Australian court quashes conviction for man who previously confessed to killing Scott Johnson
An Australian court overturned the conviction of the man who confessed to killing gay mathematics student Scott Johnson. Content warning: This story may include topics that could make some readers feel uncomfortable.
Back in 1988, the 27-year-old’s naked body was found at the bottom of a cliff in the Sydney suburb of Manly in December. Before his death, the doctoral student had applied for permanent residency to be with his partner and was a doctoral student at the Australian National University in Canberra.
At the time, local authorities ruled Johnson’s death as a suicide despite pushback from his family – who told the BBC in 2018 that it was “inconceivable” that he would jump off a cliff.
After a 2017 enquiry concluded that Johnson was likely killed in a gay hate crime – due to other similar cases at the time – his family announced an AUS $2 million reward for information in the cold case.
