Hancock case
The Hancock case was an infamous criminal case in Western Australia concerning allegations that a well respected former policeman Don Hancock murdered a member of the Gypsy Joker Motorcycle Club, William "Billy" Grierson, in 2000 and that in turn the Gypsy Jokers murdered Hancock in revenge in 2001. The American biker expert Thomas Barker wrote that the murder of Hancock was the most "notorious" biker-related crime in Australia since the Milperra massacre of 1984.
Background
, known as "the Silver Fox" or as "the Don", was one of the most respected and honored policeman in Australia. In 1982, Hancock had investigated the Perth Mint Swindle case that saw the three Mickelberg brothers convicted for stealing 65 kilograms of gold, a theft that had acquired a legendary reputation in Australia and made Hancock into a local celebrity. Hancock had served as the director of the Criminal Investigation Branch of the Western Australia Police Force. Hancock with his white hair, expensive clothing, and an easy-going manner reminded many of a "courtly gentleman", an impression further reinforced by his tendency to recite poetry in his booming voice. He could recite from memory the poems in the 1870 book Bush Ballads and Galloping Rhymes by Adam Lindsay Gordon, and his recitations commanded attention. However, Hancock was known to his colleagues such as Detective Jack Peter Lee to have a "dark side" as he was extremely ruthless and competitive as he would not accept any sort of personal defeat. The normally affable Hancock was known to explode in fury if he lost a game of billiards as he insisted that he had to win at everything and to lose at anything would reduce him to a state of white-hot rage. For this reason, other police officers would not play billiards with Hancock or intentionally lose the game rather than face Hancock's anger. Hancock's triumph in the Perth mint swindle was marred by allegations that he had tortured one of the Mickelberg brothers, Peter, into confessing to the theft. The Mickelberg brothers were acquitted in 2004.The Canadian journalists Julian Sher and William Marsden described Hancock as being a "frontier justice" policeman whose methods were better suited to a gold rush community in the Outback in the 19th century than to modern Australia. The Australian journalist Tony Barrass wrote in 2018: "A no-nonsense, old school detective, Hancock’s running battles with the Mickelberg brothers of Perth Mint Swindle fame, along with a range of high-profile criminal cases including the Shirley Finn murder, had made him a household name in WA . Big, intimidating with a booming voice, you did not mess with The Silver Fox".
After his retirement in 1994, Hancock spent much time in the Outback community of Ora Banda, a village of about 50 people that was dominated by his family. The Hancock family had arrived in Australia from England during a 1893 gold rush. Both Hancock's father and grandfather had prospected for gold in the Ora Banda area and he felt a deep connection to a community that he considered home. Ora Banda was a community that was economically dominated by Hancock who owned via his company Wentworth Holdings WA Pty Limited the local pub, the trailer park, the general store, the Ora Banda Historic Inn, the only restaurant in Ora Banda along with its beer garden, the other only motel in Ora Banda, and the 19th century gold crusher that was still working in 2000. Outside of the pub was a racetrack managed by Hancock who held the annual Kalgoorlie racing round there. He did not own the racetrack, but behaved as if he did. Finally, Hancock owned a gold concession, Grant's Patch, that had a shack that contained a.303 rifle and 51 rounds of ammunition. He had hopes of turning Ora Banda, an early 20th century gold rush boomtown, into a tourist attraction that would remind Australians of their heritage. Hancock was an avid hunter of kangaroos and was by all accounts an excellent shot.
The Grierson murder
On Sunday, October 1, 2000, Hancock along with his wife Elizabeth were expecting an influx of tourists at the Ora Banda Historical Inn. Elizabeth Hancock told Sher and Marsden in 2006: "It was a really lovely sunny day and we had lots of people out. The bar and beer garden were full and everyone was really happy". Among those present in Ora Banda that day were two officers of the Western Australia police who had driven out from Kalgoorlie to see Hancock, Senior Sergeant Kim Gage and Detective Senior Constable Sean Gartlan.Hancock had spent the morning prospecting for gold in the Outback and at noon was drinking with his wife Elizabeth along with Gage and Gartlan and their wives. At that moment, a group of Gypsy Jokers roared into Ora Banda on their motorcycles and wearing their gang colors. Amongst the Gypsy Jokers were Graeme “Slim” Slater, William Joseph “Billy” Grierson, and Sidney John Reid. The "bikies" were all from the Kalgoorlie chapter of the Gypsy Jokers. The Gypsy Jokers were an American club whose first Australian chapter had been established in 1969 in Melbourne. The Gypsy Jokers were viewed by the police as one of the most violent biker gangs in Australia.
The Gypsy Jokers set up a campfire under a giant banner that read "Gypsy Joker Motorcycle Club". Much to Hancock's displeasure, the Gypsy Jokers raced around the racetrack in their motorcycles and did much damage to the grounds. Hancock had long hated outlaw bikers, whom he referred to as "criminal scumbags", and was clearly deeply unhappy about the presence of the Gypsy Jokers in Ora Banda. Rebecca Price, the chef of the Ora Banda Inn's restaurant, recalled that Hancock was drunk that day and in a belligerent mood as he cursed at his wife for taking too long in the washroom. Price told Sher and Marsden: "When Don has been drinking, he's generally a lot worse. He's got that typical policeman's attitude that he's higher up than anyone else and can do whatever he wants...When he really does drink, he doesn't drink in moderation, he drinks like a fish".
At about 4 pm, the Gypsy Jokers entered the restaurant and ordered drinks. Price stated that Elizabeth Hancock was worried as she kept saying "I wish these damn bikies would go" and "I'm just worried about Don". By this time, Gage and Gartlan had left for Kalgoorlie. There was much tension in the pub as Hancock made clear his unhappiness that the Gypsy Jokers were drinking in his bar. Trouble began at about 6 pm when one of the Gypsy Jokers, James "Spud" Manson, tried to provoke a fight with another bar patron, Robbie Mitchell, which increased the tension in the pub. Manson told Mitchell: "You're a fucking wanker". Hancock stiffly ordered Manson to stop harassing Mitchell and to return to his table.
Hancock's daughter, Alison, worked as a waitress in the restaurant, and at that point, she was subjected to crude sexual advances from the Gypsy Jokers. Hancock with a cold fury in his voice told the Gypsy Jokers: "This is my daughter behind the bar. I'd appreciate it if you would refrain from talking like that. If there's any sign of trouble, I'm going to close the pub". One of the Gypsy Jokers, William "Billy" Grierson, told Hancock "no worries". About five minutes later, Grierson went up to Hancock to tell him: "Don't you threaten us! We'll go and drink our own beer". Hancock replied: "What are you on about?" Grierson replied: "If that's your fucking attitude, we'll just go down and drink piss out of our esky ". Hancock shouted: "That's it. I don't need this. I'm closing the pub". A moment later, a furious Hancock drove off in his Ford 100 "ute" in the direction of Grant's Patch. Kirten Forster, a mine technician, asked Alison Hancock what was happening and received the reply: "Dad's closing the bar and he's going to get his gun".
The Gypsy Jokers returned to their campfire when they started to drink beer out of their cooler. At about 7: 15 pm, Hancock returned from Grant's Patch. One of the pub's cooks, Patricia McQueen, was told by Elizabeth Hancock: "I'd better go and find Don before he does something stupid". At about 7: 45 pm, a gunman opened fire with a rifle at the Gypsy Jokers. The Gypsy Jokers took cover, but then decided that it was just someone hunting kangaroos in the evening. Slater stated in a 2018 interview: "Billy said, ‘He’s probably just trying to scare us’, and I said, ‘Well, he’s doing a bloody good job’. Anyway, about 15 minutes goes past and Billy then says, ‘Fuck this,’ we went back to where we were and the next shot went straight through him". At about 7:55 pm, the gunman opened fire again and killed Grierson. The bullet entered under his left shoulder blade, severed his spinal cord, and exited under his right chest cavity, killing him. Slater stated in the same 2018 interview: "“I tell you one thing, He was a bloody good shot...it must have been 600m away in the dark". It remains unclear even today if the shooter was trying to scare away the Gypsy Jokers or was trying to kill Grierson.
The Gypsy Jokers fled in terror with Grierson's corpse to the Cawse nickel mine that was located 9 miles away. Upon being informed by the mine's first aid post attendants that Grierson was dead, the Gypsy Jokers removed his biker's vest which had the Gypsy Joker patch on the back along with badges on the front decorated with the Iron Cross and a Nazi swastika. Likewise, they removed his belt whose buckle was shaped in the patch of the Gypsy Jokers. Grierson's corpse was abandoned along a dirt road.
The Investigation of the Grierson murder
A team of policemen arrived to investigate the murder. Price and McQueen both mentioned to the officers that Alison and Elizabeth Hancock had both stated that Donald Hancock had gone to get his rifle shortly before Grierson was killed. Of the about 40 people present when Grierson was killed, Donald Hancock was the only person who did not have an alibi for where he was when the murder occurred. Elizabeth Hancock told Price: "I left the pub at 7:20 pm. I went home and Don was having a shower. He was home all the time. I sniffed Don's guns and they didn't smell as if they'd been fired". Price found her remark to be an odd one. One of the officers, Senior Constable Dave Roper, interviewed Hancock, who seemed calm. When Roper told him that someone had "apparently" been killed, Hancock grew angry and asked him: "What do you mean 'apparently'?" Roper replied: "Well, I wasn't here at the time, so I can only say apparently". Hancock asked him: "What do you mean?" Roper stated: "Mr. Hancock, I'm aware of who you are and what you used to be, so you know what I mean when I say 'apparently'". When Hancock asked if he was a suspect, Roper told him that everyone was a suspect at the moment. Hancock held up his hands in a mock surrender and told Roper: "I'm saying nothing. You'll have to speak with my solicitor". Roper told Hancock to remain at the Inn, but he ignored that request by returning to his house.Roper sent two constables, Justin Dwyer and Max Janse, to go find Hancock. Upon arriving at his house, they met Hancock whom they noticed had just taken a shower and was wearing new clothes. The two officers noticed that Hancock was eating an orange and his hands were socked in orange juice. It is widely, but wrongly believed that the citric acid in oranges destroys gunpower residue. Dwyer and Janse informed Hancock that he was supposed to remain at the inn and received the reply that he was not answering any questions. Only when Dwyer and Janse threatened to arrest him for hindering an investigation did Hancock agree to return to the inn. Gage along with Detective Noreen O'Rourke arrived to take charge of the investigation. Gage called the Perth police headquarters to ask for a computer check on any guns that might be owned by Hancock. The computer search revealed that Hancock owned three rifles along with a shotgun.
Gage told Hancock that Grierson was dead, and noticed that he seemed agitated at the news while Elizabeth Hancock started to tremble. When Gage asked Hancock what had happened, he answered: "I'm not saying anything until I speak to my solicitor". When Gage interviewed Elizabeth Hancock, she became very emotional and incoherent and the interview was swiftly ended when Hancock told his wife she could refuse to give a statement until their lawyer was present. Gage decided that he did not have enough evidence to ask for a warrant to seize the clothing that Hancock was wearing at the time of the murder. Gage did not ask for the clothing that Hancock had wearing earlier nor did he ask what had happened to those clothes. At about midnight, Gage declared it was too dark to search for evidence, and the investigation would start again in the morning. Even though Gage considered Hancock to be the prime suspect, he allowed him to keep the keys to his buildings and to remain at large. That Gage did not obtain a warrant for searching Hancock's house and that he failed to order "routine forensic science tests" is controversial.
At about 8 pm on 2 October, Gage started the investigation again. At about 11 am, the Hancocks returned to their house in Perth. O'Rourke attempted to interview the Gypsy Jokers who were notably angry about what they regarded as a police double standard with Hancock said to be receiving preferential treatment because he was a former policeman. She was able to have the Gypsy Jokers hand over to the police Grierson's biker vest and belt, but promised to return the items after a forensic examination, which was unusual as normally the Crown would hold those items as evidence in a trial. She was also able to have the Slater and Manson gave statements though neither men were willing to sign them. O'Rourke recalled when interviewing Grame "Slim" Slater of the Gypsy Jokers: "He was very angry, very agitated, aggressive towards me". When she told him that at present the police did not have enough evidence to charge Hancock, he told her: "Fuck you and your ways! I'm going to take care of it my way!"
Later that day, Detective Jack Lee arrived from Perth to take charge. As Lee made the 7 hour long drive to Ora Banda on the Great Eastern Highway, he felt "deep apprehension" as he knew that bikie cases were very difficult to solve and that a former policeman was the chief suspect. Lee, a veteran of the Royal Australian Navy who joined the Western Australia Police Service after his honorable discharge, disliked the Outback. Lee described the Outback as a harsh desert where men outnumbered women four to one and where alcoholism and amphetamine abuse were major problems with the miners who worked in the area. Lee said of the Outback: "Desert, really. There's nothing else out there". Upon arriving in Ora Banda, Lee removed Gage from the case under the grounds there was a conflict of interest as Gage was a friend of Hancock's. Lee was convinced that Hancock was the killer. Lee told Sher and Marsden in a 2006 interview: "Hancock was an absolute gentleman of the old school. And I think he was not the sort of guy who would have backed down in front of what he regarded as scum". In her statement to the police, Elizabeth Hancock had stated she was watching the 2000 Sydney Olympics with her husband around 7:30 pm and then went out to see if Alison Hancock was not in danger at the Inn after she heard the first shot fired. She further stated that her husband remained at home to keep watching the Olympics and was still there when she returned home. According to the witnesses, Elizabeth Hancock did appear at the inn to see if her daughter was safe shortly after the first shot was fired. Lee told Sher and Marsden about Elizabeth Hancock's statement that her husband remained at home after the first shot was fired: "It's wrong. It doesn't happen. It's not police behavior. A copper doesn't send his wife to see if his daughter been shot...Don Hancock killed Billy Grierson. That's what I believe". Lee argued to Sher and Marsden that Elizabeth Hancock's story was implausible, and must had been a lie to provide her husband with an alibi.
The bullets were fired from a.303 rifle that Lee believed to be an unregistered rifle left over from either World War One or World War Two. Such rifles left over from the two world wars are common in the Outback as many servicemen took their rifles home after their discharges from the military. The dry, arid climate of the Outback acts as a preservative and rifles from both world wars are still commonly used in the Outback. The shots were fired from an incline that was located very close to Hancock's house. The murder weapon was never found. In 2022, a journalist Rex Haw, said of Hancock: "If anyone knows how to murder someone and get away with it, it would’ve been him".