Carlino appeals WA murder conviction

A Perth man is appealing against his conviction and 23-year minimum jail sentence for murdering an underworld figure whose dismembered body was dumped in the ocean.

Aaron Carlino was found guilty of shooting 56-year-old Stephen Cookson twice in the head with a rifle as he slept on the couch in their East Perth apartment in December 2012.

After the murder, the 30-year-old visited a brothel and a boxing match, then took more than a week to cut up the body into six pieces using an angle grinder and a knife, bury it on a private property, dig it up and dump it at sea.

The crime was discovered after a girl found Mr Cookson's plastic-wrapped head on a Rottnest Island beach the following month.

Carlino pleaded guilty to manslaughter, saying he acted in self-defence after months of abuse by his mentor, but that was rejected by the prosecution and the trial went ahead.

During the three-week trial, the court heard Carlino moved in with Mr Cookson after being promised payment of $500,000 to act as his driver, but soon became his personal assistant.

Carlino claimed to be in debt due to the global financial crisis and a failed bar venture, and wanted to learn about legitimate business from Mr Cookson, not initially realising that he was a drug dealer.

Justice Stephen Hall said during sentencing that while Carlino felt trapped in a demeaning and abusive relationship with Mr Cookson, there was no justification for what he did.

A court spokesman confirmed on Monday that Carlino's lawyers had lodged documents with the WA Court of Appeal last week.