City Homicide (2007) s03e15 Episode Script
Dead Weight
What's the deal? Division said this was natural causes.
Ask Pathology.
Ronnie said to get you down here.
Righto.
When was the last time you spoke to your sister No sign of dental discolouration to suggest chronic bulimia.
Indication of a Mallory-Weiss tear.
Ronnie.
Detectives.
Glad you could make it.
I think I've got something for you.
Just over there.
Whoa.
Tabitha Mailer.
Morbidly obese.
In this case, very morbid.
How did she die? Heart attack.
So it is natural causes? I wasn't so quick to pass judgment.
Emesis.
Vomit.
Projectile.
Delightful.
But wait, there's more.
There was blood in her up-chuck.
Haematemesis, for your edification, Detective Kingston.
And this was a particularly violent episode.
I'd say she's torn her lower oesophagus due to prolonged retching.
Any idea of the cause? Most likely the last thing she ingested.
Easyshake.
Yeah.
It's some kind of weight-loss product.
But there's not a single active ingredient in there that would kill you, or make you lose weight, but that's by the by.
So something's been added? Yeah.
That's my guess.
Like some sort of poison? Possibly, but more likely to be a very strong emetic.
Something that had this lady keeling over,clutching at her heart and dying an unpleasant death.
So not natural causes.
No.
What do you mean 'not natural causes'? My sister had a heart attack.
Sir, you can't come in here.
No, I wanna know what's going on.
Why are all these police here? Sir, you must stay away from the crime scene.
What crime scene? What happened to my sister? Sir! Oww! Sir, your sister's death has been classed as suspicious.
It's now a homicide investigation.
Homicide? Who'd want to kill Tabitha? That's exactly the question we were going to ask you.
How long has she been taking this Easyshake? A few weeks.
Your sister prepared the mixture herself? Yes.
Five times a day.
Did you see her open the packet? I don't think so.
Well, did you or didn't you? No.
Does anyone else have access to this kitchen? I'm not answering any more questions until you tell me what's going on.
We believe Tabitha's breakfast drink was tampered with.
Like, poisoned? Like, poisoned.
Yes.
So, did anyone else have access to the kitchen? No.
So, if the two of you were the only people in the house I didn't kill Tabitha.
Was your sister happy? What? You said she didn't have any friends, barely left the house.
Is it possible she added something to the drink herself? No! She wasn't happy, sure, but she wasn't suicidal.
She was just trying to do something about her weight by drinking that bloody potion.
You want to find out who poisoned her? Start by talking to the people that make that rubbish.
Do you fight the battle of the bulge? I know how hard it can be.
Well, that's why I came up with Easyshake.
Drink this three times a day in conjunction with a balanced diet and those extra kilos will simply fall away.
Easyshake - now fighting your weight is a battle you can win.
Are you interested in Easyshake? We're interested in getting it off the shelves.
Are you the owner? No.
My father.
My daughter's been fighting weight all her life.
Are you that daughter? No I am.
Hello.
I'm Vern Gilbert.
Can I help you? Detective Senior Constables Ryan and Kingston.
Mr Gilbert, there's been an incident involving your Easyshake.
And until we can ascertain exactly what's happened, we'd like your cooperation in taking it off the shelves.
How do you mean? What sort of incident? One of your customers died this morning after drinking it.
Oh, my God.
Who? Tabitha Mailer.
You remember Tabitha.
She was in here last week.
She'd seen one of Dad's ads on late-night telly and wanted to give it a go.
Hold on.
Sorry, this just doesn't make any sense.
Her death can't have anything to do with Easyshake.
Look, we use all-natural, all-healthy ingredients.
The packets are sealed before they leave the shop.
So, it's made on site? Y es, absolutely.
We mix it here, package it here, seal it here.
We do it all upstairs.
Who's 'we'? My daughters and me.
How do you know it wasn't something else that killed her? Because Easyshake's the only thing she's eaten for three weeks.
You can't just take my products off the shelf.
Easyshake is finally getting some traction in the market.
I'm moving production off site, I've signed distribution agreements all over the country.
Mr Gilbert, a woman is dead.
I don't believe my product was responsible.
Um, Dad, maybe we should take it off the shelves just in case.
No.
Look, I'm sorry.
Until you have proof or a warrant, I can't help you.
Won't help us, more like it.
Yeah, he was playing some pretty heavy defence.
- With good reason.
- Something to hide? Something to gain, more like.
He's signing distributors left, right and centre.
If he has his way, it'll be on the shelves of every health food store and supermarket.
Big money.
It's possible he's right, isn't it? Tabitha Mailer's death had nothing to do with this Easyshake? Not according to Ronnie's pathologist gut feeling.
Yeah, not according to the lab.
I just got the report back.
Traces of a virulent emetic were found in Tabitha Mailer's packet of Easyshake.
It's called syrup of Ipecac and it is a herbal-based purgative.
It's not listed as an ingredient here.
So how did it get into Tabitha Mailer's Easyshake? Vern Gilbert's not a chemist.
I mean, he prances around in a lab coat, but that's about the sum of his scientific credentials.
Maybe he just stuffed up and added the wrong ingredient into his magic formula.
Yeah, and if there was negligence in their preparation or manufacture, then it's not just going to be one packet, the entire batch could be contaminated.
Yeah, I don't think it's negligence.
It says the packet was tampered with after it was originally sealed.
How do they know that? Because it was opened and resealed.
A different sealant was used the second time.
Deliberate sabotage.
Someone with a grudge against the Gilberts.
Maybe the brother trying to throw us off the scent.
Whatever the reason, I want that product off the shelves now.
I'll get you your warrant.
As well as the Easyshake packs and all raw ingredients, we're looking for syrup of Ipecac plus any sealants and adhesives.
And he'll be expecting us so he's probably stashed things out of sight.
OK, guys, we need a thorough search.
Everything on the warrant, alright? Let's get moving.
- Get off him! - Mr Mailer, stop it.
I'll kill you for this! You told her you could help her and she believed in you! That's enough, Mr Mailer.
Get him out of here.
Stop! You can't do this! Yes, we can.
This is my livelihood! Dad! Your copy of the warrant.
What? You wanted proof, we've got it.
Lab results confirmed the presence of syrup of Ipecac in one of your Easyshake packets.
I didn't put it there.
We don't even stock syrup of Ipecac.
Right now, Mr Gilbert, how it got there isn't the issue.
We need to get your product off the shelves.
Look, please, no! Look,couldn't you at least do this after hours? If this gets out, it'll ruin me! Maybe that's the point.
How do you mean? Is there someone who wants to see your business fail? A competitor or a business rival? Not that I can think of.
You haven't received any threats or demands? No, other than the one you've just witnessed.
And you're sure you don't stock syrup of Ipecac? Y es, I am sure.
'Cause if it is in your shop, our team will find it and you will be charged.
Tabitha Mailer's brother is the one who should be charged.
For assault.
Why am I the only one you arrested? Vern Gilbert is the one you should be questioning.
Just because the emetic was in his packet doesn't necessarily mean he's responsible.
He's responsible, alright.
His product killed my sister.
She needed helpsupport, not some fraud trying to make a quick buck.
So, you didn't like her taking Easyshake? I've seen the end results of her fad diets.
Disappointment, the pressure when she couldn't keep it up.
So maybe you tried to scare her off it, make her a bit sick.
Of course not.
Or a lot sick.
Or dead.
What on earth would I have to gain? The house, for starters.
I don't care about the house.
I said, "For starters.
" Financial records.
Your parents left you and Tabitha a substantial inheritance.
They worked hard.
$3 million worth of hard.
You were Tabitha's carer, weren't you? Yes.
Can't have been easy looking after your sister.
In and out of the shower, helping her get dressed every day.
Pretty soon she wouldn't be able to leave the house at all, you'd be at her beck and call 24/7.
Yeah, right.
I didn't like caring for Tabitha.
In fact, I hated it.
I wished she could look after herself.
But not for me.
For her.
I just wanted her to be happy.
Tabitha was my best friend.
I loved her.
Must be hard being that big.
Can't be easy.
Yeah, well, it's a bit late to cry 'fat' now, isn't it? What? I'm just saying.
You don't end up that size overnight.
Probably starts with a little bit of chicken schnitzel on white.
Mmm.
Alright, I'd better get down to Autopsy.
Any word back from the lab on the warrant seizures? Ma'am, five more packets of Easyshake tested positive for an emetic.
So Tabitha Mailer wasn't specifically targeted? Just dead unlucky.
Tell me there's no-one else out there taking this stuff.
Well, the National Health Board's recalled all packets.
I've got uniforms going through the Gilberts' records, contacting anyone who purchased the product.
There's no sign of an emetic amongst any of the ingredients seized from Vern Gilbert's store and no sign of a second sealant.
So either Vern Gilbert did a good job of covering up his negligence Or the emetic was added off site .
.
snuck back onto the shelves by somebody else.
Ryan.
We'll be there right away.
Vern Gilbert's been bashed.
What happened? Dad went to the bank with the week's takings and a man with a balaclava bashed him.
How much was taken? I don't know, $1 2,000? What time did your father leave the store to go to the bank? But this wasn't just a robbery.
It's obvious.
That psycho that came into the store today, he must have followed Dad and attacked him.
That psycho was in our interview room till 3 o'clock so he couldn't have attacked your father.
I think one of you knows more than you're letting on.
What do you mean? One of your customers is dead.
Now your father's been bashed.
And your sister here can't look me in the eye.
If you know anything, you're impeding a murder inquiry.
Dad would kill me if I told you.
Rosie Keeping quiet hasn't exactly worked for him so far.
Rosie, what's going on? What did Dad tell you? Dad got a text message last week - pay cash or they'd contaminate the Easyshake packets.
Why didn't you tell ME? I didn't want to worry you.
Oh, but it's OK to worry you? No, it's just that we didn't think it was anything serious.
Rosie, a woman is dead.
I know.
We just thought it was someone trying it on.
We're a small business.
We're an easy target.
Dad said that if we just didn't reply, he would just move on.
Only he didn't.
No.
You knew all this when we questioned you and you said nothing.
They said not to contact the police.
You got another message? Yeah.
After you seized the Easyshake packets.
I don't believe this.
Saying what? Pay up or it happens again.
They were going to contaminate more packets.
We'll need access to your phone records and any other correspondence you've received.
Excuse me.
So your father wasn't banking the week's takings, he was withdrawing the ransom money.
Yeah.
Emptied the account.
How much? $50,000.
I can't believe Dad didn't say anything.
No, neither can l.
The doctor's finished her obs.
Vern's OK to talk to us.
Mr Gilbert, we know about the blackmail.
I'm sorry, Dad, I had to tell them.
We know you were assaulted and that $50,000 was taken.
Give me the money.
Just give me the money! We need to know exactly what happened.
Ah Arrgh! Ohh! Can you describe your attacker? Height, build, what he was wearing? Hand it over, you bastard! I can do more than that.
Arggh! Hand it over! I'd recognise that voice anywhere.
Slimy creep.
Who? His name is Lewis Glendenning.
Lewis? Lewis?! No, he wouldn't do that.
Who is Lewis Glendenning? He worked at the store up until about a month ago.
Your father wasn't a fan? Neither was l.
Lewis was a total sleaze.
The accountant's getting his address now.
No, he wasn't sleazy.
He was just a really friendly guy.
Good with people and great with the customers.
He could just strike up a conversation with anyone.
Oh, yeah, and that's all he ever did.
Never any real work, so Dad gave him the flick.
Was Lewis angry? No.
Yes.
Sarah's a softie, but I never liked Lewis.
And he definitely wasn't happy when Dad fired him.
Hello? Yep.
Thanks for that.
There you go.
Great.
Thanks.
Still no answer.
When was the last time you saw Mr Glendenning? Just this morning.
He said he'd come and give me his rent.
Would you mind opening the door, please? I suppose.
If you're worried about him.
Yeah.
We wanna make sure he's OK.
Sir, if you wouldn't mind standing back? Sure.
Thank you.
Mr Glendenning, it's the police! Mr Glendenning! He was here this morning.
Anything? The place is clean.
Same here.
Not a trace.
So we got the right guy.
He knows we're after him.
OK.
This is Lewis Glendenning.
The man Vern Gilbert believes is responsible for the extortion.
The thing is, there's no such person as a Lewis Glendenning.
The tax file number he gave the Gilberts is a fake.
He wiped the flat clean, got rid of any identifying evidence.
Sounds like a pro.
Sounds like our killer.
- Is that the same - Same guy.
Different name.
Lew Denning.
This is a police file photo from SA.
How did you find him? He wasn't as thorough as he thought.
Crime Scene found a print on the underside of the bin lid.
Must have been in a hurry to get away.
Mmm.
So I ran the print and this is who came up.
Lew Denning.
What was the charge? Deception.
This woman reckons he conned her out of 1 00,000 bucks.
And there is a court case pending.
Complainant's name, Cassie Holmes.
And guess what? She's now living in Melbourne.
Wow.
He's changed.
That's him.
That's Lew.
What was your relationship with him? Ohh.
Sucker? Victim, naive idiot.
When I met Lew, I was twice the size I am now.
Didn't matter to him, he seemed to like me for me.
He asked me out And you accepted? Of course.
So what did he do? Cleaned me out.
He said that he was trying to get a business deal up.
An investor had dropped out.
I practically fell over myself to give him $1 00,000.
You gave it to him? He didn't have to persuade you? He didn't need to.
I I was in love.
We were supposed to be getting married.
I'd even picked out the dress, for God's sakes.
Why did you come to Melbourne? I couldn't stay in Adelaide.
Not with everyone knowing what a sucker I'd been.
The thought of running into him again I couldn't bear it.
He's such a crawlingmanipulator.
Did you know HE'S in Melbourne now? Oh I came here to get away from him.
Did he threaten you? No.
It's just That 1 00,000, I got half of it from my mother.
She had to sell her house.
Sheshe lost everything.
I don't think I could stand even seeing him again.
You'll have to see him again if your case gets to court.
I know.
But I'll deal with that then.
I just don't think I could cope with seeing him on the street.
Don't worry, we plan to find him before that can happen.
Where did you meet Lew Denning? In a pub? Work? At a weight-loss meeting.
Lewis is overweight? Not really.
But not everyone who goes to those meetings is huge.
We had a girl in our group who looked just like you.
Most of us wanted to throttle her.
And Lewis? He came up to me after a meeting one night.
We had a coffee, started chatting.
It started there.
Ended in bankruptcy six months later.
Not that I was the first.
Lew had done the same thing to a girl here in Melbourne.
Olivia Maitland.
She's agreed to be a witness if my case gets up.
Do you have her details? I met him at a weight-loss discussion night, just like Cassie.
I used to go till I realised it wasn't for me.
A bunch of self-absorbed losers telling their sob stories, how depressing.
What name did he use when you knew him? Dan.
Dan Lewis.
We went out for a while.
Then he started going on about his sick little brother who needed an operation.
Sick brother? I know.
Really,could it be any more obvious? So you gave him the money for his sick brother's operation? $1 0,000.
My grandad had just died and left me And you figured it was for a good cause? And Dan had those big puppy dog eyes.
And what happened after that? After that? There was no after-that.
That was the last I ever saw of him.
And what about the court case? Cassie Holmes seems to think you're her star witness.
Yeah, I need to talk to Cassie about that.
I know she's gagging for closure but I'm not gonna pursue it.
You're worried about seeing him again? Are you kidding? No, I just don't fancy standing up in court telling everyone what a dickhead I've been.
Trust me, I'd love to see Dan again and break his scrawny neck.
No sign of Denning/Glendenning.
Put out a KALOF for all three of his known aliases.
There's something else we could try.
He targets women at weight-loss meetings.
If we circulate the three photos, someone might recognise him.
Most of these places list their meeting times and locations online.
I'll get some uniforms to chase it up.
OK, if Glendenning selects his victims at weight-loss meetings, why bother getting a job at a health food shop? You're right, he seduces women to get at their money, he doesn't threaten to poison them.
Yeah.
So why break the pattern? There's an obvious answer to that.
He didn't.
Sarah.
Are you OK? Oh, I'm just a bit rattled, that's all.
With Dad in hospital and the newspapers calling up every minute, it's just, umI think, getting a bit much.
Sarah,can you tell us how you met Lewis? We told you - he worked here.
You didn't meet him before that? No.
You didn't meet him at a weight-loss meeting? No.
I don't go to weight-loss meetings.
You've never been to one? Ever? Are you saying I should? We're not saying anything.
We just need to know how you met Lewis.
He came in one day, asking if we needed any extra staff.
Dad's pretty stingy with that sort of thing, but Lewis convinced him that we needed a sales and promotions manager for Easyshake.
Did you ever have a relationship with him? Yeah.
A work relationship.
Anything more? No, we worked together, that's all.
Did he ever try and take advantage of you? What do you mean? Well, did he ever ask you for money? Why aren't you asking Rosie these questions? She worked here with Lewis too.
Why is it only me that you're interested in? Lewis strikes up relationships withcertain women.
And he takes their money and does a runner.
What sort of women? Women he meets at weight-loss meetings.
Fat women? Lewis worked here, I worked with him.
That's it.
I haven't seen him since he was fired.
Just because I might be a bit overweight, it doesn't mean I'm a sucker.
You think she was in a relationship with Lewis? It fits the pattern.
Does that mean that she worked the extortion with him? Mmmmaybe.
Why would she want to steal $50,000 from her father? Yeah, well, maybe the Gilberts aren't as tight as they look.
Rosie and Vern, they didn't tell Sarah about the extortion.
Maybe they've always left her out of the mix.
Is that enough motivation to hook up with a con man and have your father bashed? Drink up, we got a hit on one of those weight-loss meetings and an address.
Yeah.
I wonder what he'll look like this time.
Hi.
Hi.
Lewis Glendenning here? No.
Dan Lewis? No.
Lew Denning? They're similar names to my boyfriend, but he's just Glen.
Glen Lewisham.
Look like this? That's him.
That's Glen.
What's with the other names? Is he here? Glen! He's here.
Come in.
Just through, he's right here.
Glen.
Detectives? What can I do for you? You can tell us where you were yesterday afternoon between 1 :00 and 3:00.
I was here.
With you, sweetie.
Remember? Yeah, that's right.
We'd like to ask your boyfriend some questions about an assault and a murder.
I beg your pardon? A woman died yesterday morning.
Tabitha Mailer.
We believe you know something about it.
Tabitha Mailer? Oh, Look, sorry, I've never heard of her.
But, Look, if there's anything I can do to help, I'm more than happy to.
I'm sure Georgina would be too.
Yeah.
We can come with you down to the station if you like.
Eh? Where were you yesterday afternoon? Yesterday afternoon? Well, I certainly wasn't out clubbing anyone over the head.
I was home with my girlfriend, as she confirmed.
Of course he was with me.
You didn't seem so certain earlier.
I'm certain.
All afternoon? Yes.
Yes.
Why wouldn't I be? Don't you have a job? - He's freelance.
- What about you? I don't need to work.
Why not? If you must know, I have a trust fund.
Does Lewis know about that? His name's Glen.
And, yes, he knows about it.
Why wouldn't he? He's my boyfriend.
How long have you two been going out? Four weeks.
That overlaps with your time with Sarah Gilbert.
I never went out with Sarah.
You sure about that? Think I'd remember, don't you? Do you remember conspiring with Sarah to contaminate Vern Gilbert's Easyshake? What? Are you nuts? A woman is dead, Mr Glendenning.
She died from drinking a sabotaged packet of Easyshake.
I haven't seen Sarah or the Gilberts or the store or any of it since I was fired.
What about Cassie Holmes? Hmm? You going to pretend you had nothing to do with her either? Cassie was a misunderstanding.
$1 00,000 misunderstanding.
Yeah.
I borrowed money from her.
My investments didn't work out.
I'm sorry she lost her dough, but there's nothing I can do about it.
You could pay her back.
With what? You could start with the 50 grand you took from Vern Gilbert.
I've got nothing like that sort of money.
Check my bank accounts if you like.
We will.
He's setting you up, Georgina.
No, he's not.
We're in love.
The man you're in love with is facing serious charges.
Charges of deception and he could be involved in a murder.
You've got the wrong person.
Well, don't you think it's possible you could just be his next victim? He wouldn't do that to me.
Did you meet him at a weight-loss meeting? How did you know that? Did he come up to you after the meeting, start chatting, ask you out for a cup of coffee? Tea.
And while you're having a cup of tea with all these women, how come you need to change your name? Look, to be honest, the thing with Cassie rocked me.
She was coming after me through the courts, she was posting messages online slagging me off to all my friends.
I had to get away from her.
That's why I moved interstate, changed my name.
I'm the victim here.
You are a target, Georgina.
It's a scam.
You're the fourth woman he's done this to that we know of.
Yes, he pretends he's in love with you and then he cons you out of your cash.
No, he really cares about me.
He really cares about your trust fund.
You think, because I look like this Glen doesn't love me.
Don't you? Yeah, I do.
I'm sorry but that's the truth.
He doesn't love you and I think you know that.
You're wrong.
He does love me.
And he didn't do any of those things.
He couldn't have - he was with me.
So unless you're going to charge us both, I would like to leave.
With Glen.
Thanks.
Closed for the day? I took the phone off the hook to stop the media calls, so the media came here.
The only way to get rid of them was to close up early.
We brought a copy of the inventory, all the product we confiscated.
Oh, thanks.
We also brought a few photos of Lewis.
Glen.
Lew.
Dan.
Whatever you want to call him.
Why would I want to see them? We thought you might wanna know what kind of man he really is.
He changes his name and appearance every time he moves on, every time he leaves a girl behind.
After taking their money, of course.
How's your dad? He'll be OK.
Thanks.
He's still in hospital? Yeah, Rosie's with him now.
He came close to being killed.
What sort of a man does that? Beats up your dad for money? Yeah, we found him, by the way, Lewis Glendenning.
He's calling himself Glen now.
He's moved in with his new girlfriend, Georgina.
They seem very happy together.
Couldn't keep their hands off each other.
He met her at a weight-loss meeting.
Talked to her afterwards, asked her out for a cuppa.
I don't care what Lewis does with his life.
We believe Lewis conned you, Sarah.
With your help, he's killed a woman and now he's got 50,000 of your family's money.
Why would you cover for him? If he did what you're saying, he did it alone.
He couldn't have.
He'd been sacked before the extortion.
How could he get in here, access those packets without being recognised? Maybe he kept a key? Sarah, if we can't prove Lewis was responsible, your dad will take the fall for this and it could take him years to rebuild his reputation.
Well, as Dad keeps saying, "You can do anything if you put your mind to it.
" So I'm sure that he's going to be fine.
Are you sure there's nothing more you can tell us? No.
There's not.
Well, you're very loyal, Sarah.
I hope it works out for you, because when it comes to pressing charges, do you trust that Lewis will not implicate you? So you think she's stonewalling? I don't know anymore.
Why would Glendenning bother with an accomplice? He's always been a one-man show.
We did our best to make her feel jealous about Lewis moving on without her but she wouldn't budge.
She wouldn't say a word against him.
We know this Glendenning is responsible for the extortion, right? He clubbed Vern Gilbert over the noggin.
We've only got Vern's word on that.
And Vern hates Glendenning.
So he's a biased witness and there's the fact that Glendenning's been alibied by Georgina Hopkins.
Yeah.
Even though we know she's lying through her teeth.
The DPP will never go for it, we haven't got enough to re-interview him.
So you'll have to go at him through the back door.
Get buggerlugs to retract her alibi.
How? We pushed her as hard as we could.
We made it really clear we're looking at her boyfriend for murder.
Look, that's where you went wrong.
You've been outplayed, boys and girls.
How's this bloke operate? He trades on charm.
He makes these girls feel safe, comfortable, special.
You can't go in there guns a-blazing, I don't think.
If you're gonna catch Glendenning, you're gonna have to beat him at his own game.
I'll distract him while you talk to Georgina? So, does this mean that Jarvis thinks I'm charming? Why don't you just see if you can sweet-talk her into coming with us? Hello.
Anyone here? Georgina? Lewis? Georgina? Lewis? Duncan.
Anything from the knife? No.
Handle's been wiped clean.
Why not take it, remove the evidence? Killer couldn't get it out.
It's hit the sternum, got stuck.
What else can you tell us? Estimated time of death between 8:00 and 1 0:00am.
And somewhere about that time, she put up a fight.
They're defensive wounds.
There was definitely a struggle.
Guys, I think I've got something for you.
A couple of boys set up a speed camera down the road Paying your wages - pinging mums in the school zone.
Don't start me.
Anyway, I had a look through the list of people they pulled over.
Nice thinking, Todd.
What did you find? A match on one of your persons of interest driving away from here doing 64 in a 40 zone at 8:03am.
Right about the time Georgina here was breathing her last breath.
Who was it? Sarah Gilbert! I didn't kill her.
Honestly.
I don't even know the woman.
Her name was Georgina and you know exactly who she was because we told you she was Lewis's new girlfriend.
I didn't do it.
Don't push me, Sarah.
I've had enough.
You've played us for idiots and now another woman is dead.
I didn't do it.
"l didn't go to Healthy Goal.
" "l didn't know Lewis before work.
" "l didn't know Georgina.
" It's all lies, isn't it, Sarah? All of it! You're enrolled at Healthy Goal under a different name - Sally.
I was embarrassed.
I didn't want my family to know.
Dad especially.
That's where you met Lewis.
And today, at 8:03am, you were on Georgina Hopkins's street right about the time she was murdered.
We can prove it, Sarah.
You were speeding away from the crime scene.
I'm not a killer! I want a lawyer.
She requested a lawyer? Yeah, she's on the phone to him now.
We've got something - Georgina Hopkins's bank statements.
$20,000 was transferred out of her account overnight.
Where to? We've only got an account number.
But we can guess whose.
Mmm.
Lewis Glendenning.
Who - surprise, surprise - is missing in action.
This same account was used to buy a ticket to Fiji for this morning.
Just one? Yeah.
So, if Georgina found out about the money transfer and the single plane ticket, she could have confronted him, threatened to take back her alibi.
Which puts him in the frame for Vern's assault and robbery.
So they fought, he got desperate and stabbed her.
We had uniforms stationed at the airport, ready to take him down.
Lewis didn't show.
He never took his flight to Fiji.
Which means he has another plan in place.
This guy's got several aliases, he's probably got bank accounts all over the place.
If there's one thing he knows how to do, it's disappear.
He should be halfway out of the country by now.
I've re-issued an urgent KALOF, notified passport control and I've got uniforms scouting for people matching his descriptions.
We're trawling all transport options, domestic and international, for the next 24 hours.
Got it! Booking under the passport name of Lewis Glen Daniels.
Another bloody alias.
Cook Airways flight for the Cook Islands.
When does it leave? Approximately five minutes.
Flight CKA 221.
Allie, go.
Get onto the uniforms.
If they move now, they can intercept him before the gate.
I'll get the Feds.
I'll get a new warrant.
I'll do the airline.
Constable Taylor, this is Kingston.
Superintendent, it's Buchanan.
I need you at terminal 5.
He's on your flight.
He goes in those doors any second now.
Going on a trip, Lewis? That's not against the law.
No.
Murder is.
I didn't kill anyone.
Oh, come on, Lewis.
Your girlfriend's bank account has been drained and she's lying on the floor with a knife in her heart.
Courtesy of you.
I didn't touch her.
I came home and I found her like that.
Oh, so you called an ambulance and you notified the police.
Oh, no, hang on a second, you ran, didn't you, Lewis? I freaked out.
I knew you lot would be straight after me.
Look, I promise you I didn't do it.
Yeah, right.
Like I said, I found her like that.
After taking her money? He might be telling the truth.
He's a con man.
He's never killed anyone before.
Tabitha Mailer.
Most likely an accident.
Sticking an emetic in a packet's a bit different to picking up a knife and stabbing someone to death.
What happened - did she confront you? Threatened to tell us that she was nowhere near you the day Vern Gilbert was attacked? You had to stop her, didn't you, Lewis? No.
Well, you had already killed Tabitha Mailer, what's one more dead woman? I didn't kill Tabitha Mailer.
I didn't kill anyone.
You're already facing charges of extortion, assault and deception - two counts of murder should top that off.
That is a very long time in prison.
Minimum, I reckon.
Alright.
Alright.
Look I admit I'm a con man.
I admit I took the 50 grand from Vern Gilbert.
But that is it.
You sent the text messages, demanded money.
You assaulted him outside the bank.
I didn't mean to hurt him.
Look, I'd arranged to call him later on.
But in case he went to the police, I thought I'd waylay him.
I had a plastic gun, for God's sake.
I wasn't going to lay a finger on him, but he went me.
He ended up in hospital.
I know.
And Tabitha Mailer ended up dead after drinking an Easyshake that you laced with an emetic.
That was not my fault.
Of course not! I wouldn't know an emetic from a bar of soap! I was just threatening Vern, that is it.
It was Sarah's idea to put the stuff in the Easyshake packet.
Get Sarah Gilbert back up for interview.
No-one was supposed to die.
It was only meant to give Dad a scare.
So what happened, Sarah? I met Lewis at a weight-loss meeting.
He heard me talking about my perfect skinny little sister and my caring dad.
How they were always trying to help me to lose weight.
He said he knew how pathetic they made me feel and I should find a way to get back at them.
So the extortion was Lewis's idea, hmm? We were going to use that money to move away and start a new life.
Yeah, but the emetic was your idea, wasn't it? Sarah! I thought if I could make a few people sick it'd ruin Easyshake's reputation.
So .
.
Lewis uses you to steal $50,000 from your own family, he turns you into a killer and then he runs into the arms of another woman.
That must have made you pretty angry.
Yeah, it did.
I went to this cafe last night, where Lewis and I used to go to, and then I followed him to the new girlfriend's house.
He bought flowers, the gerberas, exactly what he used to buy for me.
Real slap in the face.
That's why I went back there this morning just to give him a piece of my mind.
But he wasn't there, just Georgina.
And I told her, "Don't trust him.
Get away while you still can.
" But I didn't touch her.
She was fine when I left there.
So why did you speed away from the scene? I was running late - I had to open the shop.
Oh,come on.
You expect us to believe that? I promise you, I didn't kill Georgina.
I didn't.
What's the delay? We've hit a brick wall, ma'am.
Lewis has admitted to the extortion.
Sarah's admitted to the poison.
But neither will confess to Georgina's murder.
Both of them were on the scene, but Lewis reckons he found her dead and fled in fear.
And Sarah maintains that Georgina was alive and well when she left.
She's not alive and well now, so one of them must be lying.
Or they both are and they're in it together.
They'll walk out of here and meet up in the Cook Islands.
It's like one step forward and two steps back.
Look, they may be skilled liars, these two, but they're not professional killers.
Up until Tabitha Mailer, they'd never physically hurt anyone.
Mix the teams up.
Wave these in front of their faces.
Show them what they've done.
Remind them what murder looks like.
And let them know there is no coming back from that.
This is Georgina Hopkins.
Your girlfriend.
Is that what you did to her, Lewis? No.
I didn't do it.
I swear.
She was like that when I got there.
I don't want to see her like that.
She wasshe was alive when I left her.
I promise you, she was fine, happy, leaving the house.
Oh, does she look happy now, Sarah? I don't want to see them.
She stole your man so you taught her a lesson.
No.
You know what the problem is, Sarah? The problem is that you've told us nothing but lies, so why should we believe you now? You're a con man.
A professional liar.
You've never told the truth in your life.
I know you're lying to us about this.
Look at the photos.
Look at the photos! Look at what happened to this woman.
You did this to her, didn't you? That's not Georgina.
That's not Lewis's girlfriend.
Well, that is Georgina Hopkins.
That's not the woman I saw at the house.
When I went to Georgina's place, a woman was coming out, I told her about Lewis, but she said she already knew.
That we were both better off without him 'cause he was a "crawling manipulator.
" Crawling manipulator? He's such a crawlingmanipulator.
It describes him perfectly, doesn't it? Yeah, that describes someone perfectly.
Cassie Holmes.
Ms Holmes, we've had a look into your civil action against Lewis Glendenning.
You were never going to get your mother's money back, were you? Your witness dropped out.
Oh, I didn't need Olivia's testimony.
It didn't change anything.
The SA Police had dropped the charges and you'd run out of options.
My solicitor said we could proceed.
But it would be harder and longer and more expensive.
You were never going to get your mother's money back - Glendenning was never going to pay for what he'd done.
Your star witness, she was happy to just cut her losses and move on.
But you couldn't let it go, could you? The thing we don't understand is, if you found Lewis, went to his house, if it was Lewis you were after, why did you kill his girlfriend? I didn't.
Cassie, we have a witness.
The woman you saw this morning, Sarah Gilbert.
She identified you.
Must have been right after you stabbed Georgina Hopkins.
I couldn't afford to keep going with the court case.
I've lost enough money already.
I went to reason with him and found her instead.
Why would you kill her? She'd found out that he'd transferred money from her account.
That should put you on the same side.
She was gonna forgive him.
She said she was still in love with him, that, oh, there must have been some mistake.
She was me! A year ago! Blind! Naive.
Forgiving.
When I asked my mother for that money, I knew.
Mmm.
Even then, I knew it was wrong.
But I just didn't want to believe that he was using me.
I loved him.
And there she was, talking about the trip that they were gonna take together.
To Fiji.
How happy they were.
Well, I just lost it.
Snapped.
I can't even remember how it happened.
Um I had the knife in my hand.
Oh, there was blood everywhere.
I killed her.
DPP's gotta be happy with that - full admissions from all three suspects.
So Lewis finally gets his day in court.
Let's see him talk his way out of that one.
I don't like his chances.
Only Cassie won't be there to see it, too busy with her own murder trial.
You'll never guess who just bailed out Sarah Gilbert.
Her dad.
Mr Easyshake is gonna stand by her.
What, even though she took 50 grand from him? I think, after he finally realised how he made her feel all those years.
- It's a bit late for that.
- Morning.
So, finally, our three little piggies are going to jail, hmm? This one for extortion, this one for manslaughter and this one goes, "Wee-wee-wee-wee-wee," all the way to the big house for murder.
Hmm.
In other words, case closed.
I believe you'll find another one waiting for you at your desks.
Hey, Si.
Hey.
- Si! - Welcome back! You look fighting fit, mate.
Time away from you guys, it's gotta be beneficial, right? How was Thailand? Hey, where's my postcard? I was busy, mate - cocktails on the beach, magnificent scuba diving, the food.
Oh, don't mention food.
Er, anyway, enough gossip.
New case came in - report of a floater in the Maribyrnong.
Who's up? I'm in.
Thought you might be.
Hey, see you guys later on.
Witness was jogging by the river, reported a suspicious object floating on the surface.
Reckons it's either a body or a bag of old clothes.
My money's on the old clothes.
So, how are you, mate? Seriously? Yeah.
I'm good, Mattie.
Really good.
Time away from this place was just what I needed.
Bit of perspective, you know Good to hear.
Good to have you back.
It's good to be back.
Ask Pathology.
Ronnie said to get you down here.
Righto.
When was the last time you spoke to your sister No sign of dental discolouration to suggest chronic bulimia.
Indication of a Mallory-Weiss tear.
Ronnie.
Detectives.
Glad you could make it.
I think I've got something for you.
Just over there.
Whoa.
Tabitha Mailer.
Morbidly obese.
In this case, very morbid.
How did she die? Heart attack.
So it is natural causes? I wasn't so quick to pass judgment.
Emesis.
Vomit.
Projectile.
Delightful.
But wait, there's more.
There was blood in her up-chuck.
Haematemesis, for your edification, Detective Kingston.
And this was a particularly violent episode.
I'd say she's torn her lower oesophagus due to prolonged retching.
Any idea of the cause? Most likely the last thing she ingested.
Easyshake.
Yeah.
It's some kind of weight-loss product.
But there's not a single active ingredient in there that would kill you, or make you lose weight, but that's by the by.
So something's been added? Yeah.
That's my guess.
Like some sort of poison? Possibly, but more likely to be a very strong emetic.
Something that had this lady keeling over,clutching at her heart and dying an unpleasant death.
So not natural causes.
No.
What do you mean 'not natural causes'? My sister had a heart attack.
Sir, you can't come in here.
No, I wanna know what's going on.
Why are all these police here? Sir, you must stay away from the crime scene.
What crime scene? What happened to my sister? Sir! Oww! Sir, your sister's death has been classed as suspicious.
It's now a homicide investigation.
Homicide? Who'd want to kill Tabitha? That's exactly the question we were going to ask you.
How long has she been taking this Easyshake? A few weeks.
Your sister prepared the mixture herself? Yes.
Five times a day.
Did you see her open the packet? I don't think so.
Well, did you or didn't you? No.
Does anyone else have access to this kitchen? I'm not answering any more questions until you tell me what's going on.
We believe Tabitha's breakfast drink was tampered with.
Like, poisoned? Like, poisoned.
Yes.
So, did anyone else have access to the kitchen? No.
So, if the two of you were the only people in the house I didn't kill Tabitha.
Was your sister happy? What? You said she didn't have any friends, barely left the house.
Is it possible she added something to the drink herself? No! She wasn't happy, sure, but she wasn't suicidal.
She was just trying to do something about her weight by drinking that bloody potion.
You want to find out who poisoned her? Start by talking to the people that make that rubbish.
Do you fight the battle of the bulge? I know how hard it can be.
Well, that's why I came up with Easyshake.
Drink this three times a day in conjunction with a balanced diet and those extra kilos will simply fall away.
Easyshake - now fighting your weight is a battle you can win.
Are you interested in Easyshake? We're interested in getting it off the shelves.
Are you the owner? No.
My father.
My daughter's been fighting weight all her life.
Are you that daughter? No I am.
Hello.
I'm Vern Gilbert.
Can I help you? Detective Senior Constables Ryan and Kingston.
Mr Gilbert, there's been an incident involving your Easyshake.
And until we can ascertain exactly what's happened, we'd like your cooperation in taking it off the shelves.
How do you mean? What sort of incident? One of your customers died this morning after drinking it.
Oh, my God.
Who? Tabitha Mailer.
You remember Tabitha.
She was in here last week.
She'd seen one of Dad's ads on late-night telly and wanted to give it a go.
Hold on.
Sorry, this just doesn't make any sense.
Her death can't have anything to do with Easyshake.
Look, we use all-natural, all-healthy ingredients.
The packets are sealed before they leave the shop.
So, it's made on site? Y es, absolutely.
We mix it here, package it here, seal it here.
We do it all upstairs.
Who's 'we'? My daughters and me.
How do you know it wasn't something else that killed her? Because Easyshake's the only thing she's eaten for three weeks.
You can't just take my products off the shelf.
Easyshake is finally getting some traction in the market.
I'm moving production off site, I've signed distribution agreements all over the country.
Mr Gilbert, a woman is dead.
I don't believe my product was responsible.
Um, Dad, maybe we should take it off the shelves just in case.
No.
Look, I'm sorry.
Until you have proof or a warrant, I can't help you.
Won't help us, more like it.
Yeah, he was playing some pretty heavy defence.
- With good reason.
- Something to hide? Something to gain, more like.
He's signing distributors left, right and centre.
If he has his way, it'll be on the shelves of every health food store and supermarket.
Big money.
It's possible he's right, isn't it? Tabitha Mailer's death had nothing to do with this Easyshake? Not according to Ronnie's pathologist gut feeling.
Yeah, not according to the lab.
I just got the report back.
Traces of a virulent emetic were found in Tabitha Mailer's packet of Easyshake.
It's called syrup of Ipecac and it is a herbal-based purgative.
It's not listed as an ingredient here.
So how did it get into Tabitha Mailer's Easyshake? Vern Gilbert's not a chemist.
I mean, he prances around in a lab coat, but that's about the sum of his scientific credentials.
Maybe he just stuffed up and added the wrong ingredient into his magic formula.
Yeah, and if there was negligence in their preparation or manufacture, then it's not just going to be one packet, the entire batch could be contaminated.
Yeah, I don't think it's negligence.
It says the packet was tampered with after it was originally sealed.
How do they know that? Because it was opened and resealed.
A different sealant was used the second time.
Deliberate sabotage.
Someone with a grudge against the Gilberts.
Maybe the brother trying to throw us off the scent.
Whatever the reason, I want that product off the shelves now.
I'll get you your warrant.
As well as the Easyshake packs and all raw ingredients, we're looking for syrup of Ipecac plus any sealants and adhesives.
And he'll be expecting us so he's probably stashed things out of sight.
OK, guys, we need a thorough search.
Everything on the warrant, alright? Let's get moving.
- Get off him! - Mr Mailer, stop it.
I'll kill you for this! You told her you could help her and she believed in you! That's enough, Mr Mailer.
Get him out of here.
Stop! You can't do this! Yes, we can.
This is my livelihood! Dad! Your copy of the warrant.
What? You wanted proof, we've got it.
Lab results confirmed the presence of syrup of Ipecac in one of your Easyshake packets.
I didn't put it there.
We don't even stock syrup of Ipecac.
Right now, Mr Gilbert, how it got there isn't the issue.
We need to get your product off the shelves.
Look, please, no! Look,couldn't you at least do this after hours? If this gets out, it'll ruin me! Maybe that's the point.
How do you mean? Is there someone who wants to see your business fail? A competitor or a business rival? Not that I can think of.
You haven't received any threats or demands? No, other than the one you've just witnessed.
And you're sure you don't stock syrup of Ipecac? Y es, I am sure.
'Cause if it is in your shop, our team will find it and you will be charged.
Tabitha Mailer's brother is the one who should be charged.
For assault.
Why am I the only one you arrested? Vern Gilbert is the one you should be questioning.
Just because the emetic was in his packet doesn't necessarily mean he's responsible.
He's responsible, alright.
His product killed my sister.
She needed helpsupport, not some fraud trying to make a quick buck.
So, you didn't like her taking Easyshake? I've seen the end results of her fad diets.
Disappointment, the pressure when she couldn't keep it up.
So maybe you tried to scare her off it, make her a bit sick.
Of course not.
Or a lot sick.
Or dead.
What on earth would I have to gain? The house, for starters.
I don't care about the house.
I said, "For starters.
" Financial records.
Your parents left you and Tabitha a substantial inheritance.
They worked hard.
$3 million worth of hard.
You were Tabitha's carer, weren't you? Yes.
Can't have been easy looking after your sister.
In and out of the shower, helping her get dressed every day.
Pretty soon she wouldn't be able to leave the house at all, you'd be at her beck and call 24/7.
Yeah, right.
I didn't like caring for Tabitha.
In fact, I hated it.
I wished she could look after herself.
But not for me.
For her.
I just wanted her to be happy.
Tabitha was my best friend.
I loved her.
Must be hard being that big.
Can't be easy.
Yeah, well, it's a bit late to cry 'fat' now, isn't it? What? I'm just saying.
You don't end up that size overnight.
Probably starts with a little bit of chicken schnitzel on white.
Mmm.
Alright, I'd better get down to Autopsy.
Any word back from the lab on the warrant seizures? Ma'am, five more packets of Easyshake tested positive for an emetic.
So Tabitha Mailer wasn't specifically targeted? Just dead unlucky.
Tell me there's no-one else out there taking this stuff.
Well, the National Health Board's recalled all packets.
I've got uniforms going through the Gilberts' records, contacting anyone who purchased the product.
There's no sign of an emetic amongst any of the ingredients seized from Vern Gilbert's store and no sign of a second sealant.
So either Vern Gilbert did a good job of covering up his negligence Or the emetic was added off site .
.
snuck back onto the shelves by somebody else.
Ryan.
We'll be there right away.
Vern Gilbert's been bashed.
What happened? Dad went to the bank with the week's takings and a man with a balaclava bashed him.
How much was taken? I don't know, $1 2,000? What time did your father leave the store to go to the bank? But this wasn't just a robbery.
It's obvious.
That psycho that came into the store today, he must have followed Dad and attacked him.
That psycho was in our interview room till 3 o'clock so he couldn't have attacked your father.
I think one of you knows more than you're letting on.
What do you mean? One of your customers is dead.
Now your father's been bashed.
And your sister here can't look me in the eye.
If you know anything, you're impeding a murder inquiry.
Dad would kill me if I told you.
Rosie Keeping quiet hasn't exactly worked for him so far.
Rosie, what's going on? What did Dad tell you? Dad got a text message last week - pay cash or they'd contaminate the Easyshake packets.
Why didn't you tell ME? I didn't want to worry you.
Oh, but it's OK to worry you? No, it's just that we didn't think it was anything serious.
Rosie, a woman is dead.
I know.
We just thought it was someone trying it on.
We're a small business.
We're an easy target.
Dad said that if we just didn't reply, he would just move on.
Only he didn't.
No.
You knew all this when we questioned you and you said nothing.
They said not to contact the police.
You got another message? Yeah.
After you seized the Easyshake packets.
I don't believe this.
Saying what? Pay up or it happens again.
They were going to contaminate more packets.
We'll need access to your phone records and any other correspondence you've received.
Excuse me.
So your father wasn't banking the week's takings, he was withdrawing the ransom money.
Yeah.
Emptied the account.
How much? $50,000.
I can't believe Dad didn't say anything.
No, neither can l.
The doctor's finished her obs.
Vern's OK to talk to us.
Mr Gilbert, we know about the blackmail.
I'm sorry, Dad, I had to tell them.
We know you were assaulted and that $50,000 was taken.
Give me the money.
Just give me the money! We need to know exactly what happened.
Ah Arrgh! Ohh! Can you describe your attacker? Height, build, what he was wearing? Hand it over, you bastard! I can do more than that.
Arggh! Hand it over! I'd recognise that voice anywhere.
Slimy creep.
Who? His name is Lewis Glendenning.
Lewis? Lewis?! No, he wouldn't do that.
Who is Lewis Glendenning? He worked at the store up until about a month ago.
Your father wasn't a fan? Neither was l.
Lewis was a total sleaze.
The accountant's getting his address now.
No, he wasn't sleazy.
He was just a really friendly guy.
Good with people and great with the customers.
He could just strike up a conversation with anyone.
Oh, yeah, and that's all he ever did.
Never any real work, so Dad gave him the flick.
Was Lewis angry? No.
Yes.
Sarah's a softie, but I never liked Lewis.
And he definitely wasn't happy when Dad fired him.
Hello? Yep.
Thanks for that.
There you go.
Great.
Thanks.
Still no answer.
When was the last time you saw Mr Glendenning? Just this morning.
He said he'd come and give me his rent.
Would you mind opening the door, please? I suppose.
If you're worried about him.
Yeah.
We wanna make sure he's OK.
Sir, if you wouldn't mind standing back? Sure.
Thank you.
Mr Glendenning, it's the police! Mr Glendenning! He was here this morning.
Anything? The place is clean.
Same here.
Not a trace.
So we got the right guy.
He knows we're after him.
OK.
This is Lewis Glendenning.
The man Vern Gilbert believes is responsible for the extortion.
The thing is, there's no such person as a Lewis Glendenning.
The tax file number he gave the Gilberts is a fake.
He wiped the flat clean, got rid of any identifying evidence.
Sounds like a pro.
Sounds like our killer.
- Is that the same - Same guy.
Different name.
Lew Denning.
This is a police file photo from SA.
How did you find him? He wasn't as thorough as he thought.
Crime Scene found a print on the underside of the bin lid.
Must have been in a hurry to get away.
Mmm.
So I ran the print and this is who came up.
Lew Denning.
What was the charge? Deception.
This woman reckons he conned her out of 1 00,000 bucks.
And there is a court case pending.
Complainant's name, Cassie Holmes.
And guess what? She's now living in Melbourne.
Wow.
He's changed.
That's him.
That's Lew.
What was your relationship with him? Ohh.
Sucker? Victim, naive idiot.
When I met Lew, I was twice the size I am now.
Didn't matter to him, he seemed to like me for me.
He asked me out And you accepted? Of course.
So what did he do? Cleaned me out.
He said that he was trying to get a business deal up.
An investor had dropped out.
I practically fell over myself to give him $1 00,000.
You gave it to him? He didn't have to persuade you? He didn't need to.
I I was in love.
We were supposed to be getting married.
I'd even picked out the dress, for God's sakes.
Why did you come to Melbourne? I couldn't stay in Adelaide.
Not with everyone knowing what a sucker I'd been.
The thought of running into him again I couldn't bear it.
He's such a crawlingmanipulator.
Did you know HE'S in Melbourne now? Oh I came here to get away from him.
Did he threaten you? No.
It's just That 1 00,000, I got half of it from my mother.
She had to sell her house.
Sheshe lost everything.
I don't think I could stand even seeing him again.
You'll have to see him again if your case gets to court.
I know.
But I'll deal with that then.
I just don't think I could cope with seeing him on the street.
Don't worry, we plan to find him before that can happen.
Where did you meet Lew Denning? In a pub? Work? At a weight-loss meeting.
Lewis is overweight? Not really.
But not everyone who goes to those meetings is huge.
We had a girl in our group who looked just like you.
Most of us wanted to throttle her.
And Lewis? He came up to me after a meeting one night.
We had a coffee, started chatting.
It started there.
Ended in bankruptcy six months later.
Not that I was the first.
Lew had done the same thing to a girl here in Melbourne.
Olivia Maitland.
She's agreed to be a witness if my case gets up.
Do you have her details? I met him at a weight-loss discussion night, just like Cassie.
I used to go till I realised it wasn't for me.
A bunch of self-absorbed losers telling their sob stories, how depressing.
What name did he use when you knew him? Dan.
Dan Lewis.
We went out for a while.
Then he started going on about his sick little brother who needed an operation.
Sick brother? I know.
Really,could it be any more obvious? So you gave him the money for his sick brother's operation? $1 0,000.
My grandad had just died and left me And you figured it was for a good cause? And Dan had those big puppy dog eyes.
And what happened after that? After that? There was no after-that.
That was the last I ever saw of him.
And what about the court case? Cassie Holmes seems to think you're her star witness.
Yeah, I need to talk to Cassie about that.
I know she's gagging for closure but I'm not gonna pursue it.
You're worried about seeing him again? Are you kidding? No, I just don't fancy standing up in court telling everyone what a dickhead I've been.
Trust me, I'd love to see Dan again and break his scrawny neck.
No sign of Denning/Glendenning.
Put out a KALOF for all three of his known aliases.
There's something else we could try.
He targets women at weight-loss meetings.
If we circulate the three photos, someone might recognise him.
Most of these places list their meeting times and locations online.
I'll get some uniforms to chase it up.
OK, if Glendenning selects his victims at weight-loss meetings, why bother getting a job at a health food shop? You're right, he seduces women to get at their money, he doesn't threaten to poison them.
Yeah.
So why break the pattern? There's an obvious answer to that.
He didn't.
Sarah.
Are you OK? Oh, I'm just a bit rattled, that's all.
With Dad in hospital and the newspapers calling up every minute, it's just, umI think, getting a bit much.
Sarah,can you tell us how you met Lewis? We told you - he worked here.
You didn't meet him before that? No.
You didn't meet him at a weight-loss meeting? No.
I don't go to weight-loss meetings.
You've never been to one? Ever? Are you saying I should? We're not saying anything.
We just need to know how you met Lewis.
He came in one day, asking if we needed any extra staff.
Dad's pretty stingy with that sort of thing, but Lewis convinced him that we needed a sales and promotions manager for Easyshake.
Did you ever have a relationship with him? Yeah.
A work relationship.
Anything more? No, we worked together, that's all.
Did he ever try and take advantage of you? What do you mean? Well, did he ever ask you for money? Why aren't you asking Rosie these questions? She worked here with Lewis too.
Why is it only me that you're interested in? Lewis strikes up relationships withcertain women.
And he takes their money and does a runner.
What sort of women? Women he meets at weight-loss meetings.
Fat women? Lewis worked here, I worked with him.
That's it.
I haven't seen him since he was fired.
Just because I might be a bit overweight, it doesn't mean I'm a sucker.
You think she was in a relationship with Lewis? It fits the pattern.
Does that mean that she worked the extortion with him? Mmmmaybe.
Why would she want to steal $50,000 from her father? Yeah, well, maybe the Gilberts aren't as tight as they look.
Rosie and Vern, they didn't tell Sarah about the extortion.
Maybe they've always left her out of the mix.
Is that enough motivation to hook up with a con man and have your father bashed? Drink up, we got a hit on one of those weight-loss meetings and an address.
Yeah.
I wonder what he'll look like this time.
Hi.
Hi.
Lewis Glendenning here? No.
Dan Lewis? No.
Lew Denning? They're similar names to my boyfriend, but he's just Glen.
Glen Lewisham.
Look like this? That's him.
That's Glen.
What's with the other names? Is he here? Glen! He's here.
Come in.
Just through, he's right here.
Glen.
Detectives? What can I do for you? You can tell us where you were yesterday afternoon between 1 :00 and 3:00.
I was here.
With you, sweetie.
Remember? Yeah, that's right.
We'd like to ask your boyfriend some questions about an assault and a murder.
I beg your pardon? A woman died yesterday morning.
Tabitha Mailer.
We believe you know something about it.
Tabitha Mailer? Oh, Look, sorry, I've never heard of her.
But, Look, if there's anything I can do to help, I'm more than happy to.
I'm sure Georgina would be too.
Yeah.
We can come with you down to the station if you like.
Eh? Where were you yesterday afternoon? Yesterday afternoon? Well, I certainly wasn't out clubbing anyone over the head.
I was home with my girlfriend, as she confirmed.
Of course he was with me.
You didn't seem so certain earlier.
I'm certain.
All afternoon? Yes.
Yes.
Why wouldn't I be? Don't you have a job? - He's freelance.
- What about you? I don't need to work.
Why not? If you must know, I have a trust fund.
Does Lewis know about that? His name's Glen.
And, yes, he knows about it.
Why wouldn't he? He's my boyfriend.
How long have you two been going out? Four weeks.
That overlaps with your time with Sarah Gilbert.
I never went out with Sarah.
You sure about that? Think I'd remember, don't you? Do you remember conspiring with Sarah to contaminate Vern Gilbert's Easyshake? What? Are you nuts? A woman is dead, Mr Glendenning.
She died from drinking a sabotaged packet of Easyshake.
I haven't seen Sarah or the Gilberts or the store or any of it since I was fired.
What about Cassie Holmes? Hmm? You going to pretend you had nothing to do with her either? Cassie was a misunderstanding.
$1 00,000 misunderstanding.
Yeah.
I borrowed money from her.
My investments didn't work out.
I'm sorry she lost her dough, but there's nothing I can do about it.
You could pay her back.
With what? You could start with the 50 grand you took from Vern Gilbert.
I've got nothing like that sort of money.
Check my bank accounts if you like.
We will.
He's setting you up, Georgina.
No, he's not.
We're in love.
The man you're in love with is facing serious charges.
Charges of deception and he could be involved in a murder.
You've got the wrong person.
Well, don't you think it's possible you could just be his next victim? He wouldn't do that to me.
Did you meet him at a weight-loss meeting? How did you know that? Did he come up to you after the meeting, start chatting, ask you out for a cup of coffee? Tea.
And while you're having a cup of tea with all these women, how come you need to change your name? Look, to be honest, the thing with Cassie rocked me.
She was coming after me through the courts, she was posting messages online slagging me off to all my friends.
I had to get away from her.
That's why I moved interstate, changed my name.
I'm the victim here.
You are a target, Georgina.
It's a scam.
You're the fourth woman he's done this to that we know of.
Yes, he pretends he's in love with you and then he cons you out of your cash.
No, he really cares about me.
He really cares about your trust fund.
You think, because I look like this Glen doesn't love me.
Don't you? Yeah, I do.
I'm sorry but that's the truth.
He doesn't love you and I think you know that.
You're wrong.
He does love me.
And he didn't do any of those things.
He couldn't have - he was with me.
So unless you're going to charge us both, I would like to leave.
With Glen.
Thanks.
Closed for the day? I took the phone off the hook to stop the media calls, so the media came here.
The only way to get rid of them was to close up early.
We brought a copy of the inventory, all the product we confiscated.
Oh, thanks.
We also brought a few photos of Lewis.
Glen.
Lew.
Dan.
Whatever you want to call him.
Why would I want to see them? We thought you might wanna know what kind of man he really is.
He changes his name and appearance every time he moves on, every time he leaves a girl behind.
After taking their money, of course.
How's your dad? He'll be OK.
Thanks.
He's still in hospital? Yeah, Rosie's with him now.
He came close to being killed.
What sort of a man does that? Beats up your dad for money? Yeah, we found him, by the way, Lewis Glendenning.
He's calling himself Glen now.
He's moved in with his new girlfriend, Georgina.
They seem very happy together.
Couldn't keep their hands off each other.
He met her at a weight-loss meeting.
Talked to her afterwards, asked her out for a cuppa.
I don't care what Lewis does with his life.
We believe Lewis conned you, Sarah.
With your help, he's killed a woman and now he's got 50,000 of your family's money.
Why would you cover for him? If he did what you're saying, he did it alone.
He couldn't have.
He'd been sacked before the extortion.
How could he get in here, access those packets without being recognised? Maybe he kept a key? Sarah, if we can't prove Lewis was responsible, your dad will take the fall for this and it could take him years to rebuild his reputation.
Well, as Dad keeps saying, "You can do anything if you put your mind to it.
" So I'm sure that he's going to be fine.
Are you sure there's nothing more you can tell us? No.
There's not.
Well, you're very loyal, Sarah.
I hope it works out for you, because when it comes to pressing charges, do you trust that Lewis will not implicate you? So you think she's stonewalling? I don't know anymore.
Why would Glendenning bother with an accomplice? He's always been a one-man show.
We did our best to make her feel jealous about Lewis moving on without her but she wouldn't budge.
She wouldn't say a word against him.
We know this Glendenning is responsible for the extortion, right? He clubbed Vern Gilbert over the noggin.
We've only got Vern's word on that.
And Vern hates Glendenning.
So he's a biased witness and there's the fact that Glendenning's been alibied by Georgina Hopkins.
Yeah.
Even though we know she's lying through her teeth.
The DPP will never go for it, we haven't got enough to re-interview him.
So you'll have to go at him through the back door.
Get buggerlugs to retract her alibi.
How? We pushed her as hard as we could.
We made it really clear we're looking at her boyfriend for murder.
Look, that's where you went wrong.
You've been outplayed, boys and girls.
How's this bloke operate? He trades on charm.
He makes these girls feel safe, comfortable, special.
You can't go in there guns a-blazing, I don't think.
If you're gonna catch Glendenning, you're gonna have to beat him at his own game.
I'll distract him while you talk to Georgina? So, does this mean that Jarvis thinks I'm charming? Why don't you just see if you can sweet-talk her into coming with us? Hello.
Anyone here? Georgina? Lewis? Georgina? Lewis? Duncan.
Anything from the knife? No.
Handle's been wiped clean.
Why not take it, remove the evidence? Killer couldn't get it out.
It's hit the sternum, got stuck.
What else can you tell us? Estimated time of death between 8:00 and 1 0:00am.
And somewhere about that time, she put up a fight.
They're defensive wounds.
There was definitely a struggle.
Guys, I think I've got something for you.
A couple of boys set up a speed camera down the road Paying your wages - pinging mums in the school zone.
Don't start me.
Anyway, I had a look through the list of people they pulled over.
Nice thinking, Todd.
What did you find? A match on one of your persons of interest driving away from here doing 64 in a 40 zone at 8:03am.
Right about the time Georgina here was breathing her last breath.
Who was it? Sarah Gilbert! I didn't kill her.
Honestly.
I don't even know the woman.
Her name was Georgina and you know exactly who she was because we told you she was Lewis's new girlfriend.
I didn't do it.
Don't push me, Sarah.
I've had enough.
You've played us for idiots and now another woman is dead.
I didn't do it.
"l didn't go to Healthy Goal.
" "l didn't know Lewis before work.
" "l didn't know Georgina.
" It's all lies, isn't it, Sarah? All of it! You're enrolled at Healthy Goal under a different name - Sally.
I was embarrassed.
I didn't want my family to know.
Dad especially.
That's where you met Lewis.
And today, at 8:03am, you were on Georgina Hopkins's street right about the time she was murdered.
We can prove it, Sarah.
You were speeding away from the crime scene.
I'm not a killer! I want a lawyer.
She requested a lawyer? Yeah, she's on the phone to him now.
We've got something - Georgina Hopkins's bank statements.
$20,000 was transferred out of her account overnight.
Where to? We've only got an account number.
But we can guess whose.
Mmm.
Lewis Glendenning.
Who - surprise, surprise - is missing in action.
This same account was used to buy a ticket to Fiji for this morning.
Just one? Yeah.
So, if Georgina found out about the money transfer and the single plane ticket, she could have confronted him, threatened to take back her alibi.
Which puts him in the frame for Vern's assault and robbery.
So they fought, he got desperate and stabbed her.
We had uniforms stationed at the airport, ready to take him down.
Lewis didn't show.
He never took his flight to Fiji.
Which means he has another plan in place.
This guy's got several aliases, he's probably got bank accounts all over the place.
If there's one thing he knows how to do, it's disappear.
He should be halfway out of the country by now.
I've re-issued an urgent KALOF, notified passport control and I've got uniforms scouting for people matching his descriptions.
We're trawling all transport options, domestic and international, for the next 24 hours.
Got it! Booking under the passport name of Lewis Glen Daniels.
Another bloody alias.
Cook Airways flight for the Cook Islands.
When does it leave? Approximately five minutes.
Flight CKA 221.
Allie, go.
Get onto the uniforms.
If they move now, they can intercept him before the gate.
I'll get the Feds.
I'll get a new warrant.
I'll do the airline.
Constable Taylor, this is Kingston.
Superintendent, it's Buchanan.
I need you at terminal 5.
He's on your flight.
He goes in those doors any second now.
Going on a trip, Lewis? That's not against the law.
No.
Murder is.
I didn't kill anyone.
Oh, come on, Lewis.
Your girlfriend's bank account has been drained and she's lying on the floor with a knife in her heart.
Courtesy of you.
I didn't touch her.
I came home and I found her like that.
Oh, so you called an ambulance and you notified the police.
Oh, no, hang on a second, you ran, didn't you, Lewis? I freaked out.
I knew you lot would be straight after me.
Look, I promise you I didn't do it.
Yeah, right.
Like I said, I found her like that.
After taking her money? He might be telling the truth.
He's a con man.
He's never killed anyone before.
Tabitha Mailer.
Most likely an accident.
Sticking an emetic in a packet's a bit different to picking up a knife and stabbing someone to death.
What happened - did she confront you? Threatened to tell us that she was nowhere near you the day Vern Gilbert was attacked? You had to stop her, didn't you, Lewis? No.
Well, you had already killed Tabitha Mailer, what's one more dead woman? I didn't kill Tabitha Mailer.
I didn't kill anyone.
You're already facing charges of extortion, assault and deception - two counts of murder should top that off.
That is a very long time in prison.
Minimum, I reckon.
Alright.
Alright.
Look I admit I'm a con man.
I admit I took the 50 grand from Vern Gilbert.
But that is it.
You sent the text messages, demanded money.
You assaulted him outside the bank.
I didn't mean to hurt him.
Look, I'd arranged to call him later on.
But in case he went to the police, I thought I'd waylay him.
I had a plastic gun, for God's sake.
I wasn't going to lay a finger on him, but he went me.
He ended up in hospital.
I know.
And Tabitha Mailer ended up dead after drinking an Easyshake that you laced with an emetic.
That was not my fault.
Of course not! I wouldn't know an emetic from a bar of soap! I was just threatening Vern, that is it.
It was Sarah's idea to put the stuff in the Easyshake packet.
Get Sarah Gilbert back up for interview.
No-one was supposed to die.
It was only meant to give Dad a scare.
So what happened, Sarah? I met Lewis at a weight-loss meeting.
He heard me talking about my perfect skinny little sister and my caring dad.
How they were always trying to help me to lose weight.
He said he knew how pathetic they made me feel and I should find a way to get back at them.
So the extortion was Lewis's idea, hmm? We were going to use that money to move away and start a new life.
Yeah, but the emetic was your idea, wasn't it? Sarah! I thought if I could make a few people sick it'd ruin Easyshake's reputation.
So .
.
Lewis uses you to steal $50,000 from your own family, he turns you into a killer and then he runs into the arms of another woman.
That must have made you pretty angry.
Yeah, it did.
I went to this cafe last night, where Lewis and I used to go to, and then I followed him to the new girlfriend's house.
He bought flowers, the gerberas, exactly what he used to buy for me.
Real slap in the face.
That's why I went back there this morning just to give him a piece of my mind.
But he wasn't there, just Georgina.
And I told her, "Don't trust him.
Get away while you still can.
" But I didn't touch her.
She was fine when I left there.
So why did you speed away from the scene? I was running late - I had to open the shop.
Oh,come on.
You expect us to believe that? I promise you, I didn't kill Georgina.
I didn't.
What's the delay? We've hit a brick wall, ma'am.
Lewis has admitted to the extortion.
Sarah's admitted to the poison.
But neither will confess to Georgina's murder.
Both of them were on the scene, but Lewis reckons he found her dead and fled in fear.
And Sarah maintains that Georgina was alive and well when she left.
She's not alive and well now, so one of them must be lying.
Or they both are and they're in it together.
They'll walk out of here and meet up in the Cook Islands.
It's like one step forward and two steps back.
Look, they may be skilled liars, these two, but they're not professional killers.
Up until Tabitha Mailer, they'd never physically hurt anyone.
Mix the teams up.
Wave these in front of their faces.
Show them what they've done.
Remind them what murder looks like.
And let them know there is no coming back from that.
This is Georgina Hopkins.
Your girlfriend.
Is that what you did to her, Lewis? No.
I didn't do it.
I swear.
She was like that when I got there.
I don't want to see her like that.
She wasshe was alive when I left her.
I promise you, she was fine, happy, leaving the house.
Oh, does she look happy now, Sarah? I don't want to see them.
She stole your man so you taught her a lesson.
No.
You know what the problem is, Sarah? The problem is that you've told us nothing but lies, so why should we believe you now? You're a con man.
A professional liar.
You've never told the truth in your life.
I know you're lying to us about this.
Look at the photos.
Look at the photos! Look at what happened to this woman.
You did this to her, didn't you? That's not Georgina.
That's not Lewis's girlfriend.
Well, that is Georgina Hopkins.
That's not the woman I saw at the house.
When I went to Georgina's place, a woman was coming out, I told her about Lewis, but she said she already knew.
That we were both better off without him 'cause he was a "crawling manipulator.
" Crawling manipulator? He's such a crawlingmanipulator.
It describes him perfectly, doesn't it? Yeah, that describes someone perfectly.
Cassie Holmes.
Ms Holmes, we've had a look into your civil action against Lewis Glendenning.
You were never going to get your mother's money back, were you? Your witness dropped out.
Oh, I didn't need Olivia's testimony.
It didn't change anything.
The SA Police had dropped the charges and you'd run out of options.
My solicitor said we could proceed.
But it would be harder and longer and more expensive.
You were never going to get your mother's money back - Glendenning was never going to pay for what he'd done.
Your star witness, she was happy to just cut her losses and move on.
But you couldn't let it go, could you? The thing we don't understand is, if you found Lewis, went to his house, if it was Lewis you were after, why did you kill his girlfriend? I didn't.
Cassie, we have a witness.
The woman you saw this morning, Sarah Gilbert.
She identified you.
Must have been right after you stabbed Georgina Hopkins.
I couldn't afford to keep going with the court case.
I've lost enough money already.
I went to reason with him and found her instead.
Why would you kill her? She'd found out that he'd transferred money from her account.
That should put you on the same side.
She was gonna forgive him.
She said she was still in love with him, that, oh, there must have been some mistake.
She was me! A year ago! Blind! Naive.
Forgiving.
When I asked my mother for that money, I knew.
Mmm.
Even then, I knew it was wrong.
But I just didn't want to believe that he was using me.
I loved him.
And there she was, talking about the trip that they were gonna take together.
To Fiji.
How happy they were.
Well, I just lost it.
Snapped.
I can't even remember how it happened.
Um I had the knife in my hand.
Oh, there was blood everywhere.
I killed her.
DPP's gotta be happy with that - full admissions from all three suspects.
So Lewis finally gets his day in court.
Let's see him talk his way out of that one.
I don't like his chances.
Only Cassie won't be there to see it, too busy with her own murder trial.
You'll never guess who just bailed out Sarah Gilbert.
Her dad.
Mr Easyshake is gonna stand by her.
What, even though she took 50 grand from him? I think, after he finally realised how he made her feel all those years.
- It's a bit late for that.
- Morning.
So, finally, our three little piggies are going to jail, hmm? This one for extortion, this one for manslaughter and this one goes, "Wee-wee-wee-wee-wee," all the way to the big house for murder.
Hmm.
In other words, case closed.
I believe you'll find another one waiting for you at your desks.
Hey, Si.
Hey.
- Si! - Welcome back! You look fighting fit, mate.
Time away from you guys, it's gotta be beneficial, right? How was Thailand? Hey, where's my postcard? I was busy, mate - cocktails on the beach, magnificent scuba diving, the food.
Oh, don't mention food.
Er, anyway, enough gossip.
New case came in - report of a floater in the Maribyrnong.
Who's up? I'm in.
Thought you might be.
Hey, see you guys later on.
Witness was jogging by the river, reported a suspicious object floating on the surface.
Reckons it's either a body or a bag of old clothes.
My money's on the old clothes.
So, how are you, mate? Seriously? Yeah.
I'm good, Mattie.
Really good.
Time away from this place was just what I needed.
Bit of perspective, you know Good to hear.
Good to have you back.
It's good to be back.