‘Ultimate betrayal’: Andre Zachary Rebelo sentenced to 25 years for killing his mother for money in the Perth Supreme Court

A broke cryptocurrency trader who killed his mother to gain money from life insurance he set up against her has been sentenced.

A broke crypto currency trader who killed his mother to gain $1.15m from life insurance policies he set up against her in the week before she died will spend 25 years in jail for his crimes.

Andre Zachary Rebelo was found guilty of murdering his mother Colleen Rebelo in her Bicton home in May 2020 by a jury following a seven-week trial in the Perth Supreme Court last year.

He denied killing his mother but pleaded guilty to four counts of attempts to defraud an insurance company, on the first day of the trial, admitting he forged fake documents to gain a $500,000 payout from one of the policies.

Rebelo was sentenced to 25 years jail in the Perth Supreme Court on Tuesday, his 29th birthday.

Andre Zachary Rebelo has been sentenced to X years jail.

During sentencing, Justice Bruno Fiannaca described Rebelo’s offending as the “ultimate betrayal” of a mother who had done everything she could for her four children.

“It was the betrayal of the person who brought you into this world, her children and her grandson,” Justice Fiannaca said.

“You are someone who is able to deceive in the most egregious way and manufacture evidence to achieve your ends.

“Your evidence should be approached with caution … You are not a credible or reliable person.”

Justice Fiannaca said it may never be known how Ms Rebelo died, but believed her son used personal violence to kill her, and then staged her body in the shower to look like she died of natural causes.

“The only thing is you took your mother by surprise using personal violence,” he said.

“I am not sure what state of dress your mother was in, whether you removed her clothes does not matter what you did next was a gross violation of her dignity.”

Colleen Rebelo was found dead in the shower of her Bicton home on May 25, 2020.

He said the evidence provided during the trial showed Rebelo was persistent in his pursuit of the life insurance, and his actions became more exasperated and desperate.

“You killed your own mother, in a particularly egregious and shocking nature,” he said.

“This is a crime that right minded people would regard with horror, murdering your mother was the ultimate betrayal of her trust and everything she gave,” he said.

During the trial, the court was told Rebelo was the ex partner of influencer Grace Piscopo who was a successful model.

The couple portrayed a glamorous life on social media, but it was mostly funded with credit cards and personal loans.

They had combined debts of $112,000 and were struggling to meet their financial commitments.

Rebelo was being pursued by debt collectors when his mother died.

Ms Piscopo is not accused of any wrongdoing.

Ms Rebelo was found dead in the shower at her Bicton home by her youngest son Fabian on May 25, 2020, while her death was sudden and unexpected it was never treated as suspicious by first responders.

An autopsy conducted on her body was unable to identify what caused her death.

A court was told Andre Zachary Rebelo’s main motivation was to prove to his former partner Grace Piscopo that he was a successful crypto trader, and that he would make a large amount of money and could contribute financially. Picture: Instagram

It wasn’t until an insurance company employee suspected Rebelo was fraudulently trying to claim life insurance against his mother that police began investigating.

Police discovered Rebelo had taken out three life insurance policies against his mother in the week before she died and made himself the sole beneficiary of those policies.

He stood to gain $1.15m from his mother’s death.

Days after she died he started claiming against those policies and “doggedly pursued” one worth $500,000.

In his pursuit of half a million dollars, Rebelo provided the insurer with phony records about his mother’s death and health.

He gave the insurer fake copies of a coroner’s report, a medical report from his mother’s psychologist and a forged copy of her last will and testament.

He pleaded guilty to fraud charges, but denied he killed his mother, on the first day of his trial.

State Prosecutor Brett Tooker told the court at a sentencing hearing that Rebelo’s motive showed that it was a very calculated and cold-blooded killing. Picture: NewsWire/Philip Gostelow

On Monday, state prosecutor Brett Tooker told the court Rebelo had heavily invested in cryptocurrency for about three years, but had not made any money when his mother died.

He told Ms Piscopo he was about to earn $500,000 from crypto trading, when in reality he had over extended himself financially and was being pursued by debt collectors.

When Covid struck, the state alleged Rebelo hatched a plan to take out life insurance policies in his mother’s name.

The court was told Rebelo killed his mother in her home then staged her body to make it appear she had died of natural causes, then days later he started claiming on the life insurance policies.

Mr Tooker said Rebelo did it to prove to Ms Piscopo that he was a successful crypto trader, pay off debts and continue investing in crypto.

Andre Zachary Rebelo, who has a child with model Gracie Piscopo, has been sentenced for the murder of his mother in the Perth Supreme Court. Picture: Instagram

“His main motivation to come up with this plan was to prove to Ms Piscopo he was a successful crypto trader, he would make a large amount of money and contribute financially,” he said.

“His motive shows it was a very calculated and cold blooded killing.”

In a victim impact statement, Ms Rebelo’s daughter spoke about the close bond she had with her mother and the great loss she had suffered because of her death.

Ms Rebelo’s sister said her death was a tragedy because she had given so much of her life to her children, only to have her life taken away by one of her sons.

Rebelo’s sentence was back dated until November 22, 2022 when he was taken into custody.

Originally published as ‘Ultimate betrayal’: Andre Zachary Rebelo sentenced to 25 years for killing his mother for money in the Perth Supreme Court