Justin Willman’s children, Sian and Lachie, open up after their dad’s tragic death in Stonehaven paddock

Justin Willman’s children were woken in the middle of the night to hear the news no one ever wants to receive – their dad had been killed by a drunk driver in a tragic accident.

Lachie and Sian Willman's dad, Justin Willman, was killed in January 2023. Picture: Brad Fleet

It’s the phone call no one wants to receive. Ever.

Sian Willman woke up to her family calling her at about 1am.

Her screen was flooded with messages.

Instantly, she had a “bad feeling” something terrible had happened.

“Sian, please ring me now,” one message read.

“Call me please,” said another.

She knew straight away something was wrong.

“Then mum told me on the phone that dad has passed away.”

Her father, Justin Willman, was killed on January 28 last year.

Justin Willman, 52, was hit and killed in January 2023. Picture: Supplied.

The 52-year-old had been with a group of friends for a bonfire in a paddock at a Stonehaven property, about 12km west of Geelong.

Shaun Bartlett, 43, was “next-level” drunk when he got behind the wheel of his ute, on his way to get pizza and beer, and reversed over Justin.

Bartlett drove off and crashed into a fence, leaving Justin in a ditch with severe head injuries.

“In his final moments, knowing that he was alone, that really hurts me,” Sian said.

“We will never get the chance to say goodbye to dad.”

Bartlett pleaded guilty to one count of culpable driving causing death and was sentenced to six years in jail, with a non-parole period of four-and-a-half, in the Melbourne County Court on July 5.

The court heard his blood alcohol reading was 0.262, more than five times the legal limit, and he had no recollection of the accident.

Shaun Bartlett leaving the Geelong Magistrates’ Court in January 2023.

Sian said she was in a “state of panic” when she found out her dad had been killed.

“I was in disbelief, it felt like a dream,” she said.

“I just broke down and cried.

“I couldn’t even speak.”

Her brother, Lachie Willman, was asleep when his mum woke him up about 1.30am to deliver the news no one ever wants to receive.

“It was like a daze,” he said.

The days after the accident were “like a blur”.

“We were in a lot of shock and trying to process exactly what had happened,” he said.

“Even now, it’s still hard to believe he’s gone.

“You just expect that he’ll give you a call or send you a message.”

At a hearing just two days after the accident, the court heard Bartlett was a “close friend” of Justin’s.

But Sian said her family has “never even met him”.

“When we heard the name Shaun Bartlett, we were turning to each other and asking ‘who is that?’,” she said.

“I’d never met him and no one in my family had either.

“The most frustrating thing is that dad doesn’t have a voice anymore and he can’t tell us what happened that night.”

Bartlett has not contacted her family since the accident and has made no effort to apologies for his actions, according to Justin’s daughter.

On the day of the accident the well-respected motorbike mechanic had spent the morning canoeing on the Barwon River.

Justin Willman. Picture; supplied.

He then went for a walk with a friend and spent the afternoon fixing a motorbike for a client.

Justin worked on the bike until about 7:30pm at his Bannockburn home when he received a message saying a group of mates were getting together for a catch up.

He got ready and headed out, going past a bottle shop in Bannockburn before making his way to his mate’s property in Stonehaven.

He arrived at about 8:30pm.

By 9:30pm, a heavily intoxicated Bartlett had run him over.

The last time Sian saw her dad was a week before the accident.

“He came over for dinner and he was talking about work, he was applying for a new job,” she said.

“He has always been a motorcycle mechanic and worked from home but he wanted to get another job during the week and continue fixing bikes on the weekend.

“He was really happy.”

Lachie and Sian as kids with their dad Justin. Picture: Supplied

Justin’s family was in court when Bartlett was sentenced.

Sian said there was a “fear of the unknown” inside the courtroom.

“I was a little disappointed (with the length of the sentence) but at the end of the day, it’s not going to bring dad back,” she said.

Lachie said he felt “shock and surprise” when Judge Sandra Davis delivered Bartlett’s sentence.

“It’s what we had been waiting a long time for,” he said.

In a statement, the Willman family said Justin did not deserve to die alone in such a horrific way.

“We are doing a life sentence,” it read.

“We just hope that for the short amount of time Shaun will be in prison, he can learn from his actions and inactions, and be reminded everyday of dad and the pain and torment he has caused our family and friends.”

Lachie and Sian Willman's dad, Justin Willman, was killed in January 2023. Picture: Brad Fleet

Both Sian and Lachie still have nightmares about their father’s accident.

“I keep asking myself ‘why did this happen to him?’,” Sian said.

“What happened to him is really unfair and his mates have failed him.”

Lachie hopes his dad’s legacy will live on through his family and friends and he’ll always think of him when listening to Pink Floyd, The Beatles and U2.

Sian has printed photos of her dad, which she hopes to show to her children, who will never get to meet their grandfather.

“Dad gives us the strength to keep going,” she said.

“It’s not the same without him and we miss him everyday.

“In six years time, (Bartlett) will be out and able to live his life.

“But dad isn’t here anymore.

“Nothing is ever going to bring back our dad.”

Originally published as Justin Willman’s children, Sian and Lachie, open up after their dad’s tragic death in Stonehaven paddock