Australia - Hannah McGuire, 22 homicide staged as suicide, Ballarat, Apr 2024

[HoneyBunOne]

Mr O'Keefe was arrested the following day.

He is not facing any charges.

During cross-examination by Mr Young's defence lawyer, Glenn Casement, Mr O'Keefe was repeatedly questioned about his evidence that he did not know Ms McGuire was in the car he helped dispose of and watched go up in flames.​

"You realise how ridiculous your story is," Mr Casement told the court.

"You don't say, 'How'd she get suffocated, Lachlan?' … You don't say, 'Why'd you do that?'"

The defence has offered an alternative version of events about how Ms McGuire died and what Mr O'Keefe's involvement was in her death.

Mr Casement told the court that Ms McGuire died when she hit her head during a physical argument with Mr Young.

He also alleged that Mr O'Keefe saw Ms McGuire's body inside the house, discussed with Mr Young how to dispose of the body, suggested Mr Young burn the car and then torched it himself.

Mr O'Keefe rejected it all.

The five-week trial continues.

I think Mr O'Keefe may be lacking a moral compass, and his fair share of common sense, but he is not the one on trial here. Even if the defence lawyer wanted to implicate Mr O'Keefe further, it doesn't change the fact that Lachlan Young is the accused, and the one on trial.

Hannah McGuire murder trial: accused killer claims ex-partner hit her head during argument

Workmate of accused murderer Lachlan Young tells a jury he did not know 23-year-old was inside ute set on fire in remote bushland

www.theguardian.com

He claimed Young told him McGuire was already dead as she had been suffocated.

Under questioning from defence barrister Glenn Casement, O’Keefe repeatedly denied he knew McGuire was in the Triton.


Detectives arrested O’Keefe on 7 April but he was never charged over McGuire’s death.

O’Keefe admitted he did not contact police, instead deciding to drink with Young and then go on a camping trip with friends. ( !!!! ...... So he collected his 45 dollars and went camping... )

Something is very wrong in AUstralia.....

BBM
Something's wrong the world over. Don't tar us all with the same brush.

 

[Rocket333]

Man tells court Lachlan Young planned to 'roofie' Hannah McGuire

A supreme court jury has heard from a man who unwittingly helped dispose of Hannah McGuire's body after her ex-partner Lachlan Young planned to drug her, "put her in her car and roll her down a hill".

www.abc.net.au

and Lachlan didn't sequester his literary talents by merely texting folks pretending to be Hannah, he also conjured up a scenario at the same time, that someone had taken Hannah from him, against her will, and they had better pony up with the truth and hand Hannah back to him, he all the time knowing he had murdered her and burned her body....

'''
The court also heard how Mr Young phoned and messaged Ms McGuire's friends repeatedly in the hours after she was killed, accusing them of hiding Ms McGuire and causing her death.

"When I spoke to him, he was asking me where Hannah was … he was quite accusational that I had Hannah at my house and was hiding her from him," Abby Simpson, another of Ms McGuire's work colleagues, told the court during evidence.

The court was shown Ms Simpson's phone logs, which indicated Mr Young attempted to call her dozens of times between 5 and 6am the morning Ms McGuire was killed.

He also sent Ms Simpson multiple messages stating: "Where the * is she?… * me, if someone has done something to her, I will end their life."

The five-week trial continues.

( Pitifully, Lachlan playing the tuff guy, ready to spring to Hannah's defence etc... in his imagination he was the crusader of Clunes.... faster than a speeding bullet, able to leap etc , you know how it goes....)

I wish there was a laughing emoji. V funny Troops.

I was just thinking how disturbingly common it is for murderers to text on their victims phones - to delay, delude, deflect, misdirect, manipulate etc All of that and more, but has it ever worked?

Where there’s no compass, there’s a crime.

 

[Trooper]

I wish there was a laughing emoji. V funny Troops.

I was just thinking how disturbingly common it is for murderers to text on their victims phones - to delay, delude, deflect, misdirect, manipulate etc All of that and more, but has it ever worked?

Where there’s no compass, there’s a crime.

What gets me, is,, they talk about what they want to do... Robert Farquaharson spoke to his mate outside the fish shop when Cindy drove past in the 'good' car...how he was going to pay her back.,do something she'd never forget,, to the kids on Xmas day or Fathers day,etc.. .. same with this moron... tells his mate, and even bigger moron than Roberts mate, because this O'Keefe HELPED Lachlan,.. I mean, Rocket. what gets into them?

And his idiotic fantasy after the murder!!! calling people up , accusing them of taking Hannah, threatening them... making out he was Hannah and calling her parents.,,, he lived in his own ridiculous fantasy right up until they put the handcuffs on him.. he still thinks that he'll get away with it.. I think he believes that at one point, the entire court will start to chuckle at the terrific joke he was trying to pull over Hannah, just bad luck intervened....

 

[Deleted member 367982]

This is so interesting. We've got an accused person facing life in prison with the evidence stacked against him and the defence lawyer and the prosecution setting upon a second person who was obviously involved in the alleged murder after police were unable to charge him with anything.

 

[Rocket333]

What gets me, is,, they talk about what they want to do... Robert Farquaharson spoke to his mate outside the fish shop when Cindy drove past in the 'good' car...how he was going to pay her back.,do something she'd never forget,, to the kids on Xmas day or Fathers day,etc.. .. same with this moron... tells his mate, and even bigger moron than Roberts mate, because this O'Keefe HELPED Lachlan,.. I mean, Rocket. what gets into them?

And his idiotic fantasy after the murder!!! calling people up , accusing them of taking Hannah, threatening them... making out he was Hannah and calling her parents.,,, he lived in his own ridiculous fantasy right up until they put the handcuffs on him.. he still thinks that he'll get away with it.. I think he believes that at one point, the entire court will start to chuckle at the terrific joke he was trying to pull over Hannah, just bad luck intervened....

Troops we don't really get any meticulous crims here though do we. We just get to see the classic dumb criminal stereotype over and over, like Lachlan Young. Equal parts baffling and entertaining - spectacularly inept, self-incriminating, absurd in their planning, no awareness and bizarre decision makers. Even Rob Crawford and Greg Lynn have the technical smarts to fly planes but can’t cover up crime without being theatrical and self defeating. All of them though are DCD.
Dumb Criminal Delulu.

 

[Trooper]

This is so interesting. We've got an accused person facing life in prison with the evidence stacked against him and the defence lawyer and the prosecution setting upon a second person who was obviously involved in the alleged murder after police were unable to charge him with anything.

I am appreciative that the police questioned him, and obviously this O'Keefe is a witness for the prosecution...otherwise the defence would not be attempting to puncture his story, and try to impute some conspiracy to him to the actual murder in the hopes of diluting the accountability of their unfortunately idiotic client...

I very much doubt if O'Keefe had any choice in whether to be a witness for the prosecution . I imagine the local Ballarat constabulary would have leant a bit on what happens to those who will not co-operate.

Whosever witness he is, at least the good folk of Ballarat may have some insight into who walks among them... apart from the killer, there exists those who would assist ....... whoda thunk, ey??

 

[Deleted member 367982]

I am appreciative that the police questioned him, and obviously this O'Keefe is a witness for the prosecution...otherwise the defence would not be attempting to puncture his story, and try to impute some conspiracy to him to the actual murder in the hopes of diluting the accountability of their unfortunately idiotic client...

I very much doubt if O'Keefe had any choice in whether to be a witness for the prosecution . I imagine the local Ballarat constabulary would have leant a bit on what happens to those who will not co-operate.

Whosever witness he is, at least the good folk of Ballarat may have some insight into who walks among them... apart from the killer, there exists those who would assist ....... whoda thunk, ey??

I'd like to see more effort by law enforcement put into locking up drug dealers - not just in Ballarat but anywhere as drugs are often a big component in murder cases. While he might or might not have been on drugs at the time of the alleged murder, Young used ice, speed and meth and O'Keefe had a couple of big cannabis plants.
Another alleged murderer in Ballarat - Patrick Stevenson - was reportedly using drugs the night before Samantha Murphy went missing.
Some people may argue that harsh penalties are not a deterrent to criminals but IMO anyone associated with Hannah's death should be locked up for life and life also for all the drug dealers in town who cause so much misery.

 

[Kittypoo]

I wish there was a laughing emoji. V funny Troops.

I was just thinking how disturbingly common it is for murderers to text on their victims phones - to delay, delude, deflect, misdirect, manipulate etc All of that and more, but has it ever worked?

Where there’s no compass, there’s a crime.

Yes so common! Throw in a few greetings cards sent to relatives on Moonpig to delay and create a false impression and you’re away.
Take a look at this case where I’m from in the UK. A real eye opener the perp actually lived with both parents dead bodies in the house she had shared with them for several years apparently. Unbelievable
Post in thread 'UK - Lois and John McCullough, 70s, daughter accused of killing parents between 21 Aug 2018 and Sept 2023, Chelmsford, Essex, 15 Sept 2023'
UK - Lois and John McCullough, 70s, daughter accused of killing parents between 21 Aug 2018 and Sept 2023, Chelmsford, Essex, 15 Sept 2023

 

[Kemug]

Hannah McGuire murder trial: accused killer claims ex-partner hit her head during argument

Workmate of accused murderer Lachlan Young tells a jury he did not know 23-year-old was inside ute set on fire in remote bushland

www.theguardian.com

He claimed Young told him McGuire was already dead as she had been suffocated.

Under questioning from defence barrister Glenn Casement, O’Keefe repeatedly denied he knew McGuire was in the Triton.


Detectives arrested O’Keefe on 7 April but he was never charged over McGuire’s death.

O’Keefe admitted he did not contact police, instead deciding to drink with Young and then go on a camping trip with friends. ( !!!! ...... So he collected his 45 dollars and went camping... )

Something is very wrong in AUstralia.....

So someone has now paid him $50?

 

[Kemug]

Do the two young Ballarat "gentlemen", Mr Young and Mr Stephenson, know each other?

 

[Trooper]

Do the two young Ballarat "gentlemen", Mr Young and Mr Stephenson, know each other?

Neither of them has admitted to being aquainted..... but anything is possible... similar age,..Neither Mr Young nor Mr Stephenson were in any danger from a knife wielding female of colossal size at the time of the murder... both of their victims were smallish, one was 50 , one was 22 , with no history of martial arts or army service in their life...no one else had ever been threatened by them yet both these blokes thought they ought to kill them... and then pretend it didn't happen... so in that sense , they share some commonalities.....

Pretty sure they would have jammed up against each other in the Remand Centre while awaiting trial.... they would have lots to talk about , probably..

In other news... In Lachlans trial, one juror has thrown in the towel...that leaves 13

 

[Spectrix]

Juror discharged in Lachlan Young's murder trial​

One of the 14 jurors in Lachlan Young's Supreme Court murder trial has been discharged.
On Thursday, Justice Elliot, who is overseeing the five-week trial, informed the court that he would be discharging a juror.

He said the woman was "not capable of continuing as a juror in this trial".
"Under the jurors' act, I am able to discharge that person and allow the remaining 13 of you to continue," Justice Elliot said.

The Juries Act 2000 states that a judge can choose to proceed with a trial using a reduced jury. However, a criminal trial cannot proceed with fewer than 10 jurors.
Following the news of the juror's dismissal in Ballarat, the trial was adjourned for the day.
It came a few minutes after the reduced jury took their seats on July 17.
Justice Elliot said: "Something has happened overnight which means the trial cannot proceed today."
Proceedings will continue on Friday morning.

Juror discharged in Lachlan Young's murder trial

The trial has been postponed for the day.

www.thecourier.com.au

 

[Spectrix]

Killer claims ex-partner hit her head during argument​

By Tara Cosoleto • AAP

Lachlan Young claims his ex-girlfriend hit her head on the floor and died after one of their arguments became physical.

Lachlan Young's barrister made the allegation as he questioned witness Benjamin O'Keefe over his involvement in Hannah McGuire's death.
O'Keefe told the Victorian Supreme Court he saw Young set fire to a Mitsubishi Triton early on April 5, 2024, and later learnt McGuire's body was inside.

Lachlan Young admitted to killing former partner Hannah McGuire. (Nine)


But barrister Glenn Casement claimed O'Keefe knew McGuire was in the ute because Young told him she was dead.
The lawyer said Young called O'Keefe at 2.53am on April 5 to say "something had happened".
When O'Keefe allegedly arrived at the Sebastopol home in regional Victoria, Young explained he had forcibly pushed McGuire during an argument.

McGuire was thrown to the ground and died after she hit her head on the bathroom floor, Casement claimed.
Young has admitted he killed McGuire but denied he murdered her, instead offering to plead guilty to manslaughter.

That offer was rejected by prosecutors at the start of his murder trial.
Casement claimed O'Keefe saw McGuire on the floor and devised a plan with Young to move her body to Scarsdale.
The lawyer alleged the pair drove in convoy to the remote bushland and, when they arrived, O'Keefe was the one to set fire to the Triton using his own blowtorch.
Casement claimed O'Keefe then lied about his involvement to avoid being charged as an accessory to murder.
O'Keefe was arrested and questioned over McGuire's death, but he was never charged.
He denied all of the defence allegations, repeatedly saying he never went to Young's home and did not know McGuire's body was in the ute.
O'Keefe also rejected the claim he was the one to start the fire, maintaining he stayed in his own car as Young lit the blaze.

Killer claims ex-partner hit her head during argument

An accused murderer claims his ex-girlfriend hit her head on the floor and died after one of their argument...

www.9news.com.au

 

[Marg944]

What gets me, is,, they talk about what they want to do... Robert Farquaharson spoke to his mate outside the fish shop when Cindy drove past in the 'good' car...how he was going to pay her back.,do something she'd never forget,, to the kids on Xmas day or Fathers day,etc.. .. same with this moron... tells his mate, and even bigger moron than Roberts mate, because this O'Keefe HELPED Lachlan,.. I mean, Rocket. what gets into them?

And we have Tyler Scott William James talking about what he wanted to do also….. who openly stated to people that “it would be much better if she wasn’t around anymore” before the murder of Kiesha Thompson.

IMO

 

[Trooper]

And we have Tyler Scott William James talking about what he wanted to do also….. who openly stated to people that “it would be much better if she wasn’t around anymore” before the murder of Kiesha Thompson.

IMO

Baden Clay just had to tell Madame Lash, his side chick ,how his problem would be fixed by a certain date... his problem being a wife and 3 kids... 'just until (insert date here )" Didn't Chris Dawson blither on to Joanna that it would all work out ,' she'd be gone..'. ( 'She' being his wife. and when he did murder her, he was confident enough to claim she would not be back ) ...

.....the fantasy grips them so hard they unconsciously give voice to it, it soothes them to say it.. it becomes part of their vocabulary, they often do not voice their plan to one person, sometimes it's a lot of people......it becomes routine, until it becomes fact...

Wierdly, like Tyler got Miss Sant to ;assist him, like Young got O'Keefe to assist him, they seem to persuade other people of the normality and necessity of this murder.....

Tyler is a real piece of work, ey Marg.....

 

[Trooper]

Lachlan Young pleads guilty to murdering Hannah McGuire

The admission was made on Friday.

www.thecourier.com.au

Looks like it isn't just a juror that has thrown in the towel, it appears Mr Young has capitulated to fact and has changed his plea..

This entitles him to somewhat of a discount on his final sentence, not much of a discount because he caused the Court to go thru all the panoply and rigmarole of a Supreme Court Trial, only to apparently have second thoughts in the middle of it.. If this report is correct, which is probably is... '

 

[Trooper]

Somewere along the line, the idea of claiming she hit her head ( after he pushed her) has faded a bit, along with the testimony of O'Keefe, which was damning of Young, and was not diluted by the spikey hammering of the defence barrister at all ... O'Keefe's story seemed to have the ring of truth to it, although it painted himself in a murky light... the atempt to inveigle O'Keefe into the 'accidental death' and then the 'accidental disposal' of her body seems to have failed..

So there it is... it seems the trial has ended and now it leaves the defence to give Young's closing statement, and then the Prosecutor will give his summation and closing statement, on behalf of Hannah, and then the judge will hand down his sentence,.... when the judge does this , he will go thru every element of the murder, assigning weight to each component and laying down the sentence acumulating.....

the verdict is, as they say, ALREADY IN, he is guilty of murder of Hannah..

 

[Trooper]

Ballarat man Lachlan Young pleads guilty to murder of Hannah McGuire

A man accused of killing Clunes woman Hannah McGuire has pleaded guilty to her murder mid-way through a murder trial, which has seen the jury discharged.

www.theage.com.au

A man accused of killing Clunes woman Hannah McGuire has pleaded guilty to her murder eight days into a criminal trial into her death.

There were dramatic scenes at the Victorian Supreme Court in Ballarat on Friday when the court was told the jury was being discharged after Lachlan Young, who was on trial for the murder of his former girlfriend, had decided to change his plea overnight.


Seems it is true, peoples....

Breaking: Lachlan Young pleads guilty to murder of Hannah McGuire

The man accused of murdering Clunes woman Hannah McGuire has entered a plea of guilty, eight days into his trial.

www.abc.net.au

The man accused of murdering young Clunes woman Hannah McGuire has entered a plea of guilty, eight days into his trial.

Lachlan Young, 23, had initially pleaded not guilty to murdering his ex-partner in April last year, and his offer to plead guilty to manslaughter was rejected by the prosecution.

The packed courtroom cheered wildly after the 23-year-old was taken from the courtroom following his guilty plea.

He will return to court at later date.

 

[Trooper]

Young and his barristers took a gamble when they rejected the original offer made by the DPP and VICPOL to plead guilty to murder... he would have been entitled to a 15% or even 20% discount on his sentence ( although murder is a life sentence, the matter of parole is indicated in the discount stuff ) and because of his age he might have got a considerable discounted sentence, like parole at about 60 or something...

But he went for broke and lost , not only lost case,, but lost the discount and is subject to the full weight of the law AND loses the right to appeal, etc...

so faretheewell, Lachlan Young you nasty piece of work.

 

[Scooby-Doo]

BREAKING..

A young man accused of murdering his former partner in regional Victoria has suddenly changed his plea to guilty mid-trial.

Lachlan Young, now 23, has been on trial in the Victorian Supreme Court in Ballarat over the murder of Hannah McGuire on April 5, 2024.

He had pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter, admitting he did kill her and burnt her body in her own car, since the trial began on July 9.

'No other result would have been fitting': Cheers as man admits to murdering ex-partner

www.9news.com.au