was a sober, sensible man. He put the

prize money in the bank and went

about his job until he and his wife

decided how best to use the money.

As Freda Thorne tidied up the

kitchen of her suburban rented home,

she let herself dream of a cruise to

foreign lands, a new home, new clothes,

a new car...

The doorbell rang.

Her friend who drove the children

to school asked if Graeme was ready.

can’t understand it,” she told the boy’s

mother anxiously. “He seems to have

disappeared.”

Graeme Thorne had indeed

disappeared. During the weeks that

followed, the No. 1 assignment of every

police officer in Australia was to find

the boy – and to bring to justice the

person, or persons, who had abducted

him from a busy street in suburban

Bondi that July morning.

It was the first time in Australian

Mrs. Thorne looked at her in some

surprise. “He left here over five minutes

ago. Wasn’t he waiting for you at the

corner?”

“No, he wasn’t there. He’s probably

somewhere around. I’ll look.” So the

young woman drove back to the corner.

There, a shopkeeper told her that

Graeme had come in a few minutes

previously and bought a bag of crisps.

She drove around the district, but

could not find the boy anywhere. “I

would be wary and watchful. Those

with young children in their care would

keep them close. Very close.

T

he Thorne case began on the

morning of July 7th, 1960. Freda

Thorne finished getting Graeme ready

for school and at 8.25 a.m. she handed

him his school case and watched him

walk to the corner of the street, where he

was to be met at 8.30 by a family friend

who would drive him to school with her

own children.

Mrs. Thorne returned to her

housework, humming a little tune. She

figured she was just about the happiest

woman in Australia because, five weeks

earlier, on June 1st, her husband had

won first prize – 100,000 Australian

pounds, tax-free – in a state-sponsored

lottery to raise money for the building

of Sydney Opera House. It would be

well over £3 million today.

Bazil Thorne, a travelling salesman,

FROM LOTTERY WIN TO

DNAP AND MURDER

FROM LOTTERY WIN TO

DNAP AND MURDER

On June 1st, her

husband had won

irst prize – 100,

Australian pounds,

tax-free – in a

state-sponsored lottery

to raise money for the

building of Sydney Opera

House. It would be well

over £3 million today

Above, Stephen Leslie

Bradley. Interviewed

because he owned a Ford

Customline, he was ruled

out as a suspect in Graeme

Thorne’s abduction