Falconio suspect 'raped girl, 12'

The man accused of killing British backpacker Peter Falconio raped a 12-year-old girl and kidnapped her mother at gunpoint, a court in Australia was told today.

Mechanic Bradley John Murdoch, 45, was "in a frenzy" as he believed police were closing in on him for the murder of Mr Falconio, whose body has never been found. He accused the girl's mother of setting him up and threatened to rape and kill her, the court heard.

Mr Falconio, 28, from Huddersfield, Yorkshire, was shot in the head after he and his girlfriend Joanne Lees were ambushed on an outback road in July 2001. The attacker also attempted to abduct Ms Lees. The man pushed a pistol in her face and bound her hands with homemade cable ties made of industrial plastic.

Similar ties were used by Murdoch to disable the 12-year-old before he allegedly raped her, telling her: "If you move I will give you brain damage."

Murdoch, 45, faces seven charges over the alleged kidnapping of the mother and girl over a four-day period in August 2002.

He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.