Melbourne Man On Trial For Sydney Hate Murder Smashed Windscreen Of Gay Driver
The 76-year-old Melbourne man on trial for the suspected “gay hate” murder of Raymond Keam allegedly smashed the windscreen of a Porsche at a Randwick park, because the driver was gay.
Stanley Early was arrested by Victoria Police’s homicide squad detectives from his home in Clayton in southeast Melbourne, on August 18, 2021. He has pleaded not guilty to murdering Keam.
‘He Was A Poofter’
Roger Rolland, the son of Early’s 1987 landlord, claimed in court on Wednesday, May 3, that Early once smashed the side of the windscreen of a Porsche near Alison Park in Sydney’s easter suburb of Randwick.
In the late 80s, Alison Park was known for being a gay beat.
When Crown prosecutor Ken McKay asked Rolland why Early did this, Rolland responded, “He was a poofter; that’s what he said. The guy in the Porsche.”
According to Sydney Morning Herald, in Court, on Tuesday, Keam’s defacto partner Diane Smart testified that she found out about his death from a news report at the time.
Spate Of Targeted Killings
Keam’s murder was among the spate of targeted killings of gay men and trans persons in Sydney and NSW between 1970 and 2010.
According to NSW Police, Keam, a martial art expert and father of four, was reportedly targeted due to a “perception” of his sexual orientation.
Keam’s murder was one of 88 murders of gay men and transpersons that was reviewed by Strike Force Parrabell, which was set up in 2013 to investigate NSW Police’s alleged bias and inaction in investigating gay hate crimes.
Keam’s body was found on the morning of January 13, 1987.
The postmortem revealed that Keam was stuck multiple times on his head, and the cause of death was severe head injuries. There were injuries on his chest consistent with being kicked with a shoe.
The case was reinvestigated by Strike Force Augenaut detectives.
