Murder Of Sheree Beasley
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Sheree Joy Beasley (25 February 1985 – 29 June 1991) was an Australian schoolgirl from Rosebud, an outer suburb of
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
, Victoria. Six-year-old Beasley was kidnapped, raped and murdered by Robert Arthur Selby Lowe in June 1991. Her body was found three months later on 24 September in a
stormwater drain A storm drain, storm sewer (United Kingdom, U.S. and Canada), surface water drain/sewer (United Kingdom), or stormwater drain (Australia and New Zealand) is infrastructure designed to drain excess rain and ground water from impervious surfaces ...
. One of the leading items that led to Lowe's incarceration was based on patient care sessions that were recorded by police investigators and later by his psychotherapist. On the 24th anniversary of her murder, a memorial service was held at her grave, which many members of the community attended.


Murder

Beasley rode her bicycle to a nearby
milk bar In Australia, a milk bar is a suburban local general store. Similar, but not identical, establishments include tuck shops, delicatessens or "delis", and corner shops or corner stores. Milk bars are traditionally a place where people buy new ...
, where she was abducted by Robert Lowe, a Sunday school teacher, church elder and travelling salesman. Lowe had apparently targeted Beasley because he had seen her alone on several previous occasions. A possible explanation for the lack of supervision was that Beasley had been transferred several times between the custody of her mother and the custody of her maternal and paternal grandparents. After the abduction, several witnesses said that they had seen a middle-aged man driving a car containing a "distressed child". Lowe had a history of crimes involving children. Before Beasley's murder, he had had multiple offences for
indecent exposure Indecent exposure is the deliberate public exposure by a person of a portion of their body in a manner contrary to local standards of appropriate behavior. Laws and social attitudes regarding indecent exposure vary significantly in different ...
, which had been aimed at young girls. Months after the murder, he was seeing a
psychotherapist Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase happiness, and overcome pro ...
because he was having marital problems. His therapist, Margaret Hobbs, eventually began to suspect that he was involved in the murder of Beasley. Lowe had given suspicious statements, saying that he did not remember where he was on the day Beasley died and that he felt police were closing in on him. The police had interviewed Lowe after the abduction, and they later tape-recorded some of his sessions with Hobbs (initially without her knowledge). After being informed of the recording, Hobbs gave her permission for more taping, as she was disturbed by Lowe's statements.


Trial and conviction

Those representing Lowe during his trial objected to the manner in which recorded evidence was obtained from his therapy sessions with Hobbs. They asserted that the recordings were a violation of a confidentiality policy. The court dismissed this and came to the consensus that the evidence was appropriate for the protection of the public. Hobbs stated that Lowe had discussed several suspicious details related to Beasley's murder. Such statements were concerned with a desire to "build an alibi" and with the consequences of pleading guilty to
manslaughter Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th cen ...
. Lowe eventually stated in April 1992 that he had given Beasley a ride in his car and had manually
strangle Strangling is compression of the neck that may lead to unconsciousness or death by causing an increasingly hypoxic state in the brain. Fatal strangling typically occurs in cases of violence, accidents, and is one of two main ways that hanging ...
d her. During his trial, he admitted his guilt. He said that he had "choked the girl". Lowe was subsequently convicted of kidnapping and murder, and was sentenced to life imprisonment plus 15 years without parole.


Aftermath

After Lowe was sent to prison for murdering Beasley, he stated that he was innocent. In August 2014, he wrote that he believed law enforcement was using him as a
scapegoat In the Bible, a scapegoat is one of a pair of kid goats that is released into the wilderness, taking with it all sins and impurities, while the other is sacrificed. The concept first appears in the Book of Leviticus, in which a goat is designate ...
because of their failure to find those who were responsible for the crime. The police and the family of the victim did not believe this, and said they were "sickened" by his assertions. After Lowe's conviction, his psychotherapist Margaret Hobbs began writing a book based on her experience. She died in a vehicle accident in 1996; her book was later completed and published by
Andrew Rule Andrew Rule (born 8 April 1957) is an Australian journalist who specialises in crime. Early life Andrew Rule was born in country Victoria in 1957, later attending high school in Sale. He dropped out of journalism at RMIT before completing an a ...
. Lowe is believed to have been involved with a large amount of
child pornography Child pornography (also called CP, child sexual abuse material, CSAM, child porn, or kiddie porn) is pornography that unlawfully exploits children for sexual stimulation. It may be produced with the direct involvement or sexual assault of a chi ...
that had been smuggled into the prison in which he was incarcerated. It is believed that persons who were visiting inmates were the source of this material. He died on 4 November 2021.


See also

*
List of kidnappings The following is a list of kidnappings summarizing the events of each individual case, including instances of celebrity abductions, claimed hoaxes, suspected kidnappings, extradition abductions, and mass kidnappings. Before 1900 1900–1949 ...
* List of solved missing person cases


References


Bibliography

* Miller, Wayne Charles, ''The Murder of Sheree Beasley'', Wilkinson Books, 1996,


External links

*
Sensible Sentencing Trust - Offender File
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beasley, Murder of Sheree 1990s in Melbourne 1991 murders in Australia Deaths from asphyxiation Missing people found deceased Incidents of violence against girls June 1991 crimes Missing person cases in Australia Child murder in Australia Murder in Melbourne People from Mornington Peninsula Burials in Victoria (state)