Valmai Birch: David Bagster accused of ‘body in the bin’ death unsuccessful in bail bid
A man charged over the alleged killing of a woman who was found hogtied and stuffed in a wheelie bin in the Illawarra has made a bid to see his dying mother.
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An Illawarra man set to stand trial over the death of his girlfriend, who was allegedly found hogtied and stuffed in a household wheelie bin in 2011, has been refused bail to see his sick mother.
David Bagster, 52, was arrested at his Kiama home and charged with manslaughter late last year, nine years after Valmai Jane Birch’s remains were found upside down and decomposing in a wheelie bin inside her Woonona apartment.
He was committed to stand trial on the charge earlier this year after denying the allegations.
Ms Birch’s body was found on March 22, 2011, after residents in the Woods Ave building reported a “foul” odour coming from her unit.
The 34-year-old’s body was found in the wheelie bin inside the bathroom of her apartment more than 10 days after she was last seen.
A subsequent post mortem was unable to reveal the cause of her death, however it has since been treated as suspicious.
In 2014, police launched an appeal for information about Ms Birch’s last movements, which investigators hoped would prompt the memories of anyone who may have seen her in the weeks before her death.
In 2019, investigators from Strike Force Gareth requested the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions review evidence, prompting Bagster’s arrest.
The 52-year-old, who has denied the allegations, faced Wollongong District Court from a cell at South Coast Correctional Centre on Friday where he made an application for bail.
His barrister Scott Fraser told the court Bagster’s mother was dying and had recently been moved to a palliative care unit.
In arguing for his client’s release to bail, Mr Fraser told the court Bagster could live with his father, who also offered up a $4000 surety and accompany him anytime he left the house.
Mr Fraser said Bagster would also agree to daily reporting and would agree not to use drugs or alcohol.
However, Judge John Hatzistergos refused to release Bagster, saying he posed an “unacceptable risk of committing further offences and endangering the safety of the community”.
Judge Hatzistergos also noted Bagster’s lengthy criminal record and that he had a history of not complying with court orders.
Bagster will remain on remand in custody until his trial next year.