Toddler Joedan Andrews beheaded after car crash, inquest told

TODDLER Joedan Andrews died when a wild car ride went wrong. He was then beheaded with a chicken knife and buried in the bush, an inquest heard yesterday.

Six years after the boy vanished from an isolated community near Mildura, a witness gave evidence that after the car smashed into a tree Joedan's stepfather and another man cut off his head with a rusty knife.

A second witness alleged she was told Joedan's mother, Sarah Andrews, was involved in his death.

The inquest at Wentworth Local Court heard the two-year-old disappeared from an Aboriginal mission on the outskirts of the small NSW town of Dareton, north of Mildura, on December 14 or 15 in 2002.

His partial remains were found a month later, but no charges have been laid.

Witness Kathleen Brown told the inquest Joedan was in a car with his stepfather Colin "Collyboy" Moore and Ms Brown's former boyfriend Tim Mitchell when the brakes failed and they smashed into a tree.

Ms Brown alleged that Mr Mitchell told her Joedan flew into the windscreen, and they thought he was dead.

She told the inquest that Mr Mitchell said they cut the little boy's head off with a long-bladed knife used by Mr Moore for slaughtering chickens and buried it separate from his torso.

Ms Brown gave evidence via video after the state coroner decided she was too fragile to front the court.

She said she had watched at night from another house at the Namatjira Ave mission as Mr Mitchell climbed into the car with Mr Moore and Joedan.

"They were driving fast because they spun the wheels as they left," Ms Brown said.

She said Mr Mitchell returned a few hours later with blood above his left eyebrow and on his T-shirt and seemed "wild about something".

"He said, 'You won't be seeing him (Joedan) no more'. He said, 'He died'," Ms Brown said.

"I told him to stop talking s--t and he said, 'Fine, don't believe me'."

Ms Brown said Mr Mitchell threatened the same would happen to her if she told anyone.

The court heard Mr Mitchell allegedly bashed Ms Brown, who called police and was taken to a refuge.

Ms Andrews and relatives sobbed and gasped as they heard the allegations.

But minutes later a woman from the mission gave evidence she was told Ms Andrews was allegedly involved in Joedan's death.

Cynthia Vine told the inquest a man asked to babysit Joedan the day before he went missing claimed, "Sarah and Collyboy done it".

She said Darren Williams told her he saw the couple hitting Joedan at their house the night before he vanished.

Mr Williams denied the allegations put to him by counsel assisting the coroner, Stephen Rushton, SC.

"She (Ms Vine) said she told you to tell the police and you said, 'Collyboy told me not to change my story'," Mr Rushton said.

Mr Williams replied: "All sounds like a made-up story."

The inquest heard on Tuesday that Mr Williams was on an alcohol and marijuana bender at Mr Moore's home when he was asked him to look after Joedan.

He told the inquest the "little fella" looked happy when he saw him in the kitchen that night.

After hearing evidence, NSW deputy state coroner Malcolm MacPherson toured the mission.

Mr MacPherson and lawyers were shown where police found a child's shoulder bone and areas where body fluid was discovered.

Accompanied by police, Mr MacPherson also looked at Mr Moore's house and a site where a tree believed to be damaged in a car crash had once stood.

Mr Moore is on remand for allegedly soliciting an undercover police officer to kill Ms Andrews last year.

The inquest continues.

Herald Sun 17 Apr 2008

It is pathetic that these people share a space on this planet