James Gargasoulas: Man who ploughed car into crowds in Melbourne jailed for life for six murders

A man who ploughed a stolen car into crowds in Melbourne, killing six people, has been jailed for life.

James Gargasoulas, 29, will spend at least the next 44 years behind bars for what a judge described as “one of the worst examples of mass murder in Australian history”.

He was in a drug-induced psychosis when he drove into pedestrians in the busy Bourke Street Mall, injuring dozens, in January 2017.

A three-month-old baby who was thrown 20ft from his buggy and a 10-year-old girl were among those killed.

Gargasoulas showed little emotion was he was jailed at Victoria state’s Supreme Court on Friday in a room filled with the families of his victims.

“Your actions were both callous and cowardly,” judge Mark Weinberg told him. “You have shown no genuine remorse.”

The judge described in detail the “terrifying rampage”, noting each victim killed as well as those left with broken bones, head injuries, internal bleeding and other lasting damage.

“You left a trail of destruction,” Mr Weinberg said. “The horror of what you did has profoundly impacted the lives of those who were present that day.”

The court had earlier heard from grieving relatives, including the brother of 25-year-old Japanese victim Yosuke Kanno. Junpei Kanno said the pain of losing his sibling would last for the rest of his life.

Gargasoulas, who has treatment-resistant paranoid schizophrenia, was found fit to stand trial despite experiencing delusions.

In a letter read out in court, he stressed he was not evil and blamed “government oppression” for the murders.

He said he believed he was the Messiah and was acting on the wishes of God on the day of the rampage, but was in a “bad headspace” and had not intended to kill.

Mr Weinberg has previously ruled Gargasoulas could not use mental impairment as a defence because his psychosis and delusions at the time of the rampage were drug-induced.

Gargasoulas was found guilty of six murders and 27 counts of reckless conduct endangering life in November 2018.

He had been using drugs and committing crimes in the weeks before the attack and was on bail.

Mr Weinberg noted Gargasoulas was meant to face court on the day of the massacre. Police had been following the stolen Holden Commodore for some of its journey into central Melbourne before the deadly rampage.

“Your crimes have had a shattering effect on countless lives,” the judge told Gargasoulas.

He will be eligible to apply for release in 2063, when he is 73.

George Halvagis, an ambassador for not-for-profit organisation Crime Stoppers Victoria, said he thinks Gargasoulas should die in jail.

“He should never, ever, get out of there,” he told reporters after the sentencing hearing.