Agony inflicted by Frankston serial killer Paul Denyer has been cruelly stoked by his attempts to win parole, say survivors who want a new law passed to block him from being freed early.
Denyer’s application for parole is “sickening” and simply opens up old scars that will never properly heal, said a friend of Natalie Russell, a schoolgirl just 17 when she was murdered.
The convicted serial killer has insisted he is now reformed and is no longer a danger to society, a claim Natalie’s friend Karen scoffs at.
“It’s pretty sickening and just awful for all of us that are left,” Karen told Today, reflecting on Denyer’s recently rejected parole bid.
“I don’t know how you could claim to be not a danger to society when you’ve killed three women.
“Like, how is that possible?”
In 1993, Denyer, now 51, was sentenced to three life sentences after pleading guilty to the murders of Russell, Elizabeth Stevens, 18, and 22-year-old mother Deborah Fream.
Victoria’s parliament is now reviewing legislation that would stop Denyer’s legal right to ever again apply for parole.
Denyer was sentenced to life in prison without parole, but this was later appealed and reduced to a non-parole period of 30 years, meaning he was eligible for release last month.
Premier Daniel Andrews is opposed to the bill, which has been supported by the Liberals and Nationals.
Andrews has remarked it would be highly unusual for parliament to create laws that specifically target a single person.
Natalie’s friend Karen said it was “important” parliament passed new legislation to “fix” the Denyer problem.
But the odds of that appear stacked.
Labor has an overwhelming majority in the lower house, so the bill would require crossbench support to pass.
“We really just can’t keep going through this,” she said.
“Something needs to happen.
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“We don’t want to keep seeing his face on the news or keep having to talk about it.”
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In the winter of 1993, Denyer brought terror to Frankston, a suburb in Melbourne’s south-east and gateway to the Mornington Peninsula.
From hundreds of suspects, Denyer stood out.
He denied killing the women but eventually confessed after 1500 questions from police.
Elizabeth was Denyer’s first victim, killed on June 11 after leaving a bus on her way home from the library.
One month later, young mother Fream was ambushed by Denyer.
She had left her 12-day-old son at home with a friend when she popped out to buy some milk for an omelette dinner.
Fream never made it home.
Like Elizabeth, she was later found strangled and badly slashed.
Then, a fortnight later, Natalie was murdered as she walked home from school, taking her usual shortcut between two golf courses.
Denyer had dragged her into nearby scrub and killed her.
When Denyer’s parole application was rejected in May, Natalie’s father said he was relieved.
”This is the best news we have had in 30-odd years,” he said.
“We were getting to the point where we thought it was a 50-50 chance that he might get parole.”
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