Carmen Niklaus: Tributes flow for suspected Everton murder victim

A Wangaratta woman who was murdered at an Everton caravan park was about to get her life together before tragedy struck.

Homicide squad detectives have charged a man with the murder of Wangaratta woman Carmen Niklaus.

Ms Niklaus, 40, was fatally injured at the Everton Caravan Tourist Park, located south of Albury, on Monday evening.

A 43-year-old Everton man was on Tuesday evening charged with a single count of murder and is expected to face the Wangaratta Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday.

Investigators confirmed he and Ms Niklaus, 40, knew each other and that no other suspects are wanted.

“Police are not looking for anyone else at this time,” a Victoria Police spokeswoman said.

The man was arrested at the Everton caravan park on Monday evening and spent close to 24 hours in police custody.

Emergency crews responded to calls for help about 7.10pm but were unable to revive her.

Wangaratta woman Carmen Niklaus was found dead at a caravan park in regional Victoria on Monday night.

Carmen Niklaus has been described as a ‘happy-go-lucky’ person.

Friend Chloe Mitchell told the Herald Sun Ms Niklaus was in the process of “getting her life together” and finding stable housing.

“She was a happy-go-lucky kind of person. Always loved a chat. She was the life of the party and was always looking out for others … very caring person, funny and always had a smile even when she was sad,” Ms Mitchell said.

Ms Mitchell said she was still reeling with shock over the tragedy.

“I wasn’t expecting to look at my phone and find out we had lost her,” she said.

Ms Niklaus was spotted walking in Wangaratta in the hours before her death.

Her final social media post made at 1pm on Monday read: “I really want my mum”.

Carmen Niklaus was found dead at a caravan park.

She has been remembered for her beautiful heart.

Ted Bryent, 57, who has lived at the caravan park for three weeks, said he saw the man believed to be in custody on Monday night.

“I was sitting on the couch having a beer watching the news … I saw a bloke … it’s like he was arguing on the phone, he was walking around in circles as though he was arguing,” he said.

“The body language looked like he was stirred up.

“Then I went back inside and came back out half an hour later and there were four cop cars in a row.

“Today the bloke in the unit behind me … said ‘There was a f---ing murder last night’. He said ‘The sheila in the cabin, she’s dead’.

“He said ‘I know the sheila, she was a f---ing nice sheila’.”

Mr Bryent said he did not know the victim.

“I’ve never seen so much chaos in my life,” he said.

Police at Everton Caravan Tourist Park following a suspected murder of a woman on Monday night.

Everton has been rocked by the suspected murder of a woman on Monday night. Picture: Hannah Davies

Everton Primary School principal Kevin Hill said it was a tragedy.

“Everton’s a sleepy little hollow most of the time, nothing like this ever happens around here,” he said.

“It’s a tragedy.”

A woman from Everton Fuel and Farm supplies told The Albury Wodonga News that people in the town kept to themselves.

“People don’t talk around here, we really just keep quiet,” she said.

According to the Red Heart campaign, Carmen Niklaus is the 47th Australian woman killed this year — 106 men and 18 children have also been killed since January 1, 2021.

Anyone with information which could assist police have been urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.