Distraught family of Ballarat woman Kobie Parfitt’s distress at punishment handed to her killer Shannon Jeffrey who wrapped her in plastic and threw her down a mine shaft

The distressed family of a mother who was killed and dumped in a mine shaft say they feel ‘powerless and voiceless’ as her killer was jailed for at least seven years.

After fatally bashing Kobie Parfitt, 42, at her Ballarat home, Shannon Jeffrey hung her body in a wardrobe to make it look like a suicide.

Jeffrey had just been released from jail and blamed Ms Parfitt for being locked up.

She then enlisted the help of her friend, Brendan Prestage, to wrap Ms Parfitt in plastic and bedding.

The pair drove the body 30 kilometres to Snake Valley and threw her down a disused mine shaft, covering the remains with dirt.

Ms Parfitt’s body remained at the bottom of the mine shaft for eight months until it was found by police in December 2020.

After the killing, Jeffrey told police Ms Parfitt had run away to Queensland and she took over her victim’s lease.

Ms Parfitt’s family cried in court as Justice Michael Croucher handed Jeffrey a maximum 10-year sentence after the 34-year-old pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

She must spend seven years in prison before becoming eligible for parole, and has already served two years of that sentence.

Ms Parfitt’s family said no sentence could bring her home to them, but expressed disappointment with the jail-term.

‘Today Shannon Jeffrey has gotten off lightly and our grief remains a life sentence,’ they said, in a statement.

Justice Croucher described Jeffrey’s behaviour after the killing as displaying ‘cruelty and callousness’.

Family members of Kobie Parfitt who was killed in December 2020 sobbed in court, after they heard the judge sentence Ms Parfitt’s killer

‘That conduct included the initial stringing up of Ms Parfitt’s body, the subsequent disposal and concealment, and the spreading of false rumours about the disappearance,’ he said.

‘The very thought of that behaviour is horrific for Ms Parfitt’s loved ones.’

The body of Kobie Parfitt (above) was found at the bottom of a mine shaft by Victorian police, eight months after her death

Ms Parfitt’s family said these actions had caused them further distress and trauma.

‘Cowardly silence not only gives space for the deterioration of evidence, but it prolongs trauma and distress for us all,’ they said.

‘We are left powerless and voiceless and the trauma and distress continues.’

Jeffrey’s supporters waved and yelled ‘love you Shannon’ as she was escorted out of the dock by custody officers.

Prestage spent two-and-a-half years in jail after admitting to assisting Jeffrey in disposing of the body.

He walked free in July this year, having already served his sentence.