Greg Dufty murder: ‘You looked me in the eye and lied’: Dufty’s wife confronts killers
“YOU promised me you would help find him … you looked me in the eye and lied to my face.” Those were the words of Greg Dufty’s partner as she confronted his killers in court today. It comes as one of the Patea brothers apologised for the murder.
Crime and Court
Don't miss out on the headlines from Crime and Court. Followed categories will be added to My News.
GREG Dufty’s partner Sharni Mill gave a heart felt statement about the effect his murder had on his family as she confronted his killers in court today.
Mr Dufty’s partner Sharni Mill, who is the mother of his two children, told the Supreme Court of Queensland that she turned to Crawford when Mr Dufty went missing.
“You promised me you would help find him … you looked me in the eye and lied to my face,” she said.
Ms Mill described through tears about how her four-year-old daughter’s voice shook whenever she described to people what happened to her “daddy”.
Mr Dufty’s sister Barbara also read a statement on behalf of their mother Margaret Dufty.
The statement spoke about how Mr Dufty supported the family after the death of their father and how he would be missed from family gatherings.
An apology from Nelson Patea to Mr Dufty’s family was read to the court.
“It was not my intention to hurt or injure him,” he wrote.
He wrote that what he did was “not forgivable” and he did not ask for forgiveness.
“I hope you hear from my heart this was unintended and cost a life.”
In February, Liam Bliss was placed on a five-year suspended sentence after pleading guilty to manslaughter.
On the same day Clinton Stockman pleaded guilty to manslaughter and interfering with a corpse and was sentenced to six years prison with immediate parole eligibility.
The court was told of the horrific events which unfolded on July 6, 2015 where Crawford had pulled together a group of six men to “question” Mr Dufty over about $32,000 of missing cannabis.
Crawford picked up Mr Dufty in an Ashmore carpark before driving him to a remote location to meet the other men.
Lionel Patea was the first to strike Mr Dufty, heaving him on the head with a large metal object.
The blow caused Mr Dufty to fall to the ground.
The other men then punched and kicked Dufty while he was on the ground.
During the beating Crawford hit Mr Dufty to the legs with a truck tyre checker, a metal tool similar in shape to a baseball bat.
The Patea brothers and co-accused Liam Bliss then left the scene.
They were told Mr Dufty still had a pulse and Lionel Patea called Crawford and told him to take Mr Dufty to hospital.
Crawford and co-accused Clinton Stockman then took Mr Dufty to a farm house.
A statement from Stockman given to the court said he saw Crawford, who once described Mr Dufty as his best friend, then yell at him to wake up and that there was “torture” waiting for him.
Hours later the pair realised Mr Dufty was no longer breathing.
Crawford began to tell Stockman how to dispose of the body and the pair loaded Mr Dufty onto a tarpaulin in the back of Crawford’s truck.
The body was covered with gravel and the pair took Mr Dufty to Crawford’s farm where they burned his body and destroyed his wallet, bank cards and mobile phone.
Convicted killer and former Bandido bikie boss Lionel Patea, 26, pleaded guilty to murder.
He is already serving a life sentence for brutally beating girlfriend Tara Brown with a fire hydrant cover.
His brother Nelson Patea, 24, pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
Aaron John Crawford, 30, who organised the beating of Mr Dufty pleaded guilty to manslaughter and interfering with a corpse.
Justice Martin Burns will make his decision on their sentences at 3pm.
Vicious public assault ‘could not be stopped’
A man who "couldn't be stopped" when he grabbed his partner by the hair and dragged her 100m through a Gold Coast shopping centre car park has now faced court over two dozen charges.
‘I’m not going to promise you anything’
A mother facing a string of drug offences was perhaps too honest with a magistrate yesterday after she initially couldn’t guarantee being on her best behaviour.