'Cookie Monster' killer begs for mercy after poisoning husband with deadly drug-infused biscuits
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Content warning: This article mentions vivid descriptions of a crime scene, abuse, such as physical, mental and sexual abuse, eating disorders, and domestic and family violence. Reader discretion is advised.
It is an unimaginable story of abuse and betrayal that has shocked the residents of a tiny town in north-western Victoria.
A wife who claims to have been abused by her husband found her own horrific way of getting out of her allegedly torture-filled marriage.
In a heartbreaking and shocking case, 43-year-old Rebecca Payne has pleaded for mercy after being found guilty of the murder of her 68-year-old husband, Noel Payne.
The Supreme Court of Victoria heard that Rebecca had endured years of horrendous abuse at the hands of her husband before she decided to take matters into her own hands.
Rebecca has since been dubbed as the 'Cookie Monster Killer' after she poisoned her husband with temazepam, a sleeping medication, that was mixed in the biscuits she served him before locking him up in a chest freezer.
The woman faced the court on Monday, where her barrister, Richard Edney, urged Justice Rita Incerti to consider the years of torture his client had suffered and requested mercy for her.
According to Mr Edney, Rebecca was pushed to her limits by a controlling and depraved man, who turned their home into a house of horrors where he allegedly treated her and another woman like objects for his twisted sexual desires.
‘In this extreme and unique case, any term of imprisonment should be proportionately lower than would ordinarily be the case for murder,’ Mr Edney explained.
Rebecca has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. However, in March, a jury found her guilty of murdering her husband despite her claims that she did not actually mean to kill him.
According to the facts of the case collected by investigators and witness testimonies, Rebecca and Noel had a strained relationship due to Noel’s abusive behaviour.
‘He always controlled the money, and he took me down the gravel road, down near the graveyard. He dragged me out of the car by my hair,’ Rebecca told the court.
She continued: ‘He just started physically hitting me and pulling my hair and kicking me in the ribs and spitting on me. It felt like forever, but I reckon I would have been there for about five [or] 10 minutes.’
The court heard that Noel verbally abused Rebecca ‘every day’ and would hit her three to four times a week.
‘He'd punch me in the mouth, and he would hit me in the face. He would punch me in the head. There were multiple times that I got punches in the back as I tried to walk away, and he would physically grab my hair and pull me back if I tried to walk away,’ she claimed.
‘And there was the spitting. The spitting was nearly an everyday occurrence.’
In a particularly intense incident, Rebecca said Noel wanted his name tattooed ‘all over her body’.
‘Because who would want someone who had someone else's name tattooed all over me and that they would not love me,’ she said.
There are 18 tattoos in total. Rebecca said the tattoos could be found on both sides of her neck, her wrist, on each breast, her sternum, back, shoulder blades, tailbone, bum, hip, pelvis bone, and in between her legs.
The court also heard that Noel had taken another lover who also lived within the family home during the course of his marriage to Rebecca. For legal reasons, the other woman will not be named.
Mr Edney alleged that Noel had ‘savagely’ abused both women leading up to his death.
The court heard that Noel wanted Rebecca to weigh 55 kilograms and the other woman to weigh 45 kilograms.
‘He said that he wanted photos so he could keep progress on our weight,’ she said.
‘That's how it started off, and then the photos become more frequent. Me and [the second live-in partner] were scared of him, so it was easier just to do what he wanted, so then that way we wouldn't be physically or verbally abused.’
‘I actually had an eating disorder because of how he was. When I would eat, he’d call me nothing but a pig,’ Rebecca told the court.
‘The conduct against both Rebecca and (the woman) was reprehensible, obscene. He raped them, sexually assaulted them and let's be clear (the woman) was a young woman with an acquired brain injury,’ said Mr Edney.
During the trial, the jury was shown disturbing footage of the abuse at the hands of Noel.
One victim impact statement from the other woman in the relationship seemed to hint at relief. She said: ‘He wanted to keep me all for himself. If Noel wasn’t dead, my life would still be worse. I hate Bec (Rebecca) for what she’s done, but life is now better than it was.’
Much like Rebecca, the other woman claimed he branded tattoos of his name on the most intimate parts of her body.
‘Places you can only see if I’m naked. He made me get these because he wouldn’t let me find someone else. These can’t be removed; they’re very dark and in thick writing,’ she told the court.
According to forensic investigators, Rebecca had knocked Noel out cold by serving him biscuits and a cup of Milo laced with sleeping pills.
Forensic doctors were unable to determine if he had died from an overdose or suffocation after Rebecca stuffed his body in a chest freezer and locked it shut.
Many who knew Rebecca, including her sons, said she had ‘done her time’ after living with Noel’s behaviour for years.
‘She lived for 14 years in hell with a monster,’ her son Jamie told reporters.
A neighbour of the couple also claimed that there was ‘not a doubt in the world’ that Noel had plans to kill Rebecca, her two sons, and the other woman.
‘She saved at least four lives. She didn't know whether she was going to go to bed and wake up the next morning. Or whether her boys were going to go to bed and wake up the next morning,’ he stated.
However, Prosecutor David Glynn said Rebecca was a ‘cold-blooded killer’.
He said that after Noel passed out, she wrapped his body in a blanket and stashed him away in an empty freezer before tying the lid down with straps to ensure he could not escape.
‘It must have been ghastly. I mean to just do that, to do what she did to him. That is something that anyone I think who wasn't a psychopath – I’m not suggesting she is one – would recoil from,’ he shared.
Mr Glynn further argued: ‘It would require a significant degree of determination and grit to do what she did...She had that grit, she had that foresight, she had the determination, but she applied it to this purpose, and that is murder, rather than a different way that she could have extracted herself, namely working out a way to leave that marriage.’
Justice Incerti will sentence Rebecca next week.
Should you or someone you know face a similar situation, please remember to call 000 in an emergency. If you or someone you know is feeling unsafe, help is available. Please contact the Domestic Violence Line on 1800 737 732.
It is an unimaginable story of abuse and betrayal that has shocked the residents of a tiny town in north-western Victoria.
A wife who claims to have been abused by her husband found her own horrific way of getting out of her allegedly torture-filled marriage.
In a heartbreaking and shocking case, 43-year-old Rebecca Payne has pleaded for mercy after being found guilty of the murder of her 68-year-old husband, Noel Payne.
The Supreme Court of Victoria heard that Rebecca had endured years of horrendous abuse at the hands of her husband before she decided to take matters into her own hands.
Rebecca claims she is the real victim. Credit: Martin Lopez/Pexels
Rebecca has since been dubbed as the 'Cookie Monster Killer' after she poisoned her husband with temazepam, a sleeping medication, that was mixed in the biscuits she served him before locking him up in a chest freezer.
The woman faced the court on Monday, where her barrister, Richard Edney, urged Justice Rita Incerti to consider the years of torture his client had suffered and requested mercy for her.
According to Mr Edney, Rebecca was pushed to her limits by a controlling and depraved man, who turned their home into a house of horrors where he allegedly treated her and another woman like objects for his twisted sexual desires.
‘In this extreme and unique case, any term of imprisonment should be proportionately lower than would ordinarily be the case for murder,’ Mr Edney explained.
Rebecca has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. However, in March, a jury found her guilty of murdering her husband despite her claims that she did not actually mean to kill him.
Noel Payne's remains were stuffed inside a freezer. Credit: Facebook
According to the facts of the case collected by investigators and witness testimonies, Rebecca and Noel had a strained relationship due to Noel’s abusive behaviour.
‘He always controlled the money, and he took me down the gravel road, down near the graveyard. He dragged me out of the car by my hair,’ Rebecca told the court.
She continued: ‘He just started physically hitting me and pulling my hair and kicking me in the ribs and spitting on me. It felt like forever, but I reckon I would have been there for about five [or] 10 minutes.’
The court heard that Noel verbally abused Rebecca ‘every day’ and would hit her three to four times a week.
‘He'd punch me in the mouth, and he would hit me in the face. He would punch me in the head. There were multiple times that I got punches in the back as I tried to walk away, and he would physically grab my hair and pull me back if I tried to walk away,’ she claimed.
‘And there was the spitting. The spitting was nearly an everyday occurrence.’
In a particularly intense incident, Rebecca said Noel wanted his name tattooed ‘all over her body’.
‘Because who would want someone who had someone else's name tattooed all over me and that they would not love me,’ she said.
There are 18 tattoos in total. Rebecca said the tattoos could be found on both sides of her neck, her wrist, on each breast, her sternum, back, shoulder blades, tailbone, bum, hip, pelvis bone, and in between her legs.
The court also heard that Noel had taken another lover who also lived within the family home during the course of his marriage to Rebecca. For legal reasons, the other woman will not be named.
Mr Edney alleged that Noel had ‘savagely’ abused both women leading up to his death.
The court heard that Noel wanted Rebecca to weigh 55 kilograms and the other woman to weigh 45 kilograms.
‘He said that he wanted photos so he could keep progress on our weight,’ she said.
‘That's how it started off, and then the photos become more frequent. Me and [the second live-in partner] were scared of him, so it was easier just to do what he wanted, so then that way we wouldn't be physically or verbally abused.’
‘I actually had an eating disorder because of how he was. When I would eat, he’d call me nothing but a pig,’ Rebecca told the court.
‘The conduct against both Rebecca and (the woman) was reprehensible, obscene. He raped them, sexually assaulted them and let's be clear (the woman) was a young woman with an acquired brain injury,’ said Mr Edney.
During the trial, the jury was shown disturbing footage of the abuse at the hands of Noel.
One victim impact statement from the other woman in the relationship seemed to hint at relief. She said: ‘He wanted to keep me all for himself. If Noel wasn’t dead, my life would still be worse. I hate Bec (Rebecca) for what she’s done, but life is now better than it was.’
Much like Rebecca, the other woman claimed he branded tattoos of his name on the most intimate parts of her body.
‘Places you can only see if I’m naked. He made me get these because he wouldn’t let me find someone else. These can’t be removed; they’re very dark and in thick writing,’ she told the court.
According to forensic investigators, Rebecca had knocked Noel out cold by serving him biscuits and a cup of Milo laced with sleeping pills.
Forensic doctors were unable to determine if he had died from an overdose or suffocation after Rebecca stuffed his body in a chest freezer and locked it shut.
Many who knew Rebecca, including her sons, said she had ‘done her time’ after living with Noel’s behaviour for years.
‘She lived for 14 years in hell with a monster,’ her son Jamie told reporters.
A neighbour of the couple also claimed that there was ‘not a doubt in the world’ that Noel had plans to kill Rebecca, her two sons, and the other woman.
‘She saved at least four lives. She didn't know whether she was going to go to bed and wake up the next morning. Or whether her boys were going to go to bed and wake up the next morning,’ he stated.
However, Prosecutor David Glynn said Rebecca was a ‘cold-blooded killer’.
He said that after Noel passed out, she wrapped his body in a blanket and stashed him away in an empty freezer before tying the lid down with straps to ensure he could not escape.
‘It must have been ghastly. I mean to just do that, to do what she did to him. That is something that anyone I think who wasn't a psychopath – I’m not suggesting she is one – would recoil from,’ he shared.
Mr Glynn further argued: ‘It would require a significant degree of determination and grit to do what she did...She had that grit, she had that foresight, she had the determination, but she applied it to this purpose, and that is murder, rather than a different way that she could have extracted herself, namely working out a way to leave that marriage.’
Justice Incerti will sentence Rebecca next week.
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