A murderer told his young daughter to ‘say hello’ to her mother’s lifeless body an hour after he had ambushed and violently killed her in their garage.
Victorian mother Kaliopi Roumeliotis had only just stepped out of her car on November 30, 2022, when Joe Lo Bianco attacked her with a metal car ramp, repeatedly striking her to the head and neck.
He left her body on the garage floor, placing the murder weapon under her head to stage an accidental death, before removing and hiding his bloodied clothes.
Lo Bianco then went next door to chat to his in-laws for close to an hour while he waited for his daughter to be dropped off after a friend’s birthday party.
When the girl arrived, she asked after her mother and suggested she could be in the garage, so Lo Bianco told his daughter to go and say hello.
The young girl, named in court under the pseudonym Sally, found her mother’s dead body with blood covering the floor, car and walls.
Sally ran next door, begging for help from her uncle and aunt who came and started performing CPR while Lo Bianco called triple-zero.
Paramedics confirmed Ms Roumeliotis was already dead.
Kaliopi Roumeliotis was killed by her husband Joe Lo Bianco in November, 2022. Pictured is Ms Roumeliotis’ brother Arthur at the Victorian Supreme Court on Wednesday
Lo Bianco initially told police his wife must have tripped and fallen, maintaining he had no involvement in her death as he was in the backyard cleaning the rabbit enclosure.
The 53-year-old later admitted what happened and on Wednesday pleaded guilty to murder in the Victorian Supreme Court.
He did not look at Ms Roumeliotis’ family and friends who filled the courtroom and kept his head down as 10 victim impact statements were read to the court, including one from his daughter.
In the statement read by her uncle Arthur Roumeliotis, the girl said Lo Bianco had left her with scars that would never heal and she didn’t want him in her life anymore.
‘My mum’s love was like being in a hug forever – you made her let go,’ the statement read.
Mr Roumeliotis said his sister’s death had left him totally devastated.
‘I miss that she’s not able to see her daughter grow up and guide her through life,’ he told the court.
‘It’s not fair she’s not with us anymore. She still had so much life to give.’
The court was told Lo Bianco and Ms Roumeliotis had been arguing about money as he had lost his job during the pandemic after not taking the COVID-19 vaccine.
They had an argument on the morning of November 30, where Ms Roumeliotis told Lo Bianco he needed to bring more money in.
He spent three hours that day gambling at the pokies while she was at work.
Lo Bianco then murdered his wife when she returned home just after 7pm.
His plea hearing continues on Wednesday afternoon.
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