Bevan Spencer von Einem, a convicted murderer from South Australia, has passed away while serving a life sentence.

South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas confirmed the 79-year-old’s death earlier today.

Von Einem was sentenced to life imprisonment for the 1983 murder of Richard Kelvin, the 15-year-old son of former Adelaide Nine News presenter Rob Kelvin.

Authorities also suspected him in the murders of Alan Barnes, Peter Stojanov, Neil Muir, and Mark Langley.

It was believed that von Einem may have committed these crimes with others in a group infamously known as “The Family,” although no additional charges were ever filed.

In a statement on X, Malinauskas remarked that von Einem’s death does not absolve the horrific acts of murder and torture he carried out against innocent victims.

The Department for Correctional Services has advised me of the death of Bevan Spencer Von Einem.

His death marks the end of a life defined by calculated brutality. His crimes stand among the most horrific ever committed in South Australia, acts of deliberate cruelty that destroyed lives and inflicted trauma that will echo for generations.

Convicted of murdering teenager Richard Kelvin and long suspected of further horrific murders, he leaves behind a legacy of devastation for victims’ families that can never be undone.

Most unforgivably, he refused to co-operate with South Australia Police. He had every opportunity to assist investigators, to confirm what so many long believed, that he was responsible for the murder of other young men and to help bring other perpetrators to justice.

Instead, he chose silence, callous, deliberate silence, denying victims’ families even the faintest chance of closure. His decision to take critical information to the grave is an act of cruelty in its own right.

His death does nothing to erase the murder and torture he inflicted on innocent lives, nor does it ease the anger and grief carried by the families of his victims whose lives were shattered by his actions.

The greatest tragedy is that they may never know the full truth because of his deliberate and selfish silence.

Today, my thoughts are with the families of his victims. Their strength in the face of unimaginable suffering deserves our deepest respect and support.