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A Supreme Court jury has heard that Jesse Baird's housemate thought red liquid under two surfboard bags in their Paddington courtyard was rusted water, as former police officer Beau Lamarre-Condon stands trial for the alleged murders of Baird and Luke Davies.
A former housemate of Jesse Baird saw two surfboard bags covered by a tarpaulin in their Paddington courtyard and thought a red liquid underneath was rusted water, a jury has heard.
Lamarre-Condon Pleads Not Guilty to Murder Charges
Former police officer Beau Lamarre-Condon has pleaded not guilty to murdering Mr Baird and Luke Davies at Mr Baird's shared Paddington terrace in Sydney's east in February 2024. The 31-year-old is accused of shooting the couple with his police service pistol before disposing of their bodies in surfboard bags. Through his lawyers, he has raised an argument of self defence.
The jury has heard Mr Baird was due to move out around the time because his two housemates wanted another friend to move in. The Crown alleges Mr Baird and Mr Davies were shot in the home on the morning of February 19, 2024, after the housemates had left for work. One of those flatmates, known during the proceedings as Belinda Smith, recalled on Thursday that she came home about 5:30pm and noticed items in their backyard.
I saw two surfboard bags, with a blue tarp over the top of them and red liquid, Ms Smith said. She told the NSW Supreme Court she sent a photo of the items to her other housemate, known as Sarah King. The photo was shown to the jury.
Crown Prosecutor Brett Hatfield SC asked whether she had ever seen the items before, whether she had ever seen any surfboards at the home, and whether Mr Baird had ever spoken about surfing. She answered no to each question. Asked what she thought the red liquid was, Ms Smith said she believed it was rusted water from the outdoor furniture.
She said it was at some point on Tuesday, the following day, that she noticed the surfboard bags had been cleared. The Crown's case is that after the alleged murders, Mr Lamarre-Condon immediately cleaned the property and used two surfboard bags to store the men's bodies, wrapped in a tarpaulin. He is alleged to have returned later to move them with a hired vehicle.
House Tensions Escalate Before February Shooting
In early 2024, relations had soured between Baird and his two housemates after they asked him to move out so one of their friends could take the spot. Baird eventually agreed and told their house group chat he would be moving out on 20 February 2024. Baird and Davies were fatally shot on 19 February.
When Smith left for work on the morning of the 20th and saw Baird's belongings had not been packed up, she sent a message to King that read: I'm genuinely scared this dude isn't moving out today. A message was then sent from Baird's phone to their housemate group chat claiming he had hired someone to collect his things and that he might be doing a road trip to Perth with my mates.
The message said he had hired an Airtasker to come and collect my things and had to get someone with a van to move his bed. It also said he may be doing a road trip to Perth but would be back at the end of that week. Smith responded she was confused and asked him to have his room emptied because cleaners would be arriving the following day.
A response from Baird's phone asked what time the cleaners had been booked. Afterwards, a number of Baird's items were removed from his room. The Crown has previously told jurors it is alleged Mr Lamarre-Condon used Mr Baird's phone after his death to give the impression he was still alive. The court heard the men's bodies were ultimately found at a rural area at Bungonia, south of Sydney, in surfboard bags.
Crime Scene Evidence Examined at Rural Monastery
The current article says five days later; the ABC reports eight days after the alleged murders. The bodies were found on the fence line of a rural monastery. In the second week of the trial, jurors were shown dozens of crime scene photographs and heard evidence from Senior Sergeant Bronwyn Lansley, a specialist crime scene officer who examined the home.
The Crown alleges Mr Lamarre-Condon shot Mr Baird in the property after stalking him, following a brief romance which Mr Baird regarded as more casual. He is alleged to have shot Mr Davies through a bedroom door because he was a witness to Mr Baird's alleged murder. The defence has flagged an argument of self defence, and said it was their client's case that two separate struggles involving the gun resulted in the two deaths.
Defence Raises Self-Defence and DNA Dispute
In a defence opening, Mr Lamarre-Condon's lawyers said it would be their case that Mr Davies accidentally shot himself during the second struggle. Under cross-examination by defence counsel John Stratton SC today, Senior Sergeant Lansley was asked about the results of a DNA analysis after the trigger of Mr Lamarre-Condon's pistol, along with other parts of the gun, was swabbed.
She confirmed there was a mixture of DNA from at least three individuals, and Mr Davies could not be excluded as a major contributor to the mixture, and the accused could not be excluded as the minor contributor to the mixture. The jury has seen dozens of photographs of items found in a skip bin at a Cronulla bowls club, found by a grounds keeper days after the alleged murders.
They included bedding and clothing stained with blood, AFL goal umpire flags, unopened AFL branded clothing and personal possessions. The grounds keeper notified police, who then attended Mr Baird's home and found three cleaners who had been organised because Mr Baird was moving out, the court has heard. Beau Lamarre-Condon has pleaded not guilty to two counts of domestic violence-related murder and one charge of aggravated break and enter.
The current article states he has pleaded not guilty to two counts of murder and one charge of aggravated break and enter.
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abcnews:This story was compiled and edited by the HeadTopics newsroom and HT AI from the reports above.
Jesse Baird Beau Lamarre-Condon Murder Trial Court Testimony Paddington Luke Davies Paddington Murders NSW Supreme Court
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