‘I’ll blow my head off before I go to jail’: Former prison officer’s chilling phone call after being charged with the ‘real life Wolf Creek’ murder of three travellers in the Outback
- Man accused of triple murder in outback Qld 41 years ago remains behind bars
- Bruce John Preston, 63, denied bail in the Brisbane Supreme Court on Monday
- Accused of killing Karen Edwards, Timothy Thomson and Gordon Twaddle
- Court heard he told his wife he would rather blow his head off than go to jail
- Preston is a retired senior prison officer at NSW's Goulburn Supermax jail
A man accused of a triple murder some 40 years ago has been denied bail after saying he would rather blow his head off than go to jail.
Bruce John Preston, 63, was charged in April with the 1978 murders of three friends who set out on an outback motorcycle adventure and never came home.
Their bodies were found in Queensland scrub less than a month after they started their journey.
The cold case was likened to a 'real-life Wolf Creek', the story of three road-trippers who are kidnapped by a psychopathic killer.
Friends Karen Edwards, Gordon Twaddle and Timothy Thomson (left to right) were on the adventure of a lifetime in the Australian outback in 1978 when their lives were cut short
Preston, who maintains he is innocent, unsuccessfully sought bail in the Brisbane Supreme Court on Monday.
He will remain in custody until he fights allegations he murdered Karen Edwards, 23, Timothy Thomson, 31, and Gordon Twaddle, 21, near a Mount Isa caravan park three days after they rode out of Alice Springs.
Preston, a retired senior prison officer at NSW's Goulburn Supermax jail, argued he should be bailed because he was of good character.
He had always co-operated with investigators, and it was a historical case reliant on circumstantial evidence.
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Bruce John Preston, 63, was recently charged with the triple murder near Mount Isa in 1978
However, Crown Prosecutor Danny Boyle said Preston was not only a flight risk but could potentially take his own life to avoid a prison sentence.
Mr Boyle said a covert 2019 recording of Preston on the phone to his wife after the police investigation had recommenced had raised concerns about what he might do if released.
'I've never been this scared,' Preston said on the recording, Mr Boyle told the court.
'I am not going to prison. I'd rather walk out into the street and blow my head off before I go to jail.'
But Preston's lawyer Russell Pearce said the Crown was 'nitpicking' from the recordings and would also have heard Preston declare his innocence many times.
Tim, Gordon and Karen were last seen at this caravan park (pictured) before their bodies were found with gunshot wounds 19 days later in bushland 12km north of Mount Isa
Tim 31, and Gordon, 21 were family friends from New Zealand with a passion for motorcycles.
Karen, 23, was Tim's girlfriend and the trio was on the adventure of a lifetime trekking across the outback.
The trio planned to ride from the Northern Territory to Cairns before heading down Australia's east coast to Melbourne to spend Christmas with family members.
They were last seen on October 5 at the Moondarra Caravan Park jumping into a two-tone Toyota Landcruiser, similar to the one Preston's father owned at the time.
Bruce Preston has always been a person of interest, charged with stealing Tim's motorcycle (pictured) in 1978 for which he was convicted and fined $300
Their bodies were found 19 days later in bushland near Spear Creek, 12km north of the outback mining town.
All three died from gunshot wounds.
The court heard Preston, a former corporal in the Australian Army, was also on a motorcycle trip across Australia at the time.
A man matching his description was allegedly seen with the victims the night before they disappeared.
Bruce John Preston (pictured), a retired senior prison officer at NSW's Goulburn Supermax jail
The trio were travelling with Tim's dog Tristie (pictured). They lost Tristie and found him at a Mount Isa dump 18 days before their bodies were discovered
Preston was later found in possession of Mr Edwards' near-new red and gold BMW motorcycle, which had a sidecar with a map of Australia painted on it.
He told investigators he had found the bike and was charged with theft.
The court heard Preston told detectives in 1978 he was not in Mt Isa the day the trio were murdered.
But in an interview prior to his arrest in April, he contradicted this and said he was in Mt Isa when the trio disappeared.
Judge Elizabeth Wilson refused Preston's bail application.
Bruce John Preston (pictured) using a Joker filter on a Facebook profile picture) will remain behind bars
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