01 Lies in Lismore | The backpackers
Unravel
The episode investigates the 2005 disappearance and murder of German backpacker Simone Strobel in Lismore, Australia. It follows the timelin
Key takeaways
- Simone Strobel's body was found naked and covered in palm fronds, indicating a homicide rather than an accident.
- The investigation centers on a recorded police interview with Tobias Suckfuell conducted at Lismore Police Station.
Main topics
- Simone Strobel's disappearance
- Police interrogation of Tobias Suckfuell
Notable quotes
I don't know where she is, mate. I'm really, really worried...
Conclusion
The episode establishes a complex mystery where community sympathy cla
Transcript preview
Speaker 3 (0:01) Shocking evidence, Speaker 4 (0:02) jury drama and witness cross Speaker 3 (0:04) -examinations. The Case Of podcast takes you inside the biggest trials in the country, reporting the in-depth detail of how courts work and who's in there each week. We've brought you Erin Patterson's mushroom murder trial, the case of Toya's murder in Cairns, a Canberra cold Speaker 4 (0:20) case, the two intruders and many more. Search for The Case Of, it's on ABC Listen or wherever you get your podcasts. Speaker 2 (0:29) ABC Listen. Podcasts, radio, news, music and Speaker 1 (0:34) more. A heads up before we start. This podcast contains some strong language. This Speaker 4 (0:49) is an electronically recorded interview between Detective Sergeant Andrew Campbell and Tobias Frederick Suckfield. Speaker 4 (0:57) At the Lismore Police Station. Speaker 3 (0:59) A young German backpacker is sitting in a police interview room. Speaker 4 (1:04) What is your purpose for being in Australia? Well, actually, for learning the lifestyle. I finished university, so... And I like to travel. I like to learn different lifestyles, different culture. Speaker 3 (1:16) Tobias Sukvall came to Australia for the trip of a lifetime. But now he's come to a police station in country New South Wales. He says his girlfriend is missing. And police are asking him questions about what's happened. Speaker 4 (1:30) The purpose of this interview is to record your version of Simone Strobel going missing. OK. Speaker 3 (1:42) It's February 2005. For the past six months, Tobias and his German girlfriend, Simone Strobel, had been travelling the east coast of Australia. He's 24 and she's 25. Speaker 3 (1:56) But last night, he says Simone walked away from their campsite at a caravan park and she hasn't come back. Speaker 4 (2:03) I don't know where she is, mate. I'm really, really worried and I'm, I don't like mental sick when she's not coming back. I don't know what I can do. We're in a different country. We're not really, we don't speak this language very good and so we know nobody, OK? We're not at home. Speaker 3 (2:25) Tobias is lean. He has light brown hair with sun-bleached tips that kiss his shoulders. He's got a small goatee beard. And he's wearing a beaded necklace. He says he and his girlfriend had been having a great time doing the backpacker thing across Australia. Speaker 4 (2:43) Our blade is still travelling together and, yeah, we had such a good time together and we're going deeper and deeper in love. Speaker 3 (2:50) At the moment, they have two others travelling with them. Tobias' sister has come over from Germany with a friend and all four of them were staying at the campsite in Lismore together. Speaker 3 (3:03) But last night, Tobias says he and his sister started arguing, something to do with their family back in Germany. Tobias says his girlfriend Simone tried to break up the argument. Speaker 4 (3:27) She said, stop, stop, stop, that's boring stuff. Let us talk about better things or funny stuff or something like that. And then she stand up and she walked away. And I'm told that she took none of her personal possessions with her. She had nothing. She stands straight up and walked away. And she had just a shirt, a skirt and no shoes. Speaker 3 (3:55) The detective listens quietly as Tobias recalls the argument with his sister and how Simone walked away after she told them to cut it out. The detective wants to know more about how Tobias and Simone have been getting along. Speaker 4 (4:10) Your relationship was quite strong, was it, with Simone? Is? What do you mean strong? Is. It's close? Good, yeah, very good, very close. Speaker 3 (4:20) He keeps pushing the point. Speaker 4 (4:22) Have you had any problems? No, no problems. And Speaker 3 (4:25) circling back to what was going on between them that night. Speaker 4 (4:28) So was it an argument between yourself and Simone? No, I had nothing. Why are you asking these questions five times? Speaker 3 (4:38) Tobias is getting riled up. He leans in closer to the detective, glaring at him and using emphatic hand gestures. It's only toward the end of the interview that the detective lands a question he's been building up to. Speaker 4 (5:06) Tobias, have you harmed Simone? Speaker 3 (5:09) No. Why? I'm investigative journalist Richard Baker. I first heard about this story years ago. The young German backpacker who disappeared into the darkness from a caravan park in Lismore. Like so many before her, Simone had packed her bags and set off on a big, life-changing trip overseas. Speaker 3 (5:33) The case always stuck with me because of how tragic that was, that she probably set off with such hope for the future, but she never made it home. Then, in late 2024, I heard that one of the key figures in this mystery, someone who was there that night, wanted journalists to take another look at the case. Speaker 3 (6:04) Since then, I've discovered a story that's challenged me. It's a story that's tangled with lies. It shocked the city of Lismore, caused a trail of damage over decades and seen police take extreme and desperate measures. But despite all that, 21 years later, there's still no justice for Simone. I want to know why. From Unravel, this is Lies in Lismore. Speaker 3 (7:00) Simone Strobel's trip to Australia was by far her biggest adventure. She'd travelled in parts of Europe before, but she'd never been this far from home. Her parents were pig farmers in Bavaria, Germany. She grew up on the farm with her brother and sister. Simone went to church, she was part of the local music club, and she went to house parties and gigs too. After high school, she studied at a teacher's college and was working as a kindergarten teacher before she set off overseas. When Simone arrived in Australia, she was in awe of the landscape and the wildlife. She travelled with Tobias from town to town, doing jobs along the way, making new friends with the people she worked with. She was on a life-changing adventure. That is, until February 11, 2005, when she arrived in the inland city of Lismore in northern New South Wales. Speaker 3 (8:06) To find out more about what happened to Simone, I went to the town where she spent her last day. I found myself standing on the main street with a Lismore local, Kath Adams. Speaker 2 (8:17) So we're in Woodlark Street in the middle, in Lismore CBD, and just heading towards Keane Street. Speaker 3 (8:24) She grew up in this town and she's been a journo and photographer here for most of her life. Speaker 3 (8:30) She's taken me to an intersection where you can pretty much see all the places the four Germans were that day. There was an Irish pub here where the two men had lunch and right nearby a hotel called the Gollum where they had drinks that night. Speaker 2 (8:47) Simone and Tobias and their travelling companions, I look at the CCTV footage of them outside the Golan Hotel. It