Sep 30, 6:01 AM
NSW neighbour charged over two alleged murders on same rural property
Police say Nicholas Scott killed a 79-year-old man and, two weeks later, attacked the older man’s 59-year-old relative at Gurranang.
A rural property near Grafton has become the focus of a homicide case that police say involves two deaths, two weeks apart, and the same neighbour at the centre of both. Nicholas Scott, 32, has been charged over the killings of two related men at Gurranang, about 25 kilometres north of Grafton in northern New South Wales.
The first body was found inside a house on the property after police were called to investigate the death of a 79-year-old man. Two weeks later, while officers were still searching the acreage for clues, they found the body of a 59-year-old man in a shed on Monday afternoon. Police say the younger man had come to New South Wales to help with the investigation and to sort out the older man’s estate.
Det Supt Joe Doueihi said police allege the 59-year-old was set upon by a neighbour when he arrived at the deceased relative’s property. He said the two dead men were related. The case has left the family and the local community facing two deaths on the same address, with investigators now trying to establish exactly what happened between the first discovery and the second.
Scott was arrested at Grafton hospital at about midday on Tuesday while he was receiving treatment. He was then taken to Grafton police station and charged with two counts of murder and stealing a motor vehicle. He briefly appeared in court on Wednesday morning, did not apply for bail and will remain in custody until he returns to court in December.
Police said the scene was confronting for first responders. Supt Joanne Schultz said officers had gone back to the property to make further inquiries and did not expect what they found. She also said police believe the 59-year-old died within the previous 24 to 48 hours, and that the scene had not been maintained throughout the period between the two deaths.
The two men are believed to have suffered similar injuries. Strike Force Faneel remains in charge of the investigation, which is continuing as detectives work through the evidence from a property that, for reasons now being examined in court and by police, became the site of two alleged murders in a fortnight.
Written by Sandy van Dongen sandy.vandongen@alpineweekly.com
