Man convicted over Australia's 'worst serial killings' will soon walk free
After 25 years behind bars, one of the four men convicted over South Australia's bodies in the barrels murders could soon be set to walk free.
By May, Mark Ray Haydon will have served his full sentence for covering up Australia's worst serial killings, in Snowtown.
Haydon was one of four people arrested in 1999 when the bodies of some of the 11 victims were found in barrels, in a disused bank vault, in the state's mid-north.
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By May, Mark Ray Haydon will have served his full sentence for covering up Australia's worst serial killings, in Snowtown. Nine
Haydon was one of four people arrested in 1999 when the bodies of some of the 11 victims were found in barrels, in a disused bank vaults, in the state's mid north. Nine
Those barrels had also for a time been stored at Haydon's northern Adelaide home and among the victims was his own wife.
He was sentenced to 25 years in jail for assisting in seven murders, and has twice been rejected for parole but in May, his entire sentence will be complete.
The state government is now seeking legal advice on whether it can use special powers to keep him under permanent supervision once he's back in the community.
"The Snowtown murders were shocking. They were probably one of the most brutal cases we've seen in Australian history, " State Premier Peter Malinauskas said today.
"As a government we're responding to this, we've got a few months of course before the release happens. And the government is actively exploring all legal options available to us, to make sure that the South Australian community is kept safe."
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Those barrels had also for a time been stored at Haydon's northern Adelaide home and among the victims was his own wife. Nine
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Victims Rights Commissioner Michael O'Connell said the impending release will remind the family the sentence was "never long enough".
"It's appalling from their perspective that he's going to have a chance to live his life, whereas their loved ones were denied that," he said.
The main killers, John Bunting and Robert Wagner, are both serving life without parole while a fourth offender is eligible to apply for parole from next year.
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