Child killer Leslie Camilleri bashed in prison
Notorious Bega schoolgirl killer Leslie Camilleri has been hospitalized after being attacked by inmates at a new reformatory.
Camilleri, now in his mid-50s, was recently transferred to Ravenhall Prison (a medium-security, all-male facility in Melbourne’s outer west) where he was attacked by two fellow inmates who knew of his crimes.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice and Community Safety said in a statement that the incident occurred on June 17 between three prisoners.
They confirmed a prisoner had been hospitalized but declined to comment further on the incident.
“No other inmates or staff were injured.”
In December 2013, Camilleri, then 43, was sentenced to 28 years in prison for the murder of 13-year-old Prue Bird, who disappeared from her home in Glenroy in Melbourne’s northern suburbs in 1992.
At the time, Victorian Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Perde said she was pleased that Camilleri, who was serving two life sentences without parole for the 1997 rape and murder of Bega schoolgirls Lauren Barry and Nichole Collins, and two other men kidnapped and killed Bird.
He said Camilleri and two others abducted a defenseless 13-year-old boy from his home in what must have been horrific circumstances for him.
Defense lawyer John Kelly told the court Camilleri did his best to remember where he left Bird’s body but his memory was affected by taking drugs at the time. During his offending, Camilleri was released on parole after spending time in prison in Queensland.
Camilleri, a father of four, claimed that he laid Bird face down in the backseat of his car, tied his arms and legs with electrical cables, and then walked around for hours. He said he later realized the woman was dead when he pulled over to the side of the road.
The hospital where Camilleri was taken was contacted and an opinion was requested.
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