A former Almondbury woman is to “step into a killer’s mind” in a bid to find out what a brutal murderer did with her boyfriend’s body.

Joanne Lees and Peter Falconio were travelling in a camper van towards Darwin on a remote Australian highway in July 2001 when they were flagged down by drifter Bradley Murdoch.

Mr Falconio, 28, of Hepworth, was shot before Murdoch handcuffed Ms Lees and dragged her into his vehicle. Ms Lees, who was 27 at the time, fought for her life and fled.

On Sunday she tells Australia’s leading current affairs programme, Channel Nine’s 60 Minutes: “It was either run, or be raped and killed.”

Murdoch was later convicted of murder, but despite an exhaustive search Mr Falconio’s body has never been found.

She added: “I love Pete so much and I want to bring him home. I need to bring him home.”

To help her remember she was flown in a helicopter over the area in which he was murdered, north of Alice Springs.

Ms Lees said: “I know that he’s somewhere here.”

She said she wanted to “step into the killer’s mind” to discover where he had left Mr Falconio’s body but added: “It’s a very alien thing for me to do because I’m not a violent person. I’m not a murderer.”

Peter Falconio and Joanne Lees on their holiday in Australia

Doubts were raised over Ms Lees’ account when she appeared emotionless in the immediate aftermath.

This was later explained by reports that she had taken Valium to numb her grief.

She said: “How could they think that? It was like a stab to the heart.”

It was not until five years later in 2006 that Murdoch, a drug runner, was convicted of Mr Falconio’s murder largely due to DNA evidence which included a spot of Ms Lees’ blood on his T-shirt.

Police later found a pool of blood on the road, but were never able to locate Mr Falconio’s remains.

Murdoch, now 58, is serving a life sentence.

He has always protested his innocence and insists he can’t reveal where Mr Falconio’s body is because he wasn’t at the crime scene.

Drifter Bradley Murdoch withdrew his appeal for killing Huddersfield backpacker Peter Falconio in Australia
Drifter Bradley Murdoch withdrew his appeal for killing Huddersfield backpacker Peter Falconio in Australia

But Colleen Gwynne, who was promoted to be in charge of the Alice Springs region during the investigation, said she never doubted Ms Lees’ story.

“I knew straight away she was an incredibly credible witness,” she said.

“Her recollection of the event was incredible. Her attention to detail was second to none.”