Outlaw strikes fear

Outlaw strikes fear
News that a suspected murderer is on the run in the Barringtons has locals fearing for their welfare, writes DAN PROUDMAN.
One fellow up here said the only way they will
get him is if a brown snake gets to him first.
THEironies are probably lost on
fugitive bushranger Malcolm
Naden.
Likehowclose he hasbeen to
ThunderboltsTrail ashe crisscrosses
parts of the BarringtonTops while
hiding out from authorities – the same trail
named after bushranger Captain
Thunderbolt as heat tempted to do
likewise nearly 150 years ago.
Or that when he pinched a .22 calibre
rifle from a Curricabark property in July
he was only a couple of days’ walk from the
place whereJimmyGovernor was
captured in 1900 – the Aboriginalman
madefamous in The Chant forJimmy
Blacksmith andthe last person to have a
bounty onhis head until theNSW
government placed $50,000on the
successful arrest ofNadenthree years ago.
Itmakesgood reading. But it also
threatens to glorify amanwhohas the
undesirable title of being the state’s most
wanted person.
Theformer abattoir worker, anexpert
skinner andboner, has gone bush because
he is suspected of being involved in the
disappearance of his cousin Lateesha
Nolan andthe murder of Kristy Scholes,
both in 2005,and another attack ona child.
For the past five years,Nadenhas used
his expertbushmanskills to cunningly
lead policeon a chase through bushland
fromDubbotoKempsey.
Hehas terrorised communities by
breaking intohomesand stealing items
required for survival – non-perishable
food, camping gear, batteries, binoculars,
warmjackets.
Nowthat it has emerged thatNadenhas
madesections of the BarringtonTops his
homefor the past three years it hasmade
property owners take stock.
‘‘Our secluded andpeaceful properties
at the foot of BarringtonTops areno longer
the tranquilhomeaway from home; fear
arises with everymovementheard in the
scrub andevery noise heard at night
hoping andpraying thatwedon’t stumble
across him,’’ said Melinda McCosker,
whose family has a property at Stewarts
Brook, east of Scone.
‘‘To say he is terrorising those in the
area is just scraping at the surface of the
waywefeel about the fact that a murder
suspect is hiding in our backyard.’’
Herconcerns havebeen repeated across
manyvillages whereowners of small
weekenders and hobbyfarms join locals
whofear for their safety.
But the police will not publicly confirm
thatNadenis, or ever was, in the area.
There is not enough evidence, they say.
Despite rare sightings of him,Nadenhas
leftsometracks.
For all the reported sightings ofNaden
since he ran from authorities after
spending time hiding out inan animal
enclosure at Dubbo’sWestern Plains Zoo
inDecember2005, there have beenonly a
handful that havebeen confirmed.
Like the break-in of another remote
property at Stewarts Brook, onthe western
foothills of BarringtonTops about 40
kilometres east of Scone, in 2008.
Blood found whereawindowwas
broken was matchedto Naden’sDNA
profile.Amassive land search failed to
find any trace of Naden. Neither the blood
match nor the search weremadepublic.
In January 2009, fingerprintscameback
with amatch toNadenin the small
community called Bellbrook, west of
KempseyandWauchope.
Hespentsometime terrorising locals
and breaking into about a dozen houses,
including one episodewhere awoman
reported waking to findNadenstanding
over her wearing amaskand camouflage
gear.
That information wasn’tmadepublic
butwhenresidents found out they staged a
protest.
Then, about three months ago, there was
another fingerprintmatch – this time in a
weekender atMountMooney, onthe
northern side of the BarringtonTops
north-west of Gloucester.
Thesameproperty,ownedby Sydney
couple Chris Bebberand Jo-Anne Phillips,
was again targeted between August 24 and
26.
It wasidentical to theMaybreak-in. Like
somanyother victims in the past four
months, the couple believeNadenwas
watching becauseheknewthey left on
Tuesday and returnedon Thursday.
Hegot in through a window and went to
work collecting non-perishables: pasta,
rice, porridge, muesli,Weet-Bix, corn