Episode 4 Deep Water

This programme contains some violent scenes, some strong language

and some scenes which some viewers may find upsetting.

They were going to throw me off the cliff. Hammers' girlfriend was shouting..."Kill the fag."

It was a sport back then, and the Pointers took to the sport with a vengeance, led by a Kyle Hampton.

-TORI:

-Greg Mills. Dr Peter Levy. Ned Davies.

I knew a couple of the local coppers.

They weren't interested in Ned. They reckoned he was asking for it.

-Nick, the numbers are growing.

-26 years later.

These men were killed just like Haris?

It's a frenzied assault.

Yeah, it's like this one was personal.

The DNA test results you requested? The blood on the lead pipe?

You're related.

Shane was not gay.

OSCAR: You bash innocent men and you throw them to their death.

Is that right?

-Sally...

-I don't want anything to do with the cops.

I don't want anything to do with Hammers.

There's someone luring people with that app and then killing them.

You shouldn't be on it yourself.

-Your Thrustr guy. He's online.

-Wh...what?!

-MAN:

-Tori, it's not Hammers.

-TORI:

-Oscar!

NICK: Pulse is steady. Ambos should be here soon.

Oscar!

-WOMAN:

-I was having a smoke...

Oscar!

..and saw this fella waiting for someone,

then this other fella arrives.

Oscar!

Then I heard a thud and a groan and I called out, "Everything all right?"

Can you move? Now! Move!

Then I walk around and see him lying there.

Oscar, can you hear me? Oscar.

I saw a boy killed here. Exact same spot. Back in the struggle days.

He died in my arms. You cops didn't give a damn!

-MAN:

-Step back, please.

Fuckin' bastards.

Could have been him.

Well, we need you to be certain.

It was dark!

What about weapons?

He had something in his fist. Not a gun or a knife, but, um...

No.

It was HIM.

He's a thug, sir.

He was a thug when he was a kid

and he's a thug now.

You can't turn a blind eye forever.

I beg your pardon?

I've come across old paperwork that's left me with some questions.

Old charge sheets. Charges dropped on your authority.

You called me here in the middle of the night to tell me that?

HE CHUCKLES

Who the bloody hell do you think you are?

-Is he an informant?

-That's classified.

Hammers is a businessman.

He's got a local bar, and intel suggests that he's involved

in the O'Donohues' drug network, but nothing's proven.

Look, boss, everybody knows

you've got an impeccable record for drug busts.

Now, maybe Hammers helped you get those and you can't say.

Well, we all understand that.

But Hammers is in deep shit,

and sometimes you've just got to cut your informants loose.

-I'll tell you tomorrow.

-We need to go tonight.

What do you hope to find?

A club with Oscar's blood on it would be pretty useful, sir.

There's no way I'm going to ring a magistrate

in the middle of the bloody night on such flimsy hope.

Hammers, he's a manipulative piece of work,

but the sick fuck we're after is something else altogether.

DOOR LOCKS

-WOMAN:

-Rhys?

Coming.

Where were you last night?

At work.

I worry about leaving you, Rhys.

You should get yourself a nice girl.

Like you?

No, where are you going?

Thanks.

That the hospital?

Yeah. Brain scan's normal.

-They'll discharge Oscar today.

-Good.

That's a warrant for Hammers.

You control your emotions, and you, don't get cocky.

Either of you fuck me around,

I'll drop-kick your arses right out of here.

Where was your husband last night?

At the Green Room, then home with me.

Where is he now?

No idea. We lead independent lives.

What time did he get in last night?

Don't know. I was asleep.

Oh, are you a smoker, Cheryl?

Uh, I'm a fitness trainer. They're Kyle's.

What's this?

A sex toy?

Fancy dress night at the club.

Yeah, I heard the fancy dress doesn't stay on long.

These are illegal.

Nick?

Do you or your husband have any fur garments in the house?

I belong to an organisation that's against cruelty to animals.

TORI LAUGHS Just going to continue the search.

Please go. When Kyle turns up, I'll tell him to call you.

Oh, you thought we just wanted to talk to Kyle? No, no, no, no, no.

Where were YOU Christmas Eve 1989?

A man was killed. I know you were there. I have a witness.

You can't rely on the words of a madwoman. She's insane!

You have no idea who my witness is.

The past is the past. We've all done things we regret.

And each morning, we are born again a new person.

-I'm not the person I was yesterday.

-No, no, no.

You don't get to get off the hook by mouthing some half-baked philosophy.

You really want to pay for Hammers?

You need to talk to me, Cheryl.

I'm racking my brain. Nothing's coming to me.

Watching a murder and doing nothing to prevent it

leaves you equally culpable.

A young man was bashed and you were heard screaming, "Kill the faggot."

What kind of a person does that?

Let me go.

Why does your husband have a gun beside the bed?

In case he meets you on the beach.

-PEEL:

-One firearm. That's all you found.

Can you at least tell me it was unlicensed?

Uh, we're not sure what the weapon used on Oscar Taylor was yet, boss.

-Any blood?

-Uh, not to the naked eye. It could have been wiped clean.

But the Thrustr killer,

he definitely met one or more victims at the Green Room.

Hammers is connected, but we're just not sure how yet.

Well, pull your fingers out, will you?

The public want the head of the prick who topped Toohey.

-They don't want false trails.

-Yes, boss.

Hey, Tori.

Have a look at those.

I appropriated them - sublegally. They weren't on the warrant.

Hmm. O'Donohue brothers.

And the Pointers. Hmm.

Do we know who this is?

Dunno.

Hey. Any wolves at Hammers'?

Oh, I'm tempted to say yes, but no. Why?

The lab just came back with the results on that fur.

All right.

"Arctic wolf."

Found in Canada.

Beautiful animal. Predator.

-Brenda, you're a legend!

-I know.

"The arctic wolf hunts alone or in packs.

"It may look like a loner,

"but the wolf may be out seeking prey for the pack

"or looking to make its own pack.

"Only the alpha male can mate."

-SALLY:

-Please don't ask me about the past.

Sally. You can't stay quiet forever.

If you covered up a crime, you're part of it.

No matter how long ago it was.

How do you want to appear in court,

as a witness or as an accessory to murder?

Cos that one can carry a life sentence.

Just give me something so I can say you were cooperative, all right?

Can you tell me who these people are?

That's, um...Cheryl, me, Hammers,

Brett, Terry,

Adamski,

uh, Tomcat...

-Uh, that's Thomas Katz?

-Yeah.

And who's this young boy here?

Um...

It...it wasn't like there was a regular gang, you know?

Hammers would pick up random kids,

feed them fish and chips, make them feel special.

The kid was such a weed. What was his name? Um...

Pee-Sticks.

Pee-Sticks.

Do you remember his proper name?

Mmm...

No, he was just a skinny kid who did Hammers' errands. I don't...

I think he was a... relative of Hammers'.

Do you think he would have witnessed any of the murders?

Sally. These secrets, they must be driving you crazy.

Imagine what it's doing to the families of the victims.

Imagine if it was your son.

-BOY:

-Mum?

What's going on?

Nothing.

Um...the detective's just asking me about a missing person.

SHE COUGHS, GASPS

SCUFFLING

-BOY SCREAMS:

-Mum!

Will!

TYRES SQUEAL

Jason! Jason!

PHONE RINGS

They've come to the house. They've taken Jason!

They've taken my son!

Whatever you think of me, my son's innocent.

-You've got to get him back.

-OK, Sally, I need you to focus.

Focus on what you heard and what you saw.

Um...

Brett O'Donohue called, said I made a mistake talking to the cops.

He said Hammers warned him the cops were digging around.

That, um...that the Pointers were going to be set up

for the murder of Toohey and some Arab.

-Payback.

-Payback? Payback for what?

For...for an act in the past?

I said it didn't matter what I told you - you already knew the truth.

He called me a fuckin' bitch and hung up.

He's a good boy.

I don't want them getting to him.

Sally, they are afraid. They're afraid you can put them in prison.

And that is one way we can deal with them, all right?

Get my son back. Please.

Can you do that?

SHE SIGHS

MAN SNORTS

Going to go have a piss.

Get us a coffee!

-Oh, fuck off.

-Two sugars!

Get it yourself.

Brett! Cops!

-TORI:

-Hands on your head!

Hands on your head!

-Brett!

-NICK: Drop the weapon, Terry!

Drop the gun now, Terry.

-PEEL:

-Uh, search the rest of the place.

Oh, fuck...

Where's the kid?

Where is Jason?!

-Dunno what you're talking about.

-Where is he?!

-TERRY:

-We're not saying nothing till we get our lawyer.

All right, Brett? Nothing!

-PEEL:

-There's enough drugs here

to keep them out of Bondi till they're pensioners.

Here. Get a shot of them against the police car.

-Get the lights?

-Yep.

Righto.

Terry's full of himself,

so I'll take him back to the office and just let him stew a bit.

You and Lustigman, you try and open up Brett a bit, hey?

I think our guest, well, he deserves the scenic route.

Let him enjoy the outside view.

Cos it's going to be his last.

This never happened. OK?

Let's go get the kid.

Sally, we've got Hammers

for abduction, assault, deprivation of liberty,

and when we get the DNA results, murder.

He's going away for a very long time.

He won't hurt you or Jason ever again.

Now will you talk?

Did you kill Haris Rexhaj?

No.

Did you kill Christopher Toohey?

No way. Toohey was a mate.

Did you kill Greg Mills?

I did my time for that.

Well, your lawyer, she's on her way, um...

but in the meantime, it would be useful

if we could go over the Greg Mills murder in 1990.

HE SIGHS

-SALLY:

-We were just kids out for a good time.

This night was different.

There was this, um...

..electricity in the air, like there was going to be a storm.

The boys were preparing...

like, for a hunt.

-BRETT:

-Saturday night. You know, what are you going to do?

We go down the park and bash fags.

We get money out of it, well, we have a piss-up or something.

I'm not proud of it, but we weren't the only ones doing it.

It was up and down the coast.

Fag-bashing.

I'm just telling you like it is.

They'd done it before.

You could tell.

It was all mapped out.

Every move.

Hey, faggot!

THEY LAUGH

He jumped up, lost his glasses stumbling.

Hammer...Adamski started hitting him.

Faggot!

CHERYL: Kill the faggot! Kill the faggot!

Greg Mills didn't wear glasses.

That was a man called Ned Davies.

Turn the tape off.

I'm not saying nothing till my lawyer gets here.

He was bleeding pretty bad.

Hammers was freaking out.

"We've got to chuck him over."

I called out.

"Don't. Please don't."

And, um...

..they swung him over the cliff...

..and let go...

..and there was a thud.

Sally, you're doing really well.

SALLY EXHALES

The waves were crashing over the rocks.

Uh, I thought...

..I hoped...

maybe it was a dream.

A bad dream.

BOYS WHOOP AND LAUGH

-Sally?

-Mmm?

Do you recognise...

any of these men?

SALLY SIGHS

It was one of them.

"Him", Sally.

The victim was a person.

-WHISPERS:

-I'm sorry.

It was him.

-SOBS:

-He wasn't the first.

I recognise...him.

His beautiful black hair.

SALLY SOBS

-WHISPERS:

-Sorry.

-SCOFFS:

-Prisoner! Listen.

Jason is the son of an old mate of mine. I was taking him fishing.

-TORI:

-Did you have his mother's permission?

The kid's old enough to go fishing without a note from his mummy.

He was dragged out of bed by the O'Donohues at 2am.

Ah, you see, that's when the fish are biting.

Do you recognise these leather bindings?

No, I've never seen that before.

What about this?

Fuck. What is that?

Not mine.

Huh. Maybe it belongs to your cousin, Pee-Sticks.

"Pee-Sticks"!

I haven't got a cousin.

Do you recognise this boy?

No.

He could have been hanging round like a bad smell back in the day,

but no...

When you say "hanging around", he was part of your gang?

-The gang that hunted gay men?

-"Hunted"?

Whoo-whoo-whoo-whoo! "Hunted"?

Jesus Christ. Sally tell you that, did she? Hmm? Head case?

It'll be her word against mine, and she's a nobody.

So was that fuck-knuckle, who I do not know,

and where did you get that?

DNA's a match.

Do you recognise these men?

No.

This is Dr Peter Levy.

October 1989, his body was found

at the base of the cliffs at Cardinal Park.

Did you push him off the ledge?

No.

This is Ned Davies.

December 1989, he went for a walk and he didn't return,

and I've been hearing stories that he met with his death at your hands.

HE SCOFFS

No!

HE CHUCKLES

Another young man was killed December 1989.

It was Christmas Eve.

The same night that Detectives Chalmers and Peel

pulled an improvised weapon off you.

That weapon...had his blood on it.

And that weapon...

has your DNA on it.

Your arrogance might almost be impressive

if it didn't make me sick.

And you thought you'd get away with

all those years of violence and murder

and it wouldn't matter.

That no-one would come for you.

Your brother...

..got what was coming to him.

Tori, outside! Now!

DOOR OPENS, CLOSES

You picked up Hammers. You had evidence. You did nothing!

We HAD nothing!

There was no body. There was no complaint.

Jesus, come on. It was Christmas Eve.

I thought the boys got in a bit of a scrap.

"Bit of a scrap"?

My father trusted you!

Did you even read Shane's autopsy report?

You did!

You thought it was a suicide!

Oh, fuck!

You can't go back in there.

I can't have you dealing with him or the O'Donohues

or Oscar Taylor's assault.

You go back in there, your participation jeopardises

any charges we want to make against Hammers.

Murder.

Davies, Levy and Shane.

HE SIGHS

We got him, Dad.

We got the guy that killed Shane.

He didn't drown.

He was murdered because he was gay.

He was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

-TORI:

-Are you OK?

One hell of a headache.

So, what you were doing?

You were out there hunting the Thrustr killer all by yourself, huh?

We got Hammers.

That's a result for Shane, it's a result for the others.

That's just it.

We're still dying, Tori.

And that piece of shit is responsible.

You need to promise me you're not going to do anything stupid.

You have to leave this to us.

NICK: I thought you were off the case.

I can't stop thinking about Pee-Sticks.

Sally said he was related to Hammers. Hammers denies it.

I'm wondering if somehow he could be a relative of the O'Donohues.

The only O'Donohues coming up are, um, Terry and Brett.

And their father, Bert.

He died inside Long Bay after the stabbing of a brothel owner.

What about on the mother's side?

Uh, mother's maiden name was Birnie.

She was sentenced for handling stolen goods.

I have seen that name before.

In here.

Chalmers' case files. Are you game?

HE SIGHS

Tori.

Rhys Callahan.

Committed murder, 16, Newcastle.

Mother - Belinda Birnie, Deborah's sister.

The victim was a social worker in Newcastle

who was known for working with troubled youths.

He was discovered by a neighbour in a blood-splattered room.

His head had been caved in before being stabbed to death.

SHE SIGHS

Graduated from the School of Hammers.

Hello. He was released on parole three months ago.

PRINTER WHIRS

Guess he gave away the surfer look.

We have Pee-Sticks.

LIFEGUARDS CHAT AND CHUCKLE

-WOMAN:

-Rhys was assigned to me as a juvenile.

His mother was a prostitute and his father abusive.

He punished Rhys for being a "sissy boy".

And in fact was charged for sexual misconduct with a minor,

but the case never made it to court,

and Rhys insists his father never touched him.

Did you believe him?

He had all the hallmarks of a severely abused boy.

Rhys can be very charming. Charismatic, plausible.

He lives calmly in a controlled environment, like the prison,

but he's manipulative, psychopathic.

He was 16 when he committed the murder. Did he offer up any excuse?

The man hit on him and he panicked.

This signature -

it doesn't fit with impulsive lashing out.

He'd taken his time.

I think he'd fantasised about it.

When Rhys was 11 years old, he hung around with a youth named Hammers,

who held sway over a group of boys who hunted and bashed gay men.

He'd certainly witnessed murder.

Are we talking about a Kyle Hampton?

Rhys hated him.

In fact, a day before the murder, he had gone to visit Kyle Hampton

and been told to piss off.

So he went out to prove himself worthy.

That's why he meets his victims at the Green Room.

Rhys's dad fell off a cliff just five days after Rhys was released.

"Death by misadventure."

Yeah, sounds more like revenge.

Any address on the parole card?

Uh, his dad's address was in Gateshead.

What about the mother?

There's a Birnie in Ramsgate Ave, Bondi.

KNOCK AT DOOR

Hello? Is anyone home?

-SLEEPILY:

-Rhys?

Police.

No need to be afraid.

Just want to speak to your son, Rhys.

Has Rhys seemed...distressed, disturbed at the moment?

Rhys would never have done what he did

-if the old man hadn't pushed him!

-SHE BREATHES LABORIOUSLY

And what has Rhys done? Where is he? Where can we find him?

Where is he?

You want Rhys, you find him yourself.

FRONT DOOR UNLOCKS AND OPENS

Run, Rhys! Run!

Stop! Police!

Police! Stop!

HE GRUNTS

Freeze, you little prick!

HANDCUFFS CLICK

Do you know Christopher Toohey?

Never met the guy.

See, Rhys, the problem is, when you, uh...

when you tell a small lie, it becomes a big lie,

and then all of a sudden, you're in a big pile of shit.

Now, see, I thought you and Toohey were both members

of the Bondi Pointers gang back in '89.

You remember that far back?

Can you identify...this person and...that one?

Well, that was me.

We just went to Bondi on holidays.

In '89, I was 11.

That one was Toohey.

You can see he's quite a bit older than me.

Well, Toohey's been murdered.

And since you knew Toohey...

..I thought you might know why.

Well, Toohey wasn't... who he pretended to be, so...

And what was that?

HE SIGHS

Strong. Someone you can look up to. A real man.

Did you kill Christopher Toohey?

No.

Did you kill Haris Rexhaj?

No.

Adrian Cohen?

Who? No.

But you did kill a man in Newcastle, right?

Well, he was a...piece of filth who got what was coming.

How about your father? How did he die?

He fell off a cliff.

Did HE have it coming?

Some might say so.

Well, we've been talking to your cousins, um,

and I guess you know that Brett was convicted

of murdering a gay man in Cardinal Park back in 1990.

Well, the names of the men that I've asked you about, they were gay men.

And they were murdered.

What's this got to do with me?

Well, there were other murders back in '89, 1990,

and we have reason to believe that you were a witness to them.

Now, look, Rhys, we know you were a kid.

You were easily led.

See, the problem is, you've got this conviction in Newcastle,

so it's very easy to say, "It's all his fault,"

you know, point the finger at you.

It was such a long time ago.

Nobody cared back then.

Why now?

Have you got Thrustr on your phone, Rhys?

Why would I use an app for fags?

Where were you at midnight on January 25th?

Um...

HE CLICKS HIS TONGUE

Let me see. I was looking after my mum.

I do that most nights.

NICK CLEARS HIS THROAT

DNA profiling on the suspect's going to take at least a week.

Oh, shit.

His computer's pretty sick.

Full of neo-Nazi stuff. Violent porn.

He's tracking the investigation,

but there's nothing to actually link him to the killings.

We're going to have to let this prick go.

-That's no suicide.

-Uh-uh.

DANCE MUSIC PLAYS

# When I'm with you

# When I'm with you it's a beautiful world

# It's a beautiful world

# It's a beautiful world

# It's a beautiful world

-# It's a beautiful world

-It's a beautiful world... #

NICK: There's nothing on his hard drive to indicate

he's got any other properties, residences.

-TORI:

-Bills? Banking?

Nothing.

"Real estate lease." There.

Righto, uniforms are all over this. All points has gone out.

There's over 200 cops with that prick's photo patrolling Mardi Gras.

Tori.

Oh, my God.

NICK SIGHS

Get your arses down there.

LOUD DANCE MUSIC PLAYS

-RHYS:

-My place is this way.

Whatcha doing?

Texting I got lucky.

TEXT MESSAGE ALERT

Shit!

I need an urgent trace.

You hear about that nut job running around killing guys?

No.

It's not in the papers.

Gay press.

SIREN WAILS, ENGINE ROARS

Try the mobile tower in Surry Hills.

Surry Hills!

OK, they've got it.

Travelling down Nobbs.

Just took a left into Bourke.

So, where IS your place?

Oh, it's not far.

HE GROANS

HE BREATHES WEAKLY

HE GRUNTS

The signal's here.

HE GRUNTS

The pain goes away.

HE YELPS

Did you hear that?

The phone's down the drain.

Nick.

Do we know what brothel Belinda Birnie used to work at?

OSCAR CRIES OUT

You're marked now.

Everyone will know what you are.

OSCAR SCREAMS

MUFFLED SCREAMING

DOOR CRASHES OPEN

Arggh!

BOTH GRUNT

Oscar, I'm here.

Shoot the prick!

Let him go!

Let him go or I will shoot!

You know, I know who you are.

And your brother, Shane.

He was my first.

BOTH YELP

Nick, talk to me.

Are you OK?

Yeah. Yeah, whatever.

KNOCK AT DOOR

Hey.

Well, well done. Well done, you.

You and Nick. Good work.

I...I think I know how you feel.

You don't know how I feel.

You don't know how any of the families of the victims feel.

Well, I know I'm a father myself.

SHE CHUCKLES

Do you know how many files I have on my desk right now?

Unexplained gay deaths and assaults

in Sydney over those years?

How does that happen?

Tori. Tori...

Sometimes...

things, they just fall through the cracks.

Oh, "fall through the cracks"? Right, right.

Or - there was indifference on a grand scale.

Hammers was your informant.

You look the other way, you keep your stats up,

he gets rid of all his enemies.

If I'd known he'd hurt your brother...

My brother? Anybody. Anybody!

Hammers got away with murdering my brother.

And other men. Good men.

Listen.

There were two kids in trouble

and they had a chance of a good future if I stepped in and helped.

I chose to do that.

One turned out to be a hero, the other didn't. I mean...

..what would you have done?

My job. I would have done my job.

SOMBRE MUSIC

SOMBRE MUSIC CONTINUES

Shane...

It's for the 19 precious years we had you.

Who you were.

Who you would have become.

Son, I'm proud of you.