Staged suicide? Push for coroner to reopen inquest into death of Gregory Lynn’s first wife

Police will ask a coroner to reopen an inquest into the death of Gregory Lynn’s first wife.

Lisa Lynn, 34, was found dead in the garden of her home on October 26, 1999. Her death was found to have been caused by an overdose of prescription drugs and alcohol.

Lisa Lynn with son Geordie in an undated family photo.

But investigators now believe there is sufficient new evidence for the coroner to order a second inquest.

Gregory Lynn, a former airline pilot, was found guilty in the Supreme Court of Victoria on Tuesday of murdering camper Carol Clay but acquitted of the murder of fellow camper Russell Hill.

Lisa Lynn’s body was found in the fetal position in the grass outside her sprawling stone home in Mount Macedon, with family photo albums spread over the floor inside.

The Lynns’ two sons, then aged one and three, were asleep inside. Toxicology results showed antidepressants in her system and a blood alcohol reading of .21.

Lisa and Gregory Lynn’s son Geordie Lynn outside court with stepmother Melanie Lynn last month.Credit: Wayne Taylor

No suicide note was found and no friends or family suggested she was considering self-harm.

Coroner Graeme Johnstone found that Lisa had been in an abusive relationship with Gregory Lynn, but concluded: “As no suicide note or other definitive indications of the deceased’s intentions were found, it is unclear whether she intended to take her own life.

“Police investigations failed to reveal any suspicious circumstances or the involvement of any other person in the death of Lisa Lynn.”

A friend of Lisa’s told The Age that the marriage deteriorated when Lisa found photos of Lynn in his pilot’s bag that showed him having a picnic with another woman.

Gregory Lynn during his trial last month.Credit: Joe Armao

Despite the affair, a colleague said: “Lisa would have taken him back. She wanted to be married, and she wanted to be married to Greg.

“There is no way she would commit suicide. She was deeply religious and would see it as a sin against God and there was no way she would leave her boys.”

Lisa Lynn was found in the front yard of her home that October morning. At 3am the temperature was 8.8 degrees at Melbourne Airport but at the house in Mount Macedon, the 24th coldest location in Victoria, the temperature would have been about 4 degrees.

Since 2021, police have located a new witness, the family’s former nanny, now living in the UK.

Lisa Lynn with son Geordie when he was a child.

The nanny said Lisa urged her to return to Britain for her own safety and has given an account to police of Lisa’s state of mind before her death.

Police will ask the coroner to consider the likelihood her death was a staged suicide and that she was killed by a third person. But it is understood there is insufficient evidence to establish the identity of the alleged killer.

The new developments could not be revealed until the jury’s verdict in the case of missing campers Carol Clay and Russell Hill. It cleared Lynn of murder over Hill’s death but found him guilty of murdering Clay.

In the missing campers murder case, police had alleged Lynn shot Hill after a dispute, then walked around and killed Clay, who was cowering behind the passenger side of their vehicle, because she was a witness to Hill’s death.

Lisa Lynn (top row, third from right) with cabin crew colleagues.

A close friend of Lisa described Gregory Lynn as “charismatic, intelligent, charming, violent and opinionated”. Another said he was “mild-mannered and smooth until he snapped”.

One said she saw Lynn “slam Lisa into a wall in the kitchen. She was begging him to stop.

“She was scared of him. She just wanted him out of her life.”

An infamous story involving the family has also been shared with friends.

After the movie Babe was released, the Lynns bought a piglet as a pet. The family named it Pig. “It was like Lisa’s little baby,” one said.

“Greg was into horticulture and had plants from around the world. When the piglet broke in and dug up some plants, he cut its head off with an axe and left it on the doorstep for Lisa to find. There was blood everywhere.

“Lisa was a beautiful girl, an angel, and Greg would just belittle her. He had threatened to kill her. She was terrified.”

Two aviation industry sources, who asked not to be identified because of the nature of the case, said commercial pilot Lynn was gossiped about because of his relationship history. “He was a bully. Junior pilots would go sick rather than fly with him.”

A friend of Lisa’s, who did Qantas cabin crew training with her in 1995, said: “She was just lovely. A really easy-going person. He was just odd.”

Another, who knew the family well said: “She was terrified of him.”

If you or anyone you know needs support, you can contact the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service on 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732), Lifeline 131 114, or Beyond Blue 1300 224 636.

A new podcast from 9News, The Age and 9Podcasts follows the court case as it unfolds. The Missing Campers Trial is the first podcast to follow a jury trial in real time in Victoria. It’s presented by Nine reporter Penelope Liersch and Age reporter Erin Pearson.