Warning: Distressing content
William Tyrrell’s foster mum has spoken about the police investigation into the little boy’s disappearance, saying they “f**ked it up, in tapped calls aired in court.
The audio clips emerged in a hearing at Sydney’s Parramatta Local Court into separate charges relating to the alleged intimidation and assault of another child, which the defence team argued police only pursued as a way to “break” the foster mum into giving them answers about Tyrrell’s disappearance.
No charges have been laid in relation to William’s death.
The foster mum can be heard saying: “they’re investigating me” in one recorded call with an unknown person dated October 20, 2021.
“I found out and I lost it,” she said.
“They’re trying to trip me up on stuff and they’re trying to get me to do things. I’ve got a lawyer involved”.
The foster mother continued: “They’re doing it because they f**ked it up … and they have nobody”.
She said police “cleared a guy” and later “came back and said we’re cleared”.
“It’s all politics … I’ve been caught right in the middle. And now they’re saying that (redacted name) covered up for me”.
Later in the call, the foster mum was heard saying: “No, I know there’s nothing to be said, I just have to wait. But in the meantime I’ve got to try and be normal”.
In a separate call on the same date, the woman asks her husband: “We’ve got an investigation hanging over our head – how do I live with that?”.
In June, police recommended that prosecutors lay criminal charges against the foster mother, alleging she covered up William’s accidental death. But through her solicitor, the woman maintained her innocence.
News.com.au does not suggest the calls aired in court suggest any wrongdoing on behalf of the foster mother.
Tapped calls air mother’s alleged repeated threats of violence
The 58-year-old woman and her 56-year-old husband are facing a hearing over charges relating to a child who is not William, which arose after police placed listening devices in their home and car during their investigation into William’s disappearance.
During cross-examination, defence lawyer John Stratton SC asked Detective Senior Constable sergeant Sean Ogilvy if the assault and intimidation charges were brought “as part of a campaign to put pressure on (the mother) to break her so she’ll give you information she unfortunately doesn’t have”.
“Absolutely not,” he said.
As he was attached to the homicide at the time, Det Const Ogilvy was asked if information about Tyrrell’s body was “something (he) desired” at the time the foster parents were charged with the child’s assault.
“Yes, I was on the investigation of the disappearance of William Tyrrell, but the charges of DV had nothing to do with putting on pressure,” Det Const Ogilvy said.
Earlier on Wednesday, the court heard distressing tapes of the foster mum kicking a child and repeated threats of violence against her— including to slap her and “throw her” around.
The foster mother pleaded guilty to two counts of assaulting the 11-year-old child — with a wooden spoon and a kick to the thigh — but has denied two counts of intimidating them.
The foster father pleaded not guilty to one count of assault and one count of intimidation.
On the third day of the hearing, the court heard a raft of disturbing recordings spanning several months in 2021.
One from October 20 at 7:43am captured a loud bang, before the child broke out into a hysterical cry, yelling “ow … it hurts …. she kicked me”.
Later in the recording, the woman told the child to “be quiet and sit there”.
“Next time you choose to bully someone, you think twice about it. I’m surprised no one has punched you yet, really surprised,” the mother said.
Moments later, the hysterical child was heard repeatedly saying “stop” and “no,” to which the mum said: “I stop when you stop”.
Later that day, a separate recording caught the woman admitting she kicked the child because the young girl threatened to hurt another child.
“I can’t believe I did that … it was a complete reaction,” she said, adding later that the child she kicked was a psychopath.
Three audio clips from May 26 were also played in court.
Starting at 6:48am, the first one aired the parents berating the child about taking too long to do a chore. After the girl responded that she’s doing it, the mother said: “You look like that again at me and I’m going to slap you.
“Put your head down, because I’m sick to death of this, sick to death of it. You keep your smarty pants at school for the people who deserve it, not me”.
Amid hysterical crying from the child, the mum told her to “look out”.
About half an hour later, another recording captured the mother getting angry at the child for “throwing things around”.
“You seem to only listen to me when I threaten to get violent with you; nothing else seems to be working,” she said.
At 4:40pm that afternoon, another audio tape recorded the mother calmly telling the child she didn’t need to be “physically hurt to know things are serious”.
“I actually don’t know what to say because the only way you stopped was me saying I’ll slap you. Why do you get it to that point?”.
While this recording was played, the foster mother put her head in her hands at the front of the courtroom and was comforted by her husband.
In the clip, the mother continued: “I shouldn’t have to get to the point where I threaten to hurt you, that’s a problem”.
She asked the child how she would feel if she “decided (she) just wanted to go and hurt animals”.
“If I’m physically hurting children, how do you think that’s making me feel? Because the problem is, you push it and push it and push it. Someone snaps and they lose control. If you get violent, it’s because people lose control and they can’t stop”.
On the morning of July 5, the mother was heard threatening to slap the child across the face if she didn’t put something away.
Two days later, the mother was recorded getting frustrated at the child over not turning lights off and again over not putting objects away.
“Where we’ll end up is me with a black garbage bag. Do you want to end up in that spot?” the mother asked.
The child responded “no” and that she’ll “put them away”, to which the mum said: “if you don’t, I’ll slap you across the face”.
On one October morning, the mother was recorded telling her husband the child can’t use her phone anymore because the mother just broke it.
When the young girl asked why, the mother said it was because she took it without permission. After the child called her mum a “f***ing b*tch” amid screaming and crying, the mum said: “now I’m going to hit you in the face … how dare you”.
On September 12, 2014, three-year-old Tyrrell went missing from his foster grandmother’s house at Kendall on the NSW mid North Coast when he was aged three.
The mystery sparked national headlines and has become one of the state’s most high profile cold cases.
No-one has been charged over William’s disappearance and suspected death, and his foster parents have continued to deny any wrongdoing.
The hearing continues.