The sentence was handed down on Wednesday by Perth District Court Chief Judge Julie Wager, with Cleo’s mother and father, Ellie Smith and Jake Gliddon, in courtroom to listen to the result.
Her disappearance sparked one of many greatest lacking individuals investigations in Australian historical past, with detectives rescuing Cleo from Kelly’s Carnarvon home almost three weeks later.
Wager mentioned, throughout Cleo’s time in captivity, she spent most of her time alone, locked in a bed room after Kelly altered the door deal with in order that the room locked from the skin.
“She pleaded to go to her parents, she asked mainly for her mother,” she mentioned.
“You put on the radio loudly in the bathroom to cover up any noise that Cleo made.
“The younger sufferer heard her title on the radio and she or he mentioned they had been saying her title.”
After his arrest, Kelly told police he “roughed Cleo up a bit a number of occasions” and became angry when Cleo got “bossy” asking for chocolate, but claimed he wanted to make sure the child was “comfy”.
“I, , needed to carry on to her, however I knew it was mistaken,” he said.
Court-appointed psychiatrists found Kelly had a severe personality disorder and longed for his own family, including a little girl he could “costume up, play with and be with”.
He had created a fantasy family prior to abducting Cleo, and made Facebook profiles for each person.
Kelly was high on methamphetamine when he decided to travel to the Quobba Blowholes campsite on the night Cleo was taken to look for things to steal.
When he peered into Cleo’s family tent, he saw her sleeping, and made an impulsive decision to take her, bundling her and her sleeping bag into the front seat of his car and travelling back to town via dirt track roads.
Source: www.9news.com.au
