A woman has been jailed for two years and 10 months after callously helping conceal the unlawful killing of a flatmate.
Cassie Anne Reid, 41, of Caboolture, faced Brisbane Supreme Court for sentencing after pleading guilty to being an accessory after the manslaughter of Donna Louise Howe.
The body of Ms Howe, 57, was found on June 9, 2022 in a state forest at the Glasshouse Mountains about 60 kilometres north of Brisbane
The cause of death could not be determined as her body had been badly burned.
Crown prosecutor Michael Gawrych said Reid had learned of Ms Howe's killing soon after it occurred on the night of May 8, and took a number of actions to conceal the crime and prevent its alleged perpetrators being punished.
"She created what can only be described as a web of lies to create the facade that the deceased was still alive," Mr Gawrych said.
He said Reid's offending had been aggravated by her misleading police and Ms Howe's family over multiple days, leading to delays in apprehending the accused killers and a loss of forensic evidence.
"She had time to consider what she had done," Mr Gawrych said.
Reid was not accused of involvement in Ms Howe's death or disposing of her body but she did wash the clothes of the man accused of killing her and purchased a wet vacuum to clean a vehicle that had transported her body.
During an interview with police, Reid also confessed to helping dispose of Ms Howe's vehicle and telling Ms Howe's daughter that she had gone on an overseas holiday.
Three men have been charged with killing Ms Howe while another woman has also been charged with being an accessory after the fact.
Defence barrister Jacob Robson said Reid had no prior knowledge of other accuseds' plans to confront Ms Howe about claims of stealing would allegedly turn violent.
"She was consuming methamphetamine daily and that clouded her judgment," Mr Robson said on Thursday.
Mr Robson said Reid was driven by remorse to give police a full confession on June 16, 2022 that led to her being charged.
"(Reid) said she was afraid of defendants who had killed her flatmate for flimsy reasons that did not warrant an extreme response," Mr Robson said.
Justice Paul Freeburn said Reid had callously engaged in acts to conceal the killing and lied to police and Ms Howe's daughter.
"I recommend you read her daughter's victim impact statement as it is a powerful document," Justice Freeburn told Reid.
He said Reid had committed a very significant offence but her guilty plea and rehabilitation, the fact she did not significantly delay the police investigation and her non-involvement in the killing were mitigating factors.
Reid was ordered released on parole immediately having served almost 15 months in pre-sentence custody.
