The mother of Kelly Anne Jones, a three-year-old who was killed, says she was astonished and upset to learn that the convicted murderer said he dreamed about a new place where the child’s remains might be.
After serving 34 years of a life sentence for the 1989 murder of the child, John William Bennett is asking for the no body, no parole law to be waived.
The Queensland Parole Board was informed that Mr. Bennett said he had begun thinking that, 30 years after the girl’s death, he may have left her body at Ma Ma Creek near Toowoomba.
Caroline Jones, Kelly’s mother, stated that she first learned of Mr. Bennett’s allegations at today’s hearing at Brisbane Magistrates Court.
After the hearing, Ms. Jones stated that learning the new location had come as “a major shock, a total big shock,” but she encouraged officials to hold off on releasing Mr. Bennet until Kelly’s body had been discovered.
“I hope they don’t give up; it’s just taken so long; the difficult part I’m going through is the not knowing.
Nothing he says, I don’t believe.
Mr. Bennett, 71, submitted a parole application in 2022, citing unusual circumstances such as his deteriorating health and many comorbidities.
Despite extensive searches of dumps and other places close to Toowoomba, Kelly Anne Jones’ remains have never been discovered.
When the youngster and Mr. Bennett went missing on September 24, he was residing in the same Toowoomba home as Kelly Anne Jones’ aunt at the time.
The parole board was informed that Mr. Bennett was the target of the search since he was found to be the last person to speak with her.
In questioning, Mr. Bennett admitted killing the child, and two days later, when police in Cooyar found him dozing off by his car on the side of the road, they detained him.
Although Mr. Bennett admitted to leaving Kelly’s body in a hessian bag at a landfill during police interviews, his recall of the landfill’s location was impaired due to alcohol usage, said to barrister Sally Robb.
But, according to Ms. Robb, Mr. Bennett revealed in 2020 that he had been having repeated dreams about the child’s body being discovered near Ma Ma Creek.
He claimed that he began having the dreams after 30 years and that he believed they helped his memory.
Following the allegations, homicide investigators showed Mr. Bennett a satellite image of the region taken in 1988, but he was unable to recognise any distinctive characteristics of the scene.
According to Detective Inspector Chris Knight, who wrote a report for the parole hearing, Mr. Bennett’s account of Ma Ma Creek could not be supported.
According to Ms. Robb, there isn’t much agreement between Ma Ma Creek and the places searched in 1989 in terms of proximity.
She added that it was crucial to remember that Mr. Bennett did not describe such places in 1989 with any clarity or in terms of their physical location.
Mr. Bennett’s information, according to Mr. Knight, was not acknowledged as being substantial or helpful in any way.
“It is impossible to quantify the effect that the passage of time may have had on locating the deceased’s remains,” he stated.
The hearing was postponed while the Queensland Parole Board was given time to make written arguments, to which Mr. Bennett will have the opportunity to reply.
The board will keep reviewing his application to determine whether Mr. Bennett has adequately assisted in locating the child’s remains.
A petition to stop Mr. Bennett’s release has received more than 600 signatures.
