After 20 years, Jeffrey Brooks’ parents hope his death will be investigated thoroughly

NOW, more than 20 years after the supposed ‘accidental’ death of their son Jeffrey, Wendy and Lawrie Brooks hope the case will finally be examined thoroughly.

IN 1998, two years after the death of their son, Jeffrey Brooks’ parents went to the Crime and Justice Commission to plead their case.

Wendy and Lawrie Brooks did not agree that their son’s death had been an accident. They did not believe their meticulous and careful son had shot himself by accident, dragging a loaded gun from a car, barrel first, towards his body.

They did not agree with so many things. The timeline of events. The versions of witnesses. They wanted to know the whereabouts of lost evidence. They wanted answers.

Instead, police told them they were wrong.

Jeffrey Brooks, a 24-year-old scientist, was found dead at the Beenleigh Crayfish Farm on March 13, 1996.

Jeffrey Brooks, a 24-year-old scientist, was found dead at the Beenleigh Crayfish Farm on March 13, 1996.

His death came after he’d told friends and family he thought his life was in danger after he’d confronted others about cash sales at the farm.

Jeffrey, an aquaculturist, had been employed by the owners to conduct a feasibility study on the failing farm. They’d hoped he’d discover why they’d been losing so much money and come up with the way to help them turn a profit.

Instead, he told them he believed the stock was being sold off for cash.

Not long after, he was dead, shot in the chest by an old, falling-apart farm gun he refused to touch in the past.

Jeffrey’s parents, Lawrie and Wendy Brooks at the scene of the murder. Picture: Adam Armstrong

Now, more than 20 years on, Wendy and Lawrie Brooks hope the case will finally be examined thoroughly.

Building on their own investigative work, The Courier-Mail interviewed witnesses, conducted re-enactments and ballistics tests and consulted with a raft of scientific experts – including an internationally renowned expert in wound trajectory.

The paper uncovered enough new evidence that Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath ordered the State Coroner to reopen the inquest into Jeffrey’s death.

Supplied image of the Beenleigh Crayfish Farm in the mid-90s. Copyright Unknown

The Sunday Mail understands that process is already under way. High-profile criminal lawyer Peter Boyce, who is representing the Brooks’ family, has been contacted by the Office of the State Coroner. The Queensland Police Service has also been contacted with a request to provide information.

Once that occurs, the coroner’s office has advised the brief of evidence will be reviewed and “the inquest will be listed”.

“Unless you have been through a similar experience, no-one could ever understand the devastating effects of the loss a much-loved firstborn son and brother, husband, grandson, cousin, nephew and mate, particularly under these circumstances,” the Brooks said.

“We’ve been living under a thunder cloud with no satisfaction of seeing justice done for our son. At the very least, Jeffrey deserves justice.”

The Courier-Mail is tells Jeffrey’s story in the true crime podcast Dead Wrong.

Listen here, free on iTunes or your preferred podcast platform.