TWO men responsible for the vicious murder of a woman whose body was dumped in a mineshaft in Kangaroo Flat will spend decades in jail.
Brendan Neil, 31, was sentenced in the Supreme Court on Thursday to 26 years’ jail for the murder of Simone Quinlan, 33, a Melbourne mother.
His co-accused Wayne Marmo, 26, was jailed for 24 years for helping Neil attempt to cover-up the murder and dumping the body, which he set on fire and shot multiple times with a rifle.
In August 2015, Neil, who was controlling and violent, attacked Ms Quinlan for telling police about Neil’s earlier attack on her with a baseball bat.
Marmo was present, smoking ice and filing a .22-calibre rifle while the attack occurred in another room of the Melton house.
It is unknown if Ms Quinlan died during the attack.
Marmo drove Ms Quinlan to a mineshaft in Kangaroo Flat, stopping on the way to shoot her in the head five times before dumping her body and setting it on fire using petrol.
Neil went to a pub so he would be sighted on CCTV and sent a text message to Ms Quinlan breaking up with her.
Marmo washed the blood from his car and the two men sanded back the floors of Neil’s home to remove bloodstains.
Neil pleaded guilty to murder, while a jury found Marmo guilty of being complicit in the murder.
Justice Jane Dixon said “punishment for snitching” must be denounced.
“Wayne Marmo, you were loyal to your friend Brendan Neil and you were prepared to involve yourself in murder because of this loyalty," she said.
"Under the code that both of you lived by at the time, it was unacceptable for Simone Quinlan to snitch.”
Ms Quinlan’s loved ones wore red in court – her favourite colour.
Wayne Quinlan said they were satisfied with the punishment, but would never forget the injustice of the crime.
“I don't think I or my wife will ever lose the hate of what they've done," he said.
Neil will be eligible for parole in 22 years, while Marmo could be out of jail in 20 years.
