Bail for murder-accused man after wife’s kayak death

A former army major who allegedly joked about killing his wife has been granted bail after being accused of murdering his spouse during a kayak trip.

Graeme Davidson, 55, was charged with murder in May after a police investigation raised doubts that his wife Jacqueline, 54, had died by accident.

Davidson’s wife died while kayaking with her husband at Lake Samsonvale, north of Brisbane, in November 2020.

Justice Tom Sullivan handed down his decision to grant bail on Friday following three days of hearings in Queensland Supreme Court.

Sullivan said the prosecution had so far put forward a circumstantial case alleging Davidson’s wife was murdered in a remote part of Lake Samsonvale during calm and clear weather conditions.

Crown prosecutor Caroline Marco said Davidson, who moved to Thailand and remarried after 2020, had joked about planning to kill his wife in circumstances that would later mirror allegations against him.

“This was made about three years prior to Jacqueline’s death,” Marco said.

“Davidson told [another man] if the deceased ever sought a divorce and made a claim to his military pension he would kill her and move to Thailand, which is of course what he allegedly did.”

Defence barrister Craig Eberhardt said Davidson’s comment had no sinister implication in its full context.

Sullivan heard Davidson – a former Australian army major and British army captain – had no history of domestic violence or prior criminal record.

Eberhardt said Davidson had seen his wife fall into the water while they were paddling separate kayaks and he had been prevented from finding her for minutes due to the dark and murky water.

Police have accused Davidson of fraud by making a life insurance claim and attempting to make another after his wife’s death to the combined value of more than $1 million.

Eberhardt said the life insurance policy was set up by the couple’s financial planner and it would have been suspicious for him not to make a claim.

Davidson applied for bail last week with Eberhardt telling Sullivan the case against his client was “desperate” and weak.

Marco had opposed bail, saying Davidson was a flight risk as he no longer had strong ties to Australia.

“The risks in this case can be sufficiently ameliorated by appropriate conditions,” Sullivan said.

“If he were to flee, he would lose access to his [Australian and British military] pensions.”

Davidson’s strict bail conditions include reporting to police daily, wearing a tracking device and an overnight curfew.

He will be prohibited from being closer than five kilometres from international airports and cruise ship terminals.

Sullivan said Davidson had access to up to $850,000 in funds but said that sum would not last while living in a country that did not have an extradition treaty with Australia.

Davidson’s daughters and de facto son-in-law offered $250,000 as surety in an attempt to have him released on bail following the murder charge.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.