Murder case delayed
Defence waiting for police to file paperwork
THE legal team defending the man accused of murdering Toowoomba man Thor Morgan are waiting for investigators to file a crucial ballistics and pathology reports before the case can move forward.
Brad Skuse made a brief appearance in Toowoomba Magistrates Court on behalf of Lachlan Mark Freund who faces one count each of murder, arson, unlawful possession of a weapon, and unlawful use of a motor vehicle.
Mr Skuse asked the court for an adjournment as to give police time to produce the necessary reports. Police prosecutor Chris Willson said the paperwork was close to being finalised.
“The ballistic statement is currently under peer review and is expected in the next four to six weeks, and there is also the statement from the pathologist, which is expected in the new year,” he said. “I am told there are two outstanding police statements, but I am told they are of no great importance.”
Magistrate Louise Shephard accepted the submissions and adjourned the matter to January 27, 2023.
The 24-year-old has been remanded in custody since his arrest in August.
Police will allege Mr Freund was in a stolen Ford Ranger ute that tracked Mr Morgan as he left his girlfriend’s Coonan St home about 2.30am on March 15. Mr Freund is alleged to have fired several rounds from a lever-action rifle, one of which hit Mr Morgan in the head as he drove along Ruthven St near Downlands College.
Mr Morgan walked back to his girlfriend’s home despite the wound and an ambulance was called.
He was taken to Toowoomba Hospital where doctors located a bullet lodged in his brain.
Mr Morgan died in the Princess Alexandra Hospital on May 16.
Police charged Mr Freund with murder on August 18 after they found the suspected murder weapon at the bottom of the Condamine River on July 26.
Three days after his arrest, police charged his partner Isobel Rose Higgins, 24, with being an accessory after the fact of murder. Police will allege she provided a false alibi to cover up Mr Freund’s alleged role in the murder.
Goondiwindi woman Tina Kathleen Hazard, 36, has also been charged with murder, unlawful possession of weapons and unlawful use of a motor vehicle. She remains in custody, while Ms Higgins was granted bail. None of the three have been required to enter a plea.