Back From The Dead

A Killer's 'Victim' Reappears

(CBS) 
Epilogue
Now alive and well, and under subpoena, Natasha Ryan marched into a courtroom to testify that she was not in fact murdered by Leonard Fraser. This created a challenge for the prosecutor.

"It was an intriguing situation. … I’ve been known to say that I am the only prosecutor who has cross-examined the deceased," Rutledge says.

In effect, Natasha Ryan testified on Fraser’s behalf. The defense wanted the jury to ignore Fraser’s confessions -- the best evidence the prosecution had in the case. Their approach, says Rutledge, was, "'Well, if he falsely admitted to killing the girl Natasha Ryan, how could you possibly rely on anything he said?’”

Rutledge countered that there was powerful evidence revealed on tape by Fraser that only the killer could know.

In the end, Natasha’s testimony didn’t matter. Leonard Fraser was convicted and sentenced to prison for all the murders of which he was accused – except, of course, Natasha’s.

Justice for Leonard Fraser, who is serving indefinite prison sentences for the murders of Keyra Steinhardt, Beverly Leggo, Sylvia Benedetti and Julie Turner.

But what about Natasha Ryan? Australians are a forgiving lot, but her amazing return from the dead was tough to take.

"I think the whole town was the same … we were angry," one resident says. "We were happy she was alive, but we were angry because of what had gone on for so long."

The search itself cost more than half a million dollars, and that’s not including the hundreds of volunteers.

At home, Ryan’s mother, Jenny, is facing her own tough choices about Natasha.

"At the moment, I don’t trust her, she’s got to regain that trust," Jenny Ryan says. "As for forgiving her, probably could forgive but never forget."

To this day, Natasha Ryan has never publicly apologized. Her boyfriend, Scott Black, was convicted of lying to police and is serving a one-year sentence. And now authorities have decided it’s time for Natasha to answer for her deeds.

The police have charged Natasha, along with Black, with causing a false investigation. Their long-awaited trial has just begun.

Although they won’t face jail time with this charge, if convicted, Natasha and Black will each face fines of $5,600, and police could seek up to $120,000 from the couple to cover some of the costs of the lengthy search.

And what about Australia’s greatest con man, Allan Quinn, who helped crack the Leonard Fraser case? It has been three years since the trial, and Quinn seems to be making out just fine.

“It goes straight to my heart,” he said recently. “I’ve done something really good for once in my life; turned my life around from being a bad boy to being a good boy.”

These days, he’s got a pretty girlfriend. He gets to the track once in a while. He’s writing a book about his greatest con. And, he’s trying to get the authorities to pay him for his crime-solving efforts.

So far no luck, but even some of the hard-boiled detectives who would in the past have arrested him now consider him a friend. Says Hickey: “He’s a likable rogue, and I’ll go and share a beer with him any day.”

Of course, with a con man, there’s always that question of trust. And trust is the central issue over at Natasha Ryan’s place too. “At the moment, I don’t trust her,” says her mother. “She’s got to regain that trust. As for forgiving her, probably could forgive, but never forget.”

As for Natasha’s Father, Robert Ryan, once so relieved and hopeful, he has a new heartache. Tragically, he has lost contact with his daughter … again.

"I have not spoken to Natasha or seen Natasha for nearly a year," Robert Ryan says. "She’s had a baby … the only way I knew she had a baby was the media told me. I don’t know the baby’s name."

The baby’s name is Corey, a 2-year-old boy. The father is Scott Black, the man she hid with for five years.

"I’ll never know why she did it. And that’s something that every day of my life I say 'why?'" Robert Ryan says. "The day that Natasha will tell me is when she’s probably leaning over my grave or they’re putting my coffin in – if she attends my funeral – and then she’ll probably say why."