“Cashmore’s father reported [Cashmore spoke about Knowles] nearly every day during the last six months. He couldn’t understand how a person with so many convictions could remain in society and taunt so many people.”

The coroner heard that two days before the killings Cashmore went to the nearby Koroit police station, where he told officers he had video of Knowles walking past Jackson’s home in breach of a personal safety intervention order.

Leading Senior Constable Christopher Kelly and Senior Constable Brett Thornton said Cashmore appeared calm and articulate as they spoke outside the station. But when the pair began to walk back inside they heard him say, “Leave your gun on the counter, so I can take care of him.”

“The officers didn’t acknowledge the comment,” Rae-White said.

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Investigators were later told police at the station did not take Cashmore’s threat seriously, as Knowles was so generally disliked in the small Victorian community that the comment came as no surprise.

Knowles had an extensive criminal history and had been found by a coroner in 2020 to be responsible for injuries and neglect that caused the death of Warrnambool father Stephen Johnston. The 57-year-old’s badly beaten body was found on the floor of his Warrnambool home on December 8, 2016.

The case was referred to the director of public prosecutions to consider charges against Knowles.

While none were laid, the coroner’s office was told Knowles and his ex-girlfriend Amanda Bourke were questioned over the death. Bourke later drowned while swimming with Knowles at a Killarney beach, between Port Fairy and Warrnambool. Her death was deemed non-suspicious.

In February 2022, only months before the Kirkstall killings, Knowles spent two months in jail for threatening to kill his neighbour and waving a kitchen knife at the man during a dispute over money.

At the time of his death, Knowles was also scheduled to face a local court over allegations he had contravened court orders and been found in possession of cannabis and prescription medication.

Locals in the Warrnambool area said he had a reputation that meant he was feared by many in the region.

Following the Kirkstall killings, a photograph showed a sign on the gate of a property in Kirkstall which read “Free. Trav, you and the Kirkstall community are now free from Kevin Knowles. RIP.”

Benjamin Ray, meanwhile, was described as a drifter who had recently moved to NSW but was planning a return to Victoria.

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Following an investigation into the trio’s deaths, Coroner Katherine Lorenz found Cashmore intentionally killed the two men, inflicting unsurvivable injuries on the pair, before driving over their bodies as he left the scene.

“I do convey my sincere condolences [to the] families for their respective losses,” Lorenz said.

Crisis support is available from Lifeline on 13 11 14.