Evil at Kananook: Part 1 - Australian True Crime
Part 1 of 2 - The disappearance of Sarah McDiarmid
On a winter's night in July 1990, twenty-three-year-old Sarah MacDiarmid stepped off a late-running train at Kananook station, south-east of Melbourne, and walked towards her car. She never made it home.
In the first of two episodes, we follow Sarah's last night, from a social tennis match in the city to a dark commuter car park on the Frankston line, and the long hours her family spent waiting for a phone call that never came. Within a fortnight, police had a suspect, a sworn witness and a string of people repeating a confession. So why did the man running the investigation never believe it?
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Theme Music - Jesse Frank on Pixabay
Sources
ABC News. (2010, July 10). Million dollars on offer in missing persons case. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2010-07-10/million-dollars-on-offer-in-missing-persons-case/898950
Australian Missing Persons Register. (n.d.). Sarah MacDiarmid. https://australianmissingpersonsregister.com/ampr/Macdiarmid.htm
Francis, T. (2018, September 2). Sarah MacDiarmid's mysterious disappearance. Unsolved True Crime. https://unsolvedtruecrime.com/2018/09/02/sarah-macdiarmids-mysterious-disappearance/
Gadd, D. (2004, July 11). The never-ending search for Sarah. The Age. http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/07/10/1089000397377.html
Petraitis, V. (Host). (2021). Searching for Sarah MacDiarmid [Audio podcast]. Casefile Presents. http://searchingforsarah.com/
Petrie, A. (2004, February 6). $1m for leads on missing woman. The Age.
Razak, I. (2017, September 2). Sarah MacDiarmid: Parents of woman missing from Kananook train station share their heartbreak 27 years on. ABC News. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-09-02/sarah-macdiarmid-remembered-with-special-plaque-kananook-station/8866454
Victoria Police. (n.d.). Missing person: Sarah MacDiarmid. https://www.police.vic.gov.au/missing-person-sarah-macdiarmid
Victoria Police. (n.d.). Reward: Sarah MacDiarmid. https://www.police.vic.gov.au/reward-sarah-macdiarmid
Wikipedia. (2026). Disappearance of Sarah MacDiarmid. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Sarah_MacDiarmid
On a winter's night in July 1990, twenty-three-year-old Sarah MacDiarmid stepped off a late-running train at Kananook station, south-east of Melbourne, and walked towards her car. She never made it home.
In the first of two episodes, we follow Sarah's last night, from a social tennis match in the city to a dark commuter car park on the Frankston line, and the long hours her family spent waiting for a phone call that never came. Within a fortnight, police had a suspect, a sworn witness and a string of people repeating a confession. So why did the man running the investigation never believe it?
Subscribe now to Strewth Premium on Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/cw/StrewthPodcast
Strewth social media links - https://linktr.ee/strewthpodcast
Contact me - [email protected]
Theme Music - Jesse Frank on Pixabay
Sources
ABC News. (2010, July 10). Million dollars on offer in missing persons case. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2010-07-10/million-dollars-on-offer-in-missing-persons-case/898950
Australian Missing Persons Register. (n.d.). Sarah MacDiarmid. https://australianmissingpersonsregister.com/ampr/Macdiarmid.htm
Francis, T. (2018, September 2). Sarah MacDiarmid's mysterious disappearance. Unsolved True Crime. https://unsolvedtruecrime.com/2018/09/02/sarah-macdiarmids-mysterious-disappearance/
Gadd, D. (2004, July 11). The never-ending search for Sarah. The Age. http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/07/10/1089000397377.html
Petraitis, V. (Host). (2021). Searching for Sarah MacDiarmid [Audio podcast]. Casefile Presents. http://searchingforsarah.com/
Petrie, A. (2004, February 6). $1m for leads on missing woman. The Age.
Razak, I. (2017, September 2). Sarah MacDiarmid: Parents of woman missing from Kananook train station share their heartbreak 27 years on. ABC News. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-09-02/sarah-macdiarmid-remembered-with-special-plaque-kananook-station/8866454
Victoria Police. (n.d.). Missing person: Sarah MacDiarmid. https://www.police.vic.gov.au/missing-person-sarah-macdiarmid
Victoria Police. (n.d.). Reward: Sarah MacDiarmid. https://www.police.vic.gov.au/reward-sarah-macdiarmid
Wikipedia. (2026). Disappearance of Sarah MacDiarmid. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Sarah_MacDiarmid