Last call from phone came after gunshots
GRISLY DETAILS EMERGE IN ALLEGED MURDER
A triple-0 call was made from the phone of dead television presenter Jesse Baird four minutes after gunshots were heard in Paddington, but the call dropped out and was never followed up by police.
Startling new information about the alleged murders of former Channel 10 star Mr Baird and his boyfriend Luke Davies was shared with the media on Monday, as police revealed the accused killer Constable Beau Lamarre-Condon made partial admissions about the alleged killing to a former cop a day later.
NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Dave Hudson said a witness nearby Mr Baird’s Sydney home believes they heard “one, possibly several” gunshots at 9.50am last Monday.
Mr Hudson said then four minutes later, a triple-0 call was made from the mobile phone of Mr Baird.
“I can indicate on Monday, four minutes after the first shots were fired, there was a triple-0 call made from Jesse’s phone, however it disconnected,” Mr Hudson said.
He said it was too soon in the investigation to know who made the call, or if it was possible Mr Baird called for help in his dying moments.
In more chilling new details, police allege Constable Lamarre-Condon left Sydney on Wednesday in a rented Toyota Hiace van, but stopped in Goulburn to purchase an angle grinder, padlock and weights.
Mr Hudson said a female acquaintance, who is assisting police, was in the car with the alleged killer but he said she was unaware there were probably two bodies in the back.
“The angle grinder was used to shear a padlock from that particular rural property (in Bungonia, southwest of Sydney) and subsequently that padlock was replaced with a padlock purchased from the hardware store,” he said.
Police officer Beau Lamarre-Condon was arrested on Friday and has been charged with the murder of the Sydney couple.
Specialist police divers were searching multiple dams on that property for the remains of the two men, although Mr Hudson said police fear the accused killer could have returned in the night and moved them elsewhere.
NSW Police Assistant Commissioner of State Crime Michael Fitzgerald arrived on scene early on Monday morning, joining homicide detectives and specialist police.
At least 10 riot squad police officers began a line search for evidence across the property, using rakes to work their way through the grass paddock.
By about 1pm, the specialist divers were set to pack up and leave the property within the hour.
Multiple riot squad vehicles had already left the rural property, alongside Assistant Commissioner Fitzgerald, and turned their attention to CCTV footage at nearby petrol stations and rest-stops near Goulburn.
Police have said officers were likely to continue doing routine property line searches throughout Monday afternoon once the divers exited the water.
They won’t be returning to the dams.
Investigators seized a small boat from the back dam for forensic examination just after midday, however there was no indication the tinny was linked to the case.
It is understood police have not located any bodies at this stage.