Crime and Investigation Network's blog

Sunday, October 3, at 8.30pm on Crime & Investigation Network

Profiles the life of a convicted Scottish serial killer, Peter Tobin. A cunning and violent sexual predator and killer, he escaped the attentions of police for at least two decades, finally serving a sentence of life imprisonment for three murders.

This special also includes an interview with Tobin’s first wife Margaret Mackintosh, who he terrorised for the two year duration of their marriage.

Friday, October 2, at 6.30pm on Crime & Investigation Network

It could be a lottery, a casino jackpot, a sweepstakes or a game show. In a few seconds an unknown man or woman becomes a millionaire. It’s a dream come true. But what really happens? Do dreams come true? Or does instant income have a hidden price tag? We examine the lives of instant millionaires.

Tough Nuts – DENNIS ALLEN: THE MAN CALLED MR DEATH - Episode Four premieres Thursday, September 30 at 7.30pm AEST

Hosted by Tara Moss and Exclusive to Crime & Investigation Network

Episode Four of TOUGH NUTS: AUSTRALIA’S HARDEST CRIMINALS, premieres on Thursday, September 23 at 7.30pm AEST and explores the life of one of Australia’s most brutal crime lords, ‘Mr Death’ Dennis Allen.

Dennis Allen was the oldest son of Melbourne crime matriarch, Kath Pettingill and is suspected of committing at least 11 murders.

Allen’s first major crime was appalling in its brutality: the abduction and rape of a 19 year-old woman. Serving six years of a nine year sentence, Allen left the prison gates with the contacts to become a major drug dealer – and went on to traffic in amphetamines and heroin and become one of Melbourne’s biggest suppliers.

Allen had a way of cutting out his competitors by becoming a police informer and making anonymous calls to police to give up his rivals. When that didn’t work, he turned to murder.

Allen knew no loyalty, had no friends and regarded his family as servants to use at his disposal.

In this fascinating episode of TOUGH NUTS, an in-depth profile on one of Australia’s most sadistic criminals is gradually uncovered, through interviews with psycholgists, police detectives and investigative journalists.

The product of an appalling home life as a young boy and subjected to violent and abusive treatment by a number of his mother’s boyfriends, Allen went on to learn everything he needed to know about being a professional criminal while behind the walls of one of Australia’s most notorious prisons.

Allen died of heart failure while awaiting trial for the murder of Wayne Stanhope, as well as for other weapons and drug offences. A heavy drug user, Allen’s heart collapsed under the strain.

He was dead at 38 years of age.

Presented by bestselling crime author Tara Moss, TOUGH NUTS is an eight-part series that blows the lid off Australia’s criminal underworld and reveals the real story behind what made and shaped the most notorious figures in Australian criminal history.

The 8 x 1 hour series profiles a different criminal in each episode and features, in order: Christopher Dale Flannery, Chow Hayes, Alphonse Gangitano, Dennis Allen, Russell Cox, Michael Sayers, Raymond Bennett and Lenny McPherson.

TOUGH NUTS is produced by Bryan Cockerill from The Full Box and is exclusive to Crime & Investigation Network.

Thursday, September 30, at 7.30pm on Crime & Investigation Network

Dennis Allen was the oldest son of Melbourne crime matriarch, Kath Pettingill. While the remainder of her sons are criminals and some of them vicious killers, not one comes close to the utter brutality of Dennis Allen. His first major crime was appalling in its brutality – the abduction and rape of a 19-year-old woman. Serving six years of a nine year sentence, Allen left the prison gates with the contacts to become a major drug dealer. Allen would traffic in amphetamines and heroin and became one of Melbourne’s biggest suppliers. Allen had a way of cutting out his competitors. He became a police informer, making anonymous calls to police to give up his rivals. When that didn’t work, he turned to murder. He is suspected of committing 11 murders. He knew no loyalty, had no friends and regarded his family as servants to use at his disposal.

Tough Nuts develops the profile on Australia’s most sadistic crime lord. A product of an appalling home as a young boy who then received his masters degree in crime while behind the walls of one of Australia’s most notorious prisons, Allen would only know one way: his way or death. Allen died of natural causes while awaiting trial for the murder of James Stanhope, as well as weapons and drug offences. Known to have injected pure amphetamines into his veins, Allen’s heart collapsed under the strain. He was dead at 38 years of age.

Monday, September 27, at 8.30pm on Crime & Investigation Network

A 12-year-old girl is beaten and stamped on by a crowd of teenagers on a crowded bus. A man is punched to the ground and kicked repeatedly in the head on a London street. Gun-wielding robbers threaten a cashier in an off- licence.

This special examines the events leading up to these unprovoked attacks as bystanders describe what happened. The first-hand testimony of the witnesses is intercut with dramatic reconstruction. The stories unfold to reveal the split-second choices the bystanders had to make- whether to intervene or not. Whilst some are seemingly paralysed by fear, others step in and some escaped unscathed, and pay a heavy price for their courage. Whether they choose the path of a ‘have a go hero’ or passive bystander, their decisions will stay with them for the rest of their lives.

Friday, September 24 at 9.30pm on Crime & Investigation Network

Big Trouble in Thailand is a fast-moving, fly-on-the-wall series following Thailand’s tourist cops, many of whom are recruited from overseas to work alongside the local Thai police. Thailand is one of the most dangerous tourist spots to visit. Last year hundreds of foreign tourists went home in body bags and many of these deaths were caused by traffic accidents or related to drink and drugs. Filming at the front line of the clash between East and West, this series provides an insight into the Thai mindset and culture in the wake of a tourist boom. Featuring fights, motorcycle accidents, fires, drugs, robberies, thefts, fraud and even murder, Big Trouble in Thailand has exclusive access to the special police team dealing with the tourists who get themselves into trouble.

Thursday, September 23 at 9.00pm on Crime & Investigation Network

They get yelled at, spit on and sometimes assaulted. Nevertheless, these people must manage to keep their cool and get the job done despite the abuse they face.

Ever had one of those days at the office? Whether repossessing someone’s prized possessions or delivering court papers to people who don’t want to be found, these hard workers are constantly in the line of fire from an angry public.

This high voltage real-life series showcases stories of people whose jobs enrage the people they encounter.

Wednesday, September 22, at 7.30pm on Crime & Investigation Network

A characteristically unflinching, daring and contentious film, that sheds fascinating new light on the life and death of Nirvana leader and iconic generational spokes-person, Kurt Cobain. Controversial filmmaker Nick Broomfield (director of Biggie and Tupac) interviewed various Cobain associates in an attempt to examine the unexplained circumstances surrounding the singer’s apparent suicide. Broomfield suddenly finds his progress strenuously obstructed by Courtney Love, Cobain’s wife who becomes a fearsome adversary. Could Love, now a respected Hollywood actress and musician in her own right, (‘Hole’) be somehow implicated in Cobain’s untimely demise?

Kurt and Courtney is both a compelling search for truth and a revealing and insightful look into Cobain’s troubled life. A fascinating examination of power and corruption, it’s also a telling peek into the paranoid world of celebrity and a testimony to the importance of free speech and the freedom of the press.

Tuesday, September 21, at 9.30pm on Crime & Investigation Network

The second series of this high rating show which looks at vehicle crime in Britain today and how the criminals are making easy money. This series will also look at how stolen British cars are being illegally exported all round the world and the cameras have been allowed to follow London’s Metropolitan Police as they team up with Interpol to show the East Africans how to stop stolen cars from the UK flooding into their ports. And it’s not just cars that the criminals are after: they are finding bigger rewards in the credit crunch by targeting commercial plant used for road works and construction. One gang even stole a forty foot long “bandit beastie” timber shedder worth two hundred and forty thousand pounds.

September 11, Saturday at 7.30pm on Crime & Investigation Network

A gripping minute by minute account of the time between the attack on the first of the Twin Towers to the collapse of the second, using recorded voicemails and raw network footage. This will be a lasting document whose unique material comes from a range of non-traditional sources, including amateur photography, video, and film; FDNY, NYPD, Port Authority and emergency dispatch radio recordings, photography and video; recorded voicemails; audio/video diaries; footage and stills broadcast or published outside the United States; electronic messages and surveillance camera footage.