Killer who put mother's body in Lake Burley Griffin barred from family will

Forty years ago, a man tied weights to the body of his mother and pushed her into Lake Burley Griffin.

Mark Alexander Pavic was found guilty of manslaughter over Danijela Pavic’s death and the decades passed by, until the matter returned to court and a decision was made late last year that stopped him from benefitting from the family will.

Danijela’s body had been found floating in the lake on 2 April 1985.

Mark, then a 26-year-old from Deakin, was charged with murdering his 56-year-old mother in late March 1985, but he was acquitted of that charge after a trial in the ACT Supreme Court.

However, the jury did find him guilty of manslaughter.

According to The Canberra Times’ reports from his trial, he admitted putting his mother’s body in the lake after she collapsed and died during an argument.

He was reported as saying he made a “terrible, terrible mistake”, but he had not murdered her.

Mark was sentenced to eight years’ jail with a four-year non-parole period, which was in addition to the six months he had already spent in custody on remand.

Fast-forward several decades.

Jakov Pavic, who died in 1976, had left his estate to his wife, Danijela, or in the event of her death, his two children. These were Mark and Mark’s sister, who Region has chosen not to name.

The sister eventually became the administrator of the estate then approached the Supreme Court for help in allowing for its final distribution.

In Justice David Mossop’s decision from 20 December 2024, he said the sister’s lawyers had tried to get in contact with Mark numerous times.

When he eventually replied in 2023, he declined to verify his identity. Then when told the executor would take steps to finalise the estate and any entitlement that he had may be forfeited, he responded by text message.

“Do what you have to do, but exclude me from any consideration as I am just not interested. Please discontinue communication with me for this matter,” he said.

Mark didn’t appear for the hearings in court.

Justice Mossop said Danijela’s death meant Mark and his sister would have become beneficiaries of Jakov’s trust. However, that entitlement was subject to the forfeiture rule.

“There is a general principle recognised by the law that no person can obtain, or enforce, any rights resulting to them by their own crime,” he said.

Justice Mossop said, “Mark’s criminal culpability is such that he should not benefit from the killing of his mother”.

He noted how the judge who sentenced him described him as having treated his mother with “extreme callousness” and subjected her to “substantial fear”.

The sentencing judge also said there was no “real contrition or remorse on his part”.

Justice Mossop found Mark’s killing of his mother precluded him from deriving any benefit from the trust.

He said as the sister was the sole remaining lawful beneficiary of the trust, she was entitled to terminate it and pay the balance of its assets to herself.

Mark was given 28 days to make any application about the decision.