Reward doubled in decades‑old murder cold case
Robyn Wuth |
Almost three decades after a mother-of-four was fatally stabbed, a $500,000 reward is being offered to help solve her cold case murder.
Dianne Mary Angwin, 50, was stabbed in the neck inside the north Queensland unit she shared with friend Edith “Edie” Lay about 12.30am on December 2, 1997.
Ms Angwin, originally from Victoria, had four children from a previous marriage and moved to Bowen with a new partner in 1995.
The relationship later broke down and she lived at several local addresses before moving in with Ms Lay in September 1997.
The pair were well known in Bowen and were regular patrons of local pubs and clubs.
On December 1, 1997, Ms Angwin and Ms Lay attended the Bowen Bowls Club on Livingstone St.
Ms Angwin returned home about 6.30pm, with Ms Lay following roughly an hour later.
Police say that in the early hours of December 2, Ms Lay was woken in her bed by an unknown man who had one hand over her mouth and a knife in the other.
Ms Angwin appeared in the bedroom doorway and ran, with the man chasing her.
Moments later, she was stabbed in the neck before the attacker fled.
A neighbour drove Ms Angwin to Bowen Base Hospital, where she was pronounced dead on arrival.
Detectives have launched a fresh review and are using new forensic techniques on exhibits seized from the crime scene, including the clothing Ms Angwin was wearing, police said.
As part of the review, police have identified witnesses Ms Lay confided in before she died in 2022.
It confirmed she knew the identity of the man and had not told police at the time of the offence because she feared for her safety, Detective Senior Sergeant Tara Kentwell said on Friday.
Police want to speak with anyone who knows about a relationship Ms Angwin was involved in with a local married man who had been seen at her unit.
“Information suggests that around the time of Dianne’s murder, she was actively encouraging him to leave his wife so that they could overtly continue the relationship,” Det Kentwell said.
Detectives will travel to Bowen and Cairns in Queensland and to Victoria as part of the review.
They will also staff a mobile police facility in Bowen’s CBD, visit licensed premises and speak with residents as part of the investigation.
The reward for information leading to the conviction of those responsible has been doubled from $250,000 to $500,000.
Police said indemnity from prosecution would be available to an accomplice who was not the killer and who was the first to come forward.
AAP