Nick Cross promoted himself as a vigilante crime-fighter, but was a cold-blooded killer
Nicholas James Cross told Geelong locals his vigilante crime fighting group was there to protect them as he cruised the streets with his group of outlaws under the cover of darkness, rottweilers in tow.
The magnanimous leader drew people in and as the self-appointed head of an unsanctioned Geelong community watch group, encouraged his henchmen to monitor CCTV from their homes for suspicious activity.
Posts from the Facebook group in 2016 and 2017.
Followers were encouraged to pull over cars they deemed suspicious and share photographs of what they found, with Cross claiming he was motivated to curb the rising crime in the city’s north after an attempted burglary on his own home.
“When I was growing up you knew your neighbours, you put your bins out for your neighbours, you looked out for each other. That doesn’t happen any more,” he told more than 400 online followers in 2016.
Two years later, the man who vowed to keep his community safe turned from crime fighter to killer when he shot a woman in the head at point-blank range inside a “glamping” tent at the Geelong Showgrounds.
The court heard Nick Cross was withdrawing from the drug ice.
The tent and his 29-year-old victim Maddison Parrott – also known as Maddison Pante – were then set on fire.
On Friday, Victorian Supreme Court judge Rita Incerti labelled Cross a remorseless, callous killer who carried out his fatal crime in an almost detached manner.
The court hearing also revealed that far from living a crime-free life, Cross had been out of jail for less than two months when he killed Parrott.
“You committed a crime of extraordinary and callous violence, and there is a need for the community to be protected,” Justice Incerti said.
Maddison Parrott in her wedding gown.
“[Parrott’s] life was precious; you senselessly took it away.”
The court heard Parrott had been staying at the showgrounds with a male friend when Cross arrived at their site on December 3, 2018. He argued with Parrott until he pulled out a gun and shot her dead.
Firefighters discovered the victim’s remains inside the tent after they were called to a fire there the next day.
Cross was later arrested in New South Wales. No clear motive has ever been established.
Dale (left) and Marlene Parrott (centre), parents of Maddison Jane Parrott, speak outside the Geelong courthouse on Friday.Credit:Joel Carrett
Incerti said that at the time Cross had only known his victim for a matter of weeks after they met through a mutual friend.
“To shoot an unarmed person in a confined space where they were entitled to feel safe and had no reason to fear any violence was a ghastly act,” Incerti said.
“[Parrott’s] killing was unprovoked, cold-blooded, and carried out in a callous, almost detached manner.
“You then took steps to conceal your crime by setting fire to the tent or arranging for it to be done.”
Outside court, Parrott’s mother, Marlene, said no sentence would bring back her daughter, whose death sent a devastating ripple effect across the Geelong community.
“[Cross] had choices and he chose this path in life. We’re pleased he’s behind bars and can no longer inflict harm on others, but there’s to happiness in this for us,” she said.
“He’s a cold-blooded murderer and if it wasn’t Maddison he killed, it would’ve been someone else.
“We’re angry. He pulled so many people into his web along the way.”
Cross must serve at least 21 years of his 27-year sentence before being eligible for parole.
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