Shirley Finn murder bombshell
A former WA police officer has broken his 40-year silence to reveal how fellow officers threatened to kill him if he went public with vital evidence linking police to the murder of brothel madam Shirley Finn in 1975.
The former officer, who only wants to be known by his first name Brian, has detailed the allegations in a sworn statement to the Corruption and Crime Commission, which includes claims he saw Mrs Finn drinking with detectives about 11.30pm on the night of her murder on June 22.
The last confirmed sighting of Mrs Finn previously was two hours earlier at 9.30pm when a neighbour saw her leave her South Perth home alone, dressed in an expensive ball gown.
She was found slumped in her car at Royal Perth Golf Club at South Perth early the next morning with four bullets in her head.
Whom she had been going to meet that night had — until now — remained a mystery.
Brian claims he reported the sighting of Mrs Finn with the detectives to a superior the day after the murder when he read about it in the newspapers.
Detectives at Shirley Finn's South Perth home. Picture: File
New leads into Shirley Finn murder
But rather than being asked to make a statement, Brian claims that a day later he was knocked off his police motorcycle by a carload of detectives, who then warned him at gunpoint to either “shut up or die”.
“I heard this screech of tyres and a car comes in my right-hand side and hits the front of my motorbike and sends me off into the sand on the side of the road,” Brian said. “Next thing I know four guys get out of the car — one of them had a gun.
“One said, ‘Shut your mouth if you want to live and see your children again — shut your mouth. You know nothing’.”
Explosive new claims in Shirley Finn murder mystery. Picture: Facebook.
Brian said he reported this incident, too, but that prompted another warning from detectives — this time at his home.
“What could I do? I couldn’t even trust my colleagues,” he said. “I kept thinking, what could I do?”
Brian was finally convinced to go public after contact from Mrs Finn’s daughter Bridget Shewring and local author Juliet Wills, who has written a new book about the murder inquiry.
Ms Finn's Dodge sedan. Picture: File
Ms Shewring has campaigned for decades to try to break down the wall of silence that has protected her mother’s killer.
She said that in light of Brian’s testimony, she hoped an independent investigative body such as the CCC or State Coroner could take over the case while key players were still alive.
In a statement issued today, WA Police said that in February 2014, following a meeting with Ms Shewring, the Special Crime Squad launched a cold case review into the 1975 murder.
"As a result of the review a fresh investigation was commenced and is still underway," Detective Superintendent Anthony Lee of the Major Crime Division said.
"It became publicly known WA Police was investigating this matter in November 2014.
"The investigation team has not received any advice or referrals from the Corruption and Crime Commission regarding any allegations by a former police officer.
"Further comment will not be made until the investigation is completed."
