Killer dad Rowan Baxter had a string of mistresses and was texting ‘hundreds’ of women while he was married to the wife he murdered alongside their children, his cousin says.
Sandra Taylor told Daily Mail Australia that she feared the controlling and vengeful coward would murder his estranged wife Hannah Clarke, and offered up her home as a safe haven.
Ms Taylor, 45, set about making her house in Brisbane’s south ready for her to run to, even buying treats for her three children.
But before they could use it, Hannah was burned to death in her car along with Aaliyah, 6, Laianah, 4, and Trey, 3, after Ms Taylor’s cousin Baxter ambushed them at her parents’ come in Camp Hill.
Killer dad Rowan Baxter (pictured with estranged wife Hannah Clarke) had a string of mistresses and was texting ‘hundreds’ of women while he was married to the wife he murdered alongside their children, his cousin says
Rowan Baxter’s cousin Sandra Taylor (pictured) told Daily Mail Australia she feared he would murder his estranged wife Hannah Clarke
Left: Hannah Clarke pictured with her ‘main man’, son Trey in a beach snap. Right: Mrs Baxter on her wedding with her husband
Ms Taylor was shocked when she heard about Wednesday morning’s senseless murder, but in hindsight knew it was coming.
‘I was shaken to the core when I heard… [but] this does not surprise me,’ she told Daily Mail Australia.
The mother-of-one said she was worried as Baxter’s behaviour became increasingly threatening, including an assault on Hannah and constant stalking.
‘Rowan was a man with a dangerous sense of possession and entitlement over his wife and children, particularly in the last three months, that I was concerned for,’ she said.
‘This was a man with a level of hatred and disrespect for their mother so great that he would make this choice – the most horrifying and despicable of choices.’
Ms Taylor, who is Baxter’s first cousin on his mother’s side, revealed he was believed to be cheating on Hannah.
The killer (pictured, centre right) flooded his social media with pictures of his three children, giving the impression of a doting father
Hannah Clarke (pictured with her three children, aliyah, 6, Laianah, 4, and Trey, 3) is seen enjoying a day with her own grandmother (far left)
‘We were at a family barbecue and he was at the grill and I walked over to him and he was sending hundreds of texts to other women,’ she said.
‘I know Hannah believed she wasn’t the only one.’
She also believes that Baxter had several affairs during his first marriage.
While speaking to Nine News, Ms Taylor said said Baxter had a long history of vile misogyny, believing women were either ‘prostitutes’ or ‘cleaners’.
Rowan Baxter’s cousin Sandra Taylor (pictured) believes that Baxter had several affairs during his first marriage
He had made his wife suffer through years of sexual, emotional and financial abuse, before she finally broke free from his clutches and planned to start a new life.
But he soon made sure her dream could never be realised.
‘Rowan believed that women are two things – to be a house cleaner, and to be a prostitute,’ she said.
Ms Taylor reached out to Hannah when Baxter made a long post on Facebook last month playing the victim about the custody battle, saying a ‘great father like him’ was being hard done by.
The pair realised they worked in the same building and after Ms Taylor explained the history that helped explain Baxter’s abuse, forged a bond.
‘I let her know this was a safe house, it’s minutes from our work and you’ll be safe with us. I started buying treats for the children, I had visions of girls nights and made up the spare room,’ she said.
In her kitchen is an unopened 12-pack of Nutella she and her fiance bought for Hannah’s three children and looked forward to spoiling them with.
She said Hannah was forming a network of safe houses she could run to if Baxter appeared and threatened her.
A shrine grows at the scene where Hannah and her three kids were doused in fuel and set alight, while one person leaves a poignant sign about domestic violence (pictured)
Hannah Clarke (pictured with her three children, aliyah, 6, Laianah, 4, and Trey, 3) died of her injuries on Wednesday
But Baxter was one step ahead because he had hacked into Hannah’s phone using dodgy attachments and soon turned on Ms Taylor.
‘I started getting very worried because all of a sudden I started seeing dog faeces all over my driveway, and two of my pot plants were destroyed,’ she said.
‘He’s the kind of bloke to be doing that.
‘I didn’t know how to tell her to that he kept walking by the building we both worked in.’
Ms Taylor said it now all made sense after Hannah’s parents revealed Baxter was hacking into Hannah’s phone, tracking her movements, and had been monitoring her activity for years.
Ms Taylor said she was worried as Baxter’s behaviour became increasingly threatening, including an assault on Hannah and constant stalking
Ms Taylor said though it in no way excused Baxter’s unspeakable crime, it could have been prevented if he was given help for the mental scars.
‘He thinks he’s done the right thing because there’s been no mentoring for him, no one to make him see this isn’t okay,’ she said.
‘It’s just been fear, control, mental, sexual, and physical abuse?’
Ms Taylor said more help and resources were needed to break the cycle of abuse.
‘I will never understand. Twenty years in counselling I still ask that same question,’ she said.
‘When does it all stop?’
The family’s car (pictured) is removed from the scene in Camp Hill, Brisbane, after Hannah Clarke and her three children were set alight inside
Hannah Clarke and her three children were torched in their car on Wednesday morning by Rowan Baxter (all pictured together) who stabbed himself to death at the scene in Camp Hill
Hannah’s shattered father Lloyd Clarke has pieced together the horrific timeline of events that led to the tragic loss of four lives and Baxter’s suicide.
Despite suffering burns to 97 per cent of her body, heroic Hannah was able to give police at the scene a detailed statement about what happened.
She was taking the children to school after 8am from her parents’ house in Camp Hill, Brisbane, while her killer lay in wait.
A notorious control freak, Baxter had been spiralling since Hannah left him after years of abuse.
‘Rowan must have been lurking somewhere close, either hidden around the side of the house or in the neighbour’s driveway,’ Mr Clarke told Daily Mail Australia.
‘His car was found down the street, this was definitely premeditated.’
Lloyd Clarke (pictured, left) appeared on A Current Affair with his wife Suzanne (centre) and son Nat (right) as they paid tribute to their family
Aaliyah (left), 6, Laianah (right), 4, and Trey (centre), 3, were killed in a quadruple murder-suicide on Wednesday morning when their father set their car alight on their way to school
It comes after her family gave a brave TV interview to speak out about the horrors of domestic violence, just days after losing their three grandchildren and their daughter.
Doting grandparents Lloyd and Suzanne Clarke adored Hannah’s children and took them on days on fun-filled holidays and day trips.
Alongside Hannah’s brother Nat, the family announced they would launch a charity in her name to support other victims during a remarkable interview on A Current Affair on Friday night.
In words that left viewers in floods of tears, the family urged others to hold their loved ones close – and not let themselves be consumed by hate.
Lloyd Clarke (pictured, left) and Suzanne (right) are seen meeting baby Trey for the first time, along with his big sister Aaliyah. Trey was to die at three years-old along with his sisters and mum
A makeshift shrine appeared at thew scene of the horrific crime. Heartbroken friends and family left flowers and teddy bears as they mourned the loss of Hannah Baxter and her three children
‘I know everyone knows he was a monster,’ Hannah’s brother Nat said.
‘[But] don’t get caught up with the hate and everything.
‘Just spread the love that you have. Go home, hug someone. Hold them close.
‘Appreciate your children. If there’s someone who, a family member that for some reason you’ve fallen out with or whatever, just reach out.
‘Have a chat to them. See how they’re doing. That will be my best thing.’