JANE Thurgood-Dove was a loving mother whose life ended abruptly at the pull of a trigger.
She was on her driveway on November 6, 1997 in Niddrie in Melbourne’s northwest when a short, pot-bellied man confronted her and repeatedly shot her in the head.
She was just 34 and had children aged three, six and 11 who saw their mother being attacked.
But nobody was ever jailed for the brutal murder of Ms Thurgood-Dove despite there being a $1 million reward for information leading to a conviction.
There was no reason why the woman should have been killed.
At first police suspected her husband was involved but his name was cleared after he passed a lie-detector test.
There was also a policeman who was obsessed with Ms Thurgood-Dove and he became a suspect for a period of time.
Ms Thurgood-Dove confided in two friends about his feelings for her.
The year after she died, the Herald Sun reported he was the main suspect.
He admitted to loving her and asking her to leave her husband but he said he didn’t kill her.
His name was later cleared from the list of suspects.
After the $1 million reward was announced, police received information that Geelong bikies were responsible for the murder and the killing was a result of mistaken identity.
The real target was said the be a woman who lived on the same street and looked similar to Ms Thurgood-Dove.
But it’s been revealed one mistake made by police could be the reason the killer was never charged.
Ms Thurgood-Dove’s parents believe police were too invested in Melbourne’s underworld war and didn’t commit enough resources to locking away their daughter’s killer.
In the new book The Good Cop, former homicide detective Ron Iddles reveals he was close to arresting Jamie Reynolds, a man who helped hitman Stephen Mordy kill Ms Thurgood-Dove.
But there was so much focus on Melbourne’s underworld, he was denied resources that would have helped him throw those responsible behind bars.
“Had I got the resources, there’s no doubt I would have done a considerable amount of work on Reynolds,” Mr Iddles told the Herald Sun.
Both suspects are now dead and it is unlikely there will ever be justice for Ms Thurgood-Dove.
Her parents John and Helen Magill told 9 News the mastermind is getting away with a contracted murder and complained to Victoria Police about how their daughter’s case was handled.
“We said we weren’t happy with the investigation, and we were told by Victoria Police they prioritised where their resources go to,” Mr Magill told 9 News.
He said the resources were put into the taskforce that focused on Melbourne’s underworld and gang killings and the family felt as if they were tossed aside.
“We haven’t got much time left, we know that. We would like to see some sort of justice for Jane before we die,” Ms Magill told 9 News.
“We felt we were less important that the criminals and their families. It’s there every day, it just doesn’t go away. You learn to cope and get through the days, but underneath, we’ve changed.”
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