A woman who helped dump her boyfriend’s corpse in the wilderness after he died of an overdose in her car lied to the man’s sister and sent a vicious text claiming she hadn’t seen him in days.
Blake Riley’s tearful family filled the Toowoomba High Court and became emotional when they learned of the disturbing deception of Mr Riley’s friend, Kelly-Ann May Sinclair.
Riley, 28, was found dead in January 2021 in bushland on the outskirts of Toowoomba.
Kelly-Ann May Sinclair pleaded guilty to interfering with Blake Riley’s corpse in early 2021
The court was told that Sinclair had texted Mr. Riley’s sister in the days following his death, claiming she had not seen him in days.
More than two years after the gruesome discovery, Sinclair was sentenced to 18 months in prison, but after serving her time, she will be eligible for parole before the end of the year.
In a disturbing twist, the court was told that Sinclair texted Mr. Riley’s sister in the days following his death, claiming she hadn’t seen him in days.
“S*** honey, I know he hung out with that gay man, but I picked him up from the water tower a few nights ago,” Crown Prosecutor Nicole Friedewald said in court on Wednesday.
“Then he borrowed my car to do some typing… but the next day I had to pick up my car… but I haven’t seen him since.”
In the lyrics, Sinclair claims she would try to “get ahold of him” or anyone who had seen him.
She ends with the line, “I’m back in town this arvo xo.”
At the time she sent the text, Mr. Riley’s body had yet to be discovered by two people who accidentally stumbled upon his corpse.
Sinclair had pleaded guilty to interfering with a corpse, with prosecutors dropping a manslaughter charge.
Ms Friedewald told the court that Mr Riley had been taking drugs at Sinclair’s home on the night of January 5, 2021, when he overdosed on drugs.
Sinclair put Mr. Riley in the backseat of her car and left.
Ms Friedewalde told the court that Sinclair then called her alleged drug supplier, who warned her not to take Mr Riley to hospital.
“(The supplier) was afraid Mr. Riley would talk,” she said.
Instead, Sinclair picked up the man in a different part of town and parked her car at his house – she left later that night in a different vehicle.
Mr. Riley was left in the back of her car until the next morning, the court was told.
“It is likely that Mr. Riley died within tens of minutes of administering the drugs as a result of the overdose,” Ms. Friedewald said.
The next morning, Sinclair told a friend about Mr. Riley’s overdose and whispered that she should “drop” his body somewhere.
Ms Friedewald said Sinclair then returned to her car – which still contained the deceased Mr Riley – where arrangements were made to use her vehicle to dispose of the body.
She said Sinclair “encouraged” another person to dispose of Mr Riley’s body in the bushland at Preston Lookout, south of Toowoomba, before leaving in another vehicle.
Blake Riley’s body was found dumped in bushland south of Toowoomba in early January 2021. Photo: Delivered
Her car was later cleaned by another person, the court said.
“At no point did she contact Mr. Riley’s family to inform them of his death or location, nor did she ever contact authorities,” Ms Friedewald said.
Even in the midst of a police investigation, Sinclair tried to hide her involvement in what happened.
The court was told she had lied to police about knowing Mr. Riley, and asked a friend at her home to turn off the man’s phone.
“The family has tried to contact Mr. Riley,” Mrs. Friedewald said.
Sinclair continued to lie to Mr. Riley’s sister in a “contrived” text message after the woman contacted her about her brother’s location.
Discussing Mr. Riley’s death with another friend, she told her, “We didn’t take him to the hospital because if we did, we’d all go for it.” It was too far gone. We were in too deep.’
“It’s complacency on a disturbing scale,” Supreme Court Justice Peter Callaghan said of Sinclair’s continued deception.
The court was told that Sinclar had a long criminal history – most of which related to drug offenses – and was serving bail, probation and a suspended sentence at the time.
Her lawyer thought she should take credit for her guilty plea.
Sinclair’s attorney said her physical involvement was “limited” as she only acted as a party to the offense.
Justice Callaghan jailed Sinclair for 18 months and ordered her to be eligible for parole in November.
The ordeal brings a sense of closure to the Riley family, who have spent years awaiting justice for those involved in the body’s disposal.
The court was told that Mr Riley’s mother, Debra, had endured an “unbearable” grief over the loss of her son.
Her husband woke up in the middle of the night screaming for his son because he found it “hard to deal with” the death.
“I brought this beautiful black-haired, blue-eyed baby into this world and I wasn’t allowed to say goodbye,” her victim impact statement read.
“I still catch myself looking for him in a crowded place or thinking he’s opening the gate when I hear it rattling in the wind.”