Trial by Water

Dec 19 2024 8 ep. 44 mins 314
Trial by Water Podcast artwork

Trial by Water is an investigative podcast series about Robert Farquharson, who has been locked up for decades for an unthinkable crime: murdering his three sons in a dam on Father’s Day, 2005.

Now scientists and lawyers are asking the question: did we get it wrong? And is this man in prison for a crime he didn’t commit?

  True Crime
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Bonus Episode: The Psych Report

Dec 19 2024 24 mins  
When we first released this podcast, we found a gaping hole in the evidence against Robert Farquharson. It seemed like nobody had done a psychological evaluation of a man who was said to have murdered his three sons out of a desire for revenge. But now, a Freedom of Information request we submitted to police has come back. It turns out there was a psychological report -- of sorts.

Bonus Episode: Your questions answered

Jul 25 2024 40 mins  
Since releasing the Trial by Water podcast, we’ve been contacted by a lot of people. Some have wanted to ask questions, some to give feedback – positive and negative – and others to tell their stories. The evidence in this case is so broad-ranging that we couldn’t touch on everything in the series itself. But there are themes to the questions and comments, so in this bonus

Episode 5: The Golden Thread

Jul 05 2024 56 mins  
As lawyer Luke McMahon prepares a new fight for Robert Farquharson’s release, we discover something new: that Farquharson and his ex-wife believed that police investigators were trying to pin the crime on him just days after the crash. So would it be a problem if the system had a strong impression, right from the start, that Farquharson was guilty? For exclusive content and addit

Episode 4: The Dad Test

Jun 28 2024 58 mins  
In the story of Robert Farquharson, there's one thing that’s hardest to understand: his behaviour in the minutes and hours after the crash. Because on that night, his actions seemed so far outside normal behaviour for a father that the police, the media and the general public all came to the conclusion that he must have murdered his three sons. But is that true? Or is there some

Episode 3: Bad Memories

Jun 21 2024 57 mins  
There were two key witnesses in the Robert Farquharson case. The first was Greg King, an old friend of Farquharson, and the story he told provided police with something they desperately wanted for their case - a motive for murder. The other witness, Dawn Waite, came forward four years after the crash. She said she had actually seen Robert Farquharson on the night of the crash, as h

Episode 2: Strands of the Rope

Jun 14 2024 58 mins  
A day after Robert Farquharson drove his car into the dam with his three sons, the homicide squad took over the investigation. Sceptical of his story and suspecting Farquharson's motive was revenge, they began delving into every aspect of his account. Had he really coughed and passed out? Or would the evidence show he deliberately steered off the road and into the dam to murder his

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.

Introducing: Trial by Water

May 26 2024 4 mins  
From The Age and Sydney Morning Herald, Trial by Water is a new investigative podcast series about Robert Farquharson, who has been locked up for decades for an unthinkable crime: murdering his three sons in a dam on Father’s Day, 2005. Now scientists and lawyers are asking the question: did we get it wrong? And is this man in prison for a crime he didn’t commit? Episode 1 will