Nick Munn made chilling Facebook post hours before murdering Jason Fry

“DON’T test the gangster in me.” These were the chilling words posted on Nick Munn’s personal Facebook page shortly after 6am on April 9 last year. Hours later, he picked up a claw hammer and brutally murdered Jason Fry inside a North Shore bedroom.

Police investigators at the scene of Jason Fry’s murder. Picture: Alison Wynd

“DON’T test the gangster in me.”

These were the chilling words posted on Nick Munn’s personal Facebook page shortly after 6am on April 9 last year.

Hours later, the 40-year-old picked up a claw hammer and used it to brutally murder Jason Fry inside a North Shore bedroom.

Police believe a steel mallet was also used in the unprovoked attack.

Munn’s post that morning played no part in his murder trial, but it provides a disturbing insight into the mind of a man who was about to slaughter another human being.

It was a vicious and horrible killing by any standards — made even more shocking by the fact Munn and his victim were friends.

The pair had known each other since they were kids, but had not spoken for about six years until Mr Fry contacted his future killer via Facebook.

It was early 2018 and, at the time, Munn was couch-surfing in a bid to avoid police, who wanted to bring him in as a witness at Karl Hague’s murder trial in Melbourne.

Munn ended up spending most nights on a couch at Mr Fry’s Seaforth St property in the three weeks leading up to the murder.

Nick Munn has been found guilty of murder.

The living arrangement seemed to suit both men.

Munn could continue to lay low from police, while Mr Fry could use the help of his friend to come up with money to pay off a rental debt that was about to result in his eviction.

Neighbours told the trial they saw the pair spend most days together during that three-week period.

There were never any arguments and, at one point, Mr Fry even introduced Munn to one of them by saying: “This is Nick, he’s an old mate of mine. You can trust him with your life”.

Little did Mr Fry know what was waiting for him inside his bedroom on April 9 last year.

When he testified Munn told jurors he considered Mr Fry a “very good friend”.

If this was how he treated his friends, one would hate to think how he would treat his enemies.

A disturbing Facebook post made by Nick Munn the day he killed Jason Fry.

Police believe Munn launched the attack because Mr Fry had apparently squandered a $2500 loan he had orchestrated for him.

Those who knew Mr Fry had strong suspicions he was battling a gambling addiction.

He was also a known ice user and had his own run-ins with the law, including a police raid on his property two months before his death.

But he was also loved by his family, was a father to three children and a popular figure among close friends.

He hardly deserved to be killed in such a brutal fashion.

When Munn arrived in court for the first day of his trial, his appearance seemed a far cry from the disturbing allegations levelled at him.

North Shore murder victim Jason Fry

It also seemed at odds with some of his near-indecipherable ramblings on social media.

Well-groomed and dressed in a suit, Munn could easily have been mistaken for a businessman if he was standing anywhere other than a courtroom custody dock.

Over the following weeks, he showed little emotion as gruesome and confronting evidence was presented to the jury.

He bared little as he provided testimony from the witness stand across two days.

Perhaps his expressionless gaze was inevitable when the jury delivered its guilty verdict shortly before 11am on Thursday.

As far as killers go, Munn is particularly unsettling.

Soon after murdering his friend without warning, he embarked on plans to sell Mr Fry’s personal belongings to recoup money that had been loaned to the 41-year-old.

Then, after being confronted with overwhelming evidence against him, he pushed the case to a trial, forcing Mr Fry’s family to sit through three weeks of harrowing evidence detailing their loved one’s slaying.

Whether Munn truly sees himself as a gangster is debatable.

But he will go down in history as one of Geelong’s most cold-blooded murderers.

Originally published as Nick Munn made chilling Facebook post hours before murdering Jason Fry