Mr Cruel, Part 1: The case of Karmein Chan and whether detectives got it right

When a third girl was kidnapped in just a few years, police suspected one offender: Mr Cruel. Before Karmein Chan, 13, in 1991, there was 10-year-old Sharon Wills in 1988 and 13-year-old Nicola Lynas in 1990. In this special two-part episode on the notorious child snatcher who terrorised Melbourne streets, John Silvester speaks to the first police officer who was on the scene at the Chan abduction. The former sergeant, Rod Phillips, still wonders whether detectives were too quick to believe Karmein was taken by Mr Cruel and that they should have been looking in another direction, far closer to home.

You can listen to Mr Cruel, Part 1: The case of Karmein Chan and whether detectives got it right online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Mr Cruel, Part 1: The case of Karmein Chan and whether detectives got it right is an episode from Naked City by The Age and Sydney Morning Herald.

This episode is 16:41 long.

This episode was published on Jan 27, 2026.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from Naked City when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.