The twin sister of a man who allegedly killed his mother to make money from her life insurance policies gave evidence at his trial and told the court about a phone call with her mother’s psychologist, who shared her concerns about her brother .
Monique Rebelo described the day her mother died as “one of the worst days of my life.”
His brother Andre Zachary Rebelo is on trial for the murder of their mother Colleen, who was found dead in their Bicton home in south-west Perth on May 25, 2020. He has pleaded not guilty to the charge.
Last week, the WA Supreme Court was told Rebelo had taken out three life insurance policies against his mother in the week before her death.
State’s Attorney Brett Tooker told the court three days after Rebelo’s death, Rebelo began the claims process to access the insurance premiums.
The jury heard he also submitted falsified documents to one of the insurers, including false medical information about his mother, a forensic report and his last will and testament.
He pleaded guilty to four counts of fraud in relation to the forged documents.
André Rebelo, who has a son with Gracie Piscopo, was accused of murdering his mother
The cause of Mrs. Rebelo’s death has never been established.
The court was told that while her death was unexpected, first responders who were called to Ms Rebelo’s home when she died did not treat her as suspicious.
The jury also heard police reopened the case when one of the insurers reported the matter suspecting an insurance claim against his life was fraudulent.
Mr Rebelo’s twin sister, Monique Rebelo, told the WA Supreme Court that some time after her mother’s death she was contacted by a psychologist she shared with her mother.
Monique said psychologist Narina Sidhu told her she was worried about her brother Andre and that he had tried to use her name to get information about their mother’s insurance.
Colleen Rebelo was found dead in her home in the Perth suburb of Bicton on May 25, 2020.
Monique told the court she called her brother, who denied knowing anything about the claims and said the psychologist must have been the wrong person.
“Andre finally texted me later and told me that Narina had the wrong Colleen and made a mistake, that the problem was related to another Colleen,” she said.
“He knew who Narina was and seemed to be conscious.”
Monique lived in Kalgoorlie with her partner but had arrived in Perth the day before her mother’s death to begin training to become a paramedic with St John Ambulance the following day, the court was told.
Monique had planned to stay with her mother and younger brother, Fabian, at their family home in Bicton during the course, and was going to travel back to Kalgoorlie to see her partner at weekends.
Monique told the court she had seen her mother the morning of her death and that she seemed healthy and happy.
Kelda Read (pictured right) was one of Colleen Rebelo’s closest friends and told the WA Supreme Court that her friend had shared her concerns about Andre Rebelo becoming an online influencer social.
One of Colleen Rebelo’s closest friends, Kelda Read, gave evidence at the murder trial of Ms Rebelo’s son saying the mother of four was unhappy with her Mr Rebelo’s role as an online influencer. social.
Mrs Read and Mrs Rebelo had been friends for about 15 years when she died and met when their children attended primary school together in Bicton.
Ms Read told the court they would meet regularly for a walk about four times a week.
She told the court that Ms Rebello had shared concerns with her about Mr Rebello and his ex-partner Gracie Piscopo working as social media influencers.
She said Rebello had told her she wasn’t happy with it and didn’t think it was something that would sustain a long-term lifestyle.
“She was worried that when they grew up and someone newer came along, she wouldn’t be happy about it, but that’s what they did,” she said.
Prosecutors allege Andre Rebelo (pictured with former influencer Gracie Piscopo) was tens of thousands of dollars in debt and lived a lavish lifestyle.
Read told the court that Rebelo was excellent at balancing her life while studying at university to complete a degree in science, working and taking wonderful care of her children.
“I used to go to the East Freo gym and study with her on the treadmill,” Mrs Read said.
‘Things like that didn’t affect her, she just got on with what she had to do and did it well.
“She was a beautiful mother, she would do anything for her children, a wonderful mother.”
Ms. Read recalled in court that in the weeks before Ms. Rebello’s death, she was excited to start a new job on the Department of Health’s board of directors.
“The last time I saw her we were out for a walk and she was talking about how excited she was about her new job and how she couldn’t wait to get started,” he said.
The trial continues.
