Friend Says Baird Was 'Petrified' of Lamarre-Condon Before Shootings
Corey-Dean Thorpe told the NSW Supreme Court on 23 September 2026 that Jesse Baird was "petrified" of Beau Lamarre-Condon before Baird was killed. Thorpe, a friend of Baird, was giving evidence in Lamarre-Condon's trial on two counts of murder. The Guardian
Thorpe said Baird repeatedly told him "he has a gun" and said he had never heard Baird sound so scared. Baird said he was extremely scared, Thorpe testified, because Lamarre-Condon had a gun and was in the police force. Asked whether Baird said he was scared to go to police because Lamarre-Condon was an officer, Thorpe agreed.
Thorpe also said Baird feared Lamarre-Condon would make a false allegation that would ruin his career. Baird worked as a Totally Wild television presenter and AFL umpire and needed certification to work with children. That clearance, Thorpe suggested, left Baird feeling exposed to any complaint.
Thorpe described controlling actions. He testified Baird said Lamarre-Condon went through his phone while he slept, blocked numbers of other men Baird spoke to and deleted their chats. Baird also said Lamarre-Condon took videos and photos of him and posted them. Thorpe fought back tears as he gave evidence. ABC
Lamarre-Condon, 31, is accused of fatally shooting Baird, 26, and Luke Davies, 29, with a police service weapon at Baird's Paddington home on 19 February 2024. He has pleaded not guilty to two counts of murder and one charge of aggravated break and enter, or entering with an added serious element. He denies all charges. He is a former Sydney police officer.
The prosecution, called the Crown in Australia, has alleged Lamarre-Condon developed an obsession and infatuation with Baird during their brief relationship, with jealousy part of its case. The case as reported also includes claims involving an Uber delivery disguise and a fake cancer claim. The court has separately heard Lamarre-Condon allegedly confessed to a friend after the deaths and asked for help moving. Lamarre-Condon will argue self-defence, the legal claim force was used for protection. ABC
The broader context here is why prior fear matters when self-defence is claimed. Thorpe's testimony does not establish how the shootings occurred. It presents Baird's reported state of mind and the Crown's narrative of obsession and control, which the defence can challenge. Like old messages that clarify a later argument, the claims about deleted chats, blocked contacts and posted images, if accepted, would point to an ongoing pattern, not a single dispute.
In my view, the institutional detail gives this testimony wider weight. An allegation that a person feared seeking help because the other party held police office and had a service weapon touches on trust in reporting channels. That turns on credibility, corroboration and how the court weighs retrospective accounts from friends. What matters next is testing: cross-examination of Thorpe, any contemporaneous messages or records, and how the self-defence account answers the prior-fear evidence. The court must separate memory of fear from proof of intent, while assessing whether control, jealousy or fear explain February 2024.
