Tears for woman who lied about Jason Galleghan’s death
A woman who lied to police about the bashing death of Jason Galleghan has tearfully apologised to the Sydney teen’s family.
A woman who helped cover up the violent death of Jason Galleghan has tearfully apologised to the Sydney teen’s family as she gets set to learn her fate.
Stacey Pale, 38, fronted Parramatta District Court on Thursday having pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact to grievous bodily harm after Jason was killed in a Doonside house in August, 2021.
Jason, 16, was set upon by a group of adults and juveniles, with the court hearing the fatal assault was sparked because one woman who lived at the house allegedly believed that he had stolen a pair of Airpods.
Pale is not accused of being involved in the attack and was outside while Jason was bashed inside a spare bedroom in the single-storey home.
She fronted a sentence hearing on Thursday, where she apologised for lying to police when she made an initial statement on the day Jason was attacked.
“I, Stacey Pale, am here today to apologise for not speaking the truth in my statement,” she told the court as she wiped away tears.
“I came here to apologise, to say sorry for what happened to Jason.”
She also apologised for the “heartache and suffering” Jason’s death had caused his family.
Pale’s father, George Pale, also gave a statement to the court in which he apologised to the Galleghan family for their loss and said he understood why they would be angry and upset.
According to court documents, the attack was videoed and posted to social media, with police saying one video amassed more than 170,000 views.
While the assault was ongoing, two neighbours heard the screaming and asked Pale what was going on.
“It’s just a family dispute,” she told them.
“Nothing, just a family issue.”
When she initially gave a statement to police, she said she saw two persons dressed in black and wearing balaclavas running from the house.
She also told officers she heard someone yell: “I feel something is wrong with Jason” before triple-0 was called.
However, in a further statement she told police she lied in her earlier interview “because she was scared”, according to a statement of agreed facts.
Jason’s mother, Rachel Galleghan, in August told the court that she remained “completely broken” following the loss of her son.
“I was physically, emotionally and mentally drained and broken into a million pieces,” she told the court.
She described Jason as “friendly, generous and caring” with an “infectious laugh” and a “great sense of humour”.
Pale will be sentenced later this year.
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