The moment former Jetstar pilot Greg Lynn left the remote desert where police say he murdered two elderly campers has been shown to a jury.
Lynn, 57, pleaded not guilty in the Victorian Supreme Court to the murders of secret lovers Hill, 74, and Carol Clay, 73, in the Wonnanangatta Valley in Victoria’s alpine region on 20 March 2020.
Footage captured by automatic number plate recognition cameras on Great Alpine Rd captured Lynn’s vehicle passing by the morning after police allege she killed the secret lovers.
The jury heard Lynn admit he disposed of the couple’s bodies in the bush after taking them away in his trailer, which can also be seen in the photos.
On Thursday, photographs of what remained of those remains were shown to the jury.
Image after image showed the charred fragments of the bones of Mr. Hill and Mrs. Clay in a remote part of the bush where Lynn had attempted to destroy what was left of their bodies with fire.
Victoria Police Forensic Services Center expert George Xydias told the jury he believed Lynn had burned the bodies elsewhere before attempting to dispose of them at a second site.
A car that police say Greg Lynn was driving leaves the desert the day after Russell Hill and Carol Clay were allegedly murdered.
Greg Lynn claims the campers died as a result of a ‘tragic accident’
Lynn claimed that the campers died after Hill stole their shotgun, sparking a fight that ended with both of their accidental deaths.
Xydias told jurors that Lynn had also likely set fire to the couple’s campsite where the deadly incident occurred.
The fire expert said he concluded there were no accidental sources of ignition, suggesting the fire started with a portable gas stove or direct ignition from a lighter, match or cigarette.
Opening the trial, Lynn’s lawyer, Dermot Dann, KC, told the court that Lynn’s burning of Mr Hill and Mrs Clay’s bodies had made him “physically ill”.
Following his arrest, Dann claimed that Lynn cooperated with detectives and told them where to find the campers’ bodies.
“In the case of the defense, when they do all that, they are being completely sincere,” Mr. Dann said.
“He is being completely accurate, just as in the defense case, he was completely truthful and accurate when telling the police the circumstances under which these two people died.”
On Wednesday, the jury heard it took weeks for Victoria Police’s Missing Persons Unit to take over the case.
Another image captured by CCTV cameras that police say shows Greg Lynn leaving the desert after killing the campers.
Greg Lynn’s vehicle was captured leaving the mountains. His trailer, which police say he used to transport the bodies of two dead campers, is clearly visible.
The picturesque spot where Russell Hill and Carol Clay camped near
Detective Senior Constable Amy Frost was initially tasked with investigating the couple’s disappearance after they were reported missing on March 26.
Part of that initial investigation saw her attending the homes of Mr Hill and Mrs Clay in the days after Mrs Hill reported her husband missing.
She turned the investigation over to the Missing Persons Unit’s lead detective, Abbey Justin, on April 20, initiating an investigation that would ultimately lead to Lynn’s arrest.
Senior Constable Justin told of the moment he first saw Lynn’s vehicle after tracking it down from CCTV footage and phone records linking it to the crime scene.
On July 14 of that year he attended Lynn’s address in Caroline Springs, where he noticed that her “blue grey” Nissan Patrol was now painted tan.
During Mr. Dann’s cross-examination, the detective agreed that Lynn’s later account to police that he painted his car a “sandbar color” after his trip to the valley was consistent with his observations.
The elderly couple’s accused killer claims it was Mr Hill who started the trouble that ended in tragedy.
The court heard that Hill and Lynn had argued about Lynn hunting deer so close to other campers.
Later that night, Lynn decided to turn up the volume on her car stereo in an effort to annoy Mr Hill, the jury heard.
Carol Clay’s purse found in Russell Hill’s car
It was around 10 p.m. when Lynn noticed that Mr. Hill had gotten into her car and stolen her 12-gauge shotgun.
Senior Agent Abbey Justin was brought in to solve the case weeks after the couple was reported missing.
Carol Clay and Russell Hill were killed after an alleged argument over loud music
The jury heard that when Lynn tried to grab the firearm from Mr Hill, the gun went off and Ms Clay was hit in the head.
Seeing what had happened, Hill dropped the gun and ran toward Mrs. Clay’s body.
Dann said Lynn took the gun and fired the remaining shots into the air before being attacked by an enraged Mr Hill.
“The next thing Mr. Hill advances toward him with a knife and yells ‘she’s dead,'” Mr. Dann said.
‘A fight developed over the knife. Mr. Lynn tries to defend himself (they are engaged in this fight) and as part of that fight the two men fall to the ground and the knife passes through Mr. Hill’s chest.
The trial continues.
The burned contents of the Russell Hill store.
Part of Russell Hill’s side mirror was among the wreckage
The remains of the campers’ glasses were recovered from the destroyed tent