Second man charged with Irma Palasics' cold case murder refused bail

The fact one of the two men accused of a cold case murder in Canberra only gave his Australian passport to police and not his Hungarian one when he was arrested was “an oversight”, his lawyers claimed.

However, prosecutors said it must have been “blindingly obvious” to 69-year-old Joseph Vekony that when police asked for his passport, they meant all of them.

The comments were made when Mr Vekony faced the ACT Supreme Court to apply for bail on Thursday (22 August), which was opposed by the prosecution.

He and Steve Fabriczy allegedly forced their way into Irma and Gregor Palasics’ home in McKellar on 6 November 1999. The elderly couple were allegedly tied up and assaulted, then the intruders stole $30,000 cash and fled.

Mr Palasics eventually freed himself from his bindings and discovered his 72-year-old wife dead.

The two accused were not arrested until 2023 and then were charged with murder, to which they have pleaded not guilty and have been committed for trial.

On Thursday, Detective Sergeant Craig Marriott said the investigation into Mr Fabriczy took three years and involved a lengthy undercover operation.

During this operation, which resulted in 106 hours of transcripts from undercover deployments, he said Mr Fabriczy allegedly identified Mr Vekony as his “accomplice”.

“At that point, Mr Vekony was known to us, but he had not been identified by us as having involvement in the homicide,” Detective Sergeant Marriott said.

He said both accused immigrated to Australia from Hungary – which the Palasics had done, too – at about the same time.

Mr Fabriczy was arrested in September 2023. Detective Sergeant Marriott said police then conducted surveillance on Mr Vekony over the month before his arrest in December 2023.

During this surveillance, police followed him while he went camping with his family from Melbourne, through NSW, up to Cape York in Queensland, and then back home.

“It seems to be a passion of his to travel throughout Australia,” the detective sergeant said.

But Mr Vekony’s lawyer, Dr Jan de Bruin from Legal Aid, said enjoying camping should not make someone ineligible for bail.

“Camping is quite a popular activity in Australia,” he said.

He said it was clear his client had established himself in Victoria, as he had lived at the same home in Melbourne for 22 years.

Dr de Bruin said much of the case turned on Mr Fabriczy’s credibility, and there was nothing to suggest that his client wouldn’t comply with bail conditions.

“Mr Vekony has complied with every demand made of him,” he said.

Prosecutor Trent Hickey said when it came to bail, his main concern was Mr Vekony not appearing in court.

Justice Chrissa Loukas-Karlsson said, in her view, the opposition to bail was “properly based on the evidence”.

She said Mr Vekony had no ties to the ACT and was a Hungarian citizen, and she noted how he hadn’t given police his Hungarian passport.

“In my view, it cannot be said that it is a weak prosecution case,” Justice Loukas-Karlsson said.

She refused bail. Mr Fabriczy, now also aged 69, had applied for bail in May 2024. However, this had also been refused.

Their matters will return to court on 11 September. The case may go to trial at the end of 2025.