Christopher Joannidis: Man guilty of killing five in Murray Valley crash cries at hearing as victims speak

There was nothing truck driver Andrew McClusky could have done to avoid a crash that killed five people and a dog instantly.

But he still blames himself every day.

“The significant loss of five lives still haunts me mentally and emotionally to this day,” he told a court, shaking and through tears, on Wednesday.

“I can’t imagine a day when this will ever leave me.”

Mr McClusky was behind the wheel of a milk tanker, driving down Murray Valley Highway in Victoria’s north in April 2023, when Christopher Joannidis ignored warning signs and drove into the road.

Joannidis crashed into a Nissan Navara with five passengers inside, pushing it into the path of Mr McClusky’s truck at Strathmerton about 2.27pm on April 20.

The Nissan ute’s driver Deborah Markey, her dog Sophie, and four Taiwanese farm workers - Zhi-Yao Chen, Pin-Yu Wang, Wai Yan Lam and Hsin-Yu Chen - were all killed instantly.

“I cannot speak his name for what he has done to us, the impact and stress of that day still haunts me and it will forever,” Mr McClusky told the County Court in Melbourne.

“A motor vehicle can be a lethal weapon in the wrong hands.”

Joannidis was pulled over by police for speeding about 45 minutes before the three-vehicle crash, labelled at the time as one of the worst in a decade in Victoria.

“The other issue with this road, we’ve had nine killed on it in the last 18 months, basically because people don’t see give way and stop signs,” a police officer told him, in footage shown to court.

Less than one minute after driving away from police, Joannidis ignored three sets of rumble strips, two warning signs and two give way signs as he sped through the intersection and hit the ute.

Joannidis has pleaded guilty to five counts of dangerous driving causing death and faced a pre-sentence hearing on Wednesday, where 11 victim impact statements were read to the court.

The 30-year-old, who is on bail and has only served two days in custody since his arrest, cried from the dock as he listened to each statement.

His girlfriend Eleanor Theeboom, who was injured in the crash, and several of his family members attended court to support him.

Ms Markey’s son Daniel Montero said his mother had renovated her home to give overseas farm workers a safe place to stay. She would cook for them, entertain them and help them get to work.

“Her mentality was she wanted to take care of people again,” he told the court.

“Her last act in this world was an act of kindness and love for others.

“I will miss her every day until the end of my days.”

Grieving family of the four Taiwanese nationals watched the hearing via video link as prosecutor Daniel Porceddu read out their statements.

“The accused’s actions have not only stolen Pin-yu’s future but have also torn apart our family, every day I am sentenced to a life sentence,” Pin-yu Wang’s mother Yi-Chuan Chiu said.

The hearing before Judge Gavan Meredith continues.