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underneath and, as always, Caitlin brushed them off with humility, saying she was fine and not to worry. She even wrote that Sturt was doing the chores and cooking to help her out while she recuperated.
But around a month after the operation, Sturt was in a bad place. He told Caitlin that he believed the neighbours were worshipping Satan and that she herself was a devil. Sturt even said he thought he was Jesus and made her eat an apple so she could be ‘enlightened’ like Adam and Eve.
On June 23, Caitlin was so worried about Sturt’s behaviour that she called the police. He was clearly in the middle of a psychotic episode and she was scared. Sturt was taken to The Alfred hospital, where Caitlin worked, and was detained under the Mental Health Act as he was assessed. With Sturt in hospital, Caitlin believed she had a few days to finally escape; to move out and find somewhere safe away from him. She contacted an old boyfriend and asked if she ‘ran away’ could she stay with him. ‘I’m just scared to be around him,’ she messaged. ‘He’s not making sense at all.’
But it was impossible to understand the urgency of the situation. Her ex said that if she still felt that way at the weekend, and they had broken up, she could get an Uber to his.
Meanwhile, Sturt messaged Caitlin. ‘I would never hurt you,’ he wrote. ‘I hope so. I get scared,’ she replied. ‘Of what?’ he asked. ‘Of you murdering me,’ she wrote back. Caitlin thought she had time to get away but after a few hours, doctors released Sturt. He had somehow convinced them that he wasn’t a threat and he returned to Caitlin’s flat.
Then, on June 25, Sturt shared a series of strange and worrying messages on Facebook. There were ramblings about ‘sacrifice being beautiful but only ever for the right reasons’. Another message said, ‘You can’t rape humanity away.’ He also posted a video of a stand-up routine by Owen Benjamin called How To Be Married And Not Be Murdered. Sturt was in a druginduced psychotic state and his fixation was Caitlin.
EVIL ACT
Caitlin was sitting on her bed when Sturt went in and started talking about the end of the world. He pulled off her trousers and held her down, but she fought him off and ran to the bathroom where she armed herself with a pair of scissors. Sturt overpowered her and took the scissors and, as they struggled, he plunged the scissors into Caitlin up to five times. Then he held her down on the bed and smothered her with a pillow. Fearing she might still be alive, he strangled her with a pair of tracksuit bottoms. Within 36 hours of promising not to hurt her, Caitlin was dead.
Sturt took a shower, left Caitlin’s credit card on her chest – to signify ‘you don’t owe me any more’. Then he headed to the police station. Outside, he told officers to arrest him. ‘I just killed my girlfriend,’ he said. ‘No, you didn’t,’ they replied. But when they went to Caitlin’s flat and broke down the door, they found her dead on the bed. The tracksuit bottoms were still wrapped tightly around her neck.
Sturt told police that killing Caitlin was ‘necessary’ and ‘felt like the right thing to do’. When he was told he would be charged with murder, he simply replied, ‘Cool.’
GUILTY
In March this year, Sturt, now 33, pleaded guilty to murder. His legal team had considered an insanity defence, but apparently Sturt felt he deserved to be punished.
While Sturt’s mental health issues were a factor, a psychologist also insisted that throughout their relationship he used ‘various coercive behaviours, including violence, threats of violence and threats of suicide’. Sturt told doctors that using cannabis was ‘like a cure-all’ and it made him treat ‘Cait better’. But it was clear it only worsened his delusions. Caitlin had also been failed by the system, despite trying to get help countless times for the violence she was suffering.
PRISON
In June, Sturt was sentenced to
22 years in prison. He will serve
16 years before being eligible for parole. The judge told Sturt that Caitlin’s life had been cut tragically short. ‘You murdered her in her own home, a place where she should’ve been safe,’ he said, adding, ‘It was not a one-off incident of domestic violence.’
The judge also said that using cannabis had been Sturt’s choice, even though there were other, safer options to control his anxiety, so couldn’t be used as an excuse for his actions. ‘You were aware that cannabis might cause you to become violently psychotic,’ he said. Sturt looked tearful when the judge read a statement by Caitlin’s mum, who described losing part of her soul when her daughter died.
Outside the court, Caitlin’s sister, Martine, said she hopes Sturt uses his time in prison to rehabilitate. ‘That’s what my sister would’ve wanted. She would have wanted him to get better,’ she said. ‘She would have wanted him to get help. And I really hope that he does that.’
Sturt was held accountable for his actions after systematically abusing Caitlin for years. Caitlin had just survived major surgery and had battled for her life, but she had no idea that she had already lost the fight.
Within 36 hours of Sturt promising not to hurt her, Caitlin was dead