A Sydney storeman has been sentenced to at least 30 years' jail for the "planned and premeditated" rape and murder of an Indian student, who he strangled to death with a cable, stuffed into a suitcase and dumped in a canal off the Parramatta River.
Daniel Stani-Reginald, 21, and his victim, accountancy student Tosha Thakkar, lived in neighbouring apartments in a boarding house on Edwin Street, Croydon in Sydney's inner west.
The callousness of the act is disclosed in the calm manner in which the offender booked the taxi and took the body to Meadowbank.
On the morning of March 9, 2011 Stani-Reginald waited for his victim's roommate to leave and then confronted Ms Thakkar as she walked back from a communal bathroom.
He then raped and assaulted Ms Thakkar and strangled her with a black coaxial cable.
Ms Thakkar's body was discovered in a large black-cloth case floating in a canal near Meadowbank Park by workmen undertaking regular maintenance on an oil line.
"The offender strangled her, an extraordinary cruel act," Sentencing Judge Derek Price told the NSW Supreme Court.
The court heard that the crimes had a "strong sexual element" and that Stani-Reginald had been planning them for months beforehand. He viewed thousands of disturbing internet articles and websites on serial killers and notorious rapists.
These included infamous Australian cases such as Dean Shillingsworth, the murdered toddler whose body was dumped in a suitcase.
He also read judgments on the sentences of notorious killers and viewed pornography relating to Indian women.
"There's documented evidence that he had been planning the murder for a number of years prior," Justice Price said.
"The callousness of the act is disclosed in the calm manner in which the offender booked the taxi and took the body to Meadowbank. His lack of empathy is evident from the articles he viewed online before and after the murders."
The court heard that a number of psychiatrists examined Stani-Reginald over the course of his criminal history. All but one found that while Stani-Reginald was disturbed, there was no clear evidence of a mental disorder or psychosis, even though as a child his father had murdered his mother.
Justice Price found that the 21-year-old had demonstrated no contrition or remorse and represented a serious threat to the community.
"The offender's prospects of rehabilitation are very poor. His juvenile record is replete with his refusals to accept assistance," Justice Price said.
"I'm satisfied that there's a real risk that the offender will reoffend with acts of violence and sexual assault."
Nevertheless, his honour stopped short of sentencing Stani-Reginald to life as prosecutors had suggested, finding that the offender's young age meant such a sentence could equate to as much as 60 years in jail.
He sentenced the 21-year-old to a maximum of 45 years in jail with a minimum non-parole period of 30 years.
With time served, Stani-Reginald will be eligible for parole in March 2041.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/a-terrible-way-to-die-storeman-jailed-for-murdering-indian-neighbour-20130517-2jqls.html#ixzz2TXswGGcw
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