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↑Part of: Friend testifies Lamarre-Condon fired gun before alleged Sydney murders
Law & Justice · North America

Supreme Court hears prison calls in Lamarre-Condon murder trial

The Supreme Court heard prison-call recordings in Lamarre-Condon’s trial over the alleged murders of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies. His friend testified about the calls, and Lamarre-Condon has pleaded not guilty to two murder counts.

AI-assisted synthesis · Based on 5 outlets' reporting · Article text read from 1 of 5 outletsHow it's made

View timeline · 8 entries
5 outlets2 regionsLatest reporting 3 min read
Coverage: Mostly CenterL 1 · C 2 · R 0 · 2 unrated
Updat3 graphic: Asia Pacific
Updat3 graphic · Map data: Natural Earth Natural Earth (public domain)

What happened

Key facts

  • The friend testified that Lamarre-Condon bought a surfboard cover shortly before the alleged murders and later told him he had killed two people.
  • Lamarre-Condon has pleaded not guilty to two murder counts over the shooting deaths of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies on February 19, 2024.
  • The friend had given police statements on February 23, February 24 and March 12, 2024.
  • Police found Baird and Davies’ bodies in Bungonia, near Goulburn, on February 27, 2024.

The brief

The Supreme Court heard prison-call recordings in the trial of Beau Lamarre-Condon, who has pleaded not guilty to two murder counts concerning Jesse Baird and Luke Davies. The Sydney Morning Herald reported that a friend of Lamarre-Condon testified about the calls and said Lamarre-Condon later told him he had killed two people.

The Guardian’s headline describes a covert recording of a prison meeting between the two being played at the double murder trial, while ABC Australia’s headline says jurors heard jail phone calls between them. The charges concern the shooting deaths of Baird and Davies on February 19, 2024.

The Sydney Morning Herald identified Baird as a former Network Ten producer and presenter, aged 26, and Davies as a Qantas flight attendant, aged 29. Police found their bodies in Bungonia, near Goulburn, on February 27, 2024. Lamarre-Condon denies the charges by pleading not guilty; the testimony described by the newspaper is evidence presented in the trial, not a verdict.

The friend told the court that Lamarre-Condon bought a surfboard cover shortly before the alleged murders and later told him he had killed two people. The newspaper also reported that the friend had given police statements on February 23, February 24 and March 12, 2024. Those dates place the statements after the February 19 shootings and before police found the bodies.

The court heard that the calls included one made on April 8, 2024, by which time the friend had provided the statements. In a later call, on December 14, 2025, Lamarre-Condon referred to the two men being due to speak in person that day and told his friend to “bring your big boy diapers”.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported the call’s date and content as part of its account of the evidence. The newspaper also reported that the friend told the court Lamarre-Condon had tried to buy a silencer in December 2023 or February 2024. That account is testimony from the friend; the charge remains an allegation that Lamarre-Condon contests.

The evidence described in court also included Lamarre-Condon telling his friend that he had become a police officer by age 21 and was “not fully self-aware in the way that I am”. In another excerpt reported by the newspaper, Lamarre-Condon said he was “upset like anyone is” after Baird ended their casual relationship in November 2023, but added that “it’s normal”.

The friend’s testimony and the recordings form part of the trial record; Lamarre-Condon’s not-guilty plea remains his stated position on the two murder counts.

Why it matters

  • The recordings and testimony could help prosecutors establish what Lamarre-Condon said and did around the killings, while the defence can challenge their reliability and interpretation; the jury’s assessment may affect whether the evidence supports a conviction. The trial’s outcome will determine criminal accountability for the deaths of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies and may shape public scrutiny of how police investigate serious crimes involving a serving officer.

What to watch next

  • In the next few days, watch whether Lamarre-Condon’s lawyers challenge the friend’s account of the prison calls or the surfboard-cover purchase during cross-examination.
  • Watch for prosecutors to present further evidence linking the calls to the alleged killings, including any recordings or testimony from other witnesses.
  • Over the coming weeks, track whether the court rules on disputed evidence or sets out the next steps in the trial before closing submissions.

How it's being covered

Coverage analysisShow details
5 source articles · 5 unique outlets
Outlet political mix: Mostly Center· 1 Left · 2 Center · 2 unrated
Where the outlets are based: Asia 80% · Europe 20%
Outlet political mix
Mostly Center
Left
Center
Right
1 outlet
2 outlets
0 outlets
The marker shows coverage balance: each unique outlet counts once. 2 unrated outlets are not included.
Geography
Where the outlets covering this story are based.
5 unique outletsDominant coverage: Asia
Coverage imbalance
  • Coverage is currently concentrated among outlets based in Asia (4 of 5 geographically-identified sources).
How we measure coverage

How outlets' accounts compare

Updat3 does not yet have enough full reports to compare how outlets framed this story.

Timeline

Developments from this story's sources, dated background we compiled and fact-checked, and our earlier coverage. Each row says which.
  1. The Supreme Court of New South Wales, established in 1823, is the state’s superior trial court and hears serious criminal cases, including murder trials.
    Background · from our historical context
  2. New South Wales enacted the Criminal Procedure Act 1986.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  3. New South Wales enacted the Evidence Act 1995.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  4. The case thus moved from a police investigation in February 2024 to a Supreme Court trial, where the jury’s task was to assess the evidence against the charges and the accused’s pleas.
    Background · from our historical context
  5. Police began a missing-person investigation after Baird and Davies could not be located.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  6. On February 19, 2024, Jesse Baird and Luke Davies were shot dead at Baird’s home in Paddington, Sydney.
    Background · from our historical context
  7. New South Wales police officer Beau Lamarre-Condon was charged with their murders on February 23, 2024, and pleaded not guilty to both counts.
    Background · from our historical context
  8. Lamarre-Condon’s friend gave police a statement.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3

How we got here

On February 19, 2024, Jesse Baird and Luke Davies were shot dead at Baird’s home in Paddington, Sydney. Baird had worked as a television presenter, and Davies was a flight attendant. New South Wales police officer Beau Lamarre-Condon was charged with their murders on February 23, 2024, and pleaded not guilty to both counts.

Police found the men’s bodies on February 27 at a rural property near Bungonia, south-west of Sydney. Those events established the case that later proceeded in the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The prosecution case concerns events before and after the shootings, including Lamarre-Condon’s alleged use of a surfboard cover and statements he allegedly made to a friend.

Related developments1 story

Original sources

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