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True CrimeSociety & CultureDocumentary

Trace

ABC Australia

Multi-award-winning Australian true crime. Trace examines the fractures in Australia's criminal justice system, and the decades-long ripples they've caused. An investigative podcast hosted by Rachael Brown.

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  • 20 episodes
  • Avg 32 min
  • English

Episodes 20

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  • S1 · E11
    Jun 13, 2024 · 15 min

    S1 BONUS | A million-dollar reward

    Victoria Police is set to announce a one million dollar reward for information that finally solves the case of Maria James, who was murdered in the back of her bookshop 44 years ago. And for the first time in seven years of investigating this case, police grant an interview to Rachael Brown.

  • S1 · E10
    Apr 1, 2022 · 18 min

    S1 Bonus | Maria James inquest finding

    A Victorian Coroner has failed to name a killer in the 1980 cold case of Maria James. Her sons are devastated. But there's still hope, in leads yet to be chased by police.

  • S1 · E9
    Nov 3, 2021 · 1 hr 5 min

    S1 Bonus | The Inquest

    The new coronial inquest into the murder of Maria James has wrapped up. Will the Coroner be able to name her killer? And of the police exhibits that haven't disappeared, what DNA testing can be done? This episode nears us closer to the end of the James brothers' 41-year-fight for answers for their mum.

  • S2 · E9
    Dec 16, 2020 · 40 min

    S2 BONUS — The Price

    The Royal Commission has released its final report into defence lawyer turned police informer Nicola Gobbo.

  • S2 · E8
    Sep 21, 2020 · 42 min

    S2 08 | End game

    We reveal the story of Nicola Gobbo's audacious bid to return to Australia.

  • S2 · E7
    Sep 14, 2020 · 40 min

    S2 07 | Reckoning

    Everything unravels, for Nicola Gobbo and Victoria Police. Their secret is out.

  • S2 · E6
    Sep 7, 2020 · 40 min

    S2 06 | Whatever it takes

    Nicola hits rock bottom, but Victoria Police wants her to take on a new role ... as a witness.

  • S2 · E5
    Aug 31, 2020 · 39 min

    S2 05 | Glittering prize

    Nicola wants to be the best source ever, and she leads police to the biggest target of all: the mafia. Her double life is getting riskier, but she can't stop. This episode charts an addiction and a crash.

  • S2 · E4
    Aug 24, 2020 · 37 min

    S2 04 | Rubicon

    Nicola crosses the point of no return and becomes a police informer. She'll represent clients, while passing on the underworld's secrets to Victoria Police.

  • S2 · E3
    Aug 17, 2020 · 39 min

    S2 03 | The darkest night

    A drug house burglary smells of police corruption and a police informer is executed.

  • S2 · E2
    Aug 10, 2020 · 37 min

    S2 02 | One of the crew

    As the gangland war explodes, both police and criminals start questioning Nicola's allegiances. Where do her loyalties lie?

  • S2 · E1
    Aug 3, 2020 · 35 min

    S2 01 | Nicola

    We meet Nicola Gobbo in a secret location, in hiding, now that her double life as a police informer is out, and she begins telling us her full story.

  • Jul 27, 2020 · 5 min

    INTRODUCING Trace season 2 - The Informer

    Lawyer Nicola Gobbo represented some of Australia's most dangerous criminals, all the while secretly working as a police informer. Why did she do it, and how was it allowed to happen? When her cover was blown, the story garnered media interest from around the world. In Victoria's justice system, all hell broke loose. Questions started to be asked about whether her clients received a fair trial. One man has walked free from jail, and more appeals are pending. Did Victoria Police - the organisa

  • S1 · E7
    Dec 3, 2018 · 36 min

    S1 07 | Hope

    More than a year on from their plea for a new coronial inquest, the James brothers get a decision. Will they finally get answers to the burning questions they've carried for 38 years about the murder of their mother? And what about those items Trace has been given that might have DNA on them? Can they identify the killer? We take them to one of the world's best DNA labs, with some of the most sensitive equipment, to find out.

  • S1 · E6
    Jun 12, 2018 · 29 min

    S1 06 | Limbo

    New evidence has been found. So can police test it for a trace of the killer? What happened to crucial documents? And a new confession. It is nearly a year since the James brothers applied for a new coronial inquest into their mum's murder, but the case hangs in legal limbo.

  • S1 · E5
    Sep 6, 2017 · 24 min

    S1 05 | Wait

    The fall-out from major revelations in the Maria James cold-case continue, as her sons make a desperate plea to the Coroner.

  • S1 · E4
    Jul 12, 2017 · 34 min

    S1 04 | DNA

    There's a major break in the case, as Trace uncovers a police bungle in the murder of Maria James. But it only serves to throw up more questions than answers, as the James brothers continue their desperate search for justice.

  • S1 · E3
    Jul 5, 2017 · 27 min

    S1 03 | Sins

    A second person of interest emerges within the church. Rachael Brown investigates their past and discovers a dark and disturbing history.

  • Jul 4, 2017 · 7 min

    BONUS | How your leads are helping the investigation

    Since Trace was first released, the ABC has received over 50 emails from the community with leads and tip offs. In this bonus update, reporter Rachael Brown follows up with two women who got in touch to say they saw men acting suspiciously around Maria's bookshop at the time of her murder. Send us your tips: trace@abc.net.au

Showing 1–20 of 20 episodes