A mother’s agony after her own father pleads guilty to her fiance’s murder as she brands him a ‘coward’ and refuses to call him ‘Dad’

A mother-of-four has opened up about her heartbreaking grief after her own father was found guilty of murdering her “kind and caring” fiance in a powerful victim impact statement.

Linda Simon branded army veteran Luke Simon, who previously admitted killing Irishman Damien Conlon, a “coward” as she told an Australian court how his actions “robbed” her children of their father’s love.

Simon, 57, shot and killed Damien at his home in Oberon, New South Wales, Australia, on February 9, 2023.

Linda made the plea to Judge Sarah McNaughton in the Supreme Court in Sydney on November 7 ahead of Simon’s sentencing early next year.

Grief-stricken, she pleaded with the judge to “give us peace of mind that we don’t have to live in fear of Luke walking the streets and seeing him” and said she felt “extreme guilt for being a survivor”. about Damien’s death.

During the trial, the court heard how Simon “lured” Damien to his house under false pretenses and told him to “get on your knees and confess; before shooting the 38-year-old.

According to an Australian news agency, Damien fled the house but only made it to the garden, where Simon allegedly shot him in the head and said “goodbye Damien”. Western lawyer.

Simon admitted Damian’s murder in August when he appeared in the Supreme Court in Sydney via video link.

Linda told the court how Simon’s “cold, heartless and calculated actions robbed this world of a son, father, brother, loving partner and good friend to many”. Irish Mirror.

Damien’s heartbroken fiancee admitted she felt “extreme survivor’s guilt” for not being with him when he was killed, adding that he died “alone, cold and scared”.

She also called Simon a “coward” who can’t face Damien “as a man and talk to him as a human being”.

“You only had one intention when you lured him into your home and that was that Damien would not be alive after he entered your home.”

In her emotional statement, Linda told the court how she and Damien’s children had been affected by his tragic death, adding that “so much will be lost”.

She mourned the fact that her little ones would grow up without Damien’s love, given all the big life events like their first day at school or when they get married, “when boys need a father.”

“Luke Simon’s crime has meant that they will never have the opportunity to experience that connection, love and support of their father who would have given them that and so much more,” added Linda, who was due to marry Damien last November. .

She spoke of Damien’s heartbroken parents, Dermot and Ethel, who live in Ireland, and how they “struggle every day” to accept that he was taken from them in such a horrific way.

Linda also accused Simon of denying Damien’s loved ones the chance to say a proper goodbye.

She said she would “relive this tragic event for the rest of my life” and urged the judge to “give Damien the justice he deserves” and put him “a murderer behind bars”.

Simon is likely to have a sentencing date next month.

Linda and Damien had two children together, two-year-old Mason and 11-month-old Elias, and Damien was also a loving stepfather to Linda’s sons from her previous relationship, Brody and Joseph.

Recalling how she met Damien, a carpenter who first moved to Australia in 2011, in 2019, Linda said there was an instant spark between the pair and she knew from the start that he was “the one”.

As the couple built their relationship together, she revealed how much Damien loved all four of her children.

“He was always happy to show the kids the woodwork, he was a passionate motorcycle lover, it was just… that’s something we just miss. It really is that hard. But his family has been a fantastic support for us, absolutely fantastic,” she said.

Damien’s nickname was ‘Mad Dog’, which Linda said suited him well, reflecting his big ‘wild card’ personality and positive attitude.

Linda, who now refuses to say her father’s name, used to told Irish Mirror how her older son, Mason, is “still walking around the house looking for” Damien.

She also claimed that Damien’s injuries from the shooting were so catastrophic that they could not have an open casket at the funeral, and she could not transport his body back to Ireland in a condition to be buried.

Born in Ireland, he immigrated to Australia 12 years ago and Damien became a citizen in 2021.

Linda and Damien had planned to marry last November and at the time of Damien’s murder, the couple had “deposited for the venue, the church and everything else”.

Linda told the newspaper: “That’s the hardest part, all our plans for the future and watching our children grow up without him. We’re just taking it day by day, that’s all we can do.”

She also described Damien as someone who was always willing to help others, telling the newspaper how he had touched the lives of many people, including an architect who flew 20 hours to attend his funeral despite never having met him in person.

“That’s the kind of person he was.”

Following Damien’s death last February, his brother John paid tribute to “our family’s best friend” in a statement to The Sligo Champion.

He also recalled some of his happy memories of Damien and their two siblings, Philip and Leanna, when they lived together in Summerhill Village.

John told the newspaper that Damien was “great at screwing people up in a good-natured way”, “rang our mum Ether every day” and was “very fond of old sports cars”.

He added that the whole family were “proud” of how he had fulfilled his dream of moving to Australia, where he set up his own joinery business, while he was in “terrible shock” at his death.