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Almost a week after the disappearance of Queensland mother Jana Armstrong, her accused murderer will front court on allegations he dumped her body in remote bushland an hour from her home.
Dharminder Singh, 48, was arrested hours after the alarm was raised by pig hunters who stumbled across the remains of Armstrong, 30, in bushland in Toowoomba, west of Brisbane.
The discovery was a devastating end to a four-day search by Armstrong’s family and friends to find the mother.
Her sister, Faith Isaacs, is now caring for Armstrong’s four-month-old son. Last month, Isaacs and her husband Michael had lost their own newborn baby. The family said Armstrong had supported Isaacs through what was an unimaginable heartbreak.
An online fundraiser set up to support the family details how Armstrong and her siblings lost their mother to breast cancer seven years ago. Two years later, they lost their father to a heart attack.
Police confirmed pig hunters found Armstrong’s body in an area that had not been searched by authorities or the community previously.
Detective Acting Inspector Brian Collins, speaking to media on Sunday, would not elaborate on Armstrong’s cause of death, or what had been found at the scene. He said it was unknown whether a weapon was used in the alleged killing, or what injuries Armstrong might have suffered.
When asked whether there appeared to be any attempt to hide Armstrong’s remains, Collins said the case was still under investigation.
Collins said the investigation had not proved or disproved whether Armstrong’s body had been moved while the search was ongoing. He said a significant part of the investigation was whether Armstrong’s car was used by her alleged killer to move her body.
“At this point in time, we believe yes,” he said.
Armstrong’s family will attend court on Monday, where they will see Singh in custody, alleged to have dumped the mother’s body off Esk-Hampton Road into steep and rough terrain.
“There are simply no words to describe the heartbreak and devastation I am feeling,” Isaacs said. “Losing my beautiful sister in this way is something I will never be able to understand or put into words.
“My beautiful Jana deserved so much more. She was so deeply loved and will be missed beyond words.
“I promise you, Jana, your beautiful baby boy will always know exactly who his mummy was, how deeply you loved him and just how incredibly special you were.”
Isaacs told Nine News her sister, a disability support worker, was caring, and loved her son more than anything.
Where Armstrong’s baby was during the incident was not known, Collins said. When asked how much involvement Singh had in the child’s life, Collins said it was unclear.
He said there was no domestic violence order in place between Singh and Armstrong.
Collins said it was believed Armstrong lost her life in the hours between when she was last seen on July 7 and when her car was found in the morning of July 8. Her white Hyundai Kona had been found parked essentially in the middle of the road, police said.
Armstrong’s cousins Lara and Hannah Sweedman spoke to media on Sunday saying the family were devastated.
They talked of how finding Armstrong’s remains meant there could be some form of closure, and they could lay her to rest beside her parents.
The pair spoke of how the family had a sense deep down when Armstrong went missing that she would never be coming home.
“We’ve been with [Isaacs] all morning, she’s just devastated. She’s just devastated. I don’t know how they’re going to move forward, but they will, they’re very strong,” Lara Sweedman said.
As Armstrong’s family, friends and the community searched bushland and remote areas for signs of the mother, Singh remained in the scope of the investigation, and gave a statement to police, before being released.
He was arrested early on Sunday.
Vision of the arrest, released by police, showed officers storming the Harristown property at 4am to discover Singh in a bed upstairs.
Officers told Singh they had a search warrant, as he slowly stood up in the bedroom, which simply had a single mattress with a sheet on it, and a wooden chair with a toothbrush on it.
He was scheduled to appear at the Toowoomba Magistrates Court on Monday.
Police are calling for anyone who might have been in the area or have dashcam between Toowoomba and Esk, especially on the New England Highway and Esk-Hampton Road, between 10.30pm on July 7, and 1.30am on July 8, to come forward.
Anyone who saw Armstrong’s white Hyundai Kona with Queensland registration 273ZHQ were urged to contact police.
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Cloe Read is the crime and court reporter at Brisbane Times.Connect via X or email.From our partners
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