Trial for McBride Murder Begins

THE forensics scene on Bunnan Road at Owen’s Gap in August 2016 was real, but the images released to the media by police of the crime scene was fake, set up by police to draw out information from Carly McBride’s suspected killers.

Carly McBride with her children Cadence and William.

Police alleged they then recorded a phone conversation in which Sayle Kenneth Newson, a 41 year old from Buff Point and Ms McBride’s boyfriend of eight weeks, described part of the real crime scene, which had not been released to the public claiming he had hunted in the area, but would not admit he knew the location like the back of his hand because “it sounds incriminating.”

When Carly’s body was found it was missing her hands and forearms, crucial information police also kept confidential, but it is alleged Mr Newson called Carly’s father seven weeks after her body was found and said he heard “someone was in possession of (Carly’s) hand.”

Mr Newson appeared in Newcastle Supreme Court yesterday for the beginning of what is expected to be a three month trial into the murder of Ms Carly McBride.

Mr Newson has pled not guilty to murdering Ms McBride, a 31 year old mother of two, on September 30, 2014 in Muswellbrook and dumping her body approximately 25 metres from Bunnan Road at Owen’s Gap.

James Anthony Cunneen, a 27 year old from Muswellbrook, has been accused of being an accessory to Carly’s murder, assisting Mr Newson to dump her body and providing him with a false alibi, to which he has pled not guilty.

Police have compiled a 36,000 page brief of evidence, which the defence claims is highly circumstantial and missing the “smoking gun” and the Crown conceded their case was “not particularly strong”.

Police allegations include:

• Carly had met Newson and Cunneen in 2013 at a drug rehabilitation centre near Wyong and began a relationship with Newson in August 2014, eight weeks before her murder.
• Mr Newson was on an ice binge at the time of Carly’s murder and had controlling behaviours towards Carly.
• Two days before her murder the couple had argued about Carly communicating with men on Facebook.
• On September 30, Mr Newson had driven Carly from her home in Lake Macquarie to visit her daughter in Muswellbrook at her ex partner’s home, dropping her off at 12:30pm.
• When Ms McBride was walking to McDonald’s to meet Newson, he intercepted her and killed her sometime after 2pm, before dumping her body at Owen’s Gap and made no attempt to conceal the body.
• Carly’s body was discovered by two local bushwalkers on August 7, 2016 but police delayed announcing her body had been found for four days in an attempt to draw evidence from her killer.
• An autopsy revealed Carly was killed from blunt force trauma with at least two blows to the skull and one to her back.
• Mr Newson made a public display of concern in trying to find Carly, but early the next morning after her death had sent a text to a woman to arrange to have sex with her, stating “Do you want to f***?”

Related stories:

• Forensics Back on Scene – November 11, 2016.
• Search Warrant for Scone Storage Shed – September 16, 2016.
• Breakthrough in Carly McBride Case -September 16, 2016.
• Gallery: Search Warrants in Carly McBride Case – September 14, 2016.
• Video: Search Warrants – Carly McBride Case – September 14, 2016.
• Parent’s Plea for Last Piece of Puzzle – August 12, 2016.
• Police Video: Site Where Remains Found – August 11, 2016.
• New Evidence Reinvigorates Investigation – August 11, 2016.
• Remains of Carly McBride Found – August 11, 2016.
• Background: Carly McBride – August 11, 2016.