REVEALED: The killers you didn’t know about

Two men are guilty of murder and two women of manslaughter in the slaying of a central Queensland man — and their identities can now be revealed.

Gary Ryan died on Tuesday after being stabbed multiple times. Police have launched a homicide investigation. (PHOTO: Erica Murree/ Central and North Burnett Times)

THE family of a slain Central Queensland father have been delivered some justice - with the jury returning a guilty verdict for one of the men on trial for his murder.

The jury took less than one day to convict Trevor Spencer, 73, of murdering Gary Ryan at his Mundubbera property in 2016, while co-accused Stephen Crump walked from Brisbane Supreme Court after being found not guilty.

Now that the trial has finished it can be revealed that Mr Crump's son, Mark Stephen Crump, 38, has pleaded guilty to murder.

Gary Ryan died on Tuesday after being stabbed multiple times. Police have launched a homicide investigation. (PHOTO: Erica Murree/ Central and North Burnett Times)

 

Mr Ryan's ex-wife Marilyn Anne Ryan, 39, and family friend Jessica Lee Roebuck, 22, have pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

Throughout the three-week trial Crown prosecutor Danny Boyle argued that the father and son with Trevor Spencer went there with one purpose - to execute the "planned and calculated murder".

Defence barrister Robert East successfully argued that despite driving the two men to the property, Stephen Crump had no knowledge of the attack.

Mr Boyle said at the time of his death, Mr Ryan was in a dispute with his ex-wife Marilyn over custody arrangements.

She was living in Orange and was in a relationship with Mark Crump.

The court was told that Spencer picked Mark Crump up in Orange, and the pair drove to Gladstone where they met Stephen Crump, before booking into a hotel in Gin Gin for two nights.

On August 22, Spencer and Mark Crump drove to Mr Ryan's property on a "reconnaissance" mission.

They returned about 10am the next day armed with knives, machetes and a gun.

Mr Ryan was home with his mother Jeanette and 15-year-old daughter when he spotted Spencer, telling his family: "I'll go and see what this strange looking man wants."

Mr Boyle told the court Spencer lured Mr Ryan to a shed out of view of the house where he and Crump ambushed him, stabbing and cutting him almost 60 times.

Mr Ryan's teenage daughter found him lying in a pool of blood and tried to keep him conscious until the ambulance arrived.

After the verdict was read out, Spencer told the judge: "Your Honour I'd like to just reaffirm that I am not guilty with anything to do with the murder of Gary Ryan."

Since the first day of trial his defence has argued he should be found guilty of manslaughter, not murder.

All four will be sentenced at a later date. - NewsRegional

Originally published as REVEALED: The killers you didn’t know about