Horrific final hours revealed: Mother allegedly tortured, burnt alive
A court has heard horrifying details of how a Victorian mother-of-two was lured to her death, allegedly by a neighbour.
Karen Chetcuti was drugged, tortured and most likely burnt alive before being run over and her body dumped in bushland in January last year.
The mother-of-two’s body was discovered dumped near Mount Buffalo six days after she disappeared, while her car was found burnt out in Myrtleford.
Ms Chetcuti’s neighbour Michael Cardamone has been charged over the murder.
In Wangaratta Magistrates Court on Wednesday, an associate of Cardamone said he was present when Ms Chetcuti’s red Citreon car was torched.
Edward George told the court Cardamone said it was “payback” for a person who owed drug money.
As Ms Chetcuti’s family sat in court and listened to the horrific details of the case, taxi driver Mick Ralston said he picked up Cardamone in Myrtleford at 3am on the morning after the 49-year-old went missing.
Mr Ralston told the court he drove Cardamone back to his home in Wharouly, at a cost of $120.
The court heard there was no evidence to suggest Ms Chetcuti had been sexually assaulted, but there were signs she was sedated with an animal tranquiliser and tortured before her death.
The hearing continues with the prosecution yet to put forth a motive for the mother’s murder.
