The Salt Creek Monster

Roman Heinze was a former chef living south of Adelaide when he answered a Gumtree ad for a ride to Melbourne in early 2016. It had been posted by Beatriz, a 24-year-old from Brazil, who brought along Lena Rabente, also 24, from Germany. He drove them to Salt Creek, a remote run of dunes and scrub in the Coorong, and set up camp.

In February 2016 he turned on them. He tied Beatriz up at knifepoint and assaulted her. When Lena tried to help, he struck her with a hammer, and when she ran he chased her down in his four-wheel drive and hit her with it. Both women survived. Beatriz reached a family fishing nearby, Lena got away by climbing onto the roof of his vehicle, and the roadhouse owner called police. Police found Heinze at the scene with Lena’s blood on his vehicle.

He pleaded not guilty. In May 2017 a jury convicted him on eight counts, and Justice Trish Kelly, who called him a very dangerous man with no real prospect of rehabilitation, sentenced him to 22 years and 4 months with a non-parole period of 17 years. The charges included aggravated kidnapping, causing harm with intent, endangering life and indecent assault; two covered a separate 2014 assault on a woman at Goodwood. In February 2024 a judge refused his bid to stop police destroying the vehicle.