Three men have been sentenced to 30 years for the brutal murder of Cory Breton, 28, and Iuliana Triscaru, 31, who were killed in Kingston, Logan, south of Brisbane, on January 24, 2016. The victims suffered severe violence, including beating, stabbing, and choking, before being disposed of in a two-metre-long toolbox.
Following a retrial, Stou Daniels, Davy Malu Junior Taiao, and Trent Michael Thrupp were found guilty of the murders. Justice Glenn Martin condemned their actions as “appalling” and highlighted the terror the victims likely experienced in the moments leading to their deaths. The judge accepted the Crown’s recommendation for a 30-year sentence, acknowledging the seriousness of the crime, which surpassed the mandatory 20-year minimum. The defendants had already spent over nine years in custody, which was noted as time served.
Miranda Parkinson, Breton’s partner, expressed her profound grief in her victim impact statement, stating that she lost all hope of finding him alive after being contacted by police. She reflected on the devastating impact of his loss on their future together.
Breton’s sister, Tamara Kazim-Breton, addressed the defendants directly, expressing the deep heartache caused by their actions, which she said shattered her family and forced them to relive their trauma.
Triscaru’s family described her as the heart of their family, and her murder, they said, has left lasting emotional wounds. They urged the court to consider the grief inflicted on their loved ones.
The jury’s verdict came after more than two days of deliberation, and the retrial occurred after previous murder convictions were quashed by the Court of Appeal in July 2024. The evidence revealed that Breton and Triscaru had been enticed to a Kingston unit where they were brutally assaulted over a dispute related to drug dealing. After torturing the victims, the perpetrators casually drank whiskey and played video games before disposing of the bodies. There’s a suggestion that Breton and Triscaru could have been alive when the toolbox was thrown into the water and weighed down with concrete.
Two weeks later, police divers discovered their remains submerged in a lagoon. Justice Martin remarked on the horrendous nature of the crime and the profound impact on the victims’ families, underscoring the lasting pain stemming from such senseless acts of violence. The court’s decision aims to deliver a measure of justice for the tragic loss of two lives.