Beaumont Lamarre-Condon on Tuesday faced court for the first time in more than a year to plead not guilty to murdering flight attendant Luke Davies, 29, and TV presenter Jesse Baird, 26, in February 2024.Â
The first serving NSW police officer charged with murder in several decades is accused of shooting the couple at Mr Baird's Paddington home in Sydney's east, before bundling their bodies in surfboard bags and dumping them at a rural property.
They were found eight days later after Lamarre-Condon, 29, handed himself in.
The case has been mired in delays since, with the now-sacked senior constable changing lawyers twice and negotiations with prosecutors dragging on for months.
But Lamarre-Condon on Tuesday faced court for the third time since his arrest and the first time since August 2024 to confirm he denied the two counts of domestic violence-related murder and an additional aggravated break and enter charge.
The 30-year-old appeared on screen from prison, wearing a green polo shirt and sporting a short back and sides haircut to go with his stubble facial hair.
"Yes, Your Honour," he said when asked by Deputy Chief Magistrate Theo Tsavdaridis if he intended to plead not guilty.
The accused killer's mother, Colleen Lamarre, attended court on Tuesday to hear her son's pleas.
The case will proceed to the Supreme Court on October 3 to be listed for trial, likely in 2026 or 2027.
Lamarre-Condon's third legal representative in the matter, Benjamin Archbold, had earlier indicated his client would deny the charges.
But difficulties establishing an audiovisual link from prison delayed the former police officer facing court for an hour.
NSW Police allege the attack was premeditated and followed a months-long campaign of "predatory behaviour" targeting Mr Baird.
Lamarre-Condon briefly dated the TV presenter before Mr Baird began a relationship with Mr Davies.
Police allege the former senior constable used his service weapon to shoot the couple before attempting to dispose of their bodies.
Suspicions were raised two days later when blood-stained possessions belonging to both men were found in a skip bin in Sydney's south.
The discovery led police to Mr Baird's blood-smeared share house, about 30km away in inner-city Paddington.
Lamarre-Condon handed himself in to police two days later and eventually allegedly directed police to their bodies on a rural property nearly 200km southwest of Sydney.
The senior constable was sacked by NSW Police weeks after being charged.
He joined the force in 2019 and previously ran a celebrity blog, posing in photos with dozens of A-listers including Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus and Harry Styles.
The case was littered with delays before the not guilty pleas were entered.
Crown prosecutor Brendan Donnelly had previously opposed further delays in the matter, saying Lamarre-Condon has had "plenty of opportunity" to enter pleas.
Charges against the former police officer were certified in July 2024.
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