Two men charged over death of missing Brunswick teen Isla Bell, 19, after body found at tip

The horrific final moments of Brunswick teenager Isla Bell were captured on CCTV while her accused killer allegedly beat her on the kitchen floor of his apartment, before her body was stored in a fridge for weeks.

The horrific final moments of Brunswick teenager Isla Bell were captured on CCTV while her accused killer allegedly beat her on the kitchen floor of his apartment, before her body was stored in a fridge for weeks.

Six weeks after the 19-year-old went missing, sparking a desperate search, Ms Bell’s remains were finally discovered on Tuesday in a rubbish truck in Dandenong as two men were charged in connection with her murder.

Her heartbroken mother Justine Spokes described her daughter as “the gentlest soul, the kindest human and free spirited”.

Court documents reveal that Ms Bell’s last known contact was to a friend just after midnight on October 7 via Snapchat, where she said she had found “the best ­Russian sugar daddy”.

She stated that this person had been lavishing her with gifts and had saved her from “sex traffickers”.

But soon after, the messages stopped.

Ms Bell, 19, had only met 53-year-old Marat Ganiev on October 5 – two days before he allegedly murdered her in his St Kilda East apartment.

Marat Ganiev, 53, is charged with murdering Isla Bell.

A police summary, released by the court, alleges Mr Ganiev was seen on CCTV through the front kitchen window, in “what appears to be a fight” with Ms Bell inside his apartment about 12.43am on October 7.

“Investigators observed what appears to be Bell’s head whipping around as if she has been struck,” the police summary alleges.

“She falls to the ground and Ganiev can then be seen striking her on the ground of the kitchen.

“What appears to be Bell’s head can be seen rising up before being pushed back down by Ganiev’s arm.”

The footage captured Ms Bell again in the apartment up until 2am, when she was not seen again.

The footage is the key to the case as police charged Mr Ganiev over the teen’s murder.

It is alleged the CCTV showed Mr Ganiev extensively cleaning his house over the next few days.

On October 9 at 10.27pm, his friend Eyal Yaffe arrived at the apartment in a silver Toyota RAV4 towing a trailer with a black fridge on it.

Mr Yaffe, 57, charged with assisting Mr Ganiev in the murder, also fronted court on Wednesday.

The pair allegedly moved the fridge out the back of Mr Ganiev’s apartment.

Isla Bell’s body was found at a Dandenong tip on Tuesday. Picture: Supplied

Ms Bell’s mother, Justine Spokes, described her daughter as ‘the gentlest soul’. Picture: Supplied

But it wasn’t until October 17 at 2.05pm, they were allegedly again seen on CCTV removing the old fridge and placing it on a trailer attached to the RAV4.

“It is clearly visible that the fridge has been wrapped in a clear plastic and the black tape has been placed on the edges of the doors,” the police summary alleges.

The fridge is then driven to an address in Caulfield South, believed to be known to the men, and again moved two days later to Hampton where the trailer was parked until October 22.

A Caulfield South neighbour had reported to police the trailer had a foul smell and was attracting flies, and that they had seen someone spraying Glen 20 air freshener around it to try to mask the smell.

CCTV footage of Isla Bell at Marat Ganiev’s apartment is key to the case.

Mr Ganiev is then alleged to have moved the trailer containing the fridge to a Bentleigh East property at 4.57am on October 22.

The trailer remained at that address for several days, before Mr Ganiev is accused of moving it again to Mulgrave, where he allegedly stored the fridge in a Hino removalist van.

Ms Bell’s remains were then found on November 18 by a resident, who noticed a foul smell coming from the fridge but didn’t realise what it was.

After he removed the plastic wrapping from the fridge, the door swung open and a bag fell out.

He believed the bag contained animal remains, and subsequently dumped the fridge on a street corner in Bentleigh where hard rubbish was already present.

He then placed the bag containing Ms Bell’s remains in a residential rubbish bin. The resident later contacted police.

Mr Ganiev was in police sights as a person of interest early in the investigation due to him appearing in Ms Bell’s phone records.

On October 20, he agreed to meet investigators at the Fawkner police station where he allegedly said he had met Ms Bell while helping a friend move some property from a St Kilda Rd address on ­October 5.

He allegedly claimed Ms Bell was offered a place to stay at his Fulton St apartment, and that she stayed for three nights, before he dropped her off around the corner in his car in the afternoon of October 7.

Ms Bell told a friend she had found ‘the best Russian sugar daddy’.

Asked about his house being extensively cleaned, he said there was a “very bad smell” from a dead possum hanging in a tree outside his front door.

He also told detectives he had bought some things from Coles for Ms Bell such as food and drink, but denied buying her any presents. Mr Ganiev also denied having sex with the teenager, saying “she was too young for him”, but he “knew he could have her if he wanted to”.

When Mr Yaffe was subsequently interviewed by police on October 28, he allegedly admitted he had delivered a new fridge to Mr Ganiev and then removed the old fridge a few days later, but denied knowing what had happened to Ms Bell.

As he left the station on that day, police followed him and allege he met with Mr Ganiev in a street in Caulfield South, where he was observed and photographed removing a bag from his vehicle and throwing it in the bin. Officers retrieved the bag and believe it belonged to Ms Bell.

Ms Bell’s mother, Ms Spokes, said she and her family were devastated.

“No one deserves to be preyed upon by predators, to feel such fear and helplessness,” she said.

“Why does this society produce such predatory, murderous men?”

In a tribute, she said she was sorry she couldn’t protect her daughter, who had complex illnesses, from “this cruel world”.

“I was so proud of your choices this year, your strength to endure despite your suffering. All you ever wanted was to create, make and nurture life, to love and be loved,” she said.

“We were so much looking forward to being reunited as a family again. My heart aches and cannot reconcile that’s not going to happen.

“The gentlest soul, the ­kindest human and free spirited. I will connect to you in spirit my care bear, and no one can take that connection away from us.”

In the initial few weeks following Ms Bell’s disappearance – she was reported missing on October 4 – friends and family took to social media to foster support and raise awareness about the ­investigation.

A page titled “Help us find Isla Bell” was established by her paternal side of the family and some friends. Sharing photos, identifying features and last known sightings and communications, the page rallied more than 4000 followers.

Eyal Yaffe has been charged with assisting Mr Ganiev in the murder. Picture: Facebook

Posts to help locate Isla were shared thousands of times across a number of platforms – from friends, loved ones and strangers – while the desperate family made pleas to the media. A post by one of her aunties said Ms Bell had “a soft spot for kids and humans who are a bit different”.

Days after Ms Bell vanished, Ms Spokes made an impassioned plea to the community to help find her daughter.

“My girl is missing and dearly missed,” Ms Spokes wrote on social media.

“She leaves an impression, she’s hard to forget. She has a fighting spirit, sometimes it’s loud and sometimes it’s soft, always enduring.

“We’re here for you bub.”

The Herald Sun understands missing persons squad detectives had been quietly working on Ms Bell’s disappearance since mid-October as fears grew she had met with foul play.

They made steady headway from that point but kept their inquiry under the radar for strategic reasons.

The waste disposal site in Dandenong South where the remains of Isla Bell were found. Picture: David Crosling

Police are investigating whether the body of the teenager was placed in a household rubbish bin after her death. Picture: David Crosling

Police were able to identify the trucks which had collected the rubbish from the bins where Ms Bell’s remains were dumped. Picture Supplied

Police search a truck parked outside a property in Mulgrave as part of their investigation. Picture: Supplied

The probe escalated quickly on Monday as a result of two warrants being carried out.

Police allege Mr Yaffe was arrested carrying drugs and $6000 cash, and had booked a ticket to fly to Bulgaria on Wednesday.

He fronted Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday where his case was adjourned to Friday when he is expected to apply to be ­released back into the community. His bail bid will be vehemently opposed by police, who allege he is a flight risk, with connections in Israel.

Mr Ganiev was remanded in custody to return to court for a committal case conference on March 26.

Originally published as Two men charged over death of missing Brunswick teen Isla Bell, 19, after body found at tip