Terry Hickson gets 15 years’ jail for murdering Dapto dogs bookie
A penniless punter who murdered Sydney greyhound bookmaker Charles Skarratt during a botched robbery at Woolwich 30 years ago has been sentenced to at least 15 years in prison.
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A penniless punter who butchered a wealthy greyhound bookmaker at his Sydney home three decades ago will spend at least 15 years behind bars.
Terry John Gordon Hickson stabbed Charles Skarratt to death in 1989 during a botched robbery in his Woolwich garage after the Dapto dogs veteran returned home from the racetrack.
In December a NSW Supreme Court jury found Hickson guilty of the 72-year-old’s murder and on Friday he was sentenced to a maximum 22 years in prison with a non parole period of 15 years.
“Thank you your honour, as the court pleases,” Hickson said after learning his fate.
Justice David Davies SC said the 61-year-old had an accomplice, and their failure to call an ambulance after the brutal bashing showed a “callous disregard for Mr Skarratt and the likelihood that he might survive.”
“The injuries sustained by Mr Skarratt, the way he was dragged across the floor and the way he was left tied up and gagged all support the presence of another person,” he said.
“The victim was a person legitimately going about his business who was ambushed in his own home … and left to die.”
An initial police investigation and an inquest failed to nab the culprit until crucial DNA evidence linked Hickson to the cold case murder.
The judge said Hickson’s long criminal history showed a persistent attitude of “disobedience for the law, particularly with regard to violent offending.”
“His prospects of rehabilitation are poor, and his risk of reoffending are of some considerable concern,” Justice Davies said.
Mr Skarratt’s now adult children thanked detectives for their tireless dedication, which began when the technology needed to solve the heinous crime did not yet exist.
“Your dedication over 30 years confirms to us that our father’s life was valued, and for that we will always be grateful,” Vicki and Peter and Skarratt said in a statement on Friday.
Hickson’s blood was found on Mr Skarratt’s sock and car boot, and the petty thief claimed he must have cut his finger while breaking into Mr Skarratt’s Audi at the racetrack hours before the death.
“Almost all of the people – 12 in all – who worked at the racetrack and gave evidence, said that they had never heard of cars being broken into,” Justice Davies said.
Indeed that story didn’t fool the jurors, who accepted the Crown case that Hickson killed Mr Skarratt and ran off with $25,000 in “easy money” to pay off debts and support his gambling and drug habits.
Hickson was finally charged in 2017, and during his three-week trial his former girlfriend gave evidence that he confessed to knifing Mr Skarratt when he’d “put up a fight” during the mugging.
Tania Morsman said Hickson left her Wollongong flat with a balaclava and a 25cm dagger on the night of December 21, 1989 and she washed his blood-soaked overalls hours later.
Ms Morsman told the court her then lover said he’d been stalking a bookie at the iconic Dapto venue in a plot to fleece him for cash to pay his criminal defence lawyers.
Hickson’s then drug dealer and his flatmate also gave evidence that he’d spoken to them about the fatal “robbery that went wrong” the following weekend.
But the Berkeley man, who was on the dole at the time, labelled this conversation “impossible” and claimed he’d been in weekend detention at Long Bay jail.
Justice Davies said Hickson’s attempts to discredit those witnesses “demonstrates a lack of remorse”, while Mr Skarratt’s kids praised their bravery in coming forward.
In December Vicki and Peter and Skarratt said they felt relieved their dad’s killer had finally been brought to justice, but on Friday said: “this afternoon’s proceedings were emotional for us.”
“Our Dad’s life ended in the saddest possible way,” they said.
Mr Skarratt’s second wife discovered his bound and beaten body lying among $20 bills at their lower north shore home and Hickson blamed the widow for orchestrating her own husband’s murder to cash in on his multimillion-dollar estate.
At the time Monika Karpel, who was initially a suspect herself, told police that Mr Skarratt’s first wife “was so beaten up by hatred and bitterness” that she’d one day end up killing him.
The judge had to pause the sentence – which was held via video link for most parties due to coronavirus social distancing restrictions – midway through due to technical difficulties.
After several lawyers lost connection to the virtual courtroom, Justice Davies asked if Hickson could still hear as he appeared via video link from prison.
“Vaguely your honour … the screen is flickering. It’s quite difficult to hear what you’re saying and to comprehend it,” he said.
“So much for technology in 2020 … this is just agonising.”