Black Hands cover art

Black Hands

Inside the Bain Family Murders

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Black Hands

By: Martin van Beynen
Narrated by: Toby Webster
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About this listen

It's a story that began in a rickety old home on a cold June morning in 1994, where five members of a seemingly ordinary New Zealand family were gunned down.

There were two suspects. One lay dead from a single bullet to the head. The other was the only survivor: David Bain. Since then, the country has asked: who killed the Bain family? David, or his father Robin? And why?

Award-winning journalist Martin van Beynen has covered the Bain story closely for decades. Now, his book brings the story completely up to date: exploring the case from start to finish, picking through evidence old and new, plumbing the mysteries and motives, interviewing never-before-spoken-to witnesses, and guiding listeners through the complex police investigation and court cases, seeking to finally answer the question: who was the killer?

©2020 Martin van Beynen (P)2021 Isis Publishing Ltd Murder True Crime Crime
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My heart almost stopped when I viewed the cover of the book left open in Robin's room - Agatha Christie 5 Classic Mysteries - and noticed how closely it resembled the scene of Robin's murder. I am certain David was inspired by it (as well as the story inside, which the brilliant author here, outlines.) The cover depicts Poirot smiling on the other side of a pair of long velvet curtains, looking into a sitting room where a dead body is slumped in a chair. Poirot is holding a long black metal object. (Not a rifle. But an umbrella.) The colour scheme and furniture is even strikingly similar to the Bain living room. Definitely not a coincidence. It must have planted a seed in David's head. The book was clearly planted in Robin's room as some sort of sick joke. Open upside down in a position which is completely un-natural for someone placing it down after reading it in bed.

Also, did David play Dungeons and Dragons by any chance?? There is a character there called Bane The Black Hand, whose symbol is that of a black hand. He is described as an evil Despot who must be obeyed and worshipped by his followers. He has his own church and won't tolerate subservience. Kind of how David was with his family, who he tried to order around and dominate, and his obsession with building the giant religious temple, where he would rule, along with his mother. Hmmm.....Also, in Dungeons and Dragons, there is descriptions of characters being put into trance states. I HOPE DAVID GETS WHAT HE TRULY DESERVES ONE DAY. KUDOS TO THE FEARLESS JOURNALIST WHO WROTE THIS BOOK AND HAS NOT BEEN DRINKING THE RUGBY PLAYER'S KOOL AID. David's wife and children will need to sleep with one eye open. I cannot believe how gullible and naive New Zealanders are and how flawed their justice system is, when it can be SUBVERTED by a layman rugby player who knows NOTHING. Unreal.

Fantastic story telling, immense amount of research/detail/FACT.

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