Where are they now? The real crime figures behind ‘Blue Murder’

It’s been 30 years since Blue Murder – the iconic Aussie miniseries dramatising Sydney’s criminal underworld during the ‘70s and ‘80s – crossed our TV screens.

The two-part series tells the story from the perspectives of three of the biggest players in Sydney’s underworld: crooked cop Roger Rogerson, career criminal Arthur “Neddy” Smith, and honest detective Michael Drury.

Despite an epilogue explaining what happened to the real-life figures depicted in the show, a lot has changed in the decades passed.

So where are they now?

Corrupt Detective Sergeant Roger Rogerson might have been acquitted of drug squad cop Michael Drury’s attempted murder, but in 2016 the court sentenced him to life in prison for the murder of Jamie Gao.

The jury found Rogerson, along with fellow corrupt detective Glen McNamara, guilty of murdering 20-year-old Gao in 2014 during a drug deal.   

While serving his sentence, Rogerson suffered an aneurysm and ultimately passed away in early 2024.

Hear from police whistle-blower Deborah Locke who spoke out against Rogerson on this episode of Crime Insiders

We last saw Neddy Smith serving a life sentence for murder.  Despite his initial cooperation as a witness in the anti-corruption hearings against NSW Police and Rogerson during the ‘90s, Smith took a lot of secrets to his grave.

Before passing away in 2021, Smith refused to help police with any further investigations. He told his ghost-writer that he knew who murdered sex worker Sallie-Anne Huckstepp (a crime of which Smith had been acquitted), but would only reveal the identity once the killer was dead.

Huckstepp’s murder remains a cold case.

Blue Murder tells us that Drury retired from the force in 2000, and he has remained under the radar for many of the years since.

He gave an exclusive interview to Fairfax Media in 2016 while Rogerson was on trial for the Gao murder. Drury confirmed that he believed Rogerson was involved in his own attempted murder.

Authorities never found Chris Flannery (aka Mr Rent-a-Kill), but they ruled his disappearance a suspected homicide in 2021.

Flannery was involved in Melbourne’s criminal underbelly before becoming embroiled in Sydney’s gang wars.  Hear more on this episode of Community Noticeboard

The last man standing is Graham Henry. Neddy Smith’s former-partner-in-crime, he now describes himself as “peacefully retired.” 

Unhappy with his portrayal in Blue Murder, Henry is in talks to adapt his memoir into a TV series that chronicles the real story of his criminal career and traumatic childhood. 

Henry spoke with gangster-turned-influencer Spanian on this episode of his podcast.

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