26 February 2024 , 12:44
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A second officer has been named in the of missing Australian TV presenter Jesse Baird and his boyfriend Luke Davies.
Serving police officer Beaumont Lamarre-Condon has been charged with murdering Baird and Davies and fellow police officer Renee Fortuna has now been named as an acquaintance of Lamarre-Condon and is said to have “unwittingly helped” the former celebrity blogger.
Last week, a search was launched for Baird and Davies when blood and a bullet casing were found at their home. On Friday, Lamarre-Condon handed himself in at a Bondi police station after he became the target of the detectives' manhunt.
Baird had been a presenter and red carpet reporter on Network 10's morning show Studio 10 (jessebairddd/Instagram)
Last week, a search was launched for Baird and Davies when blood and a bullet casing were found at their home (jessebairddd/Instagram)Lamarre-Condon joined the police force in 2019 - but was previously a celeb blogger who had met stars including , and . The bodies of Baird, aged 26, and Davies, 29, have still not been found and their cause of death not confirmed.
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On Monday, reported that Fortuna’s car was examined by forensic specialists. She is also said to have let Lamarre-Condon borrow a hose which he used to clean the interiors of a rented Toyota HiAce van. However, the outlet emphasised there is no evidence to suggest Fortuna knew of Lamarre-Condon’s alleged crimes nor was she involved in any criminal act. Fortuna has not returned to her home in the Newcastle suburb of Lambton - where the vehicle was tested for fingerprints - since.
Detectives believe the couple were killed on Monday February 19 inside Baird's house in Paddington, an inner Sydney suburb, before their bodies were moved in a white van. New said a bullet matching Beaumont Lamarre-Condon's work-issued gun was found at the crime scene and he did not turn up to work on Tuesday, February 20. Lamarre-Condon was named a person of interest in the case after the investigators learned that he once dated Baird.
Serving police officer Beaumont Lamarre-Condon has been charged with murdering Baird and Davies (youtube/@)
Lamarre-Condon joined the police force in 2019 (youtube/@)Last week, police also seized blood-stained clothes, a phone and credit cards from an industrial bin in Cronulla, 28km (17 miles) away from the crime scene, and a number of items from a house in Balmain.
The news has sent shockwaves through , with Det Supt Daniel Doherty confirming last week that police had been hunting a white van and that the vehicle was finally located on Friday morning. He also confirmed that it will be claimed in court the van was used to “transport the bodies and dispose of the bodies”.
Lamarre appeared before a court and didn’t apply for bail. His case has been adjourned until April 23 with police citing a need to have time to prepare evidence. Outside court last week, Lamarre’s lawyer didn’t answer questions.
Baird had been a presenter and red carpet reporter on Network 10's morning show Studio 10 until the programme was axed in December, 2023. His boyfriend Mr Davies was a flight attendant for Qantas. There are several photos of the happy couple on their respective social media pages which have been flooded with messages of condolences since their disappearance.