Guilty verdicts in Glenys Heyward Supreme Court murder trial

ALMOST three years after the "unthinkable betrayal" of his mother, justice finally caught up with Matthew Reginald Wills Heyward at 12.11pm yesterday.

ALMOST three years after the "unthinkable betrayal" of his mother, justice finally caught up with Matthew Reginald Wills Heyward at 12.11pm yesterday.

Amid dramatic scenes in the Mt Gambier Supreme Court, Heyward and farmhand Jeremy Adam Minter were convicted of the murder of Glenys Heyward.

Last night, Heyward, 22, and Minter, 28, were behind bars as they began mandatory life terms.

Glenys's family said while they were pleased with the verdicts, nothing could ease the torment they have endured since her disappearance on July 23, 2007.

"There's really no winner is there? It didn't bring Glenys back," said her brother, Richard Childs.

As the jury delivered its ruling after nine hours of deliberation, Matthew seemed to fight back tears in the realisation he is likely to be in prison until his early 40s.

Under SA law, convicted murderers must serve at least 20 years before becoming eligible for parole, unless a judge finds special reasons to grant a lower period.

An ashen-faced Minter stared straight ahead as he learnt his identical fate seconds later. His devastated mother shook uncontrollably in the public gallery.

Justice Michael David called for silence in court after gasps from the public gallery as tears flowed down the faces of several jurors.

Just minutes earlier, Matthew walked into the courthouse for the final time, unsure from which door he would be leaving.

He had been on bail since about a week after his arrest on November 30, 2007 - hours after his mother's bound body was unearthed from a septic pit at Wilkin, 48km from Mt Gambier.

The six men and six women of the jury all rejected Matthew's and Minter's claims they were unwitting participants in the plot to murder Glenys and had been duped into playing their parts by an evil Neil Heyward.

Mr Childs said he was still upset Neil was not in court alongside his son and former employee because he committed suicide in prison last year awaiting trial.

Several of Glenys's family were in court for almost the entire seven-week trial, enduring shocking accounts of her years of abuse at the hands of Neil Heyward, leading up to her deception by her "trusted" son and her terrible final moments.

A forensic pathologist outlined a litany of injuries including two fatal skull fractures which Heyward inflicted on his former partner in the darkness at Wilkin.

"Extremely hard, extremely hard, to hear the injuries that she received," Mr Childs said.

The jury was satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Matthew Heyward lured his mother to a vacant Mt Gambier childcare centre on the night of July 23, 2007, knowing his father planned to kill or do serious harm to her.

He left his mother with his father and Minter, who restrained, assaulted, bound and gagged Glenys before stuffing her into a wheelie bin, which was then put on to the back of a ute.

In the weeks after his mother's disappearance, Matthew told Major Crime detectives his mother had left for a holiday in Melbourne, and denied taking her to the Pick Ave house.

He changed his account several times during police interviews and denied using ex-girlfriend Megan Gibbs' car to drop off a jacket belonging to his mother near the Mt Gambier McDonald's.

However, when he took to the witness stand, Matthew told the jury he had tricked his mother into going to Pick Ave. He said he had no idea his father planned to seriously harm or kill her and that he believed he was helping his parents by facilitating a face-to-face meeting for them to discuss a property settlement.

Director of Public Prosecutions Stephen Pallaras, QC, told the jury Neil Heyward's motives to murder his former partner included her claim for $2 million of the family's $6.9 million estate, jealousy and anger at her leaving him, and Glenys's possession of 11 photographs of him having sex with an underage girl.

The jury also rejected Minter's claims that he was too "stoned" on cannabis to realise a murder was unfolding as he restrained Glenys Heyward at Pick Ave as his boss kicked her in the face.

Minter - who tried to find a hitman for Neil Heyward - told the jury he still believed no harm would come to Glenys even after watching his boss shackle her hands and feet, gag her and thrust her into a green wheelie bin.

Minter said after helping Neil lift the wheelie bin into the ute, he was dropped off at a property just out of Mt Gambier where the Heywards' eldest son, Thomas, was waiting for them.

Thomas Heyward - who was originally charged alongside his father, brother and Minter - made his first appearance in court yesterday. He stared ahead and did not reply to a barrage of questions as he walked from the court alone.

The murder charge against Thomas was dropped when Chief Magistrate Elizabeth Bolton ruled there was insufficient evidence.

Mr Pallaras declined to speculate whether the murder charge would be reinstated against Thomas or whether he could face further charges. He described the case as a tragedy for all involved.

"There were never any winners, two young men have now lost a good part of their future and of course the family have suffered terribly," Mr Pallaras said. "It's just a tragic case all round and it's good to be finished with it."

Mr Childs praised the efforts of police and prosecutors.

"It's been a long time, two years and eight months, but there's been a lot of work put in by all the police," he said.

Mr Childs rejected a submission made by Matthew Heyward's lawyer, Grant Algie, SC, that Neil Heyward had "balanced the ledger" of justice by committing suicide.

"Definitely not, we still haven't got Glenys back and never will," Mr Childs said.

Glenys Heyward's new partner, Chris Sigston, who spoke to her on the phone less than an hour before she was lured to her death, said he was pleased with the verdicts but unsure of his feelings towards Matthew.

"I don't really know, honestly, I think he got what he deserved anyway, he was the bait, he was the bait," Mr Sigston said.

Matthew Heyward's legal team made no comment as they left court but Minter's lawyer, Nick Vadasz, said it was likely his client would appeal against the verdict.

Matthew Heyward and Minter will be back in court for submissions on the setting of a non-parole period in the coming months.