A man sentenced to life behind bars for the rape and murder of two Sunshine Coast girls nearly three decades ago cannot apply for parole until 2032.
Paul Stephen Osborne, a factory worker, was sentenced to two life terms in jail and 18 years for each of two rape counts in 1997.
Osborne should preferably never be released from jail, Supreme Court Justice Glen Williams said in handing down the sentence.
A declaration ordering that Osborne may not apply for parole was made by Queensland’s Parole Board president Michael Byrne KC on Thursday.
The declaration is in effect until May 22, 2032, and means a parole application the board received in May 2020 is refused.
Mr Byrne was satisfied it was in the public interest to make the declaration about Osborne as a restricted prisoner because of the nature, seriousness and circumstances of the offence for which he was sentenced to life imprisonment.
The risk he would pose to the public if granted parole and the effect of his release were also taken into account, the declaration says.
Osborne, then aged 28, raped and murdered Leanne Maree Oliver, 10, and Patricia Sophie Leedie, 9, on October 29, 1995, on the Sunshine Coast.
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732), National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
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