source : the age
Warning: Graphic content
Beau Lamarre-Condon told police he wanted to “do the right thing” by the families of Sydney couple Jesse Baird and Luke Davies by giving a statement accusing a former friend of helping him to dispose of their bodies, a court has heard.
Lamarre-Condon is standing trial in the NSW Supreme Court over the alleged murders of Baird, 26, a former Network Ten producer and presenter, and Davies, 29, a Qantas flight attendant, on February 19, 2024. The former NSW Police officer has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
In a statement to police on June 5, 2025, read in court on Tuesday, the accused implicated his former friend, dubbed Elizabeth Kennedy in the proceedings, in a plan to dispose of the men’s bodies on February 21.
Kennedy has told the court that she was unaware when Lamarre-Condon took her on a drive to Bungonia, near Goulburn, that the men’s bodies were in the back of the white van and did not help him to dispose of them.
The court has heard Kennedy accompanied Lamarre-Condon to a Bunnings in Goulburn during the trip, where he asked her to buy an angle grinder.
She testified that he used the tool to cut the padlock on a rural property nearby, and explained to her that he knew the owners of the farm and had to break in and help with cattle. She waited near the gate and did not accompany him any further, Kennedy said.
“I noticed she flat-out lied to police in her statement regarding her involvement,” Lamarre-Condon said in his statement.
“In June 2025 I had discussions with my lawyers about what pleas I’m considering entering.
“This is when I made the decision that if I’m going to be honest about everything I need to tell the whole truth, including what part Elizabeth played in the incident.
“I then instructed my solicitors to make contact with the DPP and officer in charge to inform them that I’m willing to assist with a statement regarding Elizabeth’s involvement in the matter.
“I also wanted to do the right thing for the families as they deserve to know the truth too.”
Lamarre-Condon said he was honest with Kennedy about the men’s bodies being in the back of the van and lifted the tarpaulin to show her Baird’s head “protruding out of a single surfboard bag”.
He said he started crying and said: “I should just drive straight to the police now, shouldn’t I?”
The accused also said that he warned Kennedy that she could be charged as an accessory if she helped him. He said Kennedy told him that “this is like Taylor Swift’s song, No Body, No Crime” and they had to dispose of the bodies.
She played the song on her phone during the drive and “began laughing about the situation”, Lamarre-Condon said. “Elizabeth then told me I had to sneak her into the Taylor Swift concert I was due to work at that weekend as a reward for her helping me,” he said.
Kennedy has denied that account, and said it was Lamarre-Condon who played the song.
The accused said in his statement that the pair had attempted to dispose of the men’s bodies by sinking them in a dam at the rural property, but were unsuccessful. Kennedy had told him to buy them overalls and masks before the trip, he said.
He said they put the men in a second layer of surfboard bags and Kennedy had slashed one of the bags with a knife when it would not sink.
“This is where Luke got the knife wounds in his leg,” the accused said of forensic evidence suggesting Davies had been stabbed twice in his thigh around the time of death or after death.
Lamarre-Condon said they drove back to Sydney when their plan failed, leaving the bodies behind. He said he was worried that he wasn’t going to be able to lift the bodies by himself and Kennedy suggested her partner could help.
He said she called him and he “agreed he would return to the farm with me when I dropped Elizabeth home”, while Kennedy has said he was asleep when she got home.
Lamarre-Condon said Kennedy’s partner came outside to the van after she ran inside to get him torches, but did not refer to any further alleged involvement by him.
Police found the men’s bodies near the fence line of a Greek monastery in Bungonia on February 27.
There is no dispute Baird and Davies died on February 19 from gunshot wounds from Lamarre-Condon’s police-issued Glock pistol, and that the accused tried to sink their bodies in the dam before leaving them at the nearby property.
While the Crown alleges Baird’s murder was premeditated and Lamarre-Condon killed Davies to eliminate a witness, the defence case is that both men died accidentally in a struggle and Davies shot himself.
The Crown alleges Lamarre-Condon plotted to kill Baird after developing an infatuation with him that escalated when Baird ended their casual relationship in November 2023.
According to the defence, Lamarre-Condon acted in self-defence after entering Baird’s Paddington home disguised as a delivery rider to retrieve some of his belongings. He panicked, the defence says, and disposed of the bodies days later.
The trial continues.
Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732) or the Men’s Referral Service on 1300 766 491.
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.
