UPDATE: A man murdered a Moonee Ponds couple by repeatedly stabbing them after an argument over a debt for plaster work he had done at their home, a court has heard.
Police found a 54-year-old man and 35-year-old woman dead in their Moonee Ponds home on Sunday evening. The man and woman have been confirmed as Greg Tucker and his partner, Korinne Aylward.
Their three children, aged between two and five years old, were found in another room uninjured.
Mustafa Kunduraci, 44, of Meadow Heights has been charged with the couple’s murder and appeared at an out of sessions court hearing early on Tuesday.
A Turkish interpreter assisted him in the hearing.
At a second hearing later on Tuesday morning, Kunduraci’s lawyer Chen Yang did not apply for bail but said that Kunduraci was due to have an operation to remove a hernia in his left hip on Tuesday, which was affecting his movements.
He said that his client suffered “severe psychological issues” including post-traumatic stress disorder, insomnia, paranoia and claustrophobia, for which he was not being treated.
Mr Yang said Kunduraci had “passable English” but would require a Turkish interpreter. Mr Kunduraci was remanded to appear in court on May 6 for a committal mention.
At the out of sessions hearing, homicide squad Detective Senior Sergeant Stuart Bailey told the court Kunduraci rang police on Sunday about 11.30pm and told them he had been stabbed while at the Moonee Ponds home to collect an outstanding debt.
