout his life has used five known aliases including Mark Phillip Dixie, Mark James Down, Steven McDonald and Shane Turner.'

'He was even suspected of being the notorious Claremont serial killer ..... detectives in Western Australia and in Britain do not believe Dixie is responsible, largely because his method was always to attack victims close to his home.'

I recall reading claims he lived in a share house in Nedlands quite near to the Captain Stirling whilst he was working there & not actually in Claremont as was suggested in the Post? I lost lots of old articles & other details with the last phone so can't retrace where that detail came from unfortunately.

I'm pretty sure from memory that 'Shane Turner' worked at the Captain Sterling (on Stirling Hwy Nedlands) cooking around that time. I also recall some newspaper article where a member of a share house, recalled a mysterious lodger who was a chef who left suddenly.
Gosh, I'm wracking my brain where I may have seen this. Does this ring any bells with anybody else?

100% my recall too. Ties in with my belief about his movements. Also remember thinking he knew the heat was on him & he bailed.

 

[BFew]

I recall reading claims he lived in a share house in Nedlands quite near to the Captain Stirling whilst he was working there & not actually in Claremont as was suggested in the Post?

Maybe a share house with the Perth women (Jackson) referred to in the below?

Mum's fear for son of jailed killer Mark Dixie

TEARS FOR SALLY ANNE

www.mirror.co.uk

‘He was also known to love travelling, having already spent six years in Australia with girlfriend Sandra Beckhaus, mother of his two older boys. He is thought to have committed a string of sex attacks there - including the rape and stabbing of a Thai student in Perth in 1998.

At the time of the attack he had split from Sandra and was lodging with Eleanor Jackson in Perth. Eleanor, now 28, said: "When I found out what he had done I went into shock. I couldn't stop thinking it could have been me."

She also revealed Dixie once made a pass at her, but she fought him off and fled’

 

[JWS2019]

Absolutely this guy has form.... will have to go back on the notes and the memory bank from looking into his whereabouts for CSK. He would have been perfect fit for CSK although it wasn’t him...

 

[Mudman85]

Interesting he was ruled out of the CSK crimes due to DNA. What DNA did they use to rule him it of SS? Or was he ruled out because Lance did it.
It’s that closed minded view that took them 25 year to solve the other 2 cases.

 

[one eyed spy]

Interesting he was ruled out of the CSK crimes due to DNA. What DNA did they use to rule him it of SS? Or was he ruled out because Lance did it.
It’s that closed minded view that took them 25 year to solve the other 2 cases.

They knew his movements through Australia apparently & didnt believe he was in Perth until about March of 1996 I believe.
I have vague notes saying he arrived in NSW 18Jan1993 & stayed in Sydney before going to QLD in 1995 then over to WA early 1996. He stayed here in Perth & the SW where he was busted being a deviant on New Year's day in 1999 & finally deported 23Apr1999. Why it took almost 4 months between arrest and deportation seems dodgy as to me, but that's the story that's been consistently reported as I know it.

 

[BFew]

In her 2010 Book, The Devil’s Garden: The Claremont Serial Killings, Debbie Marshall's Mark Dixie related content includes claims that on 7 December 2006, WAPOL announced that they had no evidence on Dixie for any crimes in WA, (despite this weeks revelations that Dixie was arrested, but not charged, for a 1997 attack on a women in Victoria Park).

'On 7 December 2006 Perth police announce to the media that Mark Dixie has been ruled out as a suspect in the Claremont murders. Their investigations, they reveal, have found it unlikely that Dixie was in Perth when Sarah Spiers disappeared from Claremont and have also found no evidence to link him to any crimes in Western Australia.'
(Marshall, Debi. The Devil's Garden: The Claremont Serial Killings. Random House Australia. Kindle Edition.)

2 years before this book was published, a Reuters 23 Feb 2008 article reports that Mark Dixie was cleared of the CSK crimes, after a failed DNA test and giving a provable alibi. This article was written before the (murdered) Ciara Glennon fingernail clippings LCN DNA results came back from the UK in 2009, before which (according to the evidence at the 2019/20 Trial of Bradley Robert Edwards) the only useable CSK related DNA was that of the 1995 Rowe Park/Karrakatta Cemetery violent abduction/rape attack victim that Bradley Robert Edwards pleaded guilty to pre-trial in 2019.

I don't recall, and can't find any other reference on the internet, to a Mark Dixie alibi of any kind related to any of the Claremont Murders (Sarah Spiers, Jane Rimmer, or Ciara Glennon).

The only thing that makes sense in Reuters Feb 2008 reported/claimed failed DNA test, is if it failed to detect human DNA on Dixie!

Police fear Dixie has murdered before

Detectives believe that such was the horrific nature of the Sally Anne Bowman murder that Mark Dixie may well have killed before, possibly in Australia.

www.reuters.com

'Detectives investigated him in connection with the infamous “Claremont” killings, which occurred while he was living in Perth.

Jane Rimmer, 23, Ciara Glennon, 27, and Sarah Spiers, 18, were abducted and killed after a night out in the upmarket Perth suburb of Claremont between 1996 and 1998.

Dixie was cleared after a failed DNA test and giving a provable alibi.

Last year, British detectives travelled to Australia to investigate suspicions that Dixie had attacked a female Thai student in Perth in 1998.'

 

[GreyCrow]

one eyed spy the deportation taking 4 months is fairly quick in the scheme of things.

From arrest to dealing with lawyers - it seems a deal was done where Dixie voluntarily agreed to deportation over charges

Usually you are sentenced and (in SA) if the sentence is longer than 12 months you are a strong candidate for deportation. You must serve that 12+ before applying for parole. You 'are paroled' into the care of immigration authorities and then deported.

Some opt to serve their full time as their prospects in some countries are dire