In Sydney, the disappearance of two young men — a former television host and a flight attendant — ended in the discovery of their bodies on a rural property, allegedly at the hands of a serving police officer who had once been romantically involved with one of them. The case is rare in New South Wales history, and its reverberations extend beyond grief into questions of trust, power, and the institutions we ask to protect us. When the accused wears a badge, the wound to public confidence cuts differently — and the community's response has been to draw its own boundaries in the spaces where it
Bodies of slain couple found after NSW police officer charged with murder
Two men, Jesse Baird (26) and Luke Davis (29), were allegedly murdered and their bodies transported in surf bags to a rural property.
Bodies wrapped in surf bags, transported in a white van from his home
Mark
Why would a police officer provide information that led to his own arrest?
Mimi
He may not have had a choice—forensic evidence, witness accounts, or digital trails likely pointed to him regardless. Providing some information might have been a tactical decision by his legal team, or he simply couldn't contain what had happened.
Mark
What does it mean that this is the first suspected police murder in decades?
Mimi
It speaks to how rare this is in the institution. When it does happen, it shatters the idea of police as protectors. That's why the Mardi Gras board's response was so swift—they couldn't ignore it.
Mark
The surf bags detail—why does that matter?
Mimi
It shows premeditation. You don't have surf bags ready by accident. It suggests he thought through how to move the bodies, how to hide them. That's the difference between a crime of passion and something calculated.
Mark
Why uninvite the entire police force from the parade?
Mimi
Because the institution failed to catch or stop him before this. And because LGBTQIA+ officers had marched proudly alongside someone who allegedly murdered a gay man. The community needed to reclaim that space.
Mark
What happens to Lamarre-Condon now?
Mimi
He's in custody without bail, facing two murder charges. The trial will be long, and the scrutiny on the police force will be intense. Every decision they made regarding him will be examined.
Il Polso
- Two young men vanished without explanation, and the urgency of the search sharpened when bloodied belongings were found discarded near Sydney.
- The arrest of a serving senior constable — the ex-partner of one of the victims — transformed a missing persons case into something far more unsettling for both the public and the police force itself.
- The bodies were found wrapped in surf bags on a rural property, the deliberate concealment suggesting a calculated act that deepened the horror of the alleged crime.
- Charged with double murder and refused bail, the accused officer now faces justice in a case described as the first of its kind in New South Wales in decades.
- The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Board uninvited NSW Police from the 2024 parade — a pointed act of community self-protection from an institution implicated in devastating loss.
In Sydney, the disappearance of two young men — a former television host and a flight attendant — ended in the discovery of their bodies on a rural property, allegedly at the hands of a serving police officer who had once been romantically involved with one of them. The case is rare in New South Wales history, and its reverberations extend beyond grief into questions of trust, power, and the institutions we ask to protect us. When the accused wears a badge, the wound to public confidence cuts differently — and the community's response has been to draw its own boundaries in the spaces where it once extended welcome.
Australian police confirmed the deaths of Jesse Baird, 26, a former television host, and Luke Davis, 29, a flight attendant, after the pair had been reported missing for several days. The search turned urgent when bloodied items belonging to the couple were found in a bin near Sydney, prompting investigators to move quickly.
By Friday, police had arrested Senior-Constable Beau Lamarre-Condon, who had previously been in a relationship with Baird. It was information Lamarre-Condon himself provided that led investigators to the bodies, discovered on a rural property in Bungonia, wrapped in surf bags. Authorities believe the killings took place at Baird's home, with the bodies transported there in a white van — a sequence of events that pointed to deliberate concealment.
Lamarre-Condon, who joined the NSW Police Force in 2019 after a career as a celebrity blogger, was charged with both murders and refused bail. The case is considered the first suspected double murder by an active NSW officer in decades.
The alleged crime sent tremors through Sydney's LGBTQIA+ community in particular. The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Board announced that NSW Police would not be invited to march in the 2024 parade — a significant rupture, given that police had long held a celebrated presence in the procession. Lamarre-Condon had himself marched in previous years. The board's decision reflected a community reckoning with the painful reality that the violence had come from within a contingent it had once embraced.
On Tuesday, Australian police discovered the bodies of two men who had been missing for days—Jesse Baird, a 26-year-old former television host, and Luke Davis, 29, a flight attendant. The discovery came after a senior police constable was charged with their murders. The case has sent shockwaves through Sydney and raised urgent questions about accountability within law enforcement.
Baird and Davis were reported missing the previous week. The search intensified after Wednesday, when bloodied items belonging to the couple were found discarded in a bin near Sydney. That discovery prompted police to act quickly, and by Friday, they had made an arrest: Senior-Constable Beau Lamarre-Condon, who had been in a relationship with Baird until the previous year. Lamarre-Condon was charged with the murders of both men.
It was information provided by Lamarre-Condon himself that ultimately led investigators to where the bodies had been taken. Police found them on a rural property in Bungonia, wrapped in surf bags. According to Detective Superintendent Daniel Doherty, the bags had been used to transport the bodies in a white van from Baird's home, suggesting that was where the killings occurred. The deliberate concealment and transport of the bodies pointed to a calculated act rather than a crime of passion.
Lamarre-Condon, who joined the New South Wales Police Force in 2019, had previously worked as a celebrity blogger. When he appeared in court on Friday, he was denied bail. The case represents something rare in recent New South Wales history—a suspected double murder allegedly committed by an active police officer, marking the first such incident in decades.
The alleged crime has reverberated far beyond the courtroom. The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Board made a significant decision in response: they uninvited the New South Wales Police from marching in the 2024 parade. In a statement released late Monday, the board explained that they had requested police not participate in the event. The decision carried particular weight because Lamarre-Condon himself had marched in the parade in previous years, and the police contingent had maintained a prominent and celebrated presence in the procession, with many officers identifying as members of the LGBTQIA+ community. The board's action reflected the community's need to distance itself from an institution that, in this instance, had allegedly harbored someone capable of such violence.
Citazioni salienti
The bodies were found in surf bags that were used to transport the deceased couple in a white van from Baird's home— Detective Superintendent Daniel Doherty
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