South Australian murderer Bevan Spencer von Einem died of cancer, coroner finds

South Australian murderer Bevan Spencer von Einem died of cancer that spread through his body and was "falling asleep mid-sentence" a day before his death, a coroner has found.

The 79-year-old died in prison last December while serving a life sentence for the 1983 abduction and murder of Richard Kelvin, son of retired Adelaide newsreader Rob Kelvin.

SA Police had linked von Einem to a group known as "The Family", whom detectives suspect were also responsible for four similarly brutal — but unsolved — murders of young males four decades ago.

In his findings handed down on Friday, State Coroner David Whittle determined von Einem's death resulted from "metastatic malignancy on a background of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, atherosclerotic vascular disease and Type 2 diabetes".

Against convention, Mr Whittle made no further remarks about von Einem's personal history.

"It is customary but not obligatory for a coroner delivering findings to identify and convey positive aspects of a person whose death is under investigation," he said.

"To attempt to do so in this case would be neither appropriate nor productive."

Court documents revealed von Einem had been diagnosed with lung cancer in September 2025 and was prescribed a cocktail of 11 drugs, including anti-depressants, before his death.

He had a "do not resuscitate order" while being managed palliatively, but during a doctor's visit on December 5 — the day before he was found dead — he expressed willingness to investigate "treatment options" for his illness.

"His general condition deteriorated with confusion, reduced mobility, difficulty in maintaining hygiene, reduced oral intake and shortness of breath on exertion and at rest only able to speak in short sentences," the medical notes tendered to court showed.

"By the end of the review, he was falling asleep mid-sentence."

Mr Whittle said von Einem was "provided with medical care of a high standard" and made no recommendations as part of the mandatory inquest.

At the time of von Einem's death, SA Premier Peter Malinauskas said it marked "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," Mr Malinauskas said at the time.

"Most unforgivably, he refused to co-operate with South Australia Police.

"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."

SA Police are still offering a $1 million reward for information that leads to the conviction of other people potentially involved in Richard Kelvin's murder.