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The murders of Deborah Everist and James Gibson are believed to be the first killings committed by Ivan Milat in what would later be known as the Backpacker Murders. This case marked the beginning of a pattern involving the targeting of young travelers along major highways. At the time, the disappearances were not immediately linked, allowing Milat to continue undetected.
Milat picked up the victims while they were hitchhiking. He transported them to Belanglo State Forest, where they were bound, assaulted, and murdered. Their bodies were concealed in remote bushland, delaying discovery.
Initially treated as missing persons, the case remained unsolved until the discovery of multiple bodies in Belanglo State Forest in 1992. The findings linked several disappearances into a single investigation.