The roar of 23 Harley-Davidsons and cries for justice have rung out through central Melbourne as the loved ones of Celeste Manno and their supporters rallied in a show of force.
More than 100 people donned t-shirts emblazoned with "Justice for Celeste" and held flyers as they marched through the city on Sunday, down Bourke Street Mall and to the Supreme Court.
The 23-year-old woman was asleep at her Melbourne home in November 2020 when the man who had relentlessly stalked her for more than a year smashed through the bedroom window and stabbed her 23 times.
Earlier this year, 39-year-old Luay Sako was sentenced to 36 years behind bars for her murder and will be eligible for parole in 30.
Ms Manno's devastated mother Aggie Di Mauro is calling for her daughter's killer to spend the rest of his life behind bars.
She begged prosecutors to appeal the 36 year sentence but wasn't told if they would by the March 28 deadline.
“The state did fail her, absolutely, I will get her justice," she told the Sunday crowd.
Ms Di Mauro wants a mandatory life sentence for all murderers and called on the Victorian government to overhaul stalking laws.
Ms Manno's father Tony says he should have been "walking my daughter down the aisle, not down Bourke Street fighting for justice".
Ms Di Mauro wiped away tears as she shared details of her beloved daughter’s life, the horror of her death and the distress caused by the legal process.
During a plea hearing, a court was told Ms Manno and Sako were briefly co-workers but he had harassed and relentlessly stalked her after she rejected his romantic advances.
Over a 12-month period, Sako sent her more than 140 messages from a number of Instagram accounts, with the communication becoming increasingly vulgar and degrading.
Ms Manno went to police and got an intervention order against Sako but the contact only stopped after he was charged with breaching the order.
On the night before her death, Ms Manno posted a photo of her boyfriend for the first time on Instagram.
In sentencing, the court took into account Sako's diagnosed severe personality disorder, major depressive disorder and body dysmorphic disorder.
Ms Mauro had refused to say the name of her daughter's killer until Sunday but vowed to no longer "hide" it.
She said she was still haunted by the fact Celeste was killed as she slept nearby.
"I failed her once but I am not going to fail her again," Ms Di Mauro said.
