[Reading Science] Is Australia's Worst Serial Killer Who Murdered 4 Children Innocent?

Australian Court to Hold Reinvestigation Hearing from the 14th
Scientists Suggest "Possibility of Sudden Death Due to Genetic Mutation"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] The worst female serial killer in Australia, sentenced to 40 years for murdering her four children. However, scientists claim her innocence, and a retrial is set to open after 20 years. Could she be released if the scientific investigation suggesting sudden death due to a genetic mutation is accepted?

The story dates back to 1999. Kathleen Folbig, living in Singleton, Australia, felt something was wrong one warm spring day while trying to wake her 18-month-old daughter. The child's complexion was pale, and she showed no response even when shaken. An ambulance was urgently called, and efforts were made to save the child, but to no avail. Folbig cried out to the rescue team, "Our child is not breathing." However, this was not the first time Folbig had lost a child. Three other children had already died from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

That night, a forensic pathologist at the New South Wales Institute of Forensic Medicine performed an autopsy on the child's body but found no wounds, drugs, narcotics, or alcohol that could explain the cause of death. Only slight inflammation possibly caused by a virus was found in the heart. What caught the pathologist's attention was the fact that four children in one family had died for unknown reasons. The pathologist concluded that "the possibility of multiple murders within the family cannot be ruled out."

Ultimately, Folbig was brought to trial and maintained her innocence to the end, but no one believed her. Despite the lack of evidence, the jury focused on circumstantial evidence suggesting that it was unlikely for unexplained deaths to occur consecutively within one family. Folbig's husband submitted her diary, which contained entries that seemed to hint at an attempt to kill the fourth child after becoming pregnant. Her past, including being raised in orphanages after her father murdered her mother, also worked against her. Prosecutors persuaded the jury by saying, "Lightning does not strike the same person four times." She was eventually sentenced to 40 years in prison and earned the notorious title of "Australia's worst female serial killer."

However, in 2018, a group of scientists raised the possibility of her innocence based on genetic analyses of her and the deceased children, marking a turning point. They suggested that sudden death could have been caused by heart problems due to a genetic mutation. A first judicial investigation was conducted in 2019 but failed to overturn the guilty verdict. At that time, scientists focused on a genetic mutation called calmodulin 2 (CALM2) found in her genes. Humans typically have three calmodulin genes, which absorb calcium and regulate intracellular calcium levels, helping control heart contractions. Although rare, mutations can cause severe heart diseases and sudden death. Scientists also analyzed the genes left by her children and confirmed that, in addition to CALM2, they carried several rare genetic mutations that could cause sudden cardiac death. However, the problem was that the conclusions of the scientists conducting the research were neither precise nor consistent. There were disagreements about the likelihood of death caused by specific genetic mutations.

Since then, as scientific research has become more refined and consistent, the situation has changed. In November 2020, a study on the mother and daughters was published in the international journal EP Europace, concluding that the genetic mutations in the deceased children likely caused fatal cardiac arrhythmias. Early last year, the Australian Academy of Science also got involved. John Shine, president of the Australian Academy of Science, along with two Nobel laureates and about 90 other scientists, submitted a petition asserting Folbig's innocence. Ultimately, the Australian District Court is scheduled to hold a hearing starting on the 14th for a second judicial investigation. The Australian Academy of Science will explain the research results to the investigators as an official scientific advisory body.

The international journal Nature commented, "This hearing will be an opportunity to test the Australian Academy of Science's role as an independent scientific advisory body," adding, "Although it will take several months before the investigation concludes, if geneticists can provide a convincing explanation for the deaths of Folbig's daughters, she could be released."