After school sports jobs for Lilie James and Paul Thijssen led to horror Sydney CBD murder

The reason murdered water polo coach Lilie James and her killer Paul Thijssen were still at St Andrew’s Cathedral School so late on Wednesday evening has been revealed.

Water polo coach Lilie James was returning sports equipment to colleague and ex-boyfriend Paul Thijssen at St Andrew’s Cathedral School before she was murdered in the bathroom of the school gymnasium.

Police are understood to be looking at how pre-meditated the attack was considering Thijssen would have known he would be seeing Ms James that night, not long after she had called off their five-week romance.

A close friend of Dutch-born Thijssen said it was the role of the former St Andrew’s student turned sports department worker to collect, catalogue and put away sports equipment after training, when the school’s many teams - including Ms James’ water polo team - returned to the high-rise CBD campus after practice at different locations across the city.

Those who knew Thijssen well were struggling to come to terms with what he had done.

Suspected murderer Paul Thijssen with his father Stef (left) on a holiday in Melbourne.

“I’ll be honest with you, it’s the biggest shock ever,” a friend, who learnt alongside and played hockey under Thijssen, said.

“I know this guy really well, this is a guy who has sat (with me) for hours.

“I was speaking to an ex-partner (of his) in the wake of this who ... was struggling to come to terms with him doing something this horrific.”

Lilie James, 22, a water polo coach at St Andrew’s Cathedral School, was killed on Wednesday night. Picture: Facebook

Thijssen called police just before midnight on Wednesday and told them they would find a body at the school.

When they arrived they located Ms James in the gym bathroom, suffering horrific injuries.

They then traced Thijssen’s phone call to Vaucluse where they found the 24-year-old’s phone and backpack on the ground, and a hammer he is believed to have used in the murder in a bin, however there was no sign of him.

After almost 36 hours of searching, Thijssen’s body was recovered in the ocean on Friday morning.

Police rescue retrieve the body of Paul Thijssen from the ocean below Diamond Bay on Friday. Picture: Jeremy Piper

Thijssen, an only child, moved to Australia from the Netherlands in 2015 with his parents Stef and Esther after his father secured a new job in Sydney, and in his three years at St Andrew’s Cathedral School quickly became well known in the tight knit community.

From day one at the school he was popular.

“He came in and a lot of people, particularly girls, liked him,” another friend said.

Thijssen called police minutes before he is believed to have died. Picture: Jeremy Piper

Thijssen was named Sports Captain in Year 12, before securing the much sought after job of “Year 13” – a paid role given to a graduating student to work in the school’s sports department after completing their HSC.

His parents remained in Australia during his school years, with his mother Esther sharing photos of him at school masses in his leadership roles.

Thijssen at a presentation for St Andrew’s Cathedral School posted on his mum Esther’s Twitter

She also posted images of him on a holiday to Melbourne with his father and at a Sydney cafe.

After completing his “Year 13” role Thijssen flew home to the Netherlands with his parents, before coming back to Sydney and returning to work at St Andrew’s and then later also at St Vincent’s College in Potts Point.

Police sources said it was not yet clear whether Thijssen’s parents intended to fly to Sydney to collect their son’s body, or if it would instead by flown to the Netherlands.