A mother whose son was brutally bashed to death over a suspected AirPods theft says she has been left “completely broken” without the beloved teenager.
“It has been two years and 11 months since Jason’s life was taken,” a teary-eyed and softly spoken Rachel Galleghan told a sentencing hearing for her son’s killers.
Jason Galleghan, 16, was fatally beaten in August 2021 after going to meet a group of friends at a Western Sydney train station.
“I still can’t believe Jason is gone … I am completely broken without him,” Galleghan said in a victim impact statement to the NSW Supreme Court today.
Robert Sione, 34, was today sentenced to 32 years in jail for the murder with a non-parole period of 24 years.
Sione will be eligible for parole on October 3, 2045.
In his judgment, Justice Robert Allan Hume said Sione had a history of violence.
“(He has) a significant criminal history which began in Queensland at 18,” the judge said.
“Mr Sione committed offences of assaults, fighting and intimidation.”
Kayla Dawson, 22, will serve a total sentence of 20 years with a non-parole period of 13 years.
She will be eligible for parole on August 7, 2034.
Hume said a lesser sentence for Dawson accounted for her intellectual disability and troubled upbringing.
The court had been told Dawson lured Jason – who she suspected of stealing her Apple AirPods – to her home, where he was attacked by Sione and subsequently by a group of teenagers who referred to the much older man as “uncle” or “dad”.
The 16-year-old died due to his injuries two days after the assault.
Both sentences will be backdated to account for time in custody from August 2021.
