Christopher Weaver admits killing partner Laura Crncevic with heroin

A man admitted to killing his partner with a fatal drug dose and afterwards remarked, “That’s just what happens when you’re a heroin addict”.

Christopher Roy Weaver pleaded guilty to manslaughter for causing the death of Laura Crncevic, his partner of seven years, on 19 August 2021.

“Um, yeah, guilty,” he told the ACT Magistrates Court over audio-visual link from jail on Wednesday (18 October).

He also pleaded guilty to administering a declared substance without authorisation to her.

“It was all an accident, but yeah, guilty,” the 40-year-old said.

“That’s just what happens when you’re a heroin addict.”

While no agreed facts were tendered to the court, court documents about the allegations have previously revealed Ms Crncevic died from a heroin overdose while the pair had been celebrating their anniversary.

It is alleged that on the evening of 19 August 2021, Mr Weaver bought heroin from a dealer and then returned to where he lived in Florey to prepare the drug for his partner and himself.

He allegedly injected himself first, then used a separate syringe to inject Ms Crncevic. She collapsed about 20 minutes later, so he called Triple Zero and began CPR on her.

Paramedics arrived after 8 pm to find her unresponsive on the floor of the kitchen and tried to help her while Mr Weaver appeared distraught and yelled, “Come back to me, come back to me. Don’t die”.

Ms Crncevic was taken to hospital, but despite the efforts of staff to save her, she was later pronounced dead.

Weaver was arrested in July 2023, nearly two years after Ms Crncevic’s death, and was refused bail. He has remained in custody since then as his second bail application in September also failed.

On Wednesday, he also pleaded guilty to charges of hindering a police officer, damaging a police vehicle and failing to stop for police over an incident on 28 March 2023, as well as to failing to appear in court to answer his bail on 8 May 2023.

“Oh yeah, I slept in that day,” he said when the last charge was read out.

Special Magistrate Sean Richter committed Weaver to the Supreme Court for sentencing on the manslaughter charge, with the first mention in the higher court to be on 26 October. He also remanded him in custody.

Weaver’s lawyer, Andrew Fraser of Fraser Criminal Law, said the charges from this year should be dealt with after his client was sentenced in the Supreme Court, so they were adjourned for a mention in January 2024.

At the end of the court’s hearing, Mr Fraser told his client he would be in touch. Weaver gave him a double thumbs up.