Gary O'Dwyer

**Gary O'Dwyer** (1969 - October 1998) was an Australian man who was killed by John Bunting, Robert Wagner and Jamie Vlassakis.

## Backstory

John Bunting, driven to murder by his hatred for paedophiles and homosexuals, has been described as a skilled manipulator of people and "Australia's worst serial killer". Bunting had fashioned a "rock spider wall" on a wall of a spare room in his house. The chart, created using paper notes and wool, was an interconnected web of names of people Bunting suspected to be paedophiles or homosexuals.

Bunting met Robert Wagner when he moved to Waterloo Corner Road. Wagner was living with Vanessa Lane (formerly Barry Lane) at the time. Wagner assisted Bunting in disposing of the body of his first victim, Clinton Trezise. Wagner later assisted Bunting in the remaining ten Snowtown murders.

Jamie Vlassakis met John Bunting when aged fourteen and looked up to Bunting as a father figure. It was alleged Bunting groomed Vlassakis into committing serial murders.

Gary O'Dwyer was a neighbour of Bunting's. O'Dwyer was a mentally and physically disabled man, who had a pronounced limp. He would walk the streets. Bunting was heard, repeatedly, calling O’Dwyer a “fag.” Bunting simply didn’t like that O’Dwyer was different.

## Events

In October 1998, Bunting enlisted the aid of Vlassakis to gain relevant information about the financial circumstances of O’Dwyer and whether he had any family. O'Dwyer was considered a financial target due to his income from disability assistance.

On the day of the murder, Vlassakis was intending to go to a party. However, at the insistence of Bunting, Vlassakis arranged with O’Dwyer for “a couple of friends” (namely Bunting, Wagner and Vlassakis) to have a drink with O’Dwyer. Bunting set out to get O’Dwyer drunk and after approximately fifteen to twenty minutes, Wagner grabbed O’Dwyer around the throat. O’Dwyer immediately went into some sort of fit. Bunting told Wagner to ease off a bit and handcuffs were applied. Physical violence and torture followed. Then, after having spoken falsehoods into a recording device, he was murdered.

The body was taken to Mark Haydons' home where it was placed in a barrel. On May 20th 1999, O'Dwyer’s body was found in the a barrel in the Snowtown bank vault.

## Aftermath

The Supreme Court trial for John Bunting began on 14 October 2002. He was convicted of eleven murders and found guilty on 8 September 2003. He was sentenced to 11 life sentences without the possibility of parole and is incarcerated at Yatala Labour Prison in Adelaide.

Robert Wagner was found guilty of ten counts of murder. He was sentenced to 10 life sentences without the possibility of parole and has been incarcerated since 2003.

Jamie Vlassakis is currently serving four consecutive terms of life imprisonment with a non-parole period of 26 years for his role in the Snowtown murders. Vlassakis confessed to four murders, including the murder of his stepbrother, David Johnson and half-brother Troy Youde as well as the murders of Gary O'Dwyer and Frederick Brooks.

## Other Victims of the Snowtown Murders

* Clinton Trezise, aged 22
* Ray Davies, aged 26
* Vanessa Lane, aged 42
* Michelle Gardiner, aged 19
* Thomas Trevilyan, aged 18
* Gavin Porter, aged 31
* Troy Youde, aged 21
* Frederick Brooks, aged 18
* Elizabeth Haydon, aged 37
* David Johnson, aged 24