Phoebe's Fall

May 31 2024 14 ep. 19 mins 4.9k
Phoebe's Fall Podcast artwork

A major investigation by The Age newsroom in Melbourne, Australia, into the death of Phoebe Handsjuk, who was found at the bottom of a garbage chute in a luxury apartment building.

  News  Society & Culture
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Trial By Water, Episode 1: Father's Day

May 31 2024 56 mins  
On Father’s Day, 2005, Robert Farquharson crashed his car into a dam. He survived, but his three children who were in the car with him didn’t. At first it seemed like a tragic accident. But quickly, it turned into a murder investigation. For exclusive content and additional reporting on the case, available to subscribers of The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, visit theage.

Phoebe's Fall - New Laws

Jun 21 2018 6 mins  
Victorian Government announces reforms to Coroner's Act and Phobe's grandfather Lorne responds.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Phoebe's Fall - A Fresh Look

Dec 15 2016 9 mins  
The Victorian Government has announced a review of the Coroner's Act amid widespread public concern about the inquest into Phoebe Handsjuk's garbage chute death.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode 6: Inquest & Aftermath

Oct 26 2016 43 mins  
We dissect the coroner's finding in Phoebe's case, raising serious questions about his conclusion and the methods he used to reach it. We examine the consequences of challenging a poor finding. And we reveal the Facebook post that prompted this podcast.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mini-episode: The mystery phone number and the litany of unanswered questions

Oct 24 2016 4 mins  
Seven months after Phoebe Handsjuk died, forensic scientists found a piece of paper in the pocket of the jeans she was wearing when she died. Whose number was it? And what did it mean?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode 5: Saying Goodbye

Oct 19 2016 31 mins  
Phoebe is remembered by her friends and family. We chronicle the competing memorials and funerals. And we journey to the shores of her Viking farewell.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

No time of death for Phoebe

Oct 18 2016 4 mins  
We explore the difficulties of establishing Phoebe's time of death, and a debate between police and doctors over the value of trying to estimate when somebody has died.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode 4: Policework

Oct 12 2016 34 mins  
We explore Phoebe's tumultuous last week and examine what she and her partner, Ant Hampel, did on her final day. Then we put the blowtorch to failings and omissions in the police investigation following her death, and the early conclusion that it was a suicide.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Podcast prompts political action

Oct 10 2016 3 mins  
Our investigative journalists Richard Baker and Michael Bachelard report back on the tip-offs we've received and the political developments triggered by Phoebe's Fall since we launched.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode 3: A Secret Tape

Oct 05 2016 29 mins  
Examines the state of Phoebe's mind and the relationship that dominated her life at the time of her death. We find evidence that she was planning to leave her partner, Ant Hampel. And we play audio of a secret recording made by Phoebe's mother of Ant's reaction to her death.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.