The body of a beloved school teacher who was killed by her flatmate and dumped in a wheelie bin was so badly mutilated, it was impossible to tell how she died.
The mangled remains of Annette Brennan, 67, were found at a rubbish tip in Epping in July last year, about 8km from her home in Coolaroo, in Melbourne’s north-west.
Her killer Stephen Fleming, 47, has pleaded guilty to one charge of manslaughter after initially facing a count of murder at the Supreme Court of Victoria.
The plea deal came after forensic experts were unable to conclude exactly how Ms Brennan was killed.
The court heard Ms Brennan’s body had been pulverised when it was crushed inside a garbage truck and then by other heavy machinery when her body arrived at the tip.
In harrowing evidence put to the court, Crown prosecutor David Glynn outlined the horrendous state of Ms Brennan’s body when it was found by traumatised tip staff.
‘Due to extensive damage from the garbage truck’s machinery, the cause of death was unascertained,’ he said.
‘Injuries included fragmentation of the head and neck, skull fractures, neck bone fractures, fractured clavicles, ribs, vertebrae, pelvis, degloving injuries to the lower legs, and amputation of the right fibula and tibia.’
Stephen Fleming, 47, avoided a murder trial after accepting a deal from prosecutors
Police attended Annette Brennan’s Coolaroo home after her body was hidden in a wheelie bin
A forensic doctor was unable to determine whether the injuries had happened before or after Ms Brennan’s death.
‘The prosecution cannot prove the offender inflicted these injuries pre-mortem,’ Mr Glynn told a pre-sentence hearing
Fleming listened in from a prison video room, after refusing to attend court in person, as his evil acts were put before Justice Christopher Beale – the same judge who sentenced mushroom killer Erin Patterson.
The court heard Fleming had moved into Ms Brennan’s Hilgay St rental property in Coolaroo, north-west of Melbourne, on June 6 last year after responding to an advertisement for tenants.
The court heard Ms Brennan quickly realised Fleming was trouble and told friends he had failed to pay rent, rearranged household items, and she suspected he had stolen her mobile phone.
On the day she is believed to have died, Ms Brennan had planned to welcome a Queensland woman into her home to fill another bedroom.
The prospective tenant was forced to turn around and return to Queensland when no-one answered the door when she arrived.
Ms Brennan’s body was found several days later when concerned friends asked police to carry out a welfare check.
Annette Brennan was allegedly murdered by Stephen Fleming in her own home
By then, Fleming was already planning to move in with another unsuspecting woman.
Upon his arrest, Fleming told police a swag of lies and refused to say how his housemate’s body ended up in the bin.
‘No friggin’ comment, mate,’ Fleming told police.
By then, his phone had been factory reset and he had obtained a new phone number.
Fleming’s DNA had been found on the bin handle and traced on a glove and mop in another bin.
Police suspected Fleming had thoroughly cleaned the property after killing Ms Brennan.
Although it remains unclear how Fleming killed his victim, her blood and hair had been found in a shower drain and on the bed frame in her bedroom.
Ms Brennan’s devastated friends and family provided victim impact statements to the court outlining their grief.
Annette Brennan’s Coolaroo home (pictured) was sold in February this year
A bird’s-eye view of Ms Brennan’s Coolaroo home where she was killed
‘Her death was a huge shock, particularly given the nature of the death,’ friend Nanette Austin said.
‘No one should die like that and be stuffed in a wheelie bin as trash.
‘All I have now is some photos – no smiles, no shared meals, no shopping adventures, no plays, no gallery visits, no gardening, no special times.
‘I’ve learned the hard way: grief is a huge black hole that never goes away.’
Lifelong friend Robert Strickland told the court he was haunted by the way Ms Brennan’s body was found.
‘My thoughts have often gone to what happened to Annette. I hope her death was quick as I wouldn’t have wanted her in pain,’ he told the court.
Fleming had been serving a community corrections order for serious offending at the time of the killing.
On August 13, 2021, Fleming was sentenced in the County Court of Victoria to 66 days behind bars followed by a two-year community corrections order.
With time already served, he was immediately released back onto the streets.
Annette Brennan could not contain her joy after singing her favourite hymn during the Covid lockdowns
He had pleaded guilty to two charges of recklessly exposing an emergency worker to risk by driving and one charge of reckless conduct endangering serious injury.
The court heard Fleming had attempted to ram the police car containing two female officers after they pulled him over in a routine traffic stop.
He was later clocked on a speed camera travelling 184km/h in an 80km/h zone.
Fleming had been suspended from driving at the time and had also been free on bail over other alleged offences.
On Monday, the court heard Fleming abandoned plans to run a murder trial after he received a sentence indication for manslaughter from Justice Beale.
While the exact indication was not mentioned, the court heard Fleming would be aged in his 50s upon becoming eligible for parole.
Mr Glynn urged Justice Beale not to entertain any notion of sentencing Fleming to a more lenient sentence than the one he had previously indicated.
‘It remains the case that no matter what was going to happen to the body, it is a very grave disrespect of that body. It is literally shocking,’ he said.
Ms Brennan’s body was stuffed in a bin and crushed by heavy machinery
‘The disposal of Ms Brennan’s body was gravely disrespectful, shocking, and caused significant distress, as evident in the victim impact statements.
‘Ms Brennan, aged 67, was vulnerable, killed in her home by a man 20 years younger, whom she allowed to sublet.
‘This is a grave offence involving the unlawful taking of a life in unexplained circumstances.’
Mr Glynn said Fleming had shown no remorse for his offending.
‘His rehabilitation prospects are guarded, possibly poor…his personality issues, drug history, and criminal record, including offending while on a CCO,’ he said.
In Fleming’s defence, barrister Michael McGrath said his client suffered from chronic mental health issues and substance abuse.
He urged Justice Beale to take into account Fleming’s guilty plea and claimed his client had ‘reasonable’ prospects of rehabilitation.
Mr McGrath further argued his client would be targeted behind bars because of the nature of his crimes.
Justice Beale will sentence Fleming next month.
