Terry Fantakis: Murderer denied bail while awaiting appeal

A former builder who killed family man Sam Karmas (pictured) is asking to be allowed to move back home with his mum as he prepares his appeal over the 2011 murder.

Convicted killer Terry Fantakis has been denied bail after asking to be released while the Supreme Court weights up his appeal over the 2011 murder of Sam Karmas.

Fantakis, who is three years into a 24-year jail stint over Mr Karmas’ death, represented himself in the Criminal Court of Appeal on Wednesday where three justices agreed he was too much of a risk to be free in the community.

According to court documents, Fantakis wanted to be released from the correctional centre he now calls home in part to live with his mother and help her through her health issues.

He also claimed the pandemic made it more difficult to access computers in jail which he relied on to appeal his murder conviction, despite filing more than 500 pages of documents himself in a bid to be released on bail.

Sam Karmas.

The 47-year-old former builder from Punchbowl has filed 17 grounds appealing the convictions handed down by a jury of his peers in 2018.

At the time, his trial was told Fantakis killed Mr Karmas over a delusion the family man was the reason his twin brother killed himself.

Mr Karmas was last seen on August 11, 2011 before he was murdered at Fantakis’ Wilga St home and the body dumped with the help of Andrew Woods.

Woods was found guilty of accessory after the fact after the jury was told he helped Fantakis the next morning dumped the body off after visiting his grandmother’s unit in Campbelltown.

Jennifer Karmas, wife of Sam, who has since devoted her life to no body no parole laws. Her husband’s body was never found after it was dumped in the Georges River.

Police relied on surveillance of the men, including listening devices, and written documents by Fantakis where he claimed to have tortured Mr Karmas prior to his death.

Since he was jailed Fantakis has lodged several court proceedings against police, specifically targeting officers from the strike force who investigated him over the murder of Mr Karmas.

Last year he faced Burwood Local Court in a bid to have tools and cash seized by the police returned to him.

The three Supreme Court justices on Wednesday denied his bid for release, citing concerns that when he was previously bailed he breached the conditions within hours by contacting Woods and was caught on tape threatening to kill the officer in charge.

His appeal will be heard back in the same court at a later date.