Aaron Pajich-Sweetman murderer Jemma Lilley appeals conviction

Jemma Lilley, serving a life term for the brutal killing of autistic teenager Aaron Pajich-Sweetman, sat in silence as she tried to have her conviction overturned this morning.

Jemma Lilley — the wannabe serial killer who is serving a life term for the brutal killing of autistic teenager Aaron Pajich-Sweetman — has sat in silence as she attempted to have her conviction for one of WA’s worst murders overturned this morning.

Lilley was jailed for a minimum of 28 years after she, and her partner in crime Trudi Lenon, were both found guilty of the “thrill killing” of Mr Pajich-Sweetman in June 2016, having lured him to the house they shared in Orelia.

During the trial it emerged Lilley had been obsessed with serial killers from her teens – and had ambitions to become one.

Lenon, who had a history as a submissive in the underground BDSM scene in Perth, became her enabler – and used a family connection with Mr Pajich-Sweetman to lure him into their car and their home, where he was garrotted, stabbed and then buried under a patio in the garden.

Both blamed each other, while their mutual fascination with knives, serial killers – and a strange alter ego relationship which developed between Lilley’s persona SOS, and Lenon’s alter ego Corvina – was revealed in court.

Today, Lilley’s appeal lawyer Simon Watters put forward arguments that a list of propensity evidence put against Lilley by prosecutors – including a book about a serial killer called SOS entitled ‘Playzone’ – should not have been allowed to be put before a jury.

The importance of the case was illustrated by WA’s Director of Public Prosecutions Amanda Forrester personally appearing in court on behalf of the state.

But she was not called on to do much, as the three judge panel questioned Mr Watters vigorously about his arguments, but said they did not need to hear from Ms Forrester. Both Mr Pajich-Sweetman’s parents were in court for the hearing, but said nothing as they left

They will hand down their decision on the appeal later this year.

Lilley appeared in prison on video link from the Eastern Goldfields, where she was moved after it was revealed she was flaunting a romance inside prison with another notorious female killer — Melony Attwood — and have even talked about marriage.

Attwood, 36, is serving a life term with a non-parole period of 21 years for orchestrating the murder of her former de-facto Alan Taylor in April 2016, committed along with her neo-nazi lover Robert Edhouse and aided by two acolytes.

She is also appealing her conviction, claiming her lawyer at trial was incompetent.

Originally published as Aaron Pajich-Sweetman murderer Jemma Lilley appeals conviction