A jury at Brisbane Supreme Court has heard allegations that former RAAF pilot Robert John Crawford staged the scene of his wife’s death after allegedly strangling her at their property near Toowoomba.
Crawford, who has pleaded not guilty to murder, is accused of toppling a ride-on lawnmower over a retaining wall and placing Frances Elizabeth Crawford beside it in an attempt to conceal the killing. Paramedics attended the scene at about 3.30am on July 30, 2024, finding her in her pyjamas.
Prosecutor Chris Cook told the court that Frances was already dead, dying or unconscious when she was moved into position. The allegations form part of a case expected to run for three weeks.
The prosecution described the Crawfords’ marriage as deeply troubled, with both parties wanting it to end by the time of Frances’s death. The couple had attended counselling, while Robert Crawford was alleged to have had multiple infidelities.
Jurors heard that Frances had told her sister only days before her death that she wished her husband would die in a car crash. The comment was said to reflect her frustration with his alleged infidelity and emotional abuse.
Marriage breakdown and alleged financial motive
The court heard that a divorce could have had serious financial consequences for Crawford. He had planned to retire at 50, while the couple’s property was conservatively valued at $2 million.
Frances’s life insurance was valued at a further $860,000, and Crawford was the sole beneficiary of her will, jurors were told. The prosecution alleged that a costly divorce settlement would have forced him to return to work.
Cook described Crawford as a “Top Gun” in his professional life but alleged that he had been a “terrible husband”.
Frances was also said to have kept close watch on her husband and set out extensive conditions for remaining in the marriage. These allegedly included polygraph tests, church attendance and receipts for spending of more than $30, including on food and groceries.
The court heard that Crawford allegedly told a lover he could defeat a polygraph test. Other alleged conditions included household chores as consequences for breaking the rules, while masturbation was described as a “deal breaker”.
Defence barrister Saul Holt KC argued that the prosecution’s circumstantial case was far from complete. He told the jury it amounted to a “1000-piece jigsaw” but said they had so far been shown only six pieces, which were of the wrong shape.
Holt said text messages exchanged between the couple late on the night of Frances’s death would be crucial to the defence case.
The trial is being heard before Justice Lincoln Crowley and is due to resume on Thursday.
