The cause of death of secret lovers Russell Hill and Carol Clay cannot be determined by medical science, forensic experts have admitted in court.
Former Jetstar pilot Greg Lynn, 57, has pleaded not guilty in the Supreme Court of Victoria to the murders of Mr Hill, 74, and Ms Clay, 73, in the Wonnanangatta Valley in the Alpine region. of Victoria, on March 20, 2020.
On Monday, forensic entomologist Dr Melanie Archer told the court she could not say how the couple died because of the limited bone fragments recovered by police.
Greg Lynn enters the Victorian Supreme Court last week
On Thursday, photographs of what remained of those remains were shown to the jury.
The images showed the charred fragments of the bones of Mr Hill and Mrs Clay in a remote part of the woods where Lynn had attempted to destroy what was left of their bodies with fire, the court heard.
Victoria Police Forensic Services Center expert George Xydias told jurors he believed Lynn had burned the bodies elsewhere before attempting to dispose of them at a second site.
Dr Archer told the court that the few materials they had to work with had virtually been destroyed.
“The problem for the forensic pathologist is that the material he needs, the evidence he needs to help him make that decision has been erased,” he said.
‘There are no toxicological samples, so a toxicological contribution cannot be sought. It cannot be examined for trauma due to the fragmentation of the remains… In the case of a natural disease, there were no soft tissues left, it was not possible there.’
Dr Archer said the problem was made even worse by what was left of the couple’s fire.
“The toxicological and soft tissue evidence that we would need to see cannot be seen in these highly altered and fragmented remains,” he said.
So the indeterminate is your only option.
Police found bone fragments scattered in the bush after Greg Lynn allegedly murdered and burned the bodies of secret lover campers.
The Burned Camp by Russell Hill and Carol Clay
The jury heard Lynn admit to destroying the elderly campers’ bodies because he was worried about being wrongly accused of murdering them.
Under interrogation by Lynn attorney Dermot Dann, KC, the jury heard that the forensic expert had no way to refute Lynn’s version of events.
‘He set fire to the bodies at that time, in November 2020, all of that information contained within that account and that time period, is all of that consistent with your findings?’ Mr. Dann asked the doctor.
‘Yes,’ was the answer.
Opening the trial last week, Dann told jurors that Hill stole Lynn’s shotgun after becoming enraged that Lynn was playing loud music the night he was killed.
“He headed toward Mr. Hill to try to get the gun back, to take control of the gun,” Dann said.
“Mr. Hill fired the gun into the air and Mr. Lynn initially took cover in the back of his car.”
Carol Clay and Russell Hill Never Returned Home After Secret Camping Trip
Greg Lynn leaves the crime scene. He admitted to burning and scattering the remains of Russell Hill and Carol Clay.
Lynn would later tell police that he was “very scared” by Mr. Hill’s actions.
“He decided the only way to make things safe was to get his gun back,” Dann said.
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.
“The next thing Mr. Hill advances towards 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 court heard that Hill and Lynn had argued earlier that day about Lynn hunting deer so close to other campers.
The trial continues.