'He's completely evil': Man who murdered ex-girlfriend, stuffed body in bag walks free on parole

Convicted killer William Harold Matheson has been released on parole after spending nearly 20 years behind bars for murdering his ex-girlfriend and shoving her body inside a cricket bag.

In 2006, Matheson was sentenced to 25 years in jail with a non-parole period of 18 years for brutally strangling his ex-girlfriend Lyndsay Van Blanken to death.

He was refused his first parole application in 2022, but his second was approved earlier this month before being released today.

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9News approached Matheson during his first day of freedom since being put behind bars, but he refused to answer questions about his crime.

He strangled Van Blanken to death in 2003, when she was just 18 years old.

Six weeks later, her body was discovered in a residential apartment block in Sydney's Eastern suburbs after residents complained of a foul smell coming from the building.

Matheson had stuffed the 18-year-old's body inside a cricket bag and dumped it in the storage room of the Coogee apartment complex.

"He decided if he couldn't have her no one else could," Van Blanken's mother Cynthia told 9News.

She added the way she would describe is "as a monster".

"I think he's completely evil," she said.

"He has no conscious, he has no feelings and he's so smart."

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While on parole, the convicted killer will be monitored 24 hours a day while he lives at his parents' Randwick home.

Matheson is banned from contacting the victim's family in any form and must comply with psychiatric medication and treatment.

He is also prohibited from visiting the Nambucca Shire, Hills Shire and Coffs Harbour local government areas.

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