Charbaji brothers found guilty of Dane McNeill murder

Two brothers have been found guilty of the brutal murder of Dane McNeill, who was drugged, stabbed and tied up before his body was stuffed into a suitcase and set on fire in a Sydney park.

Azam Charbaji, 26, and his younger brother Haysem, 24, were found guilty by a jury on Wednesday after a trial lasting nearly a month in the NSW Supreme Court. 

Victim: The burnt body of Dane McNeill was found in a Picnic Point reserve in 2014. Photo: Supplied

Haysem's then girlfriend Lexy May Jamieson, 26, was found guilty of being an accessory after the fact to murder after she sought advice on how to dispose of the body and clean up the murder scene.

A garbage truck driver found Mr McNeill's charred remains inside a burnt suitcase in a reserve in Picnic Point, in Sydney's south-west, in July 2014. 

Jade Patterson, the girlfriend of murdered Sydney man Dane McNeill, right, pictured with his mother Rebecca McNeill. Photo: Ben Rushton

The trio pleaded not guilty. 

The Crown's case was that the Charbaji brothers murdered Mr McNeill, 20, following a dispute over a $3000 debt involving his on-again, off-again girlfriend Jade Patterson.

Mr McNeill was stabbed, beaten, force-fed Xanax, tied up and left in the laundry and bathroom during an ordeal that unfolded over a weekend at the homes of the brothers in Heckenberg and Cartwright. 

The prosecution's key witness was Brendon Gallo, 21, who gave evidence that he was with the brothers in the hours leading up to the murder and heard Mr McNeill "screaming for his life".

Lexy May Jamieson was found guilty of being an accessory after the fact to murder. Photo: Ben Rushton

Overcome with emotion while testifying, Mr Gallo said he was "scared for his life" and followed the brothers' instructions, including stuffing his friend's body into a suitcase, dumping it in a reserve and setting it on fire.

He denied that he struck a deal with police to avoid prosecution for his role in the murder, but said since he had stopped using ice he had deciding coming forward was the "right thing to do". 

Crown witness Brendan Gallo outside the NSW Supreme Court during the trial. Photo: Christopher Pearce

Another key Crown witness, who cannot be named for legal reasons, in the case against Jamieson had given police a statement that he gave her advice about how to dispose of the body and to clean up the crime scene.

But when called to give evidence during the trial, the witness denied much of what he had said in his statement from two years earlier, including telling Jamieson to "go cook [the body], burn it, go and get rid of the DNA" and to "throw animal blood" to contaminate the crime scene. 

The trial heard that the Charbaji brothers started their attack on Mr McNeill at Haysem's house when he asked them for money so he could repay a debt he owed. 

Mr McNeill was then stabbed, fed Xanax, bound with duct tape and left in a laundry room overnight with a Chux wipe strapped to his wound.

The next day he was moved to Azam's house, where he was held in the bathroom, fed more Xanax and was heard screaming for his life before his body was wrapped in a sheet and placed in a Kmart suitcase.

Mr McNeill's family, who have been present in court throughout the trial, gasped and said "yes" when they heard the verdicts.

Haysem smiled, turned around to his supporters in the gallery and stuck his thumbs up and winked.

His brother, Azam, yelled out "f---ing dumb dogs" in the direction of Mr McNeill's supporters moments after one of them had called Jamieson a "f---ing dumb slut".