Beau Lamarre-Condon claims he stole training bullets to commit suicide, not for test shots before alleged murders
An ex-cop has claimed he stole police training bullets so he could commit suicide, denying he was plotting his ex-boyfriend’s alleged murder.
WARNING: sensitive content.
An accused killer claims he stole police training rounds to commit suicide, denying he used the bullets to practice concealing the sound of gunfire before allegedly murdering a couple.
Beau Lamarre-Condon, 31, has pleaded not guilty to the murders of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies, arguing self-defence in his murder trial in the NSW Supreme Court.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.The former policeman returned to the witness box for his seventh day of evidence on Friday during the eighth week of his trial.
Mr Lamarre-Condon claims he stole training bullets from Miranda Police Station at some point in January 2024 so he could commit suicide in a national park.
Prosecutors allege the accused killer stole the bullets during a training shoot and fired them in the national park on February 1 while using a paper bag to experiment ways he could conceal the sound of gunshots.
Mr Lamarre-Condon earlier claimed he fired the shots through a paper bag in the national park not to muffle the sound, but to prevent things from getting in his eyes.
He also told the jury he fired the shots that day to ensure no one would hear gunshots from a house, as he did not want to inflict “trauma” on first responders or members of the community by having them find his body after he committed suicide.
The former policeman also denied plotting Mr Baird’s murder in early 2024, telling the jury he “never” planned to harm the man.
Accused killer’s comment on ‘murder’ movie
Mr Lamarre-Condon asked his friend to watch the film Saltburn days before he allegedly murdered the couple in February, telling the woman: “I see myself playing the lead role of the nerd”.
The accused killer claimed the comment was “related to my acting class” that he was undertaking, and denied that he was planning to murder Mr Baird.
“The movie that you were referring to, Saltburn, was about a murder, is that right?” Mr Hatfield asked.
“It was the number one movie at the time produced by Margot Robbie,” Mr Lamarre-Condon replied.
“(It’s the) case that it strongly resonated with you?” Mr Hatfield asked.
“That is not the case,” the alleged killer said.
‘I hate losing’: Accused killer’s words about ex
Mr Lamarre-Condon accepted he told a friend “I hate losing” and “I can’t let things go” while speaking about Mr Baird in early 2024, just weeks before allegedly killing him.
But the former policeman claims he was speaking in the past tense when he made the “petty comment”, and had been joking about another man Mr Baird dated the year prior.
“That’s not how I was feeling currently, this was very past tense conversations,” he said.
“I was just updating (the friend) on what had occurred.”
He denied half of the 40-minute conversation was about Mr Baird, Mr Davies, and the other man the TV presenter had previously dated, telling the jury he had “never” talked about the Qantas host before.
Cop planned alleged murders for weeks: court
The jury was told that in January 2024, Mr Lamarre-Condon purchased a SIM card under the name Bob Ballard for what the Crown alleges was a “burner phone”.
Mr Lamarre-Condon was asked on Friday whether he used the phone on January 26 that year in a bid to contact a man he had previously dated, who owned the farm where prosecutors allege the former police officer tried to dump the couple’s bodies.
“You first contacted (the man) with it on January 26, didn’t you, because you were already starting to think about murdering Jesse Baird?” Crown prosecutor Brett Hatfield asked.
“Not correct,” the accused killer replied.
“You were thinking about murdering Jesse Baird around this weekend?” Mr Hatfield pressed.
“I have never thought about murdering Jesse Baird, no,” Mr Lamarre-Condon said.
The former senior constable claims he wanted to use what he calls the “second phone” to get statements from fellow officers he says were bullied by a senior sergeant.
“I was wanting to go and compile all these statements and go to the media,” he told the jury.
He claimed he feared he’d be a “target” for police if he spoke to the media.
More to come...
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