Bio

John Myles Sharpe was born on February 28, 1967, in Mornington, Australia. He grew up in that area. Not much is known about his childhood, but he completed his high school education. After finishing school, he started working at the State Bank and later moved to the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

In 1994, Sharpe met Anna Kemp, a New Zealand native, while they both worked at the bank. They got married in October of that year, with Anna being four years older than John. The couple lived in numerous locations around the Mornington Peninsula.

In August 2002, they welcomed their first child, a daughter named Gracie Louise Sharpe. Gracie was born with hip dysplasia, a condition that required medical treatment with a corrective harness for the first three months of her life. This situation caused some stress for Anna, as Gracie often cried and had trouble sleeping. Even after the harness was removed, Gracie continued to have feeding and sleeping difficulties, leading Anna to seek help.

In 2003, Sharpe made a notable purchase at a local shop, Sport Phillip Marine; he bought a high-powered spear gun and a second spear. He had never shown interest in spear fishing before this. In September 2003, the Sharpe family moved into a new home at 116 Prince Street in Mornington.

In late 2003, Anna became pregnant again. Sharpe later claimed that this news was unexpected for him, which allegedly led to feelings of resentment towards Anna and their unborn child. This resentment seemed to grow alongside the strain in their marriage.

Murder Story

On March 23, 2004, John Myles Sharpe argued with his wife, Anna Kemp, before going to bed. Later that night, Sharpe retrieved a spear gun from the garage and returned to the bedroom. He fired the spear gun into Anna's head twice, killing her. He then covered her body with towels and slept on the sofa. The following day, he attempted to remove the spears from Anna's head but only managed to take off the shafts. He buried her body in a shallow grave in their backyard.

On March 27, 2004, Sharpe put his 20-month-old daughter, Gracie, to bed and drank whiskey to prepare himself. He returned to Gracie's room with the spear gun, loaded it with a spear, and shot her in the head. Gracie screamed in pain, so Sharpe went to retrieve the spear shafts he had taken from Anna's head. He used the shafts to shoot Gracie again, but she was still alive, prompting him to shoot her one last time, which ultimately killed her.

Sharpe then disposed of Gracie’s body by wrapping it in garbage bags and a tarpaulin. He took her body to the refuse transfer station and discarded it. On March 29, he purchased duct tape, tarpaulins, and a chainsaw from a hardware store. The next day, he exhumed Anna's body, dismembered it with the chainsaw, and disposed of the remains in a landfill.

In the weeks that followed, Sharpe created a false narrative about Anna's disappearance. He sent forged emails to her family, suggesting she was alive and had left him for another man. This deception continued until May 2004 when police began investigating the situation, prompted by concerns from Anna's family in New Zealand.

On June 22, 2004, police arrested Sharpe. At first, he denied any involvement. However, in a subsequent interview, he confessed to both murders. After an extensive search that lasted weeks, the police recovered both bodies from the landfill.

In August 2005, Sharpe was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum non-parole period of 33 years. He will be eligible for parole in 2037.