‘I lost my son because of the drugs world’: A mother’s anguish

The mother of Launceston murder victim Jake Anderson-Brettner says she has forgiven her son’s killer while warning of the dangers of the drug world. READ HER MESSAGE TO OTHERS >>

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The mother of Launceston murder victim Jake Anderson-Brettner has spoken of her devastating loss and warned of the dangers of the drugs world.

On Thursday Jack Harrison Anderson Sadler was found guilty of the 2018 murder of Mr Anderson-Brettner, shooting his friend three times, cutting up and disposing of the body parts in garbage bags.

“My son made mistakes and that got him killed, being willing to walk down the road that’s dark, then that could happen to you,” Claudette Brettner said outside the Launceston Supreme Court.

She described him as amazing, funny and someone everyone loved, and urged young people on a similar path as her son to change and think of their families.

Claudette Brettner hugging supporter after verdict. Picture: Rosemary Murphy

Inside court during her victim impact statement she said “the moment I was told Jake was dead my heart broke into a million pieces.”

Ms Brettner said she had “lost my son because of the drugs world” and “it’s not normal, it’s cruel and it’s evil.”

“My son wasn’t rubbish, he was precious and he was priceless,” she said.

Speaking directly to Sadler in the dock she said “it would be easier to not forgive, and my heart would become harder and more like you.”

“I forgive you, not because you deserve it, but because I deserve peace,” Ms Brettner said.

“I’ve held on to it for long enough and he’s taken up nearly three years of my life and I don’t want him to be in my head anymore,” she said outside court.