Leonard John Fraser

Caught on Tape

On a listening device, Quinn recorded Fraser telling him of the murder of Beverly Leggo after he had taken her for a swim at Nankin Creek, outside of Rockhampton. "And I smashed her across the jaw... she was semi-conscious. I pulled the rope that is used for a swing... over and put it around her neck twice and tucked the end through the loops and pulled it tight."

Fraser then laughed as he said "You should have seen her kick when I let the rope go... I heard her neck break... and then she stopped kicking and her legs dangled in the water. It didn't take much to kill her... because she was really skinny. I took the rope off her and dragged her through the waterhole into the long grass where I put her on that ditch. I made sure that I pulled the tall grass back up as I went... so there was no trail left behind in the grass.

"To make sure she was dead... I placed her black sporting briefs around her neck and pulled them tight... so if she woke up she wouldn't breathe, she would die."

The tape also recorded Fraser telling of how on April 18, 1997, in the Rockhampton Mall, he met Benedetti at a time when she was unhappy with where she was living and was going through a bad time with her boyfriend.

"I took Benedetti to a disused hotel... to Room 13... I told her that I had drugs stored there... I tried to kiss her... she didn't like it," he said. "I hit her and knocked her out. I went downstairs to check if anyone had heard her scream.

"I went back upstairs and she was just lying there staring at me. When they are unconscious they always stare at you. I knew I was going to be in trouble. So I picked up a block of wood. I thought that it was a block of wood. It could have been a window counterweight, I don't know... but it had serrated edges."