Blood Brothers

Les, Michael and Gary Murphy, brothers from an Irish family of nine children, were three of the five men convicted of the savage rape and murder of Sydney nurse and beauty queen, Anita Cobby, which sparked calls for the reintroduction of the death penalty. The others were John Travers and Michael Murdoch. Michael Murphy, 33 at the time of the murder, was the eldest of the nine Murphy children. He had been sent to live with his grandmother when he was 12. His brother Gary Murphy was five years younger. Hearing impairment affected Gary Murphy's schooling and he left early to seek work. His strong interest in cars led to him facing several automotive theft related charges in the years before the murder. He was also known to have a very violent temper. Leslie Joseph Murphy was the youngest of the Murphy children, but was known as having the worst temperament. He had faced Children's Court on many occasions for a number of theft-related offences and was 24 at the time of the Cobby murder. Travers was a depraved 18-year-old who had grown up in a dysfunctional family in the outer suburbs of Sydney. He shared his blood with best mate Michael Murdoch in a ceremony that made them so-called blood brothers. The five are serving life sentences for the murder.