Tiahleigh Palmer’s killer now stable after being found ‘unresponsive’ in cell
Rick Thorburn, the man responsible for killing schoolgirl Tiahleigh Palmer, has been released from hospital after being in an induced coma. Tiahleigh’s mother Cindy has commented following Thorburn’s recovery.
QLD News
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Rick Thorburn, the man responsible for killing schoolgirl Tiahleigh Palmer, has been released from hospital after being in an induced coma after he was found unresponsive in his jail cell on the weekend.
Thorburn was today taken from the Princess Alexandra Hospital back to jail.
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He had been in hospital after he was found unresponsive by prison staff in his cell at the Wolston Correctional Centre on Saturday morning, after it’s suspected he attempted to take his own life by overdosing on drugs.
He was in an induced coma for most of his stay in hospital. His condition was upgraded this morning from critical to stable.
In a social media post, Tiahleigh’s mother Cindy said she was glad her daughter’s killer looked likely to suffer through more years in prison.
“He doesn’t deserve to die just yet!” she wrote.
“He has a few more years of suffering before he should get the luxury!”
Thorburn has served two years of his 20-year sentence.
Thorburn was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to murdering 12-year-old foster daughter Tiahleigh Palmer.
Tiahleigh was last seen at her school south of Brisbane in October 2015.
A Queensland Corrective Services spokeswoman said Thorburn was found unresponsive in his single occupancy cell at morning unlock on Saturday.
Prison sources said he was rushed to the Princess Alexandra Hospital in a critical condition after a suspected overdose
Authorities have had previous concerns of self-harm with Thorburn.
Thorburn murdered the schoolgirl in her bed in 2015 after his 18-year-old son Trent confessed to molesting her.
Trent told his mother he was afraid Tiahleigh might be pregnant and bizarrely claimed his foster sister “made” him have sex with her.
After killing Tiahleigh, Rick removed most of her clothing and dumped her body on the banks of the Pimpama River.
He told his family he’d had to do it to prevent Trent from going to prison as a sex offender.
For days the Thorburn family pretended Tiahleigh had run away and cruelly drove her mother Cindy through the streets of Logan looking for her.
Rick was arrested and charged with murder following a lengthy investigation that involved secret coercive hearings conducted by the Crime and Corruption Commission.
Rick’s wife, Julene, and sons Josh and Trent were jailed for perjury and attempting to pervert the course of justice.
Trent also served time for incest.