Unsolved Cold Case - Baby's body parcel posted in the mail Melbourne to Darwin

[Kurve]

A newborn baby found dead in a parcel, with police on opposite sides of Australia bewildered over who could have sent it.

Wrapped in brown paper that had started to smell, Darwin Post Office workers made the grisly discovery on May 11, 1965.

In the days that followed, it was reported the baby boy's badly decomposed body had been mailed 2,200 miles (about 3,540 kilometres) from Melbourne.

The Northern Territory News reported a stocking "tied around the baby's mouth" pointed to a "strong possibility" of murder.

Attempts to figure out who sent the package — and who it was sent to — quickly reached dead ends.

The package was addressed to the Darwin Post Office, intended for someone named J Anderson — a name shared by several people in Darwin.

And while the corpse was wrapped in recent Melbourne newspaper sheets, the sender's address in the Victorian capital was found to be fake.

This week the remains were exhumed for forensic DNA testing.

Decades after the grisly discovery of a baby in the post, could the case finally be solved?

A newborn baby was found dead in a parcel, with police on opposite sides of Australia bewildered by who could've sent it. Now, DNA advancements are offering hope the six-decade 'baby in the post' mystery could soon be solved.

www.abc.net.au

 

[Dogs_R_Us]

A newborn baby found dead in a parcel, with police on opposite sides of Australia bewildered over who could have sent it.

Wrapped in brown paper that had started to smell, Darwin Post Office workers made the grisly discovery on May 11, 1965.

In the days that followed, it was reported the baby boy's badly decomposed body had been mailed 2,200 miles (about 3,540 kilometres) from Melbourne.

The Northern Territory News reported a stocking "tied around the baby's mouth" pointed to a "strong possibility" of murder.

Attempts to figure out who sent the package — and who it was sent to — quickly reached dead ends.

The package was addressed to the Darwin Post Office, intended for someone named J Anderson — a name shared by several people in Darwin.

And while the corpse was wrapped in recent Melbourne newspaper sheets, the sender's address in the Victorian capital was found to be fake.

This week the remains were exhumed for forensic DNA testing.

Decades after the grisly discovery of a baby in the post, could the case finally be solved?

A newborn baby was found dead in a parcel, with police on opposite sides of Australia bewildered by who could've sent it. Now, DNA advancements are offering hope the six-decade 'baby in the post' mystery could soon be solved.

www.abc.net.au

It would be good if DNA could produce a result. I recently read a book written by Dr Barbara Rae-Venter, a DNA expert in the USA who has led many cold cases to be solved using ever-improving DNA technology. The Golden Gate Killer was the most famous of her successes.

 

[Kurve]

It would be good if DNA could produce a result. I recently read a book written by Dr Barbara Rae-Venter, a DNA expert in the USA who has led many cold cases to be solved using ever-improving DNA technology. The Golden Gate Killer was the most famous of her successes.

Never heard of this cold case before so I don't really understand the claim of it being so infamous but looking forward to finding out what happened.

Maybe we'll find out the DNA points definitively to the person that poor wee one was mailed to. That there was a stocking involved is just horrible.

 

[FTY1]

It would be good if DNA could produce a result. I recently read a book written by Dr Barbara Rae-Venter, a DNA expert in the USA who has led many cold cases to be solved using ever-improving DNA technology. The Golden Gate Killer was the most famous of her successes.

Before Golden State Killer was caught she also identified the four bodies in barrels in Bear Brook which there was a podcast about. If you haven't heard that one then look it up.

 

[Kurve]

Before Golden State Killer was caught she also identified the four bodies in barrels in Bear Brook which there was a podcast about. If you haven't heard that one then look it up.

That was an absolutely brilliant podcast.

 

[FTY1]

Trove Article Canberra Times 13 May 1965

Baby's body in post - The Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995) - 13 May 1965

DARWIN, Wednesday.— Detectives are trying to trace the person who posted the body of a dead baby ...

trove.nla.gov.au

Canberra Times is about the only newspaper that goes past 1955 on Trove.

 

[Dogs_R_Us]

Before Golden State Killer was caught she also identified the four bodies in barrels in Bear Brook which there was a podcast about. If you haven't heard that one then look it up.

Yes, it was in the book

It was very technical and quite a lot of aspects are needed to be covered by specialised investigation.

 

[Kurve]

If the baby died in 1965, it's still quite possible the mother is alive and living somewhere in Australia. In her 70's or 80's?

 

[BonzaRam]

The yanks used to mail children to other relatives...

A Brief History of Children Sent Through the Mail

In the early days of the parcel post, some parents took advantage of the mail in unexpected ways

www.smithsonianmag.com

I wonder if a stocking was used because it would allow the baby to breath still... was there a pacifier in it's mouth?

 

[maggiethecat]

The yanks used to mail children to other relatives...

A Brief History of Children Sent Through the Mail

In the early days of the parcel post, some parents took advantage of the mail in unexpected ways

www.smithsonianmag.com

I wonder if a stocking was used because it would allow the baby to breath still... was there a pacifier in it's mouth?

Wrapping a baby in paper is a little different to handing over a child to the local post master

 

[FTY1]

So I started listening to the Missing Australia Podcast



There is an episode on the Baby in the mail episode 2. I haven't listened to that. I am listening to the following episode Two new suspects on Gordana Kotevski where a woman claims that her Dad was Jimmy Anderson. She/her family are prepared to get DNA.

 

[Kurve]

So I started listening to the Missing Australia Podcast



There is an episode on the Baby in the mail episode 2. I haven't listened to that. I am listening to the following episode Two new suspects on Gordana Kotevski where a woman claims that her Dad was Jimmy Anderson. She/her family are prepared to get DNA.

This episode was very interesting, they're not giving up.

 

[FTY1]

So the latest on this is they got approval to exhume the body on 22 November last year.

If you are subscribed to apple podcasts there is a bonus episode today of the Missing Australia. The DNA ruled out the footballer above. I will not mention his name because the family have requested his name not be used.

As they have the DNA they can now now potentially find the father and mother. There is no statutory limitation on murder so if the mother was alive she could be charged.