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Gino and Mark Stocco 'cruel and callous', say family of 'gentle' man murdered by pair.

By Jade Macmillan

The family of a man killed by former fugitives Gino and Mark Stocco have broken down in court while describing the impact of the murder.

The father and son had been on the run from police for eight years when they shot at officers near Wagga Wagga in October 2015, sparking a two-week manhunt.

They were eventually arrested at a property near Dunedoo in central western New South Wales where police found the body of 68-year-old Rosario Cimone.

The Stoccos have pleaded guilty to a number of offences, including murder and property damage, and are now awaiting sentencing.

At a sentencing hearing, Mr Cimone’s three adult children told the Supreme Court they were plagued with questions about the death of their father, whose body was badly decomposed and had been attacked by wild animals by the time it was discovered.

‘They’ve shown no remorse’

They described the Stoccos’ actions as “cruel and callous” and said they wanted them to understand the devastation they had caused.

Mr Cimone’s daughter Maria Perre read a statement on behalf of the children.

“They’ve shown no remorse, as if their actions mean nothing to them,” she said.

“We hope that the horror of what they’ve done and the pain they’ve inflicted will stay with them. The irony is, they still have each other.”

“The state of his body was so extremely decomposed we were unable to identify him … it meant we never had the opportunity to say goodbye.”

She described their father as a “gentle giant who’d do anything for anyone”.

He was “kind, harmless, generous, courageous” and a wonderful grandfather, she said.

Ms Perre said the family believed they would “never recover” from the loss they had suffered.

This post originally appeared on ABC News.


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