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NSW teacher Stephanie Scott’s killer has finally got what he deserves.

Vincent Stanford has been condemned to spend the rest of his life in prison for the brutal rape and murder of NSW teacher Stephanie Scott, reports 9news.

Stanford, 25, was given the maximum possible sentence for the April 2015 attack on the 26-year-old bride-to-be, just six days before she was due to marry.

Exclamations of “yes” were heard from the Griffith courthouse public gallery when Supreme Court Justice Robert Allan Hulme handed down his sentence on Thursday.

Justice Hulme said he was satisfied beyond any doubt that Stanford’s culpability was extreme enough to warrant a life sentence.

“I am satisfied that this is a case of murder that clearly falls within the worst category,” he said.

Ms Scott’s parents, siblings, former fiance Aaron Leeson-Woolley and other family members were all present in court.

Her mother Merrilyn Scott said the family would celebrate what would have been her daughter’s 28th birthday on Friday.

“The past 18 months have been the most difficult and harrowing time,” she said in a gut-wrenching statement outside court.

“So much has been taken away from us. Stephanie has had everything taken away from her.”

Stanford, a school cleaner, confessed to murdering Ms Scott on Easter Sunday, 2015, at the Leeton High School where they both worked.

He dragged her into a storeroom and attacked her with his fists and a large knife before dumping her body 70km away in the Cocoparra National Park, where he burned it.

Justice Hulme described Stanford’s actions as conniving, callous and calculating.

“The attack itself involved extremes brutality by a man of substantial size… upon a defenceless young woman of modest size who had no means of escape or raising the alarm,” he said.

During his summary of the case, Justice Hulme also outlined how Stanford had stalked two women and a 12-year-old schoolgirl before he killed Ms Scott.

Police found more than 1800 images of the schoolgirl in Stanford’s possession, and surveillance notes in an exercise book that included times she was home alone, the court heard.

Justice Hulme said Stanford’s internet search history and bloodstained items found in his wardrobe, including a pair of handcuffs, suggested the attack on Ms Scott was more premeditated than he had admitted.

The judge said he had grave concerns “that the truth has not been fully disclosed and that this was not an opportunistic attack on a target selected at random”.

Finally justice has been served.

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  • Finally justice for her but now the family are having to deal with another death in the family.

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  • Finally…he has been convicted. Life imprisonment is not to the end of life though. The Govt. has to waste its resources on a person who probably won’t attempt to rehabilitate at all. I just hope he murdered her before he set her on fire.

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  • Such a sad story. He just picked her because he wanted to kill someone, now her family have to learn to live life without her

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  • Good that justice has been served, sadly this doesn’t make up anything for the loss and grieve he brought to the family indeed.

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  • Nothing can ever make up for the loss of Stephanie, but at least he will never be able to hurt another woman or child.


    • Nothing will ease the grief and loss. The community will be safer.

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  • Nothing will give this poor woman’s family and loved ones relief from their loss and grief but justice has been served. Finally a sentence that does give justice to a victim.

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  • I’m so glad he was given a life sentence, he deserved it, for his calculated and despicable murder of Stephanie Scott.

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  • I’m glad for the sentence. At least some justice.

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  • Agreed, finally justice has been served. Stephanie will never be forgotten but hopefully the family can finally heal. If only the justice system can continue on with such realistic sentences for other tragedies.

    Reply

  • finally some justice for the family, I hope this can bring you a little peace after something so horrible

    Reply

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