The stepfather accused of killing a nine-year-old girl has voiced concerns for his safety and asked the judge to isolate him from other prisoners.
31-year-old Justin Stein was charged with the murder of his stepdaughter, 9-year-old Charlise Mutten, after her body was found in bushlands near the Colo River in New South Wales, Australia.
Now, the alleged mental health sufferer requested protection through his attorney who told Magistrate Robert Williams that his client has raised “concerns for personal safety” after insisting Stein needs medication for his mental health illness.
“The other matter I’m instructed to raise relates to his concerns for personal safety in custody. He has asked the court to recommend a no association classification,” the attorney said after revealing that his client had been taking “high dosages” of medication for the last few years.
Denying his request, Williams told the attorney that Corrective Services alone hold the power to isolate the suspected killer from other inmates.
The Wednesday court appearance comes days after Stein was arrested at a home in Surry Hills following the discovery of Charlise’s body.
According to the reports, the young girl was reported missing by her mother on January 14, a day after Charlise was entrusted in Stein’s care.
Though the child’s grandparents had full custody of the 9-year-old, Charlise was spending her holidays with her stepfather, Stein, and her mother, Kallista Mutten, in the Blue Mountains.
After her sudden disappearance, the investigators discovered that Charlise’s stepfather bought several sandbags and fueled up his boat in an attempt to get rid of his stepdaughter’s body by hurling it into the sea.
As the detectives allege, however, the boat was inoperable, prompting the man to try and dump the body into the Colo River.
After being unable to move the barrel containing her body due to the weight of the sandbags, Stein allegedly dropped her off at nearby bushland where she was later found by the authorities.
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