What Chris Dawson said during secret police phone tap

Chris Dawson was recorded on secret police phone taps discussing Lynette Dawson’s disappearance, with the recordings played in court for the first time.

When Paul Dawson phoned his twin Chris on March 19, 1999, fresh off an exhaustive interview with police, he floated a series of theories about Lynette Dawson’s disappearance.

But little did he know police were listening in on a phone tap in which Paul claimed, among other things, that a former teenage babysitter would have had more of a motive to kill Lynette than Chris.

A recording of the call was played in the NSW Supreme Court on Thursday, as Chris Dawson stands trial accused of murdering Lynette Dawson over 40 years ago.

Ms Dawson was 33-years-old when she went missing from her Bayview home in January 1982, leaving behind her two beloved young children.

Mr Dawson, a former teacher, has pleaded not guilty to murdering his wife, arguing he had no reason to want to kill her and that she contacted him several times shortly after she last spoke to her friends and family.

When Chris spoke to his brother on the phone in 1999 – more than 17 years after Ms Dawson was last seen in January 1982 – he spoke about having nothing to do with Lynette’s disappearance

Paul Dawson began the phone call – which was played to the court on Thursday – by complaining about the “f***ing horrible” experience of being interviewed by police and the “stupid questions” he was asked.

“(The police) asked about me having a stain on my carpet that I had to have cleaned or something?” Paul Dawson said.

“What, the paint stain?” Chris Dawson replied.

“That’s the only one I could think of,” Paul replied.

MOTIVE

Paul said he was grilled by detectives about renovations done to his home (in 1982 he lived several doors up from his brother on Gilwinga Dr), insurance policies, Lynette’s bank cards and his movements around the time Ms Dawson went missing.

“He implied that something has happened to Lyn and you had the motive,” Paul said.

“They think something has happened to Lyn and I had the motive and they are going to search the (Gilwinga Dr) property and do sorts of things,” Chris, who was by that stage living in Queensland, replied.

“Oh well, good luck to them.”

Central to the case is a woman, who can only be known as JC, who was one of Chris’ pupils and the Dawson family babysitter.

The crown has alleged Chris was motivated to murder Lynette so he could be with JC, who he would later marry before splitting in acrimonious circumstances in 1990.

“If anyone had the motive, (JC) had more motive,” Paul said during the call.

Chris Dawson (left) with his brother Paul. Picture: Supplied

It has never been alleged by the police that JC had anything to do with Ms Dawson’s disappearance, nor has she ever been charged.

THE BIRTHDAY PARTY

During his testimony in the witness box, Paul told Justice Ian Harrison on Thursday that it was “preposterous” to suggest that Chris was involved in Ms Dawson’s disappearance.

Under questioning from Crown prosecutor Craig Everson, Paul said JC had more to gain from Ms Dawson’s disappearance than his brother.

“If Lyn had been murdered, (JC) had the motive,” Paul said.

“(JC) had more to gain and (JC) did gain more than Chris did ever gain from their relationship.

“Also (JC) had threatened Lyn.”

Chris Dawson has pleaded not guilty to murdering his wife in 1982. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Nikki Short

Paul told the court a family friend, Elva McBay, had told him she had witnessed Ms Dawson upset during a birthday party at the Dawson family home.

Ms McBay claimed she was told by Ms Dawson that JC had “threatened” her, Paul told the court.

“Elva McBay was doing the dishes and Lyn came in quite upset and shaky,” Paul said.

“Elva has told me this several times. Elva said, ‘Lyn what’s wrong?’ and Lyn just said ‘(JC) just said if she got in her way, she’d get rid of her’.”

Chris Dawson with Lynette Dawson before her disappearance. Picture: Troy Bendeich

“SHE COULD BE ANYWHERE”

During the police phone intercept, Paul and Chris both lamented Lynette’s disappearance had not been more thoroughly investigated by detectives in 1982, with Paul saying his memories would have been more vivid back then.

“Either Lyn is somewhere with a whole new life or something happened,” Paul said.

“I mean, she could be anywhere; it could have happened after she went to the Central Coast. This could have happened when she went to Western Australia, it could have happened anywhere.”

During his evidence to the court, Paul said he and his brother had around the time of Lynette’s disappearance approached five police officers who they knew about the mystery.

Chris Dawson and JC on their wedding day. Picture: Supplied

PAUL’S BABYSITTER

One witness has previously told the court of seeing Ms Dawson with a grapefruit-sized bruise on her thigh.

One of Ms Dawson’s co-workers at Warriewood childcare centre said she saw Ms Dawson with bruises on her neck and was told Chris had grabbed her before a marriage counselling session.

Paul told the court on Thursday he had never witnessed his brother be violent towards Ms Dawson.

“Never whatsoever,” Paul said.

“I’ve been reading the papers. Whenever I hear Chris Dawson described as violent, I find it most outrageous.”

When asked if he had ever heard Chris refer to Ms Dawson as a “bitch”, Paul said he had never heard Chris use derogatory names for his wife.

“That’s a lie, no way,” Paul said.

However, Paul’s former babysitter, who cannot be named for legal reasons - told the court she was in the car when she heard Chris Dawson refer to his wife as a “bitch”.

“I specifically remember in the car, times when we would pick up (JC) from school and (JC) and Chris would be talking about how ‘if only she wasn’t around’ or ‘if only she was gone’,” the woman told the court.

The trial continues.