It's New Years Eve, 1901, in the small German farming town of Towitta, South Australia and the Schippan children are settled in for the night. That is, until their 14 year old sister, Bertha, is brutally murdered by a 'bearded man' in a seemingly unprovoked attack. With no suspects to go on, police quickly arrest Mary, Bertha's older sister who was sharing a bed with Bertha that night. But did Mary really do it?

Grab your beverage of choice and join Belinda as she discusses this still unsolved case and looks at each suspect one by one, each of them capable of this brutal killing.

This episode will leave you wanting more from this awful yet fascinating case and asking - who did kill Bertha Schippan?

Music by Gioele Fazzeri from Pixabay

Crime Scenes with Coffee Beans

Join your host Belinda over a beverage or two as she discusses baby farmers John and Sarah Makin and yes, it is as bad as it sounds.

In 1893, married couple John and Sarah Makin were trusted and paid for to care for infants by desperate, often destitute, parents, a practice known as baby farming, which was not uncommon in those times, but horrifically, they did anything but, with a blocked pipe in a backyard bringing their heinous crimes to light.

*WARNING - This episode discusses infant murder. Listener discretion advised *

Music by Gioele Fazzeri from Pixabay

Crime Scenes with Coffee Beans

Join Belinda as she discusses the life and many crimes of one of Australia's first recorded serial killers, Frederick Deeming. From theft to bigamy to murder, nothing was off limits for this egotistical career conman turned serial killer, and horrifically, this included his own children.

Frederick's trail of deception and destruction took place in both Australia and England between 1890 - 1891 and only ended when he was finally caught and hanged for murder in 1892.

So, grab some caffeine and settle in for this is one helluva tangled tale of one of Australia's most loathed murderers of the 19th century.

Crime Scenes with Coffee Beans