Why a convicted murderer could soon be set free almost 40 years after Janine Balding was raped and killed by homeless gang-of-five

WARNING TERRIBLE CONTENT

A lawyer insists a long-standing controversy over a conviction for the shocking murder of Janine Balding could be cleared up with a simple DNA comparison.

In the nearly forty years since the murder, advances in forensic technology have been made and the DNA profiles of five unidentified men have been collected from a bandana used to silence Ms Balding.

One of Mrs Balding’s convicted killers, Stephen ‘Shorty’ Jamieson, uses the mysterious DNA as the basis for an inquest into his case.

Jamieson claims he wasn’t even present the night of the murder, and is urging police to compare the DNA with that of Mark ‘Shorty’ Wells.

In 1988, Ms Balding was kidnapped from Sutherland train station by a homeless gang of five, raped and murdered on the side of the F4 Freeway in Sydney’s west.

The first murder trial had to be abandoned over questions about whether the police had the correct ‘Shorty’, and in the second trial in 1990, all of Jamieson’s then co-defendants insisted that he was not present at the murder, but that ‘Shorty’ was ‘Wells yes.

Lawyer and former politician Peter Breen started proceedings in the High Court on Jamieson’s behalf last year.

Mr Breen told Daily Mail Australia that Jamieson was excluded from any DNA testing carried out on the Bandana, but Wells was not.

“If they test Wells’ DNA, we say they get a match. We say Jamieson is not guilty, he wasn’t there – and we can prove it.’

Wells’ DNA is on the national database as a result of crimes he committed in Queensland in 2011, Breen said.

“My understanding is that it was only entered into the national database late last year.”

He said police refused to compare Wells’ DNA with the profile detected on the bandana due to DNA forensics legislation, which says they cannot reveal the profile of anyone other than the applicant – and in this case the applicant Jamieson.

“They say they can’t reveal the DNA, and they’re right, but the legislation also says the court can override this and order them to make the comparison,” Mr Breen said.

Mr Breen is calling for a judicial inquiry into the matter and expects a decision on December 13.

He hopes that the court will order the DNA comparison as part of the investigation.

Ms Balding’s brother, David Balding, has previously said he believes the bandana claim is not relevant and several witnesses agreed Jamieson was the right person.

Stephen ‘Shorty’ Jamieson has long maintained he was not present at the murder

David, who was just ten years old when his sister was murdered, said he was angry and upset that these claims were being raised again after all these years.

‘Shorty’ Wells, a schizophrenic who had previously falsely confessed to another crime, initially said he was present at the murder but later denied any involvement.

Jamieson was convicted on the evidence of his signed confession, which he has long claimed was fabricated.

The murder that shocked Australia

On the morning of September 8, 1988, Ms Balding parked her car at Sutherland train station in Sydney before heading into the city for work.

She was walking back to her car that evening when a group of me – Stephen ‘Shorty’ Jamieson, 22, Matthew Elliot, 16, Wayne Wilmot, 15, Bronson Blessington, 14 and Carol Arrow, 15 – approached her.

They distracted Mrs. Balding by asking her what time it was and if she had any money or cigarettes. One of the youths pulled out a knife and threatened to “cut off her face” if she didn’t do exactly what he asked.

After having the car keys ripped from her hands, she was forced into the back of her own car, where she was beaten and raped at knifepoint.

Any hope the young woman had of being released was dashed after one of the youths said, “I think it’s a good night for a murder…”

The group stopped on the M4.

Balding was returning to her car at Sydney’s Sutherland train station when she was attacked

Dragging the terrified woman from the car, the pack gagged Janine with a scarf and tied her up before pulling her along the ground and throwing her over a fence.

Elliot, Blessington and Jamieson carried her to a nearby dam, where they drowned her and stole her jewelry and bank cards.

The pack left Mrs. Balding’s body there and got back into her car, which broke down shortly afterwards.

After heading to Mount Druitt on foot, they sold the jewelry and withdrew some money using her bank cards before boarding a train back to the city.

The next day, Blessington and Elliot took a train to East Gosford, where they threw her bank cards into the bushes before stealing another car and driving to a youth centre.

They then confessed to the police about the car theft and hinted that they knew where Ms Balding’s body was.

Mrs Balding’s parents, Beverley and Kerry, reported her missing.

All five group members were charged and brought to trial for Ms. Balding’s murder.

Elliott, Blessington and Jamieson each received life plus 25 years.

Blessington, who was just 14 at the time, became the youngest person ever to receive a life sentence in Australia.

The judge in the case called their crimes “barbaric” and said they “should never be released.”

Lighter sentences were given to Wilmot and Arrow after it emerged that they had not physically participated in the murder.

National Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Advisory Service 24-hour helpline 1800 RESPECT on 1800 737 732