Accused helped to bury bodies, Court told

Press, 16 February 1984, Page 6

Accused helped to bury bodies, Court told

NZPA-AAP Sydney A man, aged 29, charged over the murder of two “Mr Asia” drug couriers, told police that he had helped the boss of the drugs syndicate, Alexander James Sinclair, bury the couple’s bodies in bushland outside Sydney, a Court was told yesterday. The body of Gregory 01lard was found by police in August, 1982, at Cottage Point in the Ku-ring-gai National Park and the body of his girlfriend, Julie Theilman, was found three days later at Victoria Falls in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney. Both bodies were headless when found by the police.

In Glebe Court of Petty Sessions yesterday, a Magistrate, Ms Margaret Sleeman, ordered the suppression of the name and address of a man charged over the couple’s death which occurred on September 14, 1977. The defendant was charged in August last year with the murder of Julie Theilman and with being an accessory after the fact to the death of Gregory Ollard. Counsel for the defendant, Mr John Shields, told the Court yesterday that the “Mr Asia” matter had received a lot of publicity and his client feared for his personal safety. The matter had been the

subject of attention not only through the findings of the Royal Commission conducted by Mr Justice Stewart, but also through the death of Sinclair on August 13 last year.

The defendant believed that there were still people about “who would be interested in dealing with him — his evidence in the Royal Commission probably helped Mr Justice Stewart more than that of anyone else,” Mr Shields told the Court.

During cross-examination by Mr Shields, Detective Michael Coughlin, who interviewed the defendant in July, 1983, in Perth and in August, 1983, in Sydney, said that the defendant had told him, “I helped Clark (Sinclair) to bury Greg’s body and I was with him when he shot Julie at the mountain.” Mr Shields said that two weeks after Sinclair had died the defendant had been called to Sydney to give evidence in an extradition case and met the detective in a Sydney hotel.

Mr Shields asked Detective Coughlin if he had told the defendant “now that Terry (Sinclair) is no longer a threat you are in the best position to give yourself up and this would make it easier for you.” Detective Coughlin denied he had said this.

Mr Shields asked Detective Coughlin if he was aware Sinclair was “a particularly violent man.”

“It was common knowledge that he was arrested in England after he left

Australia and charged with the murder of Christopher Martin Johnstone, and in fact after a long trial was convicted of that murder and sentenced to life imprisonment?” Detective Coughlin agreed. Sinclair died on August 13, 1983, in Parkhurst Prison on the Isle of Wight.

The Court was told later in the day by Detective Sergeant Desmond Johnson, attached to the homicide squad, that he had received information on August 13, 1982, which had led to the findings of the remains of the body of Miss Theilman in the Mount Victoria area.

On August 16 he had received more information which had led him to find the shallow grave of Mr Ollard at Cottage Point.

Detective Johnson said he had interviewed the defendant on August 26 the next year and had obtained a number of statements relating to the death of the pair. He alleged that the defendant had told him he had “come to get it off his mind.” The defendant took the detective and other police to the site of both graves and described how he had been involved in the deaths of the couple.

He was then taken to Manly police station where he was charged in connection with the pair’s death. Ms Sleeman granted the continuation of bail for the defendant.

The committal hearing will continue today.