"Should our mother die for what she's done?"
Death by firing squad. That’s the penalty facing the mother of two Perth boys who admitted to hiring five men to kill their father in Bali.
Wealthy Australian businessman Bob Ellis was murdered in his Bali home and his sons say they just "want justice served" — but do they condone the death penalty for their mother?
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That’s just one of the questions grieving sons Peter and John Ellis answer in an exclusive interview to air on Seven's Sunday Night.
Noor Ellis was charged with the premeditated murder of her 60-year-old husband Bob. She allegedly hired seven men and women to kill him in their Bali villa in October 2014.
She allegedly paid them $14,000.
Her sons said she lied to them about the whereabouts of their father but later confessed she had arranged the killing, saying she was "possessed".
"She said, ‘it wasn’t me, it was someone else’. Something inside her like a spirit or a monster that just, you know, pushed her to do it," John Ellis told Sunday Night.
"She says she was possessed."
In exclusive interviews, Peter, 20, and John, 25, revealed to reporter Steve Pennells their shock at the loss of their father and whether they can accept losing their mother too.
Bob Ellis was found bound, wrapped in black plastic and dumped in a rice field on October 21 – two days after his murder. His wife was arrested and accused of arranging the killing.
"My dad came into the villa at around 6:30, 6:00 and he was going to the back of the house to the kitchen to cook up his dinner and my mum shouted out, ‘Can you come and help me in the kitchen?’ and that’s where it happened," Peter said.
Police allege the maids had been paid to take away Bob’s pet dog so it wouldn’t bark while five men hid in the kitchen. The men then allegedly tackled Bob to the floor and cut his throat with a carving knife.
"I tried to ring mum. And she wasn’t picking up the phone and at this time I didn’t know what was happening," Peter said.
Peter texted his mother to find out where his father was and she replied in a text message, "I'll ask him when I see him".
Her sons believe the motive for the murder is Bob’s $30 million estate and suspect their mother is working from jail to try to take control of key assets from their father's business empire.
Noor’s lawyers claim she was in an abusive relationship and the hitmen she hired were not supposed to murder her husband – just give him a scare.
Watch the full interview on Sunday Night at 7:00pm.
Article by Philippa Lees
