Neighbours' grief over remorseless killer's plea deal

The neighbours of an elderly woman whose body was dumped in a river say her remorseless killer should still be facing a murder charge.

Milena Bogojevska, 51, instead pleaded guilty in the Victorian Supreme Court to 85-year-old Lolene Whitehand’s manslaughter.

Bogojevska killed the elderly woman by shoving a tea towel into her mouth, blocking her airways, when she came to her Footscray home sometime after 4pm on July 12, 2024.

The killer then tied a bag over Whitehand’s head and was captured on CCTV footage dumping her body in the Maribyrnong River in Melbourne’s west.

A fisherman found the body in the river two days later.

Bogojevska lived only a few doors down from Whitehand and she joined a group of other neighbours who discussed the elderly woman’s disappearance on the afternoon of July 14.

When asked if she had seen Whitehand, Bogojevska said she hadn’t for seven days.

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In reality, Bogojevska had already ransacked Whitehand’s home after killing her, stealing cash, jewellery, debit cards and identification documents.

She used the cash to buy lottery tickets and vouchers and spent $3897 on the debit card to make online purchases for multiple pairs of shoes and iPads.

When Bogojevska was arrested on July 16, she told detectives she was not a killer and she would tell them if she had done anything wrong.

As detectives searched Bogojevska’s home over the following days, online orders made using Whitehand’s card were delivered.

Bogojevska was originally charged with murder but prosecutors instead accepted her plea to manslaughter in March.

At a pre-sentence hearing today, Whitehand’s neighbour Kirraly Schumann described the elderly woman as a grandmother figure to the entire neighbourhood.

“She was there for us whenever we needed anything at all,” Schumann said through tears.

“She would have given us her last dollar. She is in our hearts and we will never forget her.”

Whitehand’s son Gary O’Brien died two days ago but the prosecutor read out a statement he had prepared earlier.

“I can’t look at the Maribyrnong River – it upsets me,” the statement read.

“I miss my mother’s voice.”

Bogojevska remained straight-faced as the details of her offending and the victim impact statements were read aloud.

She only broke down when defence barrister Amy Brennan described her difficult upbringing and the abuse she experienced at the hands of a partner.

Bogojevska also began sobbing at the mention of her teenage son, who she had not been allowed to see in person while in custody.

The boy was at the house at the time of the manslaughter but police say he had no knowledge or involvement in Whitehand’s death.

Brennan accepted her client had shown no remorse but argued her time in jail would be more difficult as she had an auto-immune condition that led to renal failure.

Crown prosecutor Erin Ramsay accepted custody would be more burdensome but still argued the offending was a very serious example of manslaughter.

Bogojevska’s actions were callous and it was clear Whitehand was a vulnerable woman, Ramsay said.

But the prosecutor accepted because it was manslaughter, she could not say Bogojevska had intended to kill Whitehand.

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Outside court, Schumann told reporters Bogojevska should still face a murder charge.

“It shouldn’t be manslaughter… it wasn’t an accident,” she said.

Bogojevska was remanded in custody to be sentenced at a later date.

AAP