Family Court bomber Leonard Warwick dies

The killer responsible for three murders and a series of bombings in a five-year campaign of extreme violence which horrified Sydney has died in jail.

Sydney 's Family Court bomber Leonard Warwick has died in jail. Pictures: News Corp

Sydney’s Family Court bomber Leonard Warwick has died in jail.

The 78-year-old who was responsible for three murders and a series of bombings of Sydney courts in the 1980s passed away in Long Bay Jail’s hospital wing at 10.45am on Friday.

Warwick was one of the state’s most notorious prisoners and was sentenced to three life sentences in July 2020 after being found guilty of six attacks that occurred between 1980 and 1985.

The former firefighter was convicted of the shooting murder of a judge, Justice David Opus. A judge’s wife and a churchgoer were also killed in two bombing-related murders.

Leonard Warwick was unrepentant. Pic: Joel Carrett

He was found not guilty of the shooting murder of his brother in law.

Warwick’s attacks were motivated by a bitter feud with his ex wife which saw him wage a campaign of extreme violence between 1980 and 1985.

Warwick was long considered the main suspect but wasn’t arrested until July 2015.

His judge-alone trial in the NSW Supreme Court ran for two years before he was convicted and sentenced.

The trial was told Warwick was violence towards his ex wife and told her Justice Opas “won’t be there much longer” weeks before the judge was shot dead at his home in 1980.

Justice Opas was the first judge to hear Warwick’s divorce case and made several adverse findings against him.

Justice Richard Gee took over the case and also made numerous findings against Warwick before his home was bombed in 1984.

The family court registry building at Parramatta, where Warwick’s cases were heard, was also bombed.

The home of Justice Ray Watson, the third judge to make adverse findings against Warwick, was also bombed in an incident that killed his wife Pearl.

In 1985, Warwick bombed a Jehovah’s Witness church hall, killing Graham Wykes.

Warwick’s death is not considered suspicious.

The Jehovah's Witness church hall after the 1985 attack

But a Correctives NSW spokeswoman said all deaths in custody are referred to the NSW Coroner.

“Any death in custody is immediately reported to the NSW Coroner and subject to a compulsory, rigorous public inquiry,” the spokeswoman said.

“Corrective Services NSW and NSW Police investigate all deaths in custody regardless of the circumstances.”