Boy, 12, slain in grisly Lin family murder 'looked up to uncle and talked about him constantly'

  • Eldest son Henry admired accused uncle and played badminton with him
  • The crown alleges Lian Bin 'Robert' Xie killed the five family members
  • Pamela Burgess and Nigel Kelty heard shouting at about 10.30pm
  • Court previously heard the killings were done with a 'minimum of noise'
  • Lin family killed in their Epping home in Sydney's northwest in July 2009

By Sarah Michael and Freya Noble

Published: 03:12 EST, 14 May 2014 | Updated: 11:04 EST, 14 May 2014


The eldest son in the Lin family found dead in their Sydney home in 2009 looked up to and enjoyed practising badminton with the uncle accused of killing him, a court has heard.

On Wednesday, Lian Bin 'Robert' Xie - who maintains his innocence - welled up as a friend of 12-year-old Henry Lin described how he talked about his 'uncle Robert' constantly on the internet chat program MSN.

'He talked about his uncle Robert a lot and talked in terms of respecting Robert's badminton ability ... and wanted to practise with uncle Robert as much as he would allow him?' Xie's barrister Graham Turnbull SC asked her.

The Lin family of Sydney. The girl on the left is the only surviving family member. Her parents - Min 'Norman' Lin, 45, and Yun Li 'Lily' Lin, 43 - her brothers aged nine and 12, and an aunt, Yun Bin 'Irene' Yin, 39, were found dead in 2009

The Lin family of Sydney. The girl on the left is the only surviving family member. Her parents - Min 'Norman' Lin, 45, and Yun Li 'Lily' Lin, 43 - her brothers aged nine and 12, and an aunt, Yun Bin 'Irene' Yin, 39, were found dead in 2009

'Yes,' she replied in the NSW Supreme Court.

The crown alleges Xie murdered newsagent Min Lin, 45 and his wife Lily, 44, her sister Irene, 39, and their two sons Henry and Terry, 9, at their Epping home, in Sydney's northwest, in the early hours of July 18, 2009.

Neighbours say they heard unusual shouting the night before the battered bodies of the family were discovered, the court also heard.

Prosecutors say Xie, driven by 'bitterness', turned off the electricity to the family home, crept into the house and slayed all five family members in their bedrooms using a 'hammer-like' weapon.

Accused murderer Lian Bin Xie boards a police car at the King Street court in Sydney on Friday

Accused murderer Lian Bin Xie boards a police car at the King Street court in Sydney on Friday

The crown previously told the jury the killings were done with a 'minimum of noise' and that 'not one neighbour heard a single thing during the course of the murders'.

As the Supreme Court trial continued on Wednesday, couple Pamela Burgess and Nigel Kelty, who lived near the Lins, said they remembered hearing shouting about 10.30pm on July 17, 2009.

Ms Burgess said she and Mr Kelty were used to hearing yelling from their neighbours, who were 'arguing quite a lot' at that time.

Detectives and forensic police examine the crime scene on Boundary Rd in North Epping Sunday on July 19, 2009

Detectives and forensic police examine the crime scene on Boundary Rd in North Epping Sunday on July 19, 2009

But that night she said 'it wasn't the same as we were used to hearing, and that is why it was unusual.

'I don't actually know which direction it came from but it definitely wasn't next door,' Ms Burgess added.

I don't know whether they were speaking English, I couldn't tell,' she added later.

The trial continues.

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