A Perth man police long suspected of killing his backpacker girlfriend Simone Strobel has protested his innocence and accused investigators of "tunnel vision" in his first media interview since her death in 2005.
For almost 20 years New South Wales Police regarded Tobias Moran as the main suspect in the murder of his 25-year-old German girlfriend.
Following a 2024 inquest that disagreed with key aspects of the police theory, Mr Moran, previously known as Tobias Suckfuell, has spoken to the ABC's Unravel: Lies In Lismore podcast to claim he was not involved.
"I made mistakes and I'm here to sort of own them, but I'm not a murderer,'' he said.
"I did not kill Simone."
Ms Strobel disappeared from a caravan park in Lismore late at night after the pair had an argument in February, 2005.
Her naked body, which had been covered by palm fronds, was found less than 100 metres away from the couple's campsite six days later.
Mr Moran, who was 24 at the time, became an early suspect after he lied to police about arguing with Ms Strobel the night she disappeared, and about how much they had to drink.
He also lied about not smoking marijuana and encouraged two other German travellers, Mr Moran's sister and a friend, to tell the same lies.
In 2022 Mr Moran was charged with murder and intending to pervert the course of justice.
The lies he told were a central part of the case against Mr Moran, but the charges were dropped the following year.
A NSW Local Court later found he was charged without reasonable grounds.
Mr Moran told Unravel he lied because he believed police were not taking her disappearance seriously.
He claimed police were reassuring him that Ms Strobel was probably OK and had likely hitchhiked to another town.
"I was not lying for any other reason than to get these guys to take Simone serious," he said.
"I knew … that she was not on a bender in Nimbin or having a great time in Byron Bay."
NSW Police did not respond to specific questions about Mr Moran's criticisms about the early investigation.
Last year NSW State Coroner Teresa O'Sullivan rejected a finding from an earlier inquest that said there was a "very high suspicion" Mr Moran was involved.
The more recent inquest finding cast doubt over key aspects of the police theory as to how Mr Moran allegedly killed Simone.
Police had long alleged Mr Moran killed Ms Strobel by suffocating her in their campervan and then moving her over a road with the help of one or both of his fellow German travellers.
Neither of those people has ever been charged and both have denied any involvement.
The coroner found both of the fellow travellers were "unlikely" to have been involved and that Mr Moran was "unlikely" to have acted alone.
Judge O'Sullivan stopped short of finding it was "very unlikely" that Mr Moran was involved and recommended the case be transferred from Lismore detectives to the Unsolved Homicide Unit.
She also recommended a review of forensic exhibits, including DNA profiles.
In his interview with Unravel, Mr Moran claimed he had been unfairly targeted by police due to what he called "tunnel vision".
"This entire case has been based on a theory, on a hypothesis, and crucial evidence has not been considered," Mr Moran said, adding that he believed the killer was still at large in Lismore.
"It's time for someone from the New South Wales Police to step forward and go, 'Sorry, we are really sorry' … they should apologise to my wife and my kids for locking me up."
NSW Police declined to answer detailed questions from the ABC, instead issuing this statement:
"The matter is currently being assessed by the Unsolved Homicide Unit and a forensic review is being conducted in line with the coroner's recommendations," it said.
"No further information is available at this time."
Ms Strobel's parents, Gabi and Gustav, still regard Mr Moran's lies as suspicious and believe he is yet to tell them the full truth of what happened to their daughter on the night she died.
"We have always been confounded by the multiple and conflicting versions Tobias gave to the Australian and German police about important events surrounding her death," they said in 2023 after the charges against Mr Moran were dropped.
The Strobels told the ABC that they were disappointed with the result of the more recent inquest.
