Unravel:Juanita looks at the disappearance and suspected murder of Kings Cross activist and journalist Juanita Nielsen in 1975.
Kings Cross activist and newspaper publisher Juanita Nielsen at her Potts Point office in 1974.Fairfax Media
Serious credibility issues with the podcast and accompanying documentary have led the ABC to “temporarily remove” two episodes from its website.
The podcast and accompanying documentary series relied heavily on a never-before-seen account from a new star witness who claimed to have gone undercover in prison to befriend a suspect in relation to Nielsen’s disappearance.
John Innes told the ABC that a man had confessed to murdering Nielsen at the Carousel nightclub in Kings Cross.
But aSun-Herald investigation found there were serious questions as to whether much of the information published by the ABC is true.
Innes failed to mention the alleged jailhouse confession while giving evidence at an inquest in 1983 and made no mention of it in a statement to NSW Police.
Further,this newspaper in 1982 reported Innes had been charged with a range of offences and imprisoned for several months.
Media Watch spoke to several of Innes’ colleagues,who claimed he was in prison for passing valueless cheques,not as an undercover operative.
“Following publication,new information came to light casting serious doubt on some of Innes’ claims. Some of this information had been unavailable to the content makers;some was available but not discovered,” an editor’s note on the ABC website said.
“Episodes 7 and 8 have been temporarily removed from the ABC website and podcast platforms in order to address concerns about the accuracy of Innes’ claims.”
The Australian Podcast Awards are self-nominated,with a “panel of experts” choosing the winners.
Camille Bianchi’sThe Nursewon best true crime podcast,whileUnravel:Juanita beat Matthew Condon’sGhost Gate Road,News Corp’sI Catch Killersand Kerry Negara’sKilling Phar Lap.
The ABC did not respond to a request for comment.
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