Jaymes Todd

A 19-year-old man from Broadmeadows has been charged with the rape and murder of aspiring Melbourne comedian Eurydice Dixon, whose body was found on a soccer field in the city's inner north.

Ms Dixon was found by a passer-by on the field at the Princes Park sporting precinct between Royal Parade and Princes Park Drive in Princes Hill on Wednesday.

Paramedics were called to the scene but Ms Dixon could not be revived.

Jaymes Todd, 19, of Broadmeadows, was arrested on Wednesday night after he presented at a police station in Broadmeadows after police released images of a man they wished to speak to about Ms Dixon's death.

He appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday, and sat motionless and with his eyes closed for much of the hearing before magistrate Andrew McKenna.

Victoria Police Leading Senior Constable Stephen Eppingstall told the hearing Ms Dixon was killed sometime between 10:30pm on Tuesday and 3:00am on Wednesday.

Victoria Legal Aid lawyer John Riordan said it was Mr Todd's first time in custody and stressed his vulnerability in that environment due to his youth and diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder.

The lawyer argued Mr Todd should not be publicly identified for several days while more information on his disorder was sought.

Sharing Mr Todd's identity would also compromise his safety in custody, he said.

"The risk is real and significant whilst he is in custody," Mr Riordan said.

The killer of aspiring Melbourne comedian Eurydice Dixon has lost a bid to reduce his time in prison, after Victoria's Court of Appeal upheld his life sentence for the "loathsome" crimes.

Key points:

  • Jaymes Todd will continue to serve a life sentence for Ms Dixon's rape and murder
  • His lawyers had argued the sentence was disproportionate due to Todd's age, early guilty plea and background
  • The Court of Appeal today said Todd's sexual sadism disorder was not currently treatable

Last year, Jaymes Todd, 20, was convicted for the June 2018 rape and murder of Ms Dixon, 22, in a park in Melbourne's inner north.

He was given a non-parole period of 35 years.

Today, Chief Justice Anne Ferguson said the crime was "unspeakably loathsome and cruel" in reading a brief summary of the ruling by the three judges of the Court of Appeal.

In the hour before her death, Todd had followed Ms Dixon from the city where she had taken part in a comedy gig.

Todd was not in court for today's decision, appearing instead by videolink.

Jaymes Todd, 20, must serve a minimum of 35 years in jail before he can apply for parole.

 

 

 

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