Adrian Bayley admitted raping and strangling Jill Meagher in a Melbourne laneway, but has pleaded not guilty to her murder.  The 41 year old will stand trial in the Victorian Supreme Court after the Deputy Chief Magistrate found there was enough evidence for a jury to convict him.  Bayley pleaded guilty to one count of rape in the Melbourne Magistrates Court yesterday and not guilty to murder and another two charges of rape.

UPDATE 5TH MAY 2013

ADRIAN Bayley has arrived at the Supreme Court for a hearing over the death of Melbourne woman Jill Meagher, where he is expected to plead guilty to charges of murder. More to come…

Bayley, 41, pleaded guilty in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on March 12 to one count of raping Ms Meagher.

He pleaded not guilty to her murder and two of three counts of rape.

Bayley was set to stand trial over the murder in a Brunswick laneway in September – a year after the crime that shocked the nation.

Last moments of Jill Meagher’s life

THE man accused of murdering Jill Meagher ran out of petrol after burying the Irish-born ABC employee in a shallow grave, according to court documents.

A police summary of the case against Adrian Bayley, tendered in court, was released to the media after Bayley’s committal hearing yesterday.According to the summary, on the night of September 21 last year, while Ms Meagher was out celebrating with friends in Brunswick, Bayley was arguing with his girlfriend at Swanston St’s Lounge Bar.

The pipeline layer, 41, was arguing with her about “jealousy and possessiveness”. His girlfriend left and returned to their home in Coburg.

“The accused (Bayley) attempted to contact his girlfriend by phone; however, she refused to answer or return text messages and phone calls,” the summary stated.

Bayley left the Lounge Bar at 12.25am and caught a taxi home. There, he changed into a blue hoodie jumper, the summary said.It was about 1am when Ms Meagher, 29, left the Brunswick Green Hotel with a friend and walked to the Etiquette Bar.

Her friend left soon after, twice offering Ms Meagher a ride in a taxi. But she declined, deciding to walk the short distance home.

On her way, outside Chemist Warehouse, she asked a group of three people for a cigarette and had a “short friendly conversation” with the trio.

She then continued on her way along Sydney Rd, towards Hope St. Bayley was in the area by that stage, and saw Ms Meagher walking alone.

“(Bayley) has run up from behind Ms Meagher before slowing to a walk as he approached her.” The Police summary said

Bayley would later tell police: “I was just walking ahead of her and we’d already interacted on Sydney Rd and that’s when she rang her brother. She was actually telling me about her father.”

Ms Meagher’s husband, Tom, knew his wife was out for drinks with workmates.

At 1.37am, he sent her a text message from their home: “Are you okay?”

The Chief Crown prosecutor, Gavin Silbert, SC, told the court it was 1.38am when Bayley “accosted” Ms Meagher and “proceeded to drag her into a laneway on Hope St between Oven St and Sydney Rd, where he has raped and strangled her”.

Bayley later told detectives: “I actually apologised. I can’t imagine how she felt but I know how I felt. All I thought was, ‘What have I done?’ “

Mr Silbert told the court: “(Bayley) has left the body of the deceased in the laneway and returned to his home address, where he has collected a shovel and his white Holden Astra.”

At 1.47am, an extremely worried Tom Meagher sent his wife another text.

He sent another at 2.07am: “Please pick up.”

The court heard Bayley returned to the laneway at 4.22am and put Ms Meagher’s body into the boot of the car.

He drove to Blackhill Rd, Gisborne South, where he buried Ms Meagher by the side of the road.

Tom Meagher, meanwhile, had searched the Brunswick streets in vain.

“I kept trying to ring her but there was no answer,” he said in his police statement.

Bayley was driving home from Gisborne when his car ran out of petrol near the Calder Highway.

He managed to wave down motorist Dayle Watkins, who drove him to a nearby service station.

There, about 6am, he filled a jerry can with petrol.

Mr Watkins then drove Bayley back to his vehicle.

On September 27, after investigating the crime scene and gathering evidence, including CCTV footage and phone records, homicide detectives arrested Bayley.

“After investigators informed (Bayley) of the evidence implicating him, he made admissions,” the police summary stated.

“(Bayley) stated that it was due to the argument that he had had earlier in the night with his girlfriend, that (Bayley) had an angry and aggressive demeanour which he transferred onto the deceased.”

Yesterday, Bayley pleaded not guilty to one count of murder and two counts of rape.

He pleaded guilty to one charge of rape.

EDITED RECORD OF INTERVIEW WITH ADRIAN ERNEST BAYLEY TENDERED TO COURT 

BAYLEY: You know what? I hope I never get out, because you know why I hope that, because then no one else ever has to be hurt because someone hurts me. I don’t deal with – with hurt very well. You know it wasn’t really my intention to hurt her, you know that? When we conversed, I swear to you man – I swear to I’d – I’d just – I spoke to her and she looked – she looked distraught. Does that make sense?

DETECTIVE:Yeah it does.

BAYLEY:She didn’t look happy.

DETECTIVE:Yeah it does.

BAYLEY:And I spoke to – I spoke to hear, you now and said, look, I’ll just – I’ll – I’ll help you, you know. That’s what I said to her and she was like fu… anyway it doesn’t matter. She flipped me off and that made me angry, because I was trying to do a nice thing. You know that?

DETECTIVE: Yeah yeah.

BAYLEY: She looked distraught.

BAYLEY:She looked distraught, you know. She looked like she was lost … always try to do the right thing some – you know, most of the time and I didn’t take well to her response, you know. I just don’t wanna go through it in detail. That – I can’t.

DETECTIVE: What happened to Jill?

BAYLEY:They should have the death penalty for people like me.

DETECTIVE:I can’t tell you what’s gonna happen.

BAYLEY:No well – that’s what I hope.

DETECTIVE:So you said she fobbed you off and you got angry. Tell me what happened then?

BAYLEY:Oh I just got pissed off and I actually walked off and she followed. I actually walked in front of her and she followed.

DETECTIVE:Yep.

BAYLEY:And it just got worse.

DETECTIVE:Tell me what happened.

BAYLEY:(Starts to cry) … like a big sissy man.

BAYLEY:I wanna do the right thing. It’s not fair on any of this to – it’s not fair of any of this stuff to have happened, let alone her family and stuff too.

DETECTIVE: Yeah.

BAYLEY:Not knowing.

DETECTIVE:Would you be willing to come with me and show me?

BAYLEY:I’ll try. I’ll do my best man.

DETECTIVE:I appreciate that.

BAYLEY:I’m not sure how to get there.

BAYLEY:I know what I’m saying to you. It’s not fair for this to have happened, and it’s not fair on her family and its not fair on them not knowing. It’s not fair.

DETECTIVE:Um. I understand why you don’t want to go into the detail. I understand that totally. Um how – how did she die?

BAYLEY: (Starts to cry). I strangled her.

DETECTIVE:Sorry?

BAYLEY: (Continues to cry). What have I done? What have I done man?

DETECTIVE:And where did that happen?

BAYLEY:On Hope Street.

DETECTIVE:How did she come to get in the laneway?

BAYLEY:we – we walked past it.

DETECTIVE:yeah

BAYLEY:That far down Hope St. I didn’t take her from the street, or – you know?

DETECTIVE: Yeah and then?

BAYLEY:And we were just talking you know? We weren’t – there was no argument, there was no – it was just talking. And then um …

DETECTIVE:Alright.

BAYLEY:I was just walking ahead of her and we’d already interacted on Sydney Rd, and that’s when she rang her brother. She was actually telling me about her father.

DETECTIVE:Right

BAYLEY:You know? And I was just – I was trying to be nice and – she kept going from being nice to nasty, to nice, to – you know what I mean?

DETECTIVE:Yep.

BAYLEY:And it just sort of ended up in the alley. I cant remember yeah, you know what I mean, 100 per cent, like how it ended up. We were just sort of – we were standing there.

DETECTIVE: Um how did you – how did you strangle her?

BAYLEY:With my hands.

DETECTIVE:With your hands. And once that had happened, what did you do?

(interview interrupted by knock at door, then resumes)

BAYLEY:I didn’t run.

DETECTIVE:You didn’t run?

BAYLEY:(starts to cry) That’s not it man. I actually apologised.

DETECTIVE:To her?

BAYLEY:But I didn’t run. I didn’t – didn’t know what to do. It’s a horrible feeling man.

DETECTIVE: Yeah.

BAYLEY:I can’t imagine how – how she felt, but I know how I felt. It’s not nice man, its not nice. And all I thought was what have I done? That’s all I thought. That was the thought in my head, what have I done after I said sorry. I didn’t know what else to say, man. I don’t know what else to say.

DETECTIVE:And what happened to her belongings?

BAYLEY:The phone I smashed. Just the other stuff I threw.

DETECTIVE:You walk to the side, you get the shovel. Tell me what you do.

BAYLEY:I cried man, and I dug a hole.

DETECTIVE:Yeah

BAYLEY: I cried man, And I didn’t cry for me, you need to understand that. I didn’t cry for me, just like I’m not crying for me now.

TIMELINE

Saturday September 22, 2012

• 1.30am: Jill Meagher leaves Bar Etiquette in Sydney Rd, Brunswick, in Melbourne’s inner-north to walk home. CCTV from the Dutchess Boutique captures both Ms Meagher and Adrian Bayley walking past.
• 1.38am: Mr Bayley allegedly grabs Ms Meagher and drags her into a nearby laneway off Hope St.
• 1.40am – 1.45am: Neighbours hear a woman yelling from laneway. After a few minutes the yelling stops.
• 2am: Tom Meagher tries calling his wife’s mobile phone.
• 4am: Mr Meagher leaves his home in Lux Way – not far from the scene – to go and look for his wife.
• 4.22am: It is alleged that having gone home to Coburg in Melbourne’s northern suburbs for a shovel, Mr Bayley returns in his white Holden Astra.
• 4.26am: Car allegedly drives off with Ms Meagher’s body in the boot.
• 6am: After continuing to call his wife’s phone all night without luck, Mr Meagher reports her missing.

Sunday September 23

• 12.30pm: A Facebook page is set up in the hope somebody saw Ms Meagher.
• 3.15pm: Police release public call for information about Ms Meagher’s disappearance.

Monday September 24

• 6.30am: Ms Meagher’s handbag found in lane off Hope St. Police believe it was planted the day before.
• 8.50am: Homicide squad takes over the case.
• 1.45pm: Forensic officers recover evidence from the lane way. Detectives interview Mr Meagher.

Tuesday September 25

• 12.30pm: Forensic police search the Meagher home and take away their car and bags of items for testing.
• 3.55pm: Police release footage from the Dutchess Boutique of Ms Meagher and a man in a blue hoodie.
• 6.15pm: Police return to the Meagher home and search again.

Thursday September 27

• 2.30pm: Mr Bayley arrested in Coburg.
• 3.58pm: Police interview with Mr Bayley begins.
• 10pm: Interview suspended while police travel to a site allegedly nominated by Mr Bayley.

Friday September 28

• 3am: Mr Bayley remanded at an out-of-sessions hearing after being charged with murder.
• 4am: Ms Meagher’s body is taken away by coronial staff after being recovered from a shallow grave at the side of Black Hill Rd in Gisborne South, north of Melbourne.