Psycho killer Nick Boak who killed a stranger in a Cairns shopping centre was an accountant who claimed to be a decorated SAS veteran

A murderous psychotic accountant who slashed the throat of a random stranger in a shopping mall led a fantastic con life pretending to be a decorated soldier.

Twisted Nick Boak, 40, claimed to be an SAS veteran who had won the Victoria Cross for bravery before launching his savage attack on Michael Eaton, 51.

Mr Eaton was a single father of five who had recently separated from his wife and was an early morning regular at the Cairns Central Shopping Center in far north Queensland.

The friendly former dog breeder and car fanatic was unable to work due to health reasons, but enjoyed the company of chatting with shop staff before they opened.

But at 8am on a Wednesday morning in September 2021, he was targeted by Boak on the first floor of the mall while Boak was in the middle of a psychotic episode.

The accountant – who had recently worked at holiday resorts on Fitzroy Island and Airlie Beach – began shouting erratically at Mr Eaton, locals said.

Mr Eaton shrugged off the explosions, but Boak suddenly pulled out a knife and lunged behind Mr Eaton. Eaton before slitting his throat without warning or provocation.

It left Mr Eaton bleeding out where he died 20 minutes later in a pool of his own blood despite the efforts of bystanders and emergency services.

Brisbane-born Boak was arrested nearby and details of his strange past began to emerge.

He was already under investigation by former military veterans after strangely claiming to be an SAS hero who had seen action in Korea and won the Victoria Cross.

In an application to join the Returned Servicemen’s Club of Queensland, he said he was a serving major who had tours of duty in Malaysia, Iraq, the Gulf War and Afghanistan.

He claimed to have signed up in 2003 and even posed as a secret service spy, adopting the 007-style name Nick Bond Industries for one of the companies he set up.

But the reality was very different.

Boak was instead a mild-mannered accountant and fitness fanatic who studied at Ballarat-based Federation University in regional Victoria.

He joined the Australian Army Reserves as a student but graduated as an accountant who also worked as a personal trainer.

He also attended the Royal Military College Duntroon in Canberra with the reserves, but there is no record of him seeing action, despite posing on social media with medals.

A month before he launched his vicious attack on Mr Eaton, he had just set up his latest firm Advanced Accounting Australia while employed as an auditor on Fitzroy Island.

Boak’s lies were exposed by an online group of ex-soldiers who hunted fake soldiers online to shame them for their lies on Facebook.

He returned to Queensland from Victoria in 2018 and moved from Airlie Beach to work on Fitzroy Island during the Covid lockdowns, but struggled to make friends.

In social media posts just nine days before he killed Mr Eaton, Boak reached out to make new friends in the Cairns area.

“I’ve now been a resident of Fitzroy Island for three months and I’m putting down roots,” he posted.

“If you’re a local and planning a visit and a walk here and you’re a nice person, please feel free to DM me.”

In another post, six days before his bloody attack, he posed with dumbbells while staring intently at the camera and said he was working on his beach body.

“A workout before the shift is the best,” he posted on Instagram. “I am so grateful for this amazing gym on our tropical island paradise.

“Beach cooking is on track for summer. VIP Guest access and 1 on 1 training, hopefully soon…’

He flew to Cairns from Fitzroy just days before going on his murderous rampage, but no reason for the vicious attack has ever been revealed.

After his arrest, Boak was deemed too dangerous to appear in court to face murder charges.

“He poses an extreme risk to guard staff,” police prosecutor Codi Dalley told the Cairns Magistrates Court hours after his arrest.

We would need extra time and a specialized team to move it.

Two years later, on August 18, 2023, the court found Boak to be unstable and discontinued the proceedings.

He was transferred to the high-security psychiatric unit at the Park Mental Health Center in Wacol, Brisbane, for treatment.

Detective Inspector Kevin Goan said his sympathies were with Boak’s victim, Mr Eaton, and his family.

“His untimely death is mourned by many,” DI Goan said. He was considered to be quite a pleasant and quiet man.

“His engagements with others were quite happy, not something that would warrant this kind of action against him.”

The family appealed for privacy following the tragedy and DI Goan added: “He also has an elderly mother who is finding it difficult at this time because of this loss.”