Andrew Walsh’s plastic-covered, concrete-encased body was found 2.5 metres down a pit and “strapped to a toilet system”, a Brisbane court has heard.
Andrew Walsh’s plastic-covered, concrete-encased body was found 2.5 metres down a pit and “strapped to a toilet system”, a Brisbane court has heard.
By Fraser Barton
February 25, 2025 — 8.38pm
A fresh layer of oil and a lot of flies helped police discover a plastic-covered, concrete-encased body in a warehouse, a jury has heard.
Joshua Searston, 27, and Dewald De Klerk, 30, have pleaded not guilty in Brisbane Supreme Court to murdering Andrew Walsh, 35, in November 2021.
Walsh’s body was found at the bottom of an oil pit at a Coopers Plains transport depot in Brisbane’s south in February 2022, the court was told.
Walsh – known as “Ghost” – was discovered more than a month after his mother reported him missing.
Detective Senior Sergeant Jason Kitto was shown pictures of the transport depot in court on Tuesday, detailing how police were able to find Walsh’s body.
Police removed a grate covering a pit in the depot’s warehouse that had previously been covered by a car on February 19, 2022, the court was told.
“When we took that lid off, it looked like there was a layer of fresh oil over the top,” Kitto told the court.
“So we decided, due to the fresh concrete dust and the splatter around the back … that would be an area of interest to us.”
Contractors dug deep holes into the pit to gauge its depth and confirmed it was new concrete, the jury heard.
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“I couldn’t understand why there would be a pit that was only 30 centimetres deep with oil on top,” Kitto said.
Further drilling hit timber, then came a smell, the court was told.
“They continued to dig deeper and the smell came out of the hole?” crown prosecutor Chris Cook asked.
“Correct,” Kitto said.
Asked if flies came into the area as a result, Kitto replied: “Correct.”
After five hours of digging found wooden pallets and car batteries within the concrete, police saw the outline of something wrapped in plastic, the court heard.
An image of a forensic officer delicately cutting through the plastic was shown in court.
Bones were found, the jury heard.
Kitto said Walsh’s body was found 2.5 metres into the pit and “strapped to a toilet system”.
It took days to remove the body, he said.
The body was found with significant decomposition, nasal bone fracturing, dislodged teeth, fracturing around the right shoulder blade and collarbone, along with abdomen stab wounds, the court was told on Monday.
Prosecutors allege Walsh was killed on or about November 7 or 8, 2021.
AAP
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