About this episode

The episode explores the case of Bruce Mouat, who died under mysterious circumstances, and the subsequent admission of his wife, Susan, that she pushed him.

In July 2011 Bruce Mouat came home drunk from a work function at 1am. Workmates walked him to his own front door. Minutes later he went backwards down the concrete steps outside it. He was 48, worked at the local dairy factory, and led the Taranaki Alpine and Cliff Rescue team. He died in Wellington Hospital eleven days later. Police considered homicide and ruled it out. A coroner found no foul play. At the tangi, his sister told police, his wife had hugged her and asked how it felt to hug a murderer — and the finding was accidental death regardless. It took five more years, and her own friends going to police about what she had been telling them, before Susan Mouat admitted she had pushed him. No new evidence was ever found. IN MEMORY Bruce Mouat led the Taranaki Alpine and Cliff Rescue team, volunteers who turn out for people in trouble on a mountain that has killed more than eighty people since the 1890s. If this episode stays with you, the volunteer search and rescue teams in your region are worth a thought. A NOTE ON SOURCING Susan Mouat pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was convicted. She was never charged with murder, and the Crown accepted she did not intend to kill her…

Topics covered

• homicide
• manslaughter
• self-defense
• accidental death
• family dynamics
• search and rescue

Keywords

• Bruce Mouat
• Susan Mouat
• manslaughter
• accidental death
• Taranaki Alpine and Cliff Rescue team
• self-defense
• homicide

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Taranaki Alpine and Cliff Rescue team

Places: Wellington

More episodes of The Veil

• E59 | In Cold Blood | Part One of the Book Series · September 6, 2026 · 43 min
• E58 | Who turned off the light? The disappearance of Eloise Worledge (AUS) · August 31, 2026 · 41 min
• E57.5 | BONUS - While the Baby Slept: Jess Rigby (companion to Episode 57) · August 30, 2026 · 49 min
• E57 | Jason Rigby (Aus/Fiji) · August 30, 2026 · 27 min
• E52.5 | BONUS - Hunting Elly's Killer: Paul Warren, ten years on (companion to Episode 52) · August 27, 2026 · 1h 9m
• E55 | How did she Fall? The Case of Warriena Wright and Gable Tostee (NZ/AUS) · August 24, 2026 · 38 min

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Veil podcast page.