Man caught on security camera probably the gunman, Joanne says
The girlfriend of a missing British tourist said today that a man captured on a security camera at an outback service station had probably shot her boyfriend.
Joanne Lees held a press conference with the brother of her missing boyfriend Peter Falconio today to appeal for the public to help police find the missing 28-year-old and to catch the man who shot him.
Paul Falconio said there was a ‘‘very good possibility’’ that the man pictured at the Alice Springs serve station was the gunman.
Joanne, who sat beside Falconio without addressing journalists during the conference, whispered ‘‘OK’’ at his assessment.
She had earlier told Northern Territory police that she could not positively identify the man pictured as her attacker.
Peter Falconio has been missing and presumed dead since he and Lees were ambushed by a gunman on the Stuart Highway 190 miles north of Alice Springs more than three weeks ago.
Joanne, 27, from Huddersfield, has told police the gunman flagged down their Volkswagen camper van.
She said she heard a gunshot before she was tied up by the man. She later escaped and hid in scrub, but did not see her boyfriend again.
In an effort to revive the investigation, police last week released security images taken in the early hours of Sunday, July 15, showing a man who fits the description of the of his white pick-up truck.
The man’s canvas-covered vehicle is shown parked in the truck area. The man is seen in the shop, where police said he bought diesel, ice and water.
Peter Falconio’s disappearance has sparked one of the biggest manhunts ever launched in Australia, with police using aircraft, helicopters and even Aboriginal trackers to search for traces of the missing man and gunman.
A £90,000 reward has been offered for information leading to the arrest of the gunman.
