DNA MATCHING has confirmed that bones found in a disused Melbourne prison are those of Irish-Australian bushranger Ned Kelly.
After his execution in 1880, Kelly, whose father, John, was transported from Co Tipperary for stealing two pigs, was buried in a mass grave at the Old Melbourne Gaol. His remains, along with those of dozens of other prisoners, were reburied in Pentridge Prison in 1929.
In late 2009 an almost complete skeleton was found in a wooden axe box at the prison site. It took 20 months of scientific examination to confirm that the bones were indeed the remains of the infamous rebel.
Melbourne art teacher Leigh Olver, who is Kelly’s sister Ellen’s great-grandson, provided the DNA sample which confirmed the match. Before that, Kelly’s bones had undergone CT scans, X-rays, pathology, anthropology and forensic dentistry tests.
The outlaw’s skull, which was stolen from a glass display case in 1978, is still on the run. But the theft of the head led to the identification of the rest of the remains.
In November 2009 West Australian farmer Tom Baxter gave a skull he claimed was Kelly’s to the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine. This claim was ultimately rejected by the Victorian state coroner, but it sparked the investigation into what have now been proven to be Kelly’s bones.
Victoria’s attorney-general, Robert Clark, said the identification was a remarkable achievement, involving forensic scientists in Australia and Argentina.
“To think a group of scientists could identify the body of a man who was executed more than 130 years ago, moved and buried in a haphazard fashion among 33 other prisoners, most of whom are not identified, is amazing,” he said.
What to do with the bones is the next question. “You can’t just bury the man,” Mr Olver said of his great-granduncle. “Someone is going to dig him up again in half an hour.”
A report that the Victorian government was considering putting the skeleton on display has been greeted with anger however by another relative. Anthony Griffiths, great-grandson of Kelly’s sister Grace, says public exhibition of the bones would be macabre and disgusting. The presentation of a corpse on display is something out of medieval times, he said.
Kelly’s last words were “Such is life.” The identification of his bones has ensured his life after death will continue to fascinate.