Picture emerges of accused dating app killer posing with his ex and his son with Santa – the boy he ‘lost interest in’ when he was just a toddler – as she details life with heavily tattooed tradie
- Shock new details have emerged about the past of accused killer Ashley Gaddie
- Accused of killing Dannielle-Finlay-Jones at a Cranebrook home on Sunday
- Woman claims he had ‘little interest’ in their son and hadn’t seen his son in years
- A family photo from Christmas 2015 shows Gaddie as devoted dad and partner
- Do you know more? Email [email protected]
The tattooed tradesman accused of bashing a much-loved teacher he’d met on a dating app and leaving her to die hasn’t seen his young son in years, an ex-partner has revealed.
Ashley Gaddie, 33, is about to spend his first night behind bars hours after a dramatic 12-hour stand-off with police on a precarious remote clifftop in the Blue Mountains ended with his arrest.
Gaddie was on the run from police for 48 hours after the body of Dannielle Finlay-Jones, 31, was found in the bedroom of a friend’s home in Cranebrook in Sydney‘s west on Sunday, hours after she’d introduced him to friends at the pub.
Just seven years ago, Gaddie appeared as a doting father and boyfriend when posing for a family photo with Santa Claus and his ex-partner who held their baby son dressed in a Christmas costume.
In 2015, Ashley Gaddie (right) appears with his then-partner and baby son a in a family Santa photo
Ashley Gaddie has been charged with the murder of Dannielle Finlay-Jones (pictured)
The woman in the photo expressed devastation for Ms Finlay-Jones’ loved ones as she tries to protect her young son from finding out his dad is an accused killer.
She claimed Gaddie lost interest in his only child when he was a toddler, and has had little to do with him since.
She added her son knew who his father was but hadn’t seen him for years.
‘I’m shaken up and devastated for that poor girl and her family. And trying to ensure my son doesn’t see what his dad has (allegedly) done,’ the protective mum told The Daily Telegraph said.
It comes as more details emerged about Gaddie, who lived in Five Dock in Sydney with his mum, where residents described him as polite.
‘He was a friendly fellow … I assumed he lived there and took care of his mum,’ a neighbour said.
‘I got the shock of my life when the ninja police, you know, with guns, turned up here on Monday looking for him.’
Ashley Gaddie was on the run for 48 hours before police cornered him on a clifftop in the Blue Mountains on Tuesday afternoon in a stand-off that lasted 12 hours
Police rescue officers, detectives, riot squad and a team of specialist negotiators rushed to the Blue Mountains on Tuesday afternoon in a bid to talk Gaddie back to safety.
He was finally arrested just after midnight on Wednesday – after a 12 hour stand-off – as temperatures plunged to single figures on the bitterly cold clear night.
Gaddie was charged with the murder of Ms Finlay -Jones 12 hours later.
He launched a legal fight to stop DNA evidence being used against him when the case was heard was heard in Penrith Local Court.
Ms Finlay-Jones allegedly met up with Gaddie at The Marsden Brewhouse, in Marsden Park, on Saturday night after the pair recently met online
His lawyer Joseph Ormaechea opposed consent for the DNA swab taken at the police station by forensic experts.
The prosecutor warned of the need for the swab to be taken because of the ‘transient’ nature of the DNA.
Gaddie did not appear in person or by video link and made no application for bail.
He was remanded in custody until March 3 with a decision on the admissibility of the DNA swab adjourned also until that date.
Gaddie is to be transferred to Silverwater Jail on Wednesday night, where he will be processed and held on remand.
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)
Lifeline 13 11 14
Dannielle Finlay-Jones, 31, (pictured) was found dead at her friend’s Cranebrook home on Sunday, sparking a 48-hour manhunt for her alleged killer
Advertisement
