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AAP
AAP
National
Robyn Wuth

Jury road trip planned to alleged mower murder scene

Robert John Crawford (left) appeared in the Supreme Court even though he was not required to. (Darren England/AAP PHOTOS)

A jury is expected to travel more than 100km to inspect the rural scene of an alleged murder.

Robert John Crawford, 48, returned to court on Monday for a pre-trial hearing over his wife's death.

The former RAAF pilot has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Frances Elizabeth Crawford and interfering with her corpse.

Ms Crawford was found dead near a ride-on mower at the bottom of a sandstone retaining wall at the couple's Upper Lockyer property west of Brisbane in July 2024.

Homicide scene and Frances Crawford (file)
Frances Crawford was found at the bottom of a sandstone retaining wall at the couple's property. (PR IMAGE PHOTO)

Crawford's appearance was not required for Monday's hearing in Brisbane Supreme Court but he sat quietly at the back of the courtroom as lawyers argued over the evidence.

The court was told a jury should visit the Upper Lockyer property before or during the trial to properly understand the steep, three-dimensional layout of the scene.

"It's an agreed position that it's one of those scenes that it's not possible to understand unless you've stood there, so the parties agree that it would be appropriate," defence barrister Saul Holt said.

"It's a significant trip out there and back. The scene itself is comparatively contained. I suspect it would be two to three hours on the property at most."

Prosecutors allege Crawford strangled his wife and staged the scene to look like a mowing accident.

The defence has previously attacked the case as weak and argues Ms Crawford's injuries could be explained by an accident involving the ride-on mower.

The trial is expected to start later this year.

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