Kriti Mehrotra
When Patrick “Paddy” Moriarty suddenly disappeared alongside his dog following the evening of December 16, 2017, it baffled not only his community but also the entire nation to its very core. After all, as chronicled in HBO’s ‘Last Stop Larrimah: Murder Down Under,’ their titular outback town comprised merely 11 residents at the time, and apparently, no one knows what happened to him. They do have their own suspicions or theories owing to the many rivalries this 70-year-old had or the value of his dog — including former local Richard Simpson — yet nothing has ever panned out. So, for now, let’s just focus more on the latter, shall we?
Who is Richard Simpson?
There was once a time when Richard was held in high regard in Larrimah due to his community involvement and hard work at the Pink Panther pub as a bartender, but things soon changed. According to the original production, he began drinking a little too much with each passing day, and it often resulted in him being completely unable to function in a proper manner by mid-afternoon. He was thus let go despite the fact his employer was once friend Barry Sharpe because there was just no scope for improvement, only for it to quickly turn into a life ban from the establishment. Nevertheless, he managed to stick around in the area for a while.
As per this Thomas Tancred-directed documentary, Richard is a rather dangerous and volatile individual whose actions have sometimes been challenging to understand by anyone but him. Moreover, and more importantly, he had a complex bond with Paddy over the years since the latter was Barry’s best friend, making many believe he could’ve had a hand in his disappearance. Though his alleged indicated motive is quite unexpected — the speculation is that an accident might’ve occurred while the local was arguing with the elder concerning his young red kelpie as he wanted it for his own upon eventually finding his niche in dog breeding.
However, there has never been any evidence against Richard, meaning his involvement in Paddy’s as well as his dog Kellie’s enigmatic vanishing and possible deaths have always been mere rumors. It’s all quite like his own personal opinions on what could’ve happened to this inseparable duo on that fateful night, especially how he believes someone in the area definitely knows the whole truth. According to his own narrative in the film, he has actually cleared some people in his head owing to the positive connection they shared with the 70-year-old but has also harbored deep skepticism over a few others due to their decades-long rivalries.
Where is Richard Simpson Now?
From what we can tell, it appears as if Richard has since parted ways with the entire Northern Territory and relocated roughly 4,000 miles away to Western Australia to build a brand new life for himself. Yet this doesn’t mean he has left behind the quiet country experience in favor of the hustle-bustle of cities; instead, he’s currently serving as a proud sheep sheerer/shepherd at a local, thriving farm. “People are still real around here,” he said in the original. “Too easy man, don’t gotta lock your door. That’s a good thing.” In other words, he has moved on from the past to the best of his abilities and is actually absolutely content at the moment.
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