Motive for murdering his business partner not clear

THE loved ones of a Melbourne woman may never know the motive for her murder in a “frenzied stabbing attack” by a man she considered family.

On the morning of July 25, 2017, Peter Pavlis – the founder of established food brand The Muesli Company – fatally stabbed his business partner Jennifer Borchardt six times in her Richmond home.

He tried to clean the crime scene and pretended to colleagues that he was concerned about Ms Borchardt’s absence from work.

The same afternoon, Ms Borchardt’s partner returned home to “find the lifeless body of the woman he loved”.

The reason Pavlis killed the 49-year-old still remained “opaque”, Supreme Court of Victoria Justice Lesley Taylor said during a sentencing hearing yesterday.

Pavlis was sentenced to 17 years’ imprisonment, with a non-parole period of 12 years,.

Justice Taylor admitted there was a “very real chance” Pavlis would die in jail.

“We are pleased with the result today and glad the court has recognised that Peter Pavlis is a cold-blooded murderer,” Ms Borchardt’s niece Carlie Smith said outside the court.

“All those years of hard work and dedication and that was the thanks that she received – to be buried in a grave early.”