Childhood friends of slain mother Karen Ristevski respond to her daughter's bombshell interview and say they're shocked and 'angry' she continues to back her wife-killer dad
- Borce Ristevski killed his wife Karen at their home in Melbourne in June 2016
- His daughter Sarah has stood by him throughout the ordeal and still loves him
- Sarah said she was not 'emotionally ready' to accept her father killed her mother
- One childhood friend said broadcast of high-priced interview left her angered
- 'I hoped to find closure last night. I feel for Stephen, Karen's brother,' friend said
- Sarah Ristevski estimated to have received as much as $250,000 for interview
Friends of slain mother Karen Ristevski said they were shocked by her daughter siding with her father Borce despite him pleading guilty to killing his wife.
Sarah Ristevski's told 60 Minutes - in an interview she was reportedly paid as much as $250,000 - she was not 'emotionally ready' to accept her father killed her mother.
Sarah was speaking publicly about her mother's death for the first time nearly four years after her father killed her at their Melbourne home and dumped her body in bushland.
One childhood friend of Mrs Ristevski, known only as Sam, said the broadcast of the interview had left her with negative emotions.
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
'It makes me angry but it also makes me very, very sad because I had hoped to find closure last night - I feel for Stephen, Karen's brother, and the rest of the family,' the friend told A Current Affair.
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The slain mother's brother Stephen Williams had called for Borce Ristevski, who had his nine-year prison term increased to 13 years in December, to face capital punishment, which has long been abolished in Australia.
Another close friend of Karen's, Sharryn, said Sarah's unwavering support for her father came as a shock given the relationship the mother and daughter had.
'From what Karen used to say, they spoke on the phone at least six to eight times a day,' Sharryn said.
Pictured: Sarah with her father, Borce, as a young girl. She said she has always loved her father and always will. Sarah said in a controversial segment on Sunday night she found it difficult to comprehend her father was guilty
One childhood friend of Mrs Ristevski, known only as Sam, (pictured) said the broadcast of the high-priced interview had left her angered and sad
'They were very, very close, so it very much surprised me it was one-sided.'
The body of Mrs Ristevski was found in bushland in Mount Macedon, north of Melbourne, in January 2017 — eight months after she went missing.
Borce Ristevski has never disclosed how or why he killed his wife of 27 years.
'I don't like to talk about what happened. We don't talk about it. We don't think about it,' Sarah Ristevski told 60 Minutes.
Borce Ristevski (pictured) was a pallbearer at the funeral of his wife Karen in March 2017
An emotional Sarah Ristevski told 60 Minutes reporter Liz Hayes (pictured) she still struggles to comprehend her father's role in her mother's death
'Even though he's pleaded guilty I find it hard to comprehend that he is guilty. I think if he were in my position he would support me.'
Channel 9 spokesman Terry Stuart said the network would not comment on whether 'interview talent' on any of its programs had or had not been paid for their appearance.
As reporters rushed to interview Ms Ristevski following her father's last-minute decision to plead guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter last year, speculation was rife that she had been 'snapped-up' by a high paying news program.
Industry insiders told Daily Mail Australia the figure being discussed for the interview was between $150,000 and $250,000.
Karen Ristevski was likely killed inside the couple's Avondale Heights home where detectives converged outside on February 21, 2017 (pictured)
Borce Ristevski and his daughter Sarah in 2016 before he was convicted of killing his wife.
'It would have got them some viewers, but most of them would have thought it was garbage and won't come back next time when they do one of those promos,' a well-heeled insider said.
'They ran it over the full hour, even though she said nothing ... they wasted their money.'
High-priced payments to 'worthwhile talent' by flagship current affairs programs are nothing new.
Lindy Chamberlain, the Beaconsfield miners Todd Russell and Brant Webb, and survivors and families of the Lindt Cafe Siege in Sydney all reportedly received large payments for interviews.
Television reporter Cameron Baud (right) boldly asked Borce Ristevski (centre) if he had killed Karen, bringing a media conference to a tearful end. His interview informed viewers more about Borce than a rumoured high-priced 'tell all' with his daughter
In chains: Borce Ristevski is led into court in March last year. He remains in isolation in jail for fear he will be bashed again
In 2018, Barnaby Joyce and his partner Vikki Campion's tell-all interview with 60 Minutes reportedly netted them $150,000.
The family of Colombian drug mule Cassie Sainsbury was rumoured to have scored about $200,000 for their 60 Minutes interview in 2017.
But while viewers may feel none-the-wiser after watching the Ristevski interview, television bosses at Nine are likely to be declaring the money well spent, another insider said.
'Nationally, 60 Minutes' ratings are up about 100,000 viewers week on week - 688,000 versus 772,000 last night - so they will consider it money well spent,' a source said.
Sarah Ristevski led the procession at the funeral, holding a framed picture of her shop owner and fashion designer mum
Mystery remains about why Karen Ristevski (pictured) was killed by her husband Borce, who pleaded guilty to her manslaughter
Dress shop owner Karen disappeared from the family home in Avondale Heights, north-west Melbourne, on June 29, 2016. Pictured with Borce and Sarah
Borce, meanwhile, feigned innocence, lied to the police, the public and his daughter, and even carried his wife's coffin at her funeral, until admitting to manslaughter on the eve of his murder trial in 2019.
In the 60 Minutes interview, Ms Ristevski said she 'wouldn't go there' when further pressed on her father's guilt.
Channel 7 reporter Cameron Baud had put the very same question to Borce himself the day after his wife vanished.
Known as the 'Harvester of Sorrow' among news reporters, Baud's questioning remains the most compelling insight into the killer's mind even though he didn't answer the question.
'He got more out of it with no answers than an hour of bulls**t last night,' an insider said.
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, labelling his sentence 'manifestly inadequate'.
His sentence is increased to 13 years, with a non-parole period of 10.
Source: AAP, Daily Mail Australia
