Notorious hitman Arthur ‘Neddy’ Smith was allegedly paid $5,000 to fly across the country and murder a brothel madam, according to explosive new allegations.
Perth brothel owner Shirley Finn, 33, was found with four bullets holes in the back of her head in an execution-style murder in June 1975.
Sydney criminal Smith met Ms Finn for drinks before killing her in her car near the Royal Perth Golf Club, a court heard on Tuesday.
Perth brothel owner Shirley Finn, 33, was found with four bullets holes in the back of her head in an execution-style murder in June 1975
Ms Finn was murdered three days before a tax meeting, at which she threatened to reveal information about secret and illegal dealings between politicians and members of the police force, the ABC reported.
The case has been shrouded in speculation since.
Two cold case inquiries were launched in years since, but Ms Finn’s murder remained unsolved.
Former Perth detective James Archibold Boland appeared at court on Tuesday ahead of a coronial inquest into the 33-year-old mother’s death.
Mr Boland, who worked on the case back in 1995, said a ‘credible’ career criminal told him Smith was responsible for the murder, but he was ordered by a superior officer to ‘let it go’ and not pursue the lead, The Daily Telegraph reported.
Ms Finn was murdered three days before a tax meeting, at which she threatened to reveal information about secret and illegal dealings between politicians and members of the police force
Notorious hitman Arthur ‘Neddy’ Smith (pictured) was paid $5,000 to fly across the country and murder a brothel madam, according to explosive new allegations
Two cold case inquiries were launched, but Ms Finn’s murder remained unsolved
Mr Boland said a man called Keith Alan Lewis told him Smith, a convicted double murderer, flew to Perth on June 23 – the same day Ms Finn was killed – to meet with her and an unnamed police officer.
According to a police document, Mr Lewis wanted to provide police with information about Smith’s alleged trip to Perth in exchange for fraud charges against his boyfriend to be downgraded.
Mr Boland, who was investigating the case at the time, pursued the claims and discovered a person going by Smith’s name did in fact travel to Perth on the day Ms Finn was murdered,
When asked outside court on Tuesday if he knew who was responsible for the murder, Mr Boland told Nine News: ‘No I don’t’
When asked outside court on Tuesday if he knew who was responsible for the murder, Mr Boland told Nine News: ‘No I don’t’.
Rumours of police involvement in the 1975 murder were also rife.
Mr Boland reportedly told the court any police wrongdoing was highly unlikely.
‘In my own heart, I don’t believe police were involved,’ he said.
Mr Boland, who was investigating the case at the time, pursued the claims and discovered a person going by Smith’s name did in fact travel to Perth on the day Ms Finn was murdered
Speaking to reporters outside court on Tuesday, Ms Finn’s daughter Bridget Shewring said she waited a long time for answers.
‘I just hope everyone tells the truth, after 42 years,’ she told Nine News.
A coronial inquest into the murder will start on September 11.