The double murder trial of former police officer Beau Lamarre-Condon has heard that he allegedly placed the bodies of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies in surfboard bags before trying to dispose of them.
Lamarre-Condon, 31, denies murdering his former partner Baird, 26, and Davies, 29. He says both men died from gunshot wounds during separate violent struggles and that he acted in self-defence.
The then-senior constable allegedly entered Baird’s Sydney terrace in February 2024 carrying his police pistol and wearing a heavy disguise. After the deaths on February 19, he is alleged to have cleaned the property before leaving the bodies in bags in the courtyard at the Paddington home.
Baird, a television presenter, had been due to move into a new house the following day. He was reported missing, and the court heard that his housemates were puzzled when they saw two surfboard bags among his belongings on February 21.
One housemate, known in the proceedings as Sarah King, told Detective Senior Constable Alistair Wright that the bags did not belong to her or another housemate known as Belinda.
“They’re not mine and they’re not Belinda’s,” Ms King said, according to evidence heard by the jury. “(Jesse’s) never had surfboards here and he’s never spoken about surfing.”
The women became more concerned after noticing red liquid leaking from the bags. They initially thought it could be rust, with Ms King showing the detective a photograph of the liquid.
“I don’t know if this has anything to do with it,” she told him. “I don’t know if I’m overreacting.”
The bags containing the bodies were allegedly moved by Lamarre-Condon later that night. He is accused of subsequently taking the men’s bodies to a rural Greek monastery after an unsuccessful attempt to sink them in a dam south of Sydney. He later handed himself in to police.
Alleged conversation about disposing of a body
The jury also heard evidence about an alleged conversation between Lamarre-Condon and former friend Georgia Cook, said to have taken place nine months before the deaths.
Ms Cook told the court that Lamarre-Condon had asked what she would do with a body during a hypothetical discussion about killing someone.
“After I killed them, I would take their stuff, I would put it in a dumpster and I would take their bodies to bushland where no one would ever find them,” he allegedly told her.
Lamarre-Condon’s lawyers deny that the conversation took place. Ms Cook told the court: “I could never forget those words being said to me.”
The jury has also heard evidence about Lamarre-Condon’s alleged jealousy in the months before the killings. Former colleague Kate McKinley said he had told her he would access Baird’s phone and interfere with his social media and contacts.
“I thought ‘that’s pretty f***ing crazy’,” Ms McKinley said. “He was jealous and he was annoyed and pissed off.”
Another witness, who was among the last people to see Baird and Davies alive, said they had been in high spirits just hours before the shootings. The pair had announced their relationship on social media 10 days earlier and had plans to see friends later that week.
In the days after their deaths, Baird’s social media account remained active. Friend Daniel Hart sent a message asking: “Hello is your wife alive?”
The account replied: “Hello haha he did smash his phone screen Monday so idk if he’s got that fixed yet.” The court was told Lamarre-Condon was alleged to have been behind the response.
Detective Senior Constable Wright is due to be cross-examined when the trial resumes on Tuesday.
