James Anthony Cunneen found guilty of helping killer Sayle Newson cover up the murder of Carly McBride

He was once found guilty of trying to cover up the brutal murder of mum-of-two Carly McBride before his conviction was sensationally quashed. Now, James Cunneen is back behind bars.

Carly McBride’s body was found in a shallow grave near Scone in 2016 - Sayle Newson was convicted of her murder, while James Cunneen has been found guilty of helping to cover it up.

A man who had his original conviction quashed and a new trial ordered for allegedly helping convicted killer Sayle Newson dispose of Carly McBride’s body is back behind bars after being found guilty for a second time.

Following a seven-week trial in Sydney’s Downing Centre, a jury found James Anthony Cunneen, 34, guilty on Wednesday of being an accessory after the fact to murder.

He helped Newson dispose of the 31-year-old mother-of-two’s body in a shallow grave in bushland at Owen’s Gap, near Scone, in September 2014, after she was savagely bashed by her then boyfriend.

Her remains were not discovered until 2016 by bushwalkers.

Newson was convicted of her murder before being sentenced to a maximum of 27 years in jail in 2021, with an appeal in the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal unsuccessful.

James Cunneen has been found guilty of helping to cover up the murder of Carly McBride. Credit: 7News

The mum-of-two was bashed to death by then boyfriend Sayle Newson.

Cunneen was also jailed in late 2022 for at least four years after being found guilty of trying to cover the murder up, before his conviction was quashed in March last year and a re-trial was ordered.

The new conviction handed down on Wednesday afternoon prompted an application for a detention order, which was granted by Judge Mark Buscombe as Cunneen was handcuffed and taken back into custody.

Sayle Newson was found guilty for the murder if Carly McBride.

The 34-year-old will be back in court on June 26 to be sentenced.

At the time of Ms McBride’s death she had been dating Newson, a mixed martial arts fighter, for about two months after they met at a drug rehabilitation centre.

The 31-year-old was last seen at Muswellbrook at about 2pm on September 30, 2014 walking towards a McDonald’s before she was bludgeoned to death by a jealous Newson in an ice-fuelled rage, who then dumped her body in bushland with the help of Cunneen.

NSW Police detectives at the site where Carly McBride's remains were discovered near Scone.

Despite a massive campaign to find the missing mother, it wasn’t until nearly two years later bushwalkers stumbled upon her skeletal remains in a shallow grave off the roadside in August 2016, still wearing the same clothes from her last sighting.

She suffered blunt force injuries at the hands of Newson, including 23 fractures to her skull, 13 fractures to her torso as well as fractured ribs and spine.