Sarah Ristevski will claim that police 'threatened to implicate her in her mother's death' in bombshell TV interview for which she is 'being paid six figures'
- Borce Ristevski killed his wife Karen at their home in Melbourne in June 2016
- He left her body in bushland and it was found by a hiker eight months later
- Borce is serving a 13 year sentence for manslaughter, upgraded from six years
- Karen's daughter Sarah has now broken her media silence over the case
- She is reportedly claiming police threatened to implicate her in the killing
- Sarah said before her dad's conviction, she asked him if he killed her mother
Sarah Ristevski will claim that police threatened to implicate her in her mother's death.
In an interview on 60 Minutes on Sunday, the 24-year-old will criticise the investigation into the death of her mother Karen who was killed by her father Borce in 2016.
She will allege police threatened to implicate her in the killing if she did not help them with evidence against her father, according to The Herald Sun.
But police have pre-empted her allegations and have insisted she refused to help them.
A police source told the Herald Sun: 'Borce poisoned her against the police. There was no assistance. It put the investigation behind the eight ball.'
The newspaper also reported that Miss Ristevski is being paid six figures for the interview, the first time she is speaking out about her father's death.
Borce Ristevski, 55, killed his wife Karen (left) at their home Avondale Heights, Melbourne, in June 2016, before dumping her body in a regional park. Pictured with their daughter Sarah, who was 21 at the time
A Victoria Police spokesman declined to comment.
Borce Ristevski, 55, killed his wife Karen at their home Avondale Heights, Melbourne, in June 2016, before dumping her body in bushland.
He was jailed last April for at least six years after admitting to the manslaughter of his wife of 27 years.
Police revealed they had tapped phone conversations during the investigation which formed part of a 22,000-page evidence brief.
In one of the recorded conversations Sarah Ristevski questioned her father about why his phone was off for two hours as he drove towards Mount Macedon the day Karen disappeared.
In December, Karen's family's appeal over the sentence was successful and Ristevski's jail term was extended to 13 years, ten without the chance for parole.
In a preview for Sunday night's 60 Minutes program, Sarah told reporter Liz Hayes that in the lead up to her father's conviction, she asked him if he killed her mother.
'I asked him if he had anything to do with it,' she said, visibly emotional.
'She's on my mind all the time and I can't get it out of my head.'
Ristevski refused to say what he did to his wife before bundling her into a car and hiding her body at Macedon Regional Park, where it was found by hikers eight months later.
When her remains were found the cause of death could not be determined.
In March last year, Ristevski shocked the nation when he admitted to killing his wife after he vehemently denied involvement in her death for almost three years.
Dress shop-owner Karen disappeared from the family home in Avondale Heights, north-west Melbourne, on June 29, 2016. Pictured with Borce and Sarah
Karen Ristevski's 24-year-old daughter Sarah has spoken publicly for the first time about her mother's brutal death
He feigned innocence, lied to the police, the public and his daughter, and even carried his wife's coffin at her funeral, until pleading guilty to manslaughter on the eve of his murder trial.
He has shown no remorse and refused to explain why or how he killed his wife, a dress shop owner.
Even though he killed her mother, Sarah has always stood by her father.
Following his admission, she gave her father a glowing character reference during a pre-sentence plea hearing at the Supreme Court of Victoria.
During her father's trial she even refused to provide a victim impact statement and instead wrote a character reference for him.
'If I could use a few words to describe my dad's personality they would be loving, caring, sympathetic, protective and charismatic,' Sarah said in the character reference.
'Growing up as a family my mum, dad and I were completely inseparable.
'We would spend all of our spare time together and family was everything to us. The love we had for each other was unexplainable, and everyone in our lives saw it.'
Sarah said she had never witnessed her father act violently towards her mother.
'My dad has not had any prior convictions or issues with the law, and I can confidently say that in my 23 years and I have never witnessed any form of violence between my mum and dad,' she said.
Ristevski's first sentence was widely condemned when it was revealed the 55-year-old could have been out on parole by his 60th birthday.
Borce Ristevski and his daughter Sarah before he was a suspect in 2016
Borce Ristevski (pictured) was a pallbearer at the funeral of his wife Karen in March 2017
The sentence enraged Karen's family and prosecutors appealed, saying it was 'manifestly inadequate'.
Pressure mounted for authorities to appeal as pressure from the public swelled.
A petition calling for authorities to appeal the decision had more than 75,000 signatures.
The petition was launched, claiming Ristevski's sentence was 'manifestly too short' and did not 'reflect community opinion'.
In December, Ristevski's jail term was extended to 13 years, ten without the chance for parole.
It means he will not walk free until at least 2027 after being locked up on remand in 2017.
KAREN RISTEVSKI: HOW THE MYSTERY UNFOLDED
June 29, 2016
* Karen Ristevski last seen at her Melbourne home in Avondale Heights
* Her mobile phone pings off a tower in the Macedon Ranges
* A car similar to her black Mercedes SLK coupe spotted by CCTV cameras near Diggers Rest railway station
December 19, 2016
* Police search grassland, waterways, creeks and farms
February 20, 2017
* Karen Ristevski's body found at Mount Macedon Regional Park
A hiker stumbled upon Karen's body between two logs in the Mount Macedon National Park on February 20, 2017
March 6, 2017
* Funeral service held with husband Borce Ristevski a pallbearer, while daughter Sarah leads the procession
August 31, 2017
* Police recreate the journey of Ms Ristevski on the day she went missing in a black Mercedes, identical to hers
December 13, 2017
* Borce Ristevski charged with murder and faces court where a lawyer indicates a not-guilty plea. He is remanded in custody
April 18, 2018
* Ristevski returns to court where it's revealed detectives tapped phone calls and planted listening devices as they investigated the alleged killing, compiling a 22,000-page evidence brief
* Ristevski is granted state-funded legal aid as he fights the allegations
Locked up: Borce Ristevski
March 12, 2019
* Prosecutors suffer a major setback.
A Supreme Court judge rules evidence about Ristevski's conduct after Karen's death could not be used as evidence of he had alleged 'murderous intent'
March 13, 2019
* Ristevski's charge is downgraded and he pleads guilty to Karen's manslaughter death
April 18, 2019
* Ristevski is sentenced to a nine year jail term, with a six year non-parole period
May 13, 2019
* Prosecutors launch bid to increase Ristevski's jail term, labeling his sentence 'manifestly inadequate'.
The case heard by the Court of Appeal in November
Source: AAP, Daily Mail Australia
