Sick texts, murder rehearsals: Lilie James inquest key moments

Paul Thijssen practised how he’d kill her, tracked and stalked her, sent texts from her phone as she lay dead in a pool of blood. These are grim revelations from the Lilie James coronial inquest.

A three-day coronial inquest detailed how Lilie James’ killer rehearsed how he would ambush her at least three times before he beat her to death with a hammer in the bathroom of an elite Sydney private school.

It was this gruesome evidence and many other chilling revelations that were revealed over a three-day inquest into the much-loved water polo coach’s death.

REHEARSAL FOR MURDER

Dutch citizen Paul Thijssen, 24, beat his 21-year-old colleague and ex-girlfriend Ms James to death with a hammer in a bathroom at St Andrew’s Cathedral School in Sydney’s CBD just after 7pm on October 25, 2023.

Chilling videos played to the court showed how Thijssen prepared how he would kill Ms James on at least three occasions prior to her brutal murder.

HISTORY OF STALKING

The inquest detailed Thijssen’s disturbing history of stalking Ms James on at least seven occasions in the week leading up to her murder, including taking photos of cars outside her home and tracking her on social media using the Snap Map feature on Snapchat.

Sickening texts sent to Lilie's father from her phone by her killer, Paul Thijssen, as she lay dead in a pool of blood. Pictures: Supplied

The court heard he stalked his ex-girlfriend Freya on Snapchat in 2021, just as he did to Ms James.

COERCIVE CONTROL

The experts agreed that there could have been an opportunity for intervention by Thijssen’s friends.

“Some of that behaviour was normalised, I would see this as an opportunity to be called out,” Anna Butler, manager of the Domestic Violence Death Review said.

HISTORY OF LYING

Thijssen had a history of lying to family and friends about his reason for being in Australia, telling them he was there to study a masters in teaching.

He even embellished his role at St Andrews on the school’s letterhead and sent forged pay slips to the Department of Home Affairs.

SICKENING TEXT MESSAGES

While Ms James lay dead in a pool of blood after being bludgeoned to death, her father, Jamie, received text messages from her phone sent by Thijssen suggesting she was in trouble.

Originally published as Sick texts, murder rehearsals: Lilie James inquest key moments