Megan Kalajzich was killed in the early morning of 27 January 1986 at her home in Fairlight, New South Wales, Australia. She was shot twice in the head while sleeping beside her husband, Andrew Kalajzich. Two additional shots were fired into Andrew Kalajzich's pillow; he later stated he had rolled out of the way of the bullets. Sixteen days before her death, Megan had reportedly been attacked at gunpoint in the same home, though the weapon failed to fire on that occasion.
Andrew Kalajzich was a well-known and wealthy figure on Sydney's Northern Beaches at the time of the murder. Born in Australia in 1941 to parents who had migrated from Yugoslavia in 1939, he grew up working in his family's fish shop in Manly and later co-founded a business there with his brother. He married Megan Carmichael in 1962, and the couple had two children, Michelle and Andrew. He was elected president of the Manly Chamber of Commerce in 1972 and opened the Manly Pacific International Hotel in 1983.
Following an 11-week trial at the New South Wales Supreme Court in early 1988, Andrew Kalajzich was found guilty of his wife's murder, despite pleading not guilty. Prosecutors presented evidence that he had hired a man named Bill Vandenberg as a hitman, paying $20,000 to have his wife killed. Kalajzich was charged with murder, conspiracy to murder, and discharge of a firearm with intent to murder. Vandenberg was also charged in connection with the killing but died by suicide while in custody awaiting trial. Kalajzich was sentenced to 25 years in prison without parole.
Kalajzich mounted a vigorous series of appeals against his conviction. This culminated in a 1995 judicial inquiry conducted by John Slattery QC, a retired Supreme Court judge, who rejected Kalajzich's appeals and stated he had "no doubts or questions about the guilt of the petitioner." Kalajzich and his children have continued to maintain his innocence in the years since.
After serving 25 years in prison, it was announced on 25 January 2012 that Kalajzich would be released on parole. He was released on 8 February 2012.
The case attracted significant media attention in Australia. It was the subject of an episode of the television series Crime Investigation Australia, titled "Contract to Kill." A book about the case, My Husband, My Killer: The Murder of Megan Kalajzich, was written by Lindsay Simpson and Sandra Harvey and published in 1992. The book was later adapted into a television movie in 2001, starring Colin Friels.
Credit: http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/classics/thorne/2.htmlEditorial useSourceSOLVEDListen
