KILLER Bradley John Murdoch's lover sensationally claimed last night: "My man is innocent."
Jan Pittman accused Joanne Lees of picking the wrong man when she identified the person who had killed her boyfriend Peter Falconio on a lonely Outback highway, near Barrow Creek, about 200 miles north of Alice Springs, in July 2001.
Murdoch's girlfriend spoke out after he was jailed for 28 years yesterday for killing 28-year-old Peter, of Hepworth and abducting and assaulting Joanne.
Speaking on Australian TV Channel Nine Network, Ms Pittman said: "She has definitely got it wrong as to picking Brad Murdoch because I know Brad as a man. I just know him. I know him like I know my own children. And I know there is just no way he would be capable of doing that.
"He loves to go fishing, have a few drinks and light the barbie. He is very good at the barbie."
And Ms Pittman also hit out at people who see her as a killer's lover.
"They don't know the man. And let me say right here, right now, that if I ever had one doubt or thought that Brad had done this, I would not have been sitting in that courtroom every day. I can assure you of that," she said.
"This is just a stalling point at this stage, and we have just got to wait a bit longer and endure a bit more."
Meanwhile, the leading police officer in the case suggested Murdoch was probably fuelled by drugs and planned to rape Joanne, who left Almondbury for Brighton after returning from her Outback ordeal.
Former assistant commissioner John Daulby said the abduction and rape was the Broome mechanic's "modus operandi".
Murdoch was found not guilty of kidnapping and assaulting a woman and raping her 12-year-old daughter in South Australia in 2002.
"It is a shame he got away with that," said Mr Daulby.
He called the murder conviction a "great result" for the justice system and the Falconio family.
He added: "I never had any doubts he was guilty.
"The case was strong - not just the DNA but lots of circumstantial evidence and Joanne's testament.
"We knew Murdoch was the killer. It was a matter of finalising inquiries and filling in gaps in the timeline.
"Having the DNA checked by a British expert was a clever move by police. It confirmed the findings of police experts here."
Mr Daulby also hit out at people who doubted Joanne's story.
He said: "People lost sight of the fact she was the victim. There were elements in the community who did not believe her but police stuck by her.
"Joanne impressed me. We all needed to sit back and remember what she had gone through, the terrible trauma. There were bound to be a few inconsistencies in her story."
Mr Daulby also admitted investigators had made mistakes during their inquiries.
