Highway to Nowhere - By Richard Shears

They were young, adventurous and idealistic, the eight backpackers from Australia, Britain and Germany who, between 1989 and 1992, set out from Sydney to hitchhike south along the Hume Highway. Seven were to die, and their bodies concealed in the beautiful eucalyptus forest south of Sydney.
 
Chillingly orchestrated, the slayings in the Balanglo State Forest shocked the world. To snare the highway prowler and bring him to justice would require total dedication and patience. Hundreds of police combed the forest for clues and sifted through maintains of information, studying forensic evidence and computer records.
 
Amongst the thousands of leads, one story was for a time overlooked, buried in hundreds of reports and tipoffs. In January 1990, a young British backpacker hitchhiking along the Hume highway had escaped the grip of an armed assailant and run for his life. It was to become a vital clue in the biggest manhunt in Australian criminal history.