- Paul Davy, 43, was fatally shot in Kendall, NSW, in November 2023 after going to retrieve a dog
- Paul’s sister Dona recalls Paul as a protective sibling and devoted dad who taught his family everything from fishing and guitar to riding a bike
- Luke Willcockson was found guilty of murder and sentenced to 22 years in prison, but Paul’s family says their grief will last a lifetime
Here Dona Davy, 44, from Muswellbrook, NSW, tells her story in her own words
‘Love you, brother,’ I said into the phone.
‘Love you, too,’ he replied.
It was November 2023, and I’d been chatting with my brother Paul, 43.
Between me working full-time as a truck driver in the mines and raising my three kids, Olivia, then 15, Lana, 14, and William, eight, we didn’t get to see each other as often as we would have liked.
But, despite having my hands full, we checked in with each other every few weeks.
Paul and I were big heavy metal fans, so I was excited to tell him how I’d recently taken Olivia to see Motley Crue live in concert.
‘She’s growing up to be one of us,’ I joked.
Our brother Mathew, then 48, and Paul were best mates.
And just one year apart, Paul and I were inseparable too.
He taught me how to swim, fish, ride a bike, drive a car, and tile a roof.
READ MORE TRUE CRIME: ‘Mary Jo was shot in the face over her husband’s affair. This is her life now’
We shared the same circle of friends, and in our teens we even lived together for a time in Muswellbrook, NSW, before Paul eventually moved three hours away to Kendall, on the Mid North Coast, where he lived with our mum, Sue, 69.
Paul was a protective big brother, making sure I was safe and cared for.
When I welcomed my kids, Paul was equally as doting and protective of them as he had always been with me.
He never missed a birthday and, when the kids were old enough, he patiently taught them how to play guitar.
So when he welcomed a child of his own, in May 2022, I was overjoyed he got to experience the joy of becoming a parent.
Paul’s little one was the centre of his world, even when the relationship with his partner ended.
He’d often send photos of his mini-me – crawling, their first steps and strumming the guitar.
‘Being a dad is my life’s greatest blessing,’ he said.
Then, around two weeks later, my phone buzzed around 3.30am. It was Mum.
‘Paul’s been killed,’ she screamed hysterically.
READ MORE TRUE CRIME: ‘Escaping a cult: The woman who went undercover to jail a predator’
There’s no way, I thought.
We’d only just recently spoken…
I felt like my whole world was crumbling around me.
Desperate to get to Mum’s side, I left my kids asleep in their beds, and jumped in my car.
At Mum’s place, I listened in shock as she recounted how Paul had gone to visit his friend the day before.
When he hadn’t returned, Mum figured he’d decided to stay the night, and went to bed herself.
But when detectives came knocking on her door at 3am, Mum knew something was up.
‘Paul has died under suspicious circumstances,’ they had explained, as Mum fell in a heap.
In shock, I struggled to comprehend it. Who would want to hurt Paul?
Answers came three days later, when detectives arrested Luke Willcockson, 37, someone Paul knew through mutual friends, charging him with murder.
READ MORE TRUE CRIME: ‘Ted Bundy abducted my aunt, but it took 51 years to prove it.’
They suspected he’d shot Paul over a dog, after they’d had an altercation over who owned it.
Believing the dog had been wrongly taken from his friend’s house by someone he and Luke both knew, Paul had gone to a house in Kendall to retrieve it.
Footage taken from a home security camera showed Paul’s final moments, before he was fatally shot through the screen door.
I couldn’t believe my brother’s life had been stolen over something so trivial.
Breaking the news to my kids, I fell apart. ‘We’re going to get justice for Paul,’ I vowed.
In the coming days, detectives arrested three more people in relation to Paul’s death.
In February 2025, one of the offenders was sentenced to a Community Correction Order for a period of 15 months for perverting the course of justice.
That April, another offender was given a Community Correction Order for a period of 10 months for perverting the course of justice.
The third offender was handed an eight-month prison term for perverting the course of justice. With time already served, he was allowed to walk free.
In February this year, we finally faced Paul’s killer, Luke Willcockson, in court.
He pleaded guilty to manslaughter, but not guilty of murder, claiming the gun had discharged accidentally.
The court heard that on the day of Paul’s murder, Willcockson had accompanied three friends to the home of a woman, to help his mate retrieve some belongings after he’d moved out of her home.
While at the property, one of the men also took possession of a dog, which they then took with them.
Around 6.35pm, Paul arrived at the Kendall property to retrieve the dog on behalf of his friend when Luke had come to the door.
‘[It’s] a child’s dog, mate, it’s not his dog,’ Paul said.
Instead of having a mature conversation, Luke had purposely shot my brother through the locked screen, according to testimony from witnesses.
Paul had always gone above and beyond for those he cared about.
I couldn’t believe it had led to his death.
Thankfully, a jury saw through Willcockson’s lies, finding him guilty of my brother’s murder.
Luke Willcockson had also pleaded guilty to two counts of intending to pervert the course of justice, for his attempts to convince friends to provide a false alibi during the time of Paul’s death.
Five months later, in July this year, our family gathered at the Supreme Court of New South Wales, where Luke Willcockson, 40, appeared for sentencing.
Reading aloud my victim impact statement, I looked Willcockson in the eyes as I described the pain my entire family had endured as a result of Paul’s death.
‘There is no justice for the way our worlds will never be the same. Paul’s sentence is life.
Our sentence is lifelong,’ I said, imploring the judge to throw the book at my brother’s killer.
Addressing Willcockson during sentencing, Acting Justice Ian Harrison said, ‘Mr Davy’s death was senseless, unprovoked and tragic… simply because Mr Willcockson lost control of his emotions.
‘Mr Davy posed no risk to anyone,’ he added.
He sentenced Luke Willcockson to 22 years in prison with a non-parole period of 16 years and six months. He will be eligible for parole in November 2040.
Though nothing would bring my brother back, I was glad his killer was behind bars.
Now almost three years on, Paul is my first and last thought every day.
Blasting songs from his favourite heavy metal band, Slayer, my kids Olivia, now 18, Lana, 17, and William, 11, honour him through music.
Our heartbroken mum, 72, still sets an extra place at the dinner table for him, and turns the music up for a dance around the living room, like she often did with Paul.
And whenever I’m finding it hard to carry on without my brother, his words ‘Cowboy up’ keep me going – it’s something he said to me when I was going through tough times.
Siblings always battle to be taller, stronger and smarter than each other, but you never expect one day to be older than your big brother.
I will miss him until my last breath.
