VIC:Toddler killer 'confessed, wept'

AAP General News (Australia)
12-16-2010
VIC:Toddler killer 'confessed, wept'

By Melissa Iaria

MELBOURNE, Dec 16 AAP - The killer of Indian boy Gurshan Singh Channa held the hand
of an investigating policeman, looked into his eyes, confessed to his actions and wept.

Gursewak Dhillon cried as he told Detective Senior Sergeant Ron Iddles what had happened
to the three-year-old during an extraordinary police interview.

Later, he told him: "I'm a very bad human."

The Victorian Supreme Court heard Dhillon, 25, acted out of fear, panic, naivety and
stupidity when he placed the unconscious boy in the boot of his car, then dumped his body
in long grass, not knowing if he was dead or alive.

The incident unfolded on March 4 when Dhillon accidentally hit Gurshan as he opened
the front door of the home he shared with the boy's parents, knocking him unconscious.

Dhillon planned to take Gurshan to hospital, but instead placed the toddler in the
boot of his car and drove around in a panic for two hours.

He passed a hospital on his journey but failed to seek medical attention, fearing he
would be blamed for harming the toddler and deported.

A truck driver found the boy's body in grass by the roadside, 20km from his family's
home in the Melbourne suburb of Lalor.

Dhillon, an Indian national and part-time taxi driver, pleaded guilty to Gurshan's
manslaughter by criminal negligence.

In a pre-sentence hearing on Thursday, defence barrister Chris Winneke told the court
Dhillon acted out of "fear, panic, naivety and stupidity" which may well have caused Gurshan's
death.

"It's true that the death of Gurshan Channa is tragic. It was a death that need not
have occurred and would not have occurred if not for the conduct of the prisoner," he
said.

Mr Winneke said there was an element of self preservation about Dhillon's actions,
adding there was no excuse for his "grossly stupid decision" to place the child in the
boot.

Medical evidence showed Dhillon's death could not have been caused by being hit by
the front door and he may have suffered heat stroke when temperatures in the car boot
soared to 40 degrees.

In their victim impact statement, Gurshan's parents, who have returned to live in India,
described their constant pain and anguish after losing their son.

They said they could not conceive another child due to the severe stress they felt
over his death.

"I've lost a piece of myself," the statement said.

"Every day is a struggle.

"This man has ruined our lives."

Dhillon initially denied he was involved in the child's disappearance.

But Mr Winneke described how during an interview with police, Dhillon moved his chair
close to investigating officer Det Sen Sgt Iddles and confessed.

Det Sen Sgt Iddles gave evidence on Dhillon's behalf, saying he believed he was genuinely sorry.

He said Dhillon was the first accused in his 22 years of investigating homicides, to
ask to meet with the victim's family.

Prosecutor Gavin Silbert SC asked that Dhillon receive a maximum six-year jail term.

Dhillon, who came to Australia with his wife in 2008 on a bridging visa, was remanded
into custody and will be sentenced on February 2.

The court heard he would face deportation on his release.

AAP mi/pmu/jl/nb

KEYWORD: DHILLON WRAP

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