Two people remanded in custody over their alleged roles in murder of NSW mother Danielle Easey

A man accused of murdering a young mother and a woman who allegedly impersonated her after death will remain in custody in NSW.

Two people will stay behind bars for weeks for their alleged roles in the murder of a young mother whose body was found wrapped in plastic and dumped in a creek near Newcastle.

The remains of Danielle Easey, 29, were discovered by a member of the public at Cockle Creek near Wakefield Rd in Killingworth about 10.30am on August 31.

The body was removed from the water by officers.

“A post mortem examination revealed Danielle had been seriously assaulted and stabbed,” NSW Police said in a statement.

She had lived in Booragul, in the Lake Macquarie region, with family but more recently stayed at multiple locations in the area.

Danielle Easey’s body was found in a creek near Newcastle last month.

Justin Kent Dilosa, 33. Picture: NSW Police

Carol Marie McHenry, 32. Picture: NSW Police

Police arrested Justin Kent Dilosa, 33, at an industrial premises at Cardiff in Lake Macquarie just before 10am yesterday.

About an hour later, they arrested Carol Marie McHenry, 32, at a home in Holmesville in Newcastle.

A Mitsubishi Delica was also seized at Cardiff, police said.

Crime scene warrants were executed at both arrest locations and a search warrant was executed at a Narara home on the Central Coast.

In a statement released yesterday, NSW Police said inquiries revealed Danielle was murdered at a home at Narara on or around Saturday, August 17.

She was transported to Cockle Creek and her body wasn’t discovered for two weeks.

McHenry has been refused bail. Picture: Facebook

She is facing two charges. Picture: Facebook

Dilosa was charged overnight with Ms Easey’s murder.

His case came before Belmont Local Court today where he made no application for bail and it was formally refused. The 33-year-old man was remanded in custody until November 15 when he is due to appear via video link at Gosford Local Court.

McHenry has been charged with accessory after the fact to murder and dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception.

“Police will allege in court that the woman has assisted the man by impersonating Danielle on one of her social media accounts after her death to gain access to money,” NSW Police said.

The 32-year-old woman made an unsuccessful bail application today and had her matter adjourned to Newcastle Local Court on October 30.

Danielle Easey had previously lived in Booragul.

Speaking with Nine News after the arrests yesterday, Danielle’s mum Jenny Easey described her daughter as a “beautiful person”.

“She was a terrific mother, she had a big heart,” she said.

“I still think it’s a dream sometimes that I wish I could wake up from.”

Detectives from the State Crime Command’s Homicide Squad and Lake Macquarie Police District established Strike Force Furzer to investigate the circumstances surrounding Ms Easey’s death.

Police were focused on any sightings or contact made with Danielle in early to mid-August.

“Our investigations have revealed Danielle had been associating with people involved in drug-related activities over the last few weeks,” NSW Police said in a statement on September 2.

Investigations are continuing.

Dilosi has also been remanded in custody.

He is charged with Ms Easey’s murder.

Ms Easey had the nickname “Quaker” after she was born amid the ruins of the 1989 Newcastle earthquake.

On December 28, 1989, she was born on the front lawn of Newcastle’s former Western Suburbs Maternity Hospital under a makeshift tent of sheets.

On her 17th birthday in 2006, Ms Easey told reporters her parents “always brag about it to other people” and that “friends call me Quaker”.

Her family had no contact with her up to three weeks before the grisly discovery of her body.