Anthony Stott death: Witness tells court of ‘weird’ teacher’s act shortly before bizarre death

A witness has told a court she saw “demons” and “ghosts” around a Brisbane private school teacher as he sat tied to a chair at a farm he’d wandered onto just hours before his bizarre death.

A witness has told a court she saw “demons” and “ghosts” around Brisbane private school teacher Anthony Stott as he sat tied to a chair on a northern NSW farm just hours before his bizarre death.

Sharnee Windley said she saw the “really scary” apparitions in a photo of the kidnapped teacher that she was texted by her friend Lauren Grainger.

Windley also said a “weird” Stott sat on a fence post “like a gargoyle” after he was set free, only to be run down and killed by a semi-trailer on the M1 minutes later.

Grainger is standing trial in Lismore District Court charged with the specially aggravated kidnapping of Stott, who died in bizarre circumstances on February 10, 2020.

She has pleaded not guilty.

Brisbane teacher Anthony Stott, who was hit and killed by a semi-trailer on the M1 NSW. Photo Facebook

Stott, a respected St Peters Lutheran College teacher, was killed by the truck after being held captive at the Cudgera Creek farm for several hours and allegedly hit with a golf club.

It followed a mysterious mid-air meltdown on a flight from Sydney to Brisbane the previous day – during which he masturbated and yelled obscenities – as well as a late-night, high-speed drive from Brisbane which ended with him skidding off the M1 in his BMW and abandoning it.

He then wandered onto the remote farm about 3.30am where he was tied to a plastic chair and allegedly hit with the golf club as his captors demanded to know “why the f. k he was there”, the court had been told.

The court heard that a “hysterical” Grainger rang Windley about the intruder, texted her a photo of Stott tied to the chair and later brought her back to the farm.

Lauren Grainger is standing trial in Lismore District Court charged with the specially aggravated kidnapping of Stott. Photo: Greg Stolz

Windley told the court she was frightened to go to the property because she had seen “heaps of ghosts” and “demons” around Stott in the photo.

“It scared me, the photo – he didn’t frighten me,” she said.

“I didn’t want to go out there. I was scared.”

Windley told the court that when she first walked into the shed, she thought Stott had no arms because they were bound behind his back.

She said Stott was “very quiet” but told her his name was “Tony” and asked her to call his sister Daniella, saying she had dropped him at the property to rob it.

Daniella did not answer but rang back the next day and said her brother was dead.

Windley said when she told Daniella what Stott had said about her dropping him at the farm to rob it, Daniella said: “That’s not right. He has psychosis. Mum’s been worried, he (Stott) hasn’t been to work.”

Windley said Worgan had warned “that’s jail time” after he arrived at the farm while Stott was still tied to the chair.

She said Frost told Stott “we”re going to let you go, mate … don’t come back” and they released him.

Windley said Stott gave them a “weird” look and walked towards the highway but not before perching himself on a fence post “like a gargoyle”.

“He just stretched a bit and walked towards the highway,” Windley told the court.

Soon after, Grainger told her that she had heard a “bang” and believed Stott had been hit by a car.

Windley drove down and saw Stott laying beside the highway, the court heard.

The court heard that a panicked Grainger told another friend she feared she was going to jail, told her to delete a texted image of a bound Stott and asked her to get rid of the chair to which he was tied.

The woman told the court she threw the broken chair in a nearby creek.

The trial continues.