June 28, 2024 • 16 mins
How many lives must be shattered before we take domestic violence seriously? In this gripping episode of the Human Wreckage True Crime Podcast, we explore the harrowing story of Tara Brown, whose life was tragically cut short by her high school sweetheart turned violent abuser, Lionel Padia. Despite Tara's brave attempts to escape and secure the safety of her daughter Aria, systemic failures allowed Lionel's escalating violence to go unchecked, leading to her brutal and fatal attack. We unravel the chilling details of Tara's final moments and the persistent abuse that led to her tragic end.
We also scrutinize the broader implications of Tara's case, delving into the investigation of police conduct and Lionel's involvement in another violent crime, the murder of Greg Dufty. This episode exposes the critical flaws within the justice system's handling of domestic violence cases and the heightened dangers faced by women trying to leave abusive relationships. Join us for an emotional and thought-provoking conversation that underscores the urgent need for change in protecting victims of domestic violence. Don't forget to like and subscribe if you appreciate our poignant stories and insightful discussions.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
in 2007, when Tara Brown met Lionel Padia while
attending Keebra Park HighSchool, which is renowned for
its rugby league footballer.
Lionel was a promising NRLplayer and played for the South
Coast Maori Rugby League team.
The couple were said to beinseparable.
As one friend said, they'rejust a package deal.
It was always Tara and Lionel.
(00:20):
They were best friends.
Welcome to another episode ofHuman Wreckage True Crime
Podcast.
Today's case is about TaraBrown and the man who claimed
she was the love of his lifebefore he brutally took her life
.
Let's get into it.
Following their graduation in2009, the couple continued to
date before moving into a homeat Upper Coomer together.
(00:43):
In 2012, the couple had alittle girl, aria, who was the
apple of her mother's eye.
Tara's Facebook was pepperedwith photographs of her daughter
.
My world, my sun, my moon, mystar.
She wrote alongside numerousphotographs of Aria, one
photographs of her laughing,crying, her bottom lip sticking
out as a sign of protest.
Tara wrote when you were born,the angels sighed in delight.
(01:07):
They never thought they'd seesuch a beautiful sight.
You took a breath and the worldwas right again.
Tara worked at Southport CentralTowers and, according to one of
her colleagues, she was agolden girl.
In fact, during oneconversation among the
colleagues about what they woulddo if they had the luxury of
not working, tara responded bysaying that she loved coming to
(01:27):
work.
On her desk she had photographsof Aria.
According to one colleague,nikki Hodkinson, tara was a
beautiful person, very caring,very kind and she was very
genuine.
We had a lot of laughs.
She had a great personality.
She would do anything foranyone.
Life seemed to be good.
Over the years, however, lionelhad gotten himself involved in a
(01:49):
rough crowd and became part ofthe Bandidos' outlaw motorcycle
gang.
His role was running drugs andcollecting and, by 19 years old,
lionel had become heavilyinvolved with the gang.
He quickly rose through theranks because he had a
propensity for violence,eventually becoming the
sergeant-at-arms In 2013, he wasinvolved in the Broad Beach
(02:10):
Bicky Crawl.
As time progressed, a cycle ofdomestic abuse unraveled.
Lionel became increasingly moreviolent with Tara, and the
prolonged abuse led her tocontinually doubt herself.
As her mother, natalie Hinton,said, her self-confidence
declined.
The monster was now in control.
On numerous occasions, tara hadtried to separate from Lionel,
(02:31):
and each time he refused toaccept it.
He made her life a living hellwith abuse and threats, and Tara
had taken out severalprotection orders, but each time
breached the order.
In August of 2015, tara finallyleft Lionel for good.
However, towards the end of themonth, lionel forced Tara into
their bedroom, pinned her to bedand held a pair of scissors to
(02:52):
her throat and threatened her.
After the terrifying ordeal,tara decided the safest option
was to hide from Lionel.
As she attempted to get adomestic violence order against
Lionel, she told her mother thatshe was going to a refuge.
However, when she arrived atthe refuge, she found it wasn't
a safe place for Aria.
People were using drugs and thebed linen was filthy.
(03:13):
Concerned about her daughter,she returned to the coast.
Over the course of the next fewdays, lawyers negotiated a
custody agreement between Taraand Lionel, while Tara continued
to avoid Lionel for the safetyof herself and for the safety of
her daughter.
At around 8 45 am on the 9th ofSeptember 2015, tara had been
driving along McQuarrie Avenuein Mullendonar when Lionel Padia
(03:36):
rammed her car with his jeep.
Tara's car rolled down anembankment and into a front yard
.
The crash had taken place justas residents on the leafy
suburban street were preparingto leave for work or preparing
to take their children to school.
A bystander named Lisa Kennedy,heard what she described as a
huge bang.
She ran to the source of thenoise and came across the car
(03:58):
crash.
She saw that Tara was trappedunderneath the car and rushed to
her aid.
She saw Lionel crouch downbeside the wreckage and helped
him to smash the window to getinto the car.
However, a grim reality quicklyset in.
Lionel grabbed a piece of steelfrom a fire hydrant that had
been destroyed in the crash andbegan to smash Tara over the
(04:18):
head with the heavy object.
It soon became evident thatLionel hadn't been trying to
save Tara but instead kill her.
Lisa tried to pull Lionel offTara, but he was far too strong.
He had his knee on Tara's chest, while the rest of her body was
trapped and was just smackingher over and over again.
As the horrific scene continuedto unfold, a man, who identified
(04:40):
himself only as Mike, wasdriving past.
He pulled over to the side ofthe road to try and offer
assistance.
Firefighters soon arrived andby this point Lionel had fled
from the scene.
Mike said she was not in a goodway.
Her face was caved in andcovered in blood.
They were pumping air into herand put some tarps up.
The firefighters had to cut theroof of the car off to free
(05:02):
Tara from the wreckage.
Once out of the wreckage, thetrue damage to Tara was very
noticeable.
She had sustained severe headinjuries, not from the crash,
but instead from the attack thatLionel had launched on her with
a piece of steel.
She was completelyunrecognizable.
Tara was taken by ambulance tothe Gold Coast University
Hospital's resuscitation unitwhere a specialized trauma unit
(05:25):
was waiting for her.
Following the crash andsubsequent attack, lionel was
hunted by police.
However, he later drove toCoomera Police Station and
handed himself in.
When he handed himself in, itwas noticed that he had
self-inflicted knife wounds andwas transported to Gold Coast
University Hospital, where hewas said to be in a stable
condition.
(05:45):
Lionel was charged withattempted murder.
Meanwhile it was announced thatTara was in critical condition.
Then, the following day, it wasfurther announced that it
seemed unlikely that she wasgoing to survive the attack.
An investigation uncovered thatthe intentional crash was the
culmination of a car chasebetween Tara and Lionel.
According to a number ofwitnesses, they had seen Lionel
(06:07):
in his Jeep chasing Tara in herMazda at a high rate of speed.
The day before, lionel's lawyerreceived interim custody orders
from Tara.
These orders gave Lionelvisiting rights under the
condition that he must be ongood behavior.
Upon receiving the orders,lionel called Aria's child care
center to inquire as to whethershe was going to be there the
following morning.
(06:27):
When the employee confirmedthat Aria was booked in for the
following morning, lionelseemingly put his plan into
action.
On the morning of the attack,lionel followed Tara after she
dropped Aria off at child care.
At an intersection, witnesseshad spotted Lionel steering his
car in front of Tara's car.
He got out of the car and beganstriking Tara's car with his
(06:48):
fists and a knife before runningher off the road.
As it would turn out, around aweek before the attack, tara had
walked into Southport PoliceStation and asked for them to
help her leave Lionel andrequested a domestic violence
protection order.
She had come with a friend andhad shown the officers a number
of text messages that Lionel hadsent her.
Instead of giving Tara help oreven offering advice as to where
(07:11):
she should seek help, thepolice simply told her to seek
help elsewhere.
Following the disturbingrevelation, it was announced
that Southport Police Stationwould be under investigation.
An official statement read theappropriateness of the police
response has been reported tothe Queensland Police Service
Ethical Standards Command and iscurrently being investigated by
(07:32):
a senior officer.
Later that night, tara passedaway from her injuries at
hospital.
Following the crushing update,investigators appealed for any
witnesses who may have seen ablack Jeep and a black Mazda in
the area between 8 am and 8 30am On the 16th of September,
lionel appeared in SouthportMagistrate's Court via video
link to have his charge formallyupgraded to murder.
(07:55):
During the court hearing it wasrevealed that Lionel had stabbed
himself five times afterattacking Tara.
One of the wounds had puncturedhis lung.
It was also revealed that whiletrying to escape Lionel, tara
had called police for help.
On the phone call, the operatorcould hear Tara screaming for
help.
She repeatedly screamed thatLionel was going to stab her.
Moments later, sounds of thecar crash could be heard.
(08:18):
Before Tara could be heardmoaning Help me.
One of the last things Tarasaid was Lionel stop, please,
help me.
The operator then heard 16thumping sounds.
A female Kenny heard shoutingin the background what the fuck
are you doing?
Lionel responds with she got mykid, and then a further 13
thumping sounds can be heard.
(08:40):
In the wake of Tara's murder,many questioned how police
failed so desperately to protectTara.
University of Queensland lawprofessor Heather Douglas said
Police really need to take themseriously.
It is the case that therereally needs to be a cultural
shift.
She said that it wasn't theorders that were the problem,
but instead the way that policeofficers responded to domestic
(09:01):
violence.
According to DeputyCommissioner Brett Poynting,
while there had been a leap inpolice attitudes to domestic
violence, a lot of work stillneeded to be done.
The following month, it wasannounced that Lionel had also
been arrested in connection tothe murder of 37-year-old Greg
Dufty.
Greg had vanished on the 6th ofJuly and had never been found,
but police determined that hehad most likely been murdered At
(09:25):
the time of his disappearance.
Greg was deeply in debt overdrugs and police now speculated
that Lionel was somehow involved.
Lionel's defense lawyer,campbell McCallum, said that
Lionel had been questioned inrelation to Greg's disappearance
and said that he had denied anyinvolvement.
He additionally said that hebelieved that police had been
relying on a statement from aperson who had not been charged.
(09:47):
He said I understand there isno other evidence linking Lionel
to the offense.
Just days later, a second manwas arrested and charged with
the murder of Greg.
The second man was identifiedas Aaron Crawford, lionel's
cousin.
Police released furtherinformation regarding Greg's
disappearance and subsequentmurder.
They stated that CCTV footagehad shown Greg arriving at the
(10:10):
car park of Ashmore Steak andSeafood Restaurant on the 6th of
July.
They said that he was laterdriving to MT Nathan around
seven miles away in a Mack truckand was not seen.
Since they alleged that Aaronand Lionel were contracted to
fix up an outstanding drug moneydebt.
Before the month came to an end, a third man was arrested in
(10:31):
connection with Greg's murder.
Liam Bliss appeared in court tobe formally charged with Greg's
murder.
Police additionally said thatup to five more people may have
been involved in the murder andsaid that further arrests were
likely.
In early December, policeannounced that more than one
weapon had been used in themurder of Greg and said that
they were searching threeOxenfurt sites where they
(10:51):
believed the multiple murderweapons were hidden.
They further announced thatGreg had been led to a lonely
part of the Gold Coasthinterland and beaten to death
as retribution for stealingdrugs from Aaron.
Details of an allegedeyewitness account of the murder
emerged.
It was alleged that Aaron hadyelled "'Bite the hand that
feeds you' during the attack andlater tried to revive Greg, but
(11:12):
to no avail".
The eyewitness account had comefrom Liam Bliss, who was the
third man to have been arrested,that Lionel had paid him $200
to assist in the attack.
In February, a further mannamed Clinton Stockman was
arrested in relation to Greg'smurder.
He was charged with being anaccessory after the fact and it
(11:33):
was alleged he had helpeddispose of Greg's body.
However, he was bailed shortlythereafter.
The investigation into Greg'smurder continued while the
prosecution and defense weremaking preparations for Lionel
to stand trial for Tara's murder.
Before the end of February itwas announced that investigators
believed that the four men hadburned Greg's body over the
(11:53):
course of several days.
They soon discovered a shiftingspanner and a knife that had
been hidden in bushland at CoppsRoad, which they believed had
been the murder weapons.
In May it was announced thatLionel's 22-year-old brother,
nelson Padia, had been arrestedand charged with Greg's murder.
Lionel had been in solitaryconfinement in jail for over
seven months after attacking theguards and pouring boiling
(12:15):
water over a pedophile.
This was just part of theincreasing violence in
Queensland jails.
A number of newspapers wrotearticles about the concerns of
so-called fight clubs in thejails.
Attacks on guards hadskyrocketed, apparently because
of overcrowding and bikies beingallowed to mix with the
mainstream jail population.
In fact, in the first sixmonths of the year, assaults on
(12:37):
guards had increased 160% atWalston, 150% at southern
Queensland and 63% at Woodford.
In February of 2017, lionelpleaded guilty to the murder of
Tara.
In Queensland, a murdersentence carries a mandatory
sentence of life in prison.
They must serve 20 years beforebeing eligible for parole.
(12:58):
In handing down the sentence,supreme Court Judge Deborah
Mullins said that Lionel now hasto live with the guilt of
leaving his daughter with nomother.
She said your daughter has beendeprived of the love and
nurture of her mother.
You have to live every day ofyour life knowing you deprived
Ms Brown of her life and yourdaughter of a mother.
The court heard how Lionelclaimed he did not remember
(13:20):
murdering Tara.
His lawyer said that in thedays leading up to the attack,
lionel had been under theinfluence of drugs.
He allegedly remembered someparts of chasing Tara, but said
he did not remember the crucialparts.
During the hearing, it wasrevealed that the justice system
had truly failed to protectTara.
In April of 2012, police hadissued protection orders against
(13:42):
Lionel.
He breached several times,including one phone call where
he threatened to kill Tara,despite being on a suspended
sentence, lionel was given onemonth imprisonment but was
released on immediate paroleunder the condition he would not
go within 100 feet of Tara.
Tara's mother was given theopportunity to give an impact
statement Before she took to thestand.
(14:03):
Judge Deborah Mullins orderedhim to listen carefully.
Natalie said I am the mother ofTara Brown deceased.
I speak with extreme fondnessof my daughter.
She was a lover, loving andloved.
She was a lover of life From avery young age.
Tara would explore and seek fun, push herself to the limits,
give anything a go.
The world was her oyster.
(14:24):
She went on to describe how shewas haunted by her daughter's
laughter, her joyful banter, herdimples and her smile.
Lionel had penned a letter toTara's family in which she said
the question that haunts us allis how such a tragedy like this
could have ever happened.
Unfortunately, I don't have theanswers and can't clarify it
for myself either.
I hope today in court giveseveryone personally involved
(14:48):
some sort of closure.
Those of you who were close tous know how my son rose and set
for her.
She was my.
Everything Still is.
Tara was a dream catch that onein a million girl.
Outside of court, tara's familydescribed Lionel as a narcissist
who subjected Tara to years oftorment, including breaches of
previous domestic violenceorders.
(15:09):
Shortly after the verdict, twopolice officers were disciplined
after an internal investigationinto why they turned Tara away
when she reached out for help.
Less than a week before she wasmurdered, a statement was
released which read as a resultof the investigation, two
members have been subject ofdisciplinary action.
However, they elaborated nofurther.
(15:30):
In May of 2018, lionelconfessed to his role in the
murder of Greg Dufty and washanded a second life sentence.
Lionel's brother, nelsian Padia, and Aaron Crawford also
pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
When a woman gets the courage toleave a domestically violent
relationship, statistically thatis when they are in the most
danger.
Tara Brown sought out help andsought it out numerous times.
(15:53):
She was repeatedly let down bythe justice system, who didn't
take her fears seriously.
The murder of Tara Brown led tomany questioning how many women
must die before family violenceis taken seriously and
permanent changes are made tothe legal system.
Thanks for joining me on thisepisode, a very heartbreaking
case.
If you like what we do, pleaselike and subscribe.
(16:15):
Until next time, take care ofyourself.
in 2007, when Tara Brown met Lionel Padia while
attending Keebra Park HighSchool, which is renowned for
its rugby league footballer.
Lionel was a promising NRLplayer and played for the South
Coast Maori Rugby League team.
The couple were said to beinseparable.
As one friend said, they'rejust a package deal.
It was always Tara and Lionel.
(00:20):
They were best friends.
Welcome to another episode ofHuman Wreckage True Crime
Podcast.
Today's case is about TaraBrown and the man who claimed
she was the love of his lifebefore he brutally took her life
.
Let's get into it.
Following their graduation in2009, the couple continued to
date before moving into a homeat Upper Coomer together.
(00:43):
In 2012, the couple had alittle girl, aria, who was the
apple of her mother's eye.
Tara's Facebook was pepperedwith photographs of her daughter
.
My world, my sun, my moon, mystar.
She wrote alongside numerousphotographs of Aria, one
photographs of her laughing,crying, her bottom lip sticking
out as a sign of protest.
Tara wrote when you were born,the angels sighed in delight.
(01:07):
They never thought they'd seesuch a beautiful sight.
You took a breath and the worldwas right again.
Tara worked at Southport CentralTowers and, according to one of
her colleagues, she was agolden girl.
In fact, during oneconversation among the
colleagues about what they woulddo if they had the luxury of
not working, tara responded bysaying that she loved coming to
(01:27):
work.
On her desk she had photographsof Aria.
According to one colleague,nikki Hodkinson, tara was a
beautiful person, very caring,very kind and she was very
genuine.
We had a lot of laughs.
She had a great personality.
She would do anything foranyone.
Life seemed to be good.
Over the years, however, lionelhad gotten himself involved in a
(01:49):
rough crowd and became part ofthe Bandidos' outlaw motorcycle
gang.
His role was running drugs andcollecting and, by 19 years old,
lionel had become heavilyinvolved with the gang.
He quickly rose through theranks because he had a
propensity for violence,eventually becoming the
sergeant-at-arms In 2013, he wasinvolved in the Broad Beach
(02:10):
Bicky Crawl.
As time progressed, a cycle ofdomestic abuse unraveled.
Lionel became increasingly moreviolent with Tara, and the
prolonged abuse led her tocontinually doubt herself.
As her mother, natalie Hinton,said, her self-confidence
declined.
The monster was now in control.
On numerous occasions, tara hadtried to separate from Lionel,
(02:31):
and each time he refused toaccept it.
He made her life a living hellwith abuse and threats, and Tara
had taken out severalprotection orders, but each time
breached the order.
In August of 2015, tara finallyleft Lionel for good.
However, towards the end of themonth, lionel forced Tara into
their bedroom, pinned her to bedand held a pair of scissors to
(02:52):
her throat and threatened her.
After the terrifying ordeal,tara decided the safest option
was to hide from Lionel.
As she attempted to get adomestic violence order against
Lionel, she told her mother thatshe was going to a refuge.
However, when she arrived atthe refuge, she found it wasn't
a safe place for Aria.
People were using drugs and thebed linen was filthy.
(03:13):
Concerned about her daughter,she returned to the coast.
Over the course of the next fewdays, lawyers negotiated a
custody agreement between Taraand Lionel, while Tara continued
to avoid Lionel for the safetyof herself and for the safety of
her daughter.
At around 8 45 am on the 9th ofSeptember 2015, tara had been
driving along McQuarrie Avenuein Mullendonar when Lionel Padia
(03:36):
rammed her car with his jeep.
Tara's car rolled down anembankment and into a front yard
.
The crash had taken place justas residents on the leafy
suburban street were preparingto leave for work or preparing
to take their children to school.
A bystander named Lisa Kennedy,heard what she described as a
huge bang.
She ran to the source of thenoise and came across the car
(03:58):
crash.
She saw that Tara was trappedunderneath the car and rushed to
her aid.
She saw Lionel crouch downbeside the wreckage and helped
him to smash the window to getinto the car.
However, a grim reality quicklyset in.
Lionel grabbed a piece of steelfrom a fire hydrant that had
been destroyed in the crash andbegan to smash Tara over the
(04:18):
head with the heavy object.
It soon became evident thatLionel hadn't been trying to
save Tara but instead kill her.
Lisa tried to pull Lionel offTara, but he was far too strong.
He had his knee on Tara's chest, while the rest of her body was
trapped and was just smackingher over and over again.
As the horrific scene continuedto unfold, a man, who identified
(04:40):
himself only as Mike, wasdriving past.
He pulled over to the side ofthe road to try and offer
assistance.
Firefighters soon arrived andby this point Lionel had fled
from the scene.
Mike said she was not in a goodway.
Her face was caved in andcovered in blood.
They were pumping air into herand put some tarps up.
The firefighters had to cut theroof of the car off to free
(05:02):
Tara from the wreckage.
Once out of the wreckage, thetrue damage to Tara was very
noticeable.
She had sustained severe headinjuries, not from the crash,
but instead from the attack thatLionel had launched on her with
a piece of steel.
She was completelyunrecognizable.
Tara was taken by ambulance tothe Gold Coast University
Hospital's resuscitation unitwhere a specialized trauma unit
(05:25):
was waiting for her.
Following the crash andsubsequent attack, lionel was
hunted by police.
However, he later drove toCoomera Police Station and
handed himself in.
When he handed himself in, itwas noticed that he had
self-inflicted knife wounds andwas transported to Gold Coast
University Hospital, where hewas said to be in a stable
condition.
(05:45):
Lionel was charged withattempted murder.
Meanwhile it was announced thatTara was in critical condition.
Then, the following day, it wasfurther announced that it
seemed unlikely that she wasgoing to survive the attack.
An investigation uncovered thatthe intentional crash was the
culmination of a car chasebetween Tara and Lionel.
According to a number ofwitnesses, they had seen Lionel
(06:07):
in his Jeep chasing Tara in herMazda at a high rate of speed.
The day before, lionel's lawyerreceived interim custody orders
from Tara.
These orders gave Lionelvisiting rights under the
condition that he must be ongood behavior.
Upon receiving the orders,lionel called Aria's child care
center to inquire as to whethershe was going to be there the
following morning.
(06:27):
When the employee confirmedthat Aria was booked in for the
following morning, lionelseemingly put his plan into
action.
On the morning of the attack,lionel followed Tara after she
dropped Aria off at child care.
At an intersection, witnesseshad spotted Lionel steering his
car in front of Tara's car.
He got out of the car and beganstriking Tara's car with his
(06:48):
fists and a knife before runningher off the road.
As it would turn out, around aweek before the attack, tara had
walked into Southport PoliceStation and asked for them to
help her leave Lionel andrequested a domestic violence
protection order.
She had come with a friend andhad shown the officers a number
of text messages that Lionel hadsent her.
Instead of giving Tara help oreven offering advice as to where
(07:11):
she should seek help, thepolice simply told her to seek
help elsewhere.
Following the disturbingrevelation, it was announced
that Southport Police Stationwould be under investigation.
An official statement read theappropriateness of the police
response has been reported tothe Queensland Police Service
Ethical Standards Command and iscurrently being investigated by
(07:32):
a senior officer.
Later that night, tara passedaway from her injuries at
hospital.
Following the crushing update,investigators appealed for any
witnesses who may have seen ablack Jeep and a black Mazda in
the area between 8 am and 8 30am On the 16th of September,
lionel appeared in SouthportMagistrate's Court via video
link to have his charge formallyupgraded to murder.
(07:55):
During the court hearing it wasrevealed that Lionel had stabbed
himself five times afterattacking Tara.
One of the wounds had puncturedhis lung.
It was also revealed that whiletrying to escape Lionel, tara
had called police for help.
On the phone call, the operatorcould hear Tara screaming for
help.
She repeatedly screamed thatLionel was going to stab her.
Moments later, sounds of thecar crash could be heard.
(08:18):
Before Tara could be heardmoaning Help me.
One of the last things Tarasaid was Lionel stop, please,
help me.
The operator then heard 16thumping sounds.
A female Kenny heard shoutingin the background what the fuck
are you doing?
Lionel responds with she got mykid, and then a further 13
thumping sounds can be heard.
(08:40):
In the wake of Tara's murder,many questioned how police
failed so desperately to protectTara.
University of Queensland lawprofessor Heather Douglas said
Police really need to take themseriously.
It is the case that therereally needs to be a cultural
shift.
She said that it wasn't theorders that were the problem,
but instead the way that policeofficers responded to domestic
(09:01):
violence.
According to DeputyCommissioner Brett Poynting,
while there had been a leap inpolice attitudes to domestic
violence, a lot of work stillneeded to be done.
The following month, it wasannounced that Lionel had also
been arrested in connection tothe murder of 37-year-old Greg
Dufty.
Greg had vanished on the 6th ofJuly and had never been found,
but police determined that hehad most likely been murdered At
(09:25):
the time of his disappearance.
Greg was deeply in debt overdrugs and police now speculated
that Lionel was somehow involved.
Lionel's defense lawyer,campbell McCallum, said that
Lionel had been questioned inrelation to Greg's disappearance
and said that he had denied anyinvolvement.
He additionally said that hebelieved that police had been
relying on a statement from aperson who had not been charged.
(09:47):
He said I understand there isno other evidence linking Lionel
to the offense.
Just days later, a second manwas arrested and charged with
the murder of Greg.
The second man was identifiedas Aaron Crawford, lionel's
cousin.
Police released furtherinformation regarding Greg's
disappearance and subsequentmurder.
They stated that CCTV footagehad shown Greg arriving at the
(10:10):
car park of Ashmore Steak andSeafood Restaurant on the 6th of
July.
They said that he was laterdriving to MT Nathan around
seven miles away in a Mack truckand was not seen.
Since they alleged that Aaronand Lionel were contracted to
fix up an outstanding drug moneydebt.
Before the month came to an end, a third man was arrested in
(10:31):
connection with Greg's murder.
Liam Bliss appeared in court tobe formally charged with Greg's
murder.
Police additionally said thatup to five more people may have
been involved in the murder andsaid that further arrests were
likely.
In early December, policeannounced that more than one
weapon had been used in themurder of Greg and said that
they were searching threeOxenfurt sites where they
(10:51):
believed the multiple murderweapons were hidden.
They further announced thatGreg had been led to a lonely
part of the Gold Coasthinterland and beaten to death
as retribution for stealingdrugs from Aaron.
Details of an allegedeyewitness account of the murder
emerged.
It was alleged that Aaron hadyelled "'Bite the hand that
feeds you' during the attack andlater tried to revive Greg, but
(11:12):
to no avail".
The eyewitness account had comefrom Liam Bliss, who was the
third man to have been arrested,that Lionel had paid him $200
to assist in the attack.
In February, a further mannamed Clinton Stockman was
arrested in relation to Greg'smurder.
He was charged with being anaccessory after the fact and it
(11:33):
was alleged he had helpeddispose of Greg's body.
However, he was bailed shortlythereafter.
The investigation into Greg'smurder continued while the
prosecution and defense weremaking preparations for Lionel
to stand trial for Tara's murder.
Before the end of February itwas announced that investigators
believed that the four men hadburned Greg's body over the
(11:53):
course of several days.
They soon discovered a shiftingspanner and a knife that had
been hidden in bushland at CoppsRoad, which they believed had
been the murder weapons.
In May it was announced thatLionel's 22-year-old brother,
nelson Padia, had been arrestedand charged with Greg's murder.
Lionel had been in solitaryconfinement in jail for over
seven months after attacking theguards and pouring boiling
(12:15):
water over a pedophile.
This was just part of theincreasing violence in
Queensland jails.
A number of newspapers wrotearticles about the concerns of
so-called fight clubs in thejails.
Attacks on guards hadskyrocketed, apparently because
of overcrowding and bikies beingallowed to mix with the
mainstream jail population.
In fact, in the first sixmonths of the year, assaults on
(12:37):
guards had increased 160% atWalston, 150% at southern
Queensland and 63% at Woodford.
In February of 2017, lionelpleaded guilty to the murder of
Tara.
In Queensland, a murdersentence carries a mandatory
sentence of life in prison.
They must serve 20 years beforebeing eligible for parole.
(12:58):
In handing down the sentence,supreme Court Judge Deborah
Mullins said that Lionel now hasto live with the guilt of
leaving his daughter with nomother.
She said your daughter has beendeprived of the love and
nurture of her mother.
You have to live every day ofyour life knowing you deprived
Ms Brown of her life and yourdaughter of a mother.
The court heard how Lionelclaimed he did not remember
(13:20):
murdering Tara.
His lawyer said that in thedays leading up to the attack,
lionel had been under theinfluence of drugs.
He allegedly remembered someparts of chasing Tara, but said
he did not remember the crucialparts.
During the hearing, it wasrevealed that the justice system
had truly failed to protectTara.
In April of 2012, police hadissued protection orders against
(13:42):
Lionel.
He breached several times,including one phone call where
he threatened to kill Tara,despite being on a suspended
sentence, lionel was given onemonth imprisonment but was
released on immediate paroleunder the condition he would not
go within 100 feet of Tara.
Tara's mother was given theopportunity to give an impact
statement Before she took to thestand.
(14:03):
Judge Deborah Mullins orderedhim to listen carefully.
Natalie said I am the mother ofTara Brown deceased.
I speak with extreme fondnessof my daughter.
She was a lover, loving andloved.
She was a lover of life From avery young age.
Tara would explore and seek fun, push herself to the limits,
give anything a go.
The world was her oyster.
(14:24):
She went on to describe how shewas haunted by her daughter's
laughter, her joyful banter, herdimples and her smile.
Lionel had penned a letter toTara's family in which she said
the question that haunts us allis how such a tragedy like this
could have ever happened.
Unfortunately, I don't have theanswers and can't clarify it
for myself either.
I hope today in court giveseveryone personally involved
(14:48):
some sort of closure.
Those of you who were close tous know how my son rose and set
for her.
She was my.
Everything Still is.
Tara was a dream catch that onein a million girl.
Outside of court, tara's familydescribed Lionel as a narcissist
who subjected Tara to years oftorment, including breaches of
previous domestic violenceorders.
(15:09):
Shortly after the verdict, twopolice officers were disciplined
after an internal investigationinto why they turned Tara away
when she reached out for help.
Less than a week before she wasmurdered, a statement was
released which read as a resultof the investigation, two
members have been subject ofdisciplinary action.
However, they elaborated nofurther.
(15:30):
In May of 2018, lionelconfessed to his role in the
murder of Greg Dufty and washanded a second life sentence.
Lionel's brother, nelsian Padia, and Aaron Crawford also
pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
When a woman gets the courage toleave a domestically violent
relationship, statistically thatis when they are in the most
danger.
Tara Brown sought out help andsought it out numerous times.
(15:53):
She was repeatedly let down bythe justice system, who didn't
take her fears seriously.
The murder of Tara Brown led tomany questioning how many women
must die before family violenceis taken seriously and
permanent changes are made tothe legal system.
Thanks for joining me on thisepisode, a very heartbreaking
case.
If you like what we do, pleaselike and subscribe.
(16:15):
Until next time, take care ofyourself.
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