There is an infamous line that has snaked its way into Australian culture since 1980.
“A dingo ate my baby,” people joke, reciting the frantic words that Lindy Chamberlain wailed one fateful night.
But the tragic case of baby Azaria Chamberlain is no laughing matter.
Young mother Lindy was camping at Uluru on August 17, 1980 with her family when 2-month-old Azaria was snatched by a dingo.
All that was left behind were her jumpsuit, booties, nappy and singlet – no body was ever recovered. The incident went on to spark the nation’s most divisive trial, conviction and eventual acquittal.
Lindy was found guilty of first-degree murder in 1982 and her husband, Michael, considered an accessory after the fact, received a suspended sentence.
The Crown alleged Lindy had cut Azaria’s throat in the front seat of the family car and disposed of her body.
By 1987, the Supreme Court of Darwin quashed all convictions and declared the Chamberlains as innocent.
But nearly 40 years on, Australia is still fascinated by the case. And a podcast by Seven Studios, A Perfect Storm, reveals explosive new details about the disappearance of baby Azaria.
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Host John Buck spent 12 months investigating evidence and conducting interviews to ensure no stone was left unturned in the case of Azaria Chamberlain. Shockingly, he found three new stunning details about what happened during the bungled investigation by Northern Territory Police.
“Most people don’t know the baby’s body was found and moved. Most don’t know about the destruction of key blood tests or the British tourist’s gruesome death that led to the missing matinee jacket being found,” John explains.
John also shared his breakthrough interview with eyewitness Sally Shaw, who heard Lindy scream, “A dingo
ate my baby,” at a time after the Crown alleged baby Azaria was already dead.
“Sally is one of the few who actually heard Lindy scream but she was ignored by the jury, despite the judge reminding them that she was an eyewitness. If you believe Sally, which you should, Lindy Chamberlain could not have killed Azaria in the car,” John tells New Idea.
“They kept her eyewitness testimony low-key and quickly moved onto more sensational evidence, like the blood they claimed was in the family car. Sally told me in our interview that after everyone didn’t believe her, she stopped talking. I’m very grateful that she trusted me to share the story of this tragic night, again.”
A Perfect Storm obtained recordings from coroner Denis Barritt during the inquest, where he stated: “The body of Azaria was taken from the possession of a dingo and disposed of by an unknown method by a person or persons name unknown.”
Retired journalist Malcolm Brown, who covered the story in the 1980s, says it was clear the case was a tug-of-war between salvaging tourism and admitting it was a dingo who mauled Azaria.
“There was a great motivation to preserve tourism at Ayers Rock and the idea of man-eating dingoes taking babies was not in anyone’s interest,” said Malcolm.
In 2004, now deceased pensioner Frank Cole claimed he and a few hunting friends had come across Azaria’s body after shooting a dingo.
He told a newspaper they planned to go to the police, but never did, and it’s “possible” they buried the baby at a backyard in Melbourne. During his research, John also discovered disturbing information which further points to the dingo being the true culprit.
“While I was re-watching material, I came across some disturbing developments at Uluru (then Ayers Rock) before Azaria disappeared,” he says.
“The head ranger had asked for permission to shoot dingoes because they had started harassing tourists. He was worried that a child or baby may be killed. Four weeks later, Azaria Chamberlain disappeared.”
John also says one of the biggest takeaways from the podcast is our flawed justice system, which failed Lindy and her family – a nightmare that could befall any innocent person.
“This can all happen again tomorrow, anywhere in Australia. And it has nothing to do with the police or dingoes or the outback,” he explains.
“If you are convicted by a jury of a crime that you did not commit, and the trial goes without incident, it is unlikely you will be able to overturn the verdict in either of the higher courts. That’s pretty scary.”
