ID :
134369
Fri, 07/23/2010 - 23:57
Auther :

Grandfather `suspected Farquharson`

The grandfather of three boys murdered by their dad on Father's Day says he tried to
believe Robert Farquharson was innocent for his daughter's sake.
But Bob Gambino said he first started to think Farquharson was guilty a few months
after the boys drowned.
Mr Gambino said the first time he heard about a conversation in which witness Greg
King said Farquharson told him he planned to pay back his ex-wife Cindy Gambino "big
time" and take away the "most important thing to her", he began to doubt
Farquharson's innocence.
He said he did what was best for his daughter Cindy and tried to believe Farquharson
was not guilty, but now concedes the family was in denial.
Farquharson was found guilty for the second time after an 11-week retrial on
Thursday of murdering his boys Jai, 10, Tyler, 7 and Bailey, 2, on September 4, 2005
by driving them into a dam near Winchelsea in Victoria's southwest.
Tyler would have turned 12 on Thursday.
Cindy Gambino had supported her former husband in the first trial, but she now
believes he is guilty.
"The last case, we were in denial, everyone was in denial," Mr Gambino said.
"You try and support your family and that is what we were doing at the time -
supporting Cindy, that is what she wanted, the way she wanted it to go then, but it
didn't go her way, it turned into a guilty verdict."
Mr Gambino said a new witness at the retrial, Dawn Waite, who saw Farquharson
driving slowly and veering across the road prior to the crash, was the final piece
in the puzzle.
"I think Dawn Waite's evidence summed it up, (Farquharson) saw the lights coming, so
he had to slow down to get her to pass and having a look around pretending he was
looking for somewhere to turn in," he said.
"I think we were at least 80 per cent or 90 per cent before that it was going to be
a guilty verdict.
"We have had five years to think about it and what Dawn Waite said was very strong
evidence and it just finished the picture of the puzzle."
Cindy's brother Scott Gambino said he also supported Farquharson after it happened.
"There was always things that didn't make sense from the start but until you start
hearing of new evidence that comes up you start to accept that he'd done it
deliberately," Mr Gambino told Fairfax Radio Network on Friday.
"Like anyone else you naturally defend your family members at the time; that's what
we did."
Mr Gambino said the family was relieved to hear the verdict of the retrial and hopes
it will bring some closure and allow the family to move on.
He said his mother was much better on Friday after she collapsed outside court
following the verdict and had to be ushered into a taxi.


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