Murder accused Kevin Pettiford, also charged with throat slit of Cessnock inmate sent to Supermax
He’s been accused of murdering a homeless man in Tweed Heads, and faces charges of slitting another inmate’s throat while he was in remand in Cessnock jail. Now Kevin Pettiford has been transferred to Goulburn Supermax to keep other inmates and guards safe.
Newcastle
Don't miss out on the headlines from Newcastle. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- International operation leads to child porn arrest in Rutherford
- Woman pleads guilty to stabbing rampage in Port Stephens
He is accused of murder and has been charged over a vicious jailhouse assault and now Kevin Pettiford has another title – Goulburn Supermax inmate.
Prison authorities have decided that the 34-year-old is too high a risk — even in the rough and tumble maximum-security world of Cessnock jail – and have shipped him down to the wing containing the state’s worst of the worst.
Pettiford first came to the attention of senior prison staff when he allegedly attacked fellow Cessnock inmate Nathan Mellows a few days after Christmas.
He is alleged to have slashed the throat of Mellows using a makeshift weapon made of three razor blades and a piece of plastic moulded into a handle, causing a gaping wound that required 13 staples to close — Mellows survived.
Police will allege Pettiford told them he intended on killing Mellows, telling authorities he had delayed the intended killing on Christmas Day because he was busy watching the movie Star Wars, and again on Boxing Day because the cricket was on television.
He also allegedly told detectives that he had picked Mellows because he was a loner who appeared to have limited family and friends on the outside.
It followed on from the charge which got him into Cessnock – the alleged murder of a homeless Byron Bay man who was sleeping rough at Tweed Heads last November.
The Newcastle News can reveal Pettiford had another long conversation with prison staff following the razor attack which raised further concern.
It was enough for authorities to reclassify Pettiford and send him to Goulburn’s Supermax prison, a high-risk management wing which sees prisoners on strict daily regimes, which includes being locked away for at least 22 hours a day.
The new charge follows Pettiford’s arrest last November over the random murder of a Byron Bay man sleeping rough at Tweed Heads.
The 56-year-old man was found still in his sleeping bag at Jack Evans Boat Harbour Park after being beaten to death. Pettiford was arrested five days after the alleged Tweed Heads murder as he attempted to travel to Sydney aboard a bus.
Pettiford had not applied for bail on the Tweed Heads murder charge and was moved to the maximum security wing of Cessnock jail on remand.
It was there that he allegedly attacked the other male prisoner on December 28.