60 Minutes Australia: Breaking the code, part one (2017)

In a Brisbane court on Friday, one of Australia's most horrendous crimes was finally solved when 78 year-old Vince O'Dempsey was found guilty of murdering young mother Barbara McCulkin and her two daughters, 13 year-old Vicki and 11 year-old Leanne. In all likelihood, the evil thug O'Dempsey will now spend the rest of his life in prison, along with another monster, his 70 year-old co-accused, Garry Dubois, who was convicted of the crime in a separate trial late last year. The murders happened 43 years ago and had been one of Queensland's oldest cold cases. But as Ross Coulthart reports in this major 60 MINUTES investigation, the brutal crime was only solved because of the incredible dedication of two unassuming police detectives who convinced two vital witnesses to do the unthinkable - to break a four-decade-long criminal code of silence.

Reporter: Ross Coulthart
Producer: Grace Tobin