Jesse Baird: Human remains found in search for missing Sydney couple
Australian authorities have announced the discovery of two bodies in the search for Jesse Baird and Luke Davies, a missing couple from Sydney.
New South Wales (NSW) Police Commissioner Karen Webb expressed confidence in the identification of Luke and Jesse’s remains.
Previously, Beaumont Lamarre-Condon, a former police officer who once dated TV presenter Mr. Baird, was charged with murder.
The bodies were found on a rural property in Bungonia.
Initially uncooperative, Mr. Lamarre-Condon eventually revealed the location of the bodies on Tuesday morning, according to police.
Detective Superintendent Daniel Doherty stated that the remains were found near the property’s entrance, concealed under rocks and debris.
Police suspect that a white van transported the deceased couple from Mr. Baird’s home in Paddington, where they were believed to have been killed. They believe “surf bags” were used for transportation.
Last week, investigators discovered a bullet from Mr. Lamarre-Condon’s work-issued gun, along with a substantial amount of blood and disturbed furniture at the crime scene.
Mr. Lamarre-Condon, appearing in court on Friday, was denied bail and has not provided any statement on the charges against him. He joined the police force in 2019 and was previously known as a celebrity blogger.
Following information that Mr. Lamarre-Condon had visited the Bungonia property in the white van, police focused their search efforts on the area, located about two hours south of Sydney.
After severing a lock on a gate, Mr Lamarre-Condon then left the female acquaintance there before driving the van onto the property and returning 30 minutes later, police say.
The case – which has gripped Australia – is believed to be the first suspected murder carried out by a New South Wales police officer in decades, and it has prompted a review into the out-of-hours access officers have to their firearms.
It has also led organizers of Sydney’s iconic Mardi Gras parade to uninvite NSW police from this year’s march, a decision which has sparked fierce debate online and disappointment from police, who allege the murders were a crime of “passion” not “gay hate-related”.
Sydney’s Mardi Gras parade has a complex history of both LGBTQ+ activism and police brutality after the first march in 1978 resulted in dozens of people being beaten and arrested by local officers.
In the decades since though it has been a unifying event, with uniformed police taking part every year since 1998.
Tributes have flooded in for Mr Baird, a former presenter and red carpet reporter, and Mr Davies, who worked as a flight attendant for Qantas.
“Obviously Jesse and Luke were very much an active part of the community and I look at their photos online and know they had a great life,” Commissioner Webb said.