EXCLUSIVE: How murdered nurse thought she had days to escape her psychotic boyfriend while he was being treated for homicidal delusions - but he was released within hours and stabbed her to death
- Caitlin O'Brien, 31, was murdered at her Melbourne home on June 25, 2019
- Her boyfriend Shea Sturt, now 33, pleaded guilty to murder at court in March
- About a month before she was killed Ms O'Brien had a brain tumour removed
- She tried to flee their flat to an ex-boyfriend's home but 'wasn't taken seriously'
- Hoped to leave while Sturt was treated in hospital but he was let out in hours
A nurse murdered by her boyfriend tried to flee their home while he was in hospital two days earlier, only for him to be let out after a few hours.
Shea Sturt, 33, was in a drug-induced psychotic state when he killed 31-year-old Caitlin O'Brien, 31, in their Melbourne home on June 25, 2019.
He admitted stabbing her with scissors, smothering her with a pillow, and strangling her with tracksuit pants to make sure she was dead.
Daily Mail Australia understands Victorian Supreme Court Justice Christopher Beale is considering whether to jail Sturt for life, as requested by prosecutors.
Ms O'Brien, 31, (pictured) was found dead on June 25, 2019 in her apartment at Gardenvale, in southeast Melbourne
Ms O'Brien called police to their flat in Gardenvale on June 23 when Sturt was having a psychotic episode and he was taken to The Alfred Hospital.
Friends told Daily Mail Australia she planned to move out of the unit while Sturt was being treated, but he was unexpectedly let out that night.
'She didn't expect him to be released so fast, she thought she'd be able to get out while he was in the hospital but they sent him home,' a friend said.
Shea Sturt (pictured), 33, was in a drug-induced psychotic state when he killed 31-year-old Caitlin O'Brien at their Melbourne home in June 2019
Ms O'Brien, who was recovering from having a brain tumour removed a month earlier, messaged an old boyfriend asking if she could stay with him if she 'ran away' as Sturt was 'out of his mind' and thought he was Jesus.
'I'm just scared to be around him. He's not making sense at all. He forced me to eat an apple today so I could be like Adam and Eve and be enlightened,' she said.
However, friends said he didn't appreciate the urgency of the situation and instead told her he would order her an Uber that weekend once she broke up with Sturt.
'He just wasn’t listening to her that she was in immediate danger,' a friend said.
'Cait wanted someone to protect her, but he was thinking with his other parts, not his brain.
'She just wanted somewhere to go... and she messaged the wrong person.'
Ms O'Brien remained terrified her boyfriend would kill her as she didn't believe he had been treated in hospital enough to not be a danger.
Sturt insisted her fears were unfounded. 'I would never hurt you,' he told Ms O'Brien in a text to which she replied 'I hope so. I get scared'.
A murderer sent chilling texts to his girlfriend before attacking her with scissors, smothering her with a pillow and strangling her with tracksuit pants
Caitlin O'Brien, 31, messaged a friend on June 24, 2019 saying her boyfriend Shea Dylan Sturt, 33, was having delusions he was Jesus and she was scared to be around him
'Of what?' he asked.
'Of you murdering me,' she said.
But the next morning, Sturt went into the couple's Gardenvale bedroom talking about the end of the world, the court heard.
He started to pull Ms O'Brien's pants off to see if he was still attracted to her but she fought back and armed herself with a pair of scissors before Sturt turned them against her.
He held a pillow over her face until she lost consciousness.
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Sturt then tied a pair of tracksuit pants around Ms O'Brien's neck to make sure she was dead.
Friends of Sturt told Daily Mail Australia that they, his family, and legal team urged him to present an insanity defence but he instead pleaded guilty at first opportunity.
'He said he didn't want to put Cait's family through a trial and that he deserved to be punished (for killing her),' they said.
Sturt had a long history of violence towards his girlfriend before killing her amid a drug-induced psychotic state, the court heard at his sentencing hearing.
About a month before she died the nurse had a brain tumour removed (pictured) but always lived in fear of her violent and increasingly erratic boyfriend
After killing Ms O'Brien, Sturt showered, went into the city and approached police saying: 'I just killed my girlfriend.'
'No you didn't,' the officers replied before Ms O'Brien's body was found on her bed.
Sturt has since been diagnosed with schizotypal personality disorder, which differs from schizophrenia in that a patient is aware in hindsight that their delusions weren't real.
Sources close to Sturt's family said he first learned of this diagnosis in court, despite more than a decade of psychiatric treatment.
Shea Dylan Sturt (pictured) pleaded guilty to murder at Melbourne Magistrate's Court
He told police 'in that moment, it (the murder) felt like the right thing to do'.
'I know it sounds horrible,' he said.
'It just felt necessary at the time... like everything was leading up to that.'
He said Ms O'Brien was a psychopath and he confronted her that morning, saying: 'You've been killing people.'
Sturt was profoundly remorseful for what he did, his legal aid lawyer Tim Marsh told the court.
He said Sturt was deeply affected when he read a statement by Ms O'Brien's mother, who described losing part of her soul when her daughter died.
Her killer accepted he had lost the chance for a normal life and acknowledged it was the price he must pay.
He has participated in numerous prison programs, including a drug and alcohol program, and was working in the laundry.
In the hours before her death Sturt had shared a series of bizarre messages on his Facebook page, revealing he was losing his grasp on reality.
In the hours before her death Shea Dylan Sturt shared a series of bizarre messages on his Facebook page, revealing he was losing his grasp on reality
That same day of Caitlin O'Brien's murder her boyfriend posted a series of cryptic messages (pictured) on Facebook, including 'You made me kill 'the devil' because you saw her in yourself'
The posts included messages like 'you can't rape humanity away,' 'Sacrifice is beautiful but only ever for the right reasons,' and 'I forgive you'.
He also posted a video of a stand-up routine by Owen Benjamin called 'How To Be Married and Not Be Murdered'.
Court proceedings revealed the circumstances leading up to Ms O'Brien's death and paint a picture of broken support system for victims of domestic violence.
The two began dating ten years ago after meeting as teenagers at TAFE, before an escalating history of family violence.
As early as 2010, Ms O'Brien lodged a police report after having to flee her Chelsea home where she had been attacked by Sturt.
He was charged with assault but placed on an adjourned good behaviour bond in September 2011.
In the two years before she was murdered, O'Brien visited her local GP 33 times and a series of damning notes from doctors between March 2017 to October, 22, 2018 revealed a knowledge she was being physically and sexually abused.
One particularly explosive note included the message Sturt had 'attacked Caitlin saying he needs to kill her first before himself'.
Another note revealed authorities were aware of Sturt's unstable mental health.
'Has been in a DV (domestic violence) relationship – fiance' was arrested – has history of psychosis,' a doctor's note read.
Sturt remains in custody and will be sentenced at a later date.
'Caitlin was a quiet but cheery girl who was extremely passionate about caring for others, which showed in the way she cared for her patients and their families,' a friend said
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