Cory Breton and Iuliana Triscaru: Packed twist in toolbox murder case – as court hands down shocking verdict for four men convicted of brutal murder
- Remains of married couple found in 2016
- Murder convictions quashed
Three men previously convicted of murdering a man and a woman, whose decomposing bodies were found in an underwater toolbox, have now been convicted and will face a new trial.
Stou Daniels, Trent Michael Thrupp and Davy Malu Junior Taiao were all sentenced to life in prison in 2021 for the murders of Cory Breton and Iuliana Triscaru
The pair’s bodies were found in 2016 in an industrial toolbox submerged in Scrubby Creek, near Logan.
Daniels, Thrupp and Taiao all appealed their murder convictions.
According to the prosecutor, Mr Breton and Ms Triscaru were lured by the group to a unit in Kingston and were tied up, abused and tortured for hours.
It is further alleged that the pair were then locked in the toolbox, which was driven to Scrubby Creek near Logan and dumped in the water.
At their 2021 trial, Daniels, Thrupp and Taiao were convicted of two charges: murder and torture.
Walker was convicted of manslaughter by Mr Breton and Ms Triscaru.
Stou Daniels, Trent Michael Thrupp and Davy Malu Junior Taiao were all sentenced to life in prison in 2021 for the murders of Cory Breton and Iuliana Triscaru (pictured)
The couple’s bodies were found in 2016 in an industrial toolbox submerged in Scrubby Creek near Logan
All four men successfully appealed their convictions to the Queensland Court of Appeal, arguing that the Crown had failed to prove they had the “knowledge, intent or belief” necessary to hold them “criminally responsible” for the murder.
On Tuesday, the Court of Appeal quashed the trio’s murder convictions and ordered new trials for Daniels, Thrupp and Taiao.
The court also overturned Walker’s manslaughter convictions and acquitted him of the charges.
However, the torture convictions of Daniels, Thrupp and Taiao were all upheld.
In their judgment, the Court of Appeal judges found that there had been miscarriages of justice because insufficient detail and guidance had been given to the jury about the “requisite knowledge, intent or belief” of Daniels, Thrupp and Taiao, thereby rendering them liable for their complicity in the murder offences.
“It will also become clear that the Crown failed to pay sufficient attention to this requirement during the trial,” the verdict said.
The judges noted errors in questions the jury had asked about the guilt or lack thereof of all three defendants during the trial.
Earlier this year, Tuhirangi-Thomas Tahiata attempted to appeal his conviction for the murders of Mr Breton and Ms Triscaru.
Earlier this year, Tuhirangi-Thomas Tahiata attempted to appeal his conviction for the murder of Mr Breton and Ms Triscaru
Police recover the toolbox containing the bodies of Mr Breton and Ms Triscaru from Scrubby Creek, near Logan
He had not participated in the torture of Mr. Breton or Mrs. Triscaru, but had instead helped load the toolbox containing the pair into his pickup truck and drove it to the creek.
Tahiata then unpacked the toolbox, with the pair still alive, and reportedly gave Thrupp a claw hammer to punch holes in the toolbox to make it sink faster.
The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal in April.
They argued that the judge’s admission of evidence surrounding Tahiata’s off-camera confession was incorrect, but said it did not amount to a substantial miscarriage of justice.
“This inadmissible confession was fully summarized in later admissible confessions by the appellant, which were both extensive and detailed,” the appeal ruling said.
