The murder of nine-year-old Charlise Mutten by her mother's fiancé led to a life sentence without parole and raised public concern about child welfare in Australia.
Key Facts
- Victim's age
- 9 years old
- Disappearance date
- 13 January 2022
- Body discovered
- 18 January 2022, ~65 km from Mount Wilson
- Perpetrator
- Justin Stein, mother's fiancé
- Sentence
- Life imprisonment without parole
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Charlise Mutten had been living with her grandmother in Coolangatta, Queensland since age five while her mother, Kallista Mutten, served a prison sentence. In December 2021, Charlise travelled to the Blue Mountains for a holiday with her mother and her mother's fiancé, Justin Stein, whom Kallista had met in prison, at his family's Wildenstein Estate wedding venue.
Charlise disappeared from the Wildenstein Estate at Mount Wilson on 13 January 2022. Her body was discovered on 18 January 2022, approximately 65 kilometres from the estate. Justin Stein was identified as responsible for her death and was subsequently charged and prosecuted for her murder.
Justin Stein was found guilty of Charlise Mutten's murder and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The case attracted widespread media attention in Australia, prompting discussion about child protection systems and the safeguarding of children in the care of adults with criminal histories.