HAMILTON’S Stuart Campbell will spend a minimum of nine years behind bars for the brutal murder of Joshua Kane at Mount Eccles.
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Campbell, 20, was sentenced in the Victorian Supreme Court in Melbourne to 12 years jail with Justice Lex Lasry taking into account his guilty plea, cooperation with the prosecution, his age, lack of prior convictions and reasonably good prospects for rehabilitation.
The two co-accused in the matter, Lanie Snell and Samuel Worthy, have both indicated they will plead guilty. Snell’s plea hearing will be held in the Victorian Supreme Court on June 5.
Worthy will appear for a plea hearing in the Supreme Court sitting in Warrnambool on August 7.
In sentencing Campbell, Justice Lasry said Mr Kane was murdered on January 23, 2016 and his body was found by police on January 29, 2016.
Justice Lasry said Campbell played a significant role in the planned and calculated killing of Mr Kane. “Once it happened you did nothing to intervene or assist Joshua Kane… The killing itself was also cowardly and done with a vicious weapon,” he said.
He said a post-mortem examination concluded the cause of death to be multiple sharp force and chopping type injuries consistent with Mr Kane being hit with a weapon such as a machete, axe or cleaver. Victim impact statements tendered to the court by Mr Kane’s father, mother and sister said their suffering would be for life.