Ms Beckenridge ‘cared too much about hurting son’, hearing said

Mike Zhou-Beckenridge’s family believes his stepfather cared too much for him and killed them by pushing them off a cliff in 2015.

He and John Beckenridge disappeared in March 2015, when their car was found crashed at the bottom of a steep cliff in the Catlins Mountains.

A dissenting opinion was heard from police at a coroner’s hearing on Monday, which asked the coroner to declare the two dead and their families adamant that they were alive and hiding abroad. claimed.

Mike’s family hired private investigator Mark Templeman to investigate the case, but he told coroners he believed Beckenridge took steps to make it look like a murder-suicide to keep people away from pursuit. said there is.

Templeman said this included a text message that was his last contact with John Beckenridge.

“Essentially, these texts are suicide notes, and there are many of them. It is highly implausible that he has not sent texts and suicide notes to his closest friends in that group.”

Templeman said Beckenridge knew it would be very difficult to identify the body of a car that had crashed into the sea at that location, so the family believes the location on the cliff where the car fell was carefully chosen. He said he was.

“If someone was driving off a cliff to kill themselves, we believe they could have committed suicide anywhere along the cliff face. No matter what, you will die on impact anyway.”

Templeman also said Beckenridge cared so much about Mike, who was 11 at the time, that he aimed and staked his father-in-law as he climbed off a cliff, sent a series of goodbye emails, and then left the cliff. He also said his family believed he was watching him plummet. corner.

He said the family believes they left the country on an ocean-going yacht or other means of transportation.

“Mike’s mother Fiona Lou (now Russell) believes that once Mike is no longer under the influence of John Beckenridge, he will reach out to her. And, moreover, he cares enough to hurt Mike.” I believe he sent it.”

Police attorney Deirdre Elsmore said she believes Mr. Beckenridge’s hatred of his ex-wife may have driven him to commit suicide and mike.

“John’s attitude, his absolute hatred of white people, and his intense feelings of betrayal towards Fiona – it just so happened that they died in circumstances that made Fiona wonder if they were alive or dead. You might think it’s not,” she said. Whether or not it was meant to be the ultimate punishment for her betrayal. “

She said it was the police’s view that Beckenridge was incapable of faking a murder-suicide and that the two had died.

“Expert evidence, on-site evidence, and evidence from this extensive police investigation indicate that John Beckenridge was underfunded at the time of his disappearance, lacked the support of those involved, and that police could not help him. It also lacks a clear mind to plan a very difficult and complicated escape from the Catlins area. “

Police also said that Ms. Beckenridge was caring for her son-in-law, but the police view was love for Ms. Beckenridge, and believed the boy was suicidal, and that Ms. Beckenridge’s mental state was suspected. Having become unstable, he said he decided the best option was for the two of them to die together.