A woman accused of murdering a man after kidnapping him and trying to get him to confess to sexually abusing children has wept after being denied bail.
The woman is one of five people who have been charged over the killing of Bradley John Lyons, 30, who went missing from his Lakes Entrance home in Gippsland, Victoria, in late 2018.
The court heard Mr Lyons's body was found in a shallow grave several months later with a gunshot wound to the head as well as signs he had been tortured.
The court heard two men had covered their faces in balaclavas and were armed with a sawn-off shotgun when they allegedly assaulted and kidnapped Mr Lyons on the afternoon of December 2, 2018.
Mr Lyons was forced into the boot of a car and tortured, as the men allegedly tried to get a "confession by force" to allegations that he had sexually abused children, the court was told.
Mr Lyons was told he would be killed unless he told them what "he has done to the kids", the court heard.
Later that night the woman allegedly sent a text message to one of the children the group said was abused, which read "there was nothing to fear" from the man anymore.
"We've got BJ and we're going to get a confession out of what BJ has done to the kids," the woman is alleged to have told a friend.
The court heard one of the co-accused ran an organisation called the Australian Freedom Fighters, an anti-paedophile group.
The court heard the woman was seeking bail because of concerns about the care of her children.
Her lawyers had also argued she should be bailed because of the judicial delays caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, which has put most court hearings on hold.
Justice Andrew Tinney refused her application, saying the crime was serious and the delays were being experienced by other defendants.
The woman appeared by videolink and was sobbing after the judgment was handed down.
The case is scheduled to return to court in August.
