A former US Marine has admitted killing his estranged wife by setting her on fire just weeks before his trial.
Brian Earl Johnston pleaded guilty to the murder of Kelly Wilkinson in the Queensland Supreme Court on Wednesday.
Johnston set Ms Wilkinson, 27, alight in the backyard of the family home in Arundel on the Gold Coast at around 6.40am on April 20, 2021.
He was found two blocks away in a “semi-conscious state” on a front lawn, with a melted plastic canister, three knives and a duffel bag with duct tape found at the scene.
Brian Earl Johnston pleaded guilty to the murder of Kelly Wilkinson (pictured) in the Queensland Supreme Court on Wednesday
A heartbroken neighbor reported finding her three children, then aged between two and nine, crying in the driveway after the horrific murder.
Johnston will be sentenced next month and is in custody.
In court Wednesday, Johnston did not respond when asked if he wanted to comment on why he should not be sentenced.
Defense attorney Kim Bryson said she had agreed with prosecutor Philip McCarthy that March 13 would be appropriate for a sentencing hearing.
“There are some factual issues that remain controversial in relation to the background of the relationship… our efforts to get into the prison were frustrated because of the lockdowns that were in place,” Ms Bryson said.
Mr McCarthy said there was also a dispute of fact about the motivation for Johnston's murder of Ms Wilkinson.
Johnston will be sentenced in March
The couple holds one of their children while vacationing in the US. Johnston (right) is in a serious condition under police protection at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital
Judge Callaghan said he could change the sentencing date if necessary.
Chron Australia reported late last year how a contractor worked around the clock to secure a house and property package for Ms Wilkinson's three children.
The children were taken in by Ms Wilkinson's sister Danielle Carroll, her husband and her five cousins.
Property developer Tamika Smith launched a community appeal to help build a new home for the family of 10 on the outskirts of the Gold Coast, which they moved into in July last year.
Their new home was built by an army of local craftsmen and volunteers as part of a project led by Metricon Homes and My Bella Casa founder Tamika Smith, the stepsister of Ms. Carroll's husband.
Johnston served two tours in Iraq with the US Marine Corps Aviation Division, but did not see combat duty.
He met Ms. Wilkinson after serving in the military in Ohio.
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The estranged couple on their wedding day. Ms Wilkinson's mother Karen died in February in a tragic double blow for the family