The man accused of killing mother of three Kelly Wilkinson has awoken from his coma and been informed he has been charged with her murder.
Brian Earl Johnston was visited by police on Friday at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s hospital, where he had been in an induced coma and under guard for 10 days.
He was charged with three offences, including murder, over the death of Wilkinson, whose burned body was found in the garden of her Gold Coast home in Arundel last week, after neighbours called police to report a disturbance.
Johnston has serious burns to his hands and airway.
His lawyer, Chris Hannay, told News Corp: “Police wanted to interview him but we obviously rejected that as he wasn’t in any position to do an interview.”
It is understood it could be a week before Hannay is able to see his client again.
In the weeks before her death, family members said Wilkinson had contacted police multiple times.
Natalie Wilkinson, one of Kelly’s three sisters, told Seven News she drove her sister to the police station “almost every day” to report alleged breaches of court orders.
Vigils have been held across Queensland since Wilkinson’s death, with hundreds gathering to honour victims of domestic violence and campaign for change.
People gathered to remember and honour both Wilkinson and Lordy Ramadan, whose body was found in a wooden chest in her Gold Coast unit after her partner, Craig Bouma, was found dead there.
Gold Coast Centre Against Sexual Violence director Di Macleod, who was at the rally in Norm Rix Park at Labrador, called for action to address domestic violence.
“We were here last month with a Gold Coast woman murdered and today we’re here again remembering two more Gold Coast women – this has got to stop,” she said.
“When these things happen we come together as a community and we’re often moved to tears and rightly so.”
“But we’ve got to move beyond that — we’ve got to be moved to action — if this doesn’t outrage us, what will?”
