Cold-case killer gets life sentence
Robyn Wuth and Cheryl Goodenough |
Gregory James Thurlow was no angel but would have turned into a good family man if given the opportunity, his uncle says.
Instead his life was taken away when flatmate Mark Stephen Murphy bashed the 27-year-old’s head repeatedly with a hammer in north Brisbane more than 25 years ago.
After escaping punishment since murdering Mr Thurlow on October 2, 1996, “justice has eventually been done” in the Brisbane Supreme Court.
Murphy sobbed quietly in the dock on Wednesday while waiting to learn his fate – wiping tears on his T-shirt and refusing to glance at a packed public gallery.
He wept openly as he pleaded guilty on the single charge of murder.
Mr Thurlow’s uncle Ray was emotional outside court, saying it was hard to hear what transpired after his nephew vanished all those years ago.
Mr Thurlow was last seen alive leaving a Bray Park home in a green 1980 VC Holden Commodore sedan with Murphy the day before his death.
The night before, he had been picked up by police and spent the night in the Brisbane watchhouse.
Murphy was livid with his housemate, later telling police Mr Thurlow was a nuisance who brought unnecessary attention to the house.
The pair drank and injected drugs at a friend’s house before Murphy’s rage erupted as they drove home and he decided his flatmate had to die.
“He (Murphy) described Thurlow as a petty criminal … he was disruptive, selfish, loud and obnoxious,” prosecutor Todd Fuller told the court.
Murphy hit Mr Thurlow once on the side of the head with a hammer that had been hidden under the car seat.
Mr Thurlow leapt from the car, trying to escape, but became snared in a barbed-wire fence.
Murphy caught up to him, smashing Mr Thurlow a second time in the forehead, knocking him unconscious.
He stuffed Mr Thurlow’s body in the car’s boot, but struck the housemate again in response to his moaning.
“In his description to finish him off, leaving him silent and covered in blood,” Mr Fuller said.
Mr Thurlow’s body remained wrapped in plastic in the trunk for “two or three days” before Murphy drove to a state forest near Inskip Point north of Brisbane to dispose of it.
Murphy married and had three daughters, but was always a suspect in Mr Thurlow’s disappearance.
He was finally arrested by cold case investigators in 2020.
Murphy’s lawyer said his client is “deeply remorseful”.
“His actions have caused them endless grief and pain, and he understands that nothing he says can ease their suffering,” he added.
Ray Thurlow said the court proceedings finally brought closure to the family after more than two decades.
But Mr Thurlow’s parents had died always holding out hope their son was still alive and would walk through the door.
“There was probably that doubt, but I think they wanted to hold that belief,” Ray Thurlow told reporters outside court.
“It’s probably kind that they’ve since passed and not learned what had actually happened to him.”
Ray Thurlow said his nephew was no angel and had his problems at the time.
“But he had a good family and I think he would have turned into a good man and a good family man had he been given the opportunity, but that was taken away,” he added.
Justice Peter Applegarth sentenced Murphy to life in prison, saying: “Justice has eventually been done.”
AAP
