Killer said 'I love you' as he choked mum of two
SENTENCING hearing reveals June Wallis was choked, beaten, dumped in bath
Fraser Coast
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CLENCHING her throat and pinching her nose, Nathan Greenfield repeatedly said 'I love you' as he choked the life from the mother of his two children.
Not satisfied with her absent pulse, he lent down and sucked the remaining air from her lungs - an act he would later describe as "trying to swallow her soul".
He then dragged her to the ensuite bathtub, where she would later be discovered by her distraught father, covered her in towels, and he began planning his escape.
These chilling details were revealed in the Maryborough Supreme Court, where Greenfield was yesterday sentenced to 10 years in jail for the killing of 32-year-old June Wallis at Pacific Haven.
Greenfield also pleaded guilty to several other offences, including dangerous operation of a vehicle, going armed to cause fear and assault police, which stemmed from his actions the morning after June's death in March, 2015.
On that day, he told his then 10-year-old daughter Jade he would take her into town to get her mother breakfast and wanted to stop at a nearby property so he pick up his guns to polish them.
Jade complied, unaware her mother was already dead.
With Jade in the passenger seat, Greenfield picked up a gun, stopped his car, broke two mobile phones on the tow bar and threw them into a dry creek bed.
He then led police on a wild chase almost 100km down the Bruce Hwy towards Gympie, where stingers were deployed to puncture his tyres.
He pointed a gun twice at police before being arrested.
The court heard Greenfield was in a state of paranoid psychosis, morbidly jealous and of the completely unfounded belief June was cheating on him.
The night he killed June, she had been at a hen's party. The couple was lying in bed and Greenfield was frustrated he couldn't get aroused.
After his arrest, he told police that when they got home, he thought he had seen a video (which never existed) on June's phone of her having sex with other men.
An autopsy report revealed June had suffered broken ribs, a fractured thyroid, head and face injuries. It was unclear if the cause of death was strangulation or drowning.
Financial stress was flagged as a factor in the months before the attack.
The Burrum Heads bakery owned by the couple and their haulage business were said to be operating at a loss and Greenfield had recently purchased an expensive car they couldn't afford.
Before her death, June was warned the man she was living with needed to see a psychiatrist and had asked her father to remove the guns from the house.
During a previous fight, he had threatened to kill June's loved horses.
Greenfield's state of mind prompted a mental health court finding of diminished responsibility which led to the charge of murder being downgraded to manslaughter.
Crown Prosecutor Michael Lehane referred to the "catastrophic" impact the killing had on the lives of June's children which was detailed in a victim impact statement, written by her father Paul (see page 5).
He warned Greenfield remained a risk given he was still "delusional".
Justice Ann Lyons told the packed gallery she understood it was a difficult day but warned against emotional outbursts.
She took into account the recommendations of the Mental Health Court but said the sentence also needed to reflect the denunciation of domestic violence. Taking into account time already served, Greenfield could be released in five years.
Justice Lyons stressed that the parole board and anybody making decisions about Greenfield's future needed to take into account her judgment and the findings of the Mental Health Court before considering whether he should not remain in supervised care.
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