http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/...-time-for-murder/story-fnihsrf2-1226820044040
Mal Meninga in parole bid for brother Bevan, serving time for murder
- Kay Dibben
- The Courier-Mail
- February 07, 2014 12:00AM
Maroons legend and Origin coach Mal Meninga has thrown his support behind brother Bevan's parole bid.
Mal Meninga's letter in support of his brother.
LEAGUE legend Mal Meninga offered to have his brother Bevan, a convicted murderer, live in his Brisbane family home if he was released on parole.
Bevan, who has served 21 years for the "horrific killing'' of 19-year-old Cheree Richardson, has gone to court to force the Queensland Parole Board to make a decision.
Early last year, a probation and parole officer assessed Mal's home's suitability for Bevan, saying Mal had agreed to have him live there.
However, late last year Bevan applied to live with their mother on the Sunshine Coast, where Cheree was murdered, Supreme Court documents show.
In his latest release plan, filed in court, Bevan said his brother had offered to move him and his mother to Brisbane after his initial community reintegration on the Sunshine Coast.
"If the move to Brisbane is approved, my brother has full-time employment,'' the document says.
Mal wrote in a letter to the board in 2012 that he "supported Bevan by phone, letters and visits over the term of his incarceration and have kept a keen interest in his welfare''.
"Whilst as a family we don't condone his actions of the past, I will make certain that Bevan will have the necessary family support during his reintegration.''
Bevan Meninga pictured in 1991, and his victim Cheree Richardson.
Last week, the Queensland Parole Board said Bevan might pose "an unacceptably high level of risk if released from custody at this stage'' and gave him two weeks to prove otherwise.
Bevan murdered Cheree in 1991 by hitting her with a tree branch.
She had massive head and internal injuries.
The board says it is concerned Bevan, who claimed he was intoxicated at the time, could reoffend if he returned to alcohol or drug abuse.
Bevan has been eligible for parole since 2005 but has been kept in jail and has been waiting since January last year for a decision on his latest application.
He is at a low-security prison farm in Rathdowney.