The former partner of a woman found dead on a Queensland beach has strongly denied any role in her death, while claiming she was allegedly kidnapped and violently assaulted two years earlier.
Payge Leembruggen, 31, was discovered in sand dunes near North Wall Beach in Mackay at about 8am on Tuesday after a dog walker spotted her body.
The Mt Jukes mother-of-one was last seen on September 11, when her grandfather, David Leembruggen, dropped her at a Mackay hair salon for a 9am appointment.
Queensland Police are treating Ms Leembruggen’s death as suspicious. Her body has been flown to Townsville for an autopsy.
In the days since her death, friends had reportedly speculated that Cris Wilesmith, Ms Leembruggen’s former partner and the father of their autistic son, Nakoa, may have been involved.
However, Mr Wilesmith told the Daily Mail on Thursday that he had no involvement in her death, saying: ‘I would never do that.’
Mr Wilesmith said he had not seen Ms Leembruggen for several years because she had obtained a restraining order against him, which prevented him from being near her or their son.
He said, however, that he was not surprised people had connected him to her death.
Payge Leembruggen, 31, was found dead in sand dunes near North Wall Beach in Mackay.
Payge Leembruggen’s former partner, Cris Wilesmith, has firmly denied any involvement in her death.
‘It’s pretty s***ty, but I guessed people might say that,’ he told the Daily Mail from his home in Finch Hatton, an hour west of Mackay.
‘If the police want to speak to me, they can. But they haven’t been to see me.’
Mr Wilesmith said he had been in Mackay over the weekend, but did not come into contact with his ex, and did not know how she died.
‘The only feeling I have is that she put herself in a situation she could not get out of,’ he said.
He revealed Ms Leembruggen was the alleged victim of a four-day kidnapping and a serious assault in 2024 in a case which did not involve him and is currently going through court.
Mr Wilesmith said he and Ms Leembruggen were not on good terms and claimed she had refused to pass on his Christmas and birthday gifts to their son.
But he said he was still devastated by her death.
‘It’s terrible, horrible – my son is now growing up without a mother,’ he said.
‘His whole life, he’s going to be motherless. Everyone needs their mum.’
Mr Wilesmith said he now hopes to be reconciled with Nakoa, and would be consulting a lawyer ‘to see what my rights are’.
Cris Wilesmith freely admitted he was not on good terms with his ex
His mother Nita Harrison, from Cairns, also insisted her son was innocent of any involvement with the tragedy.
‘Payge and Cris absolutely hated each other, but we have nothing to hide,’ she said. ‘I know my son would’ve had nothing to do with it. He was not at all involved.
‘He contacted me yesterday to tell me the news, and he was really upset, more for Nakoa.’
Ms Leembruggen’s grandfather earlier revealed his granddaughter had used ‘ice or meth’ since she was a teenager, and that she had a ‘wonderful technique for finding the wrong friends and men’.
Ms Harrison said her son met Ms Leembruggen in rehab in Mareeba, west of Cairns, six years ago, and the couple had Nakoa before they separated several years ago.
‘She wasn’t the best at choosing dudes, but she liked to see the best in people,’ said Mr Wilesmith.
Nakoa, who has category three autism and is non-verbal, has not yet been told his mother is dead.
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His great-grandfather confirmed he was now in the care of his grandmother Julia, himself and his wife, Colleen.
Cris Wilesmith is now hoping to be reconciled with his special-needs son after several years
Mystery surrounds what happened to Ms Leembruggen between her hair appointment on Friday and her body being found in the sand dunes on Tuesday.
Her grandfather told the Mail he was the last family member to see her alive when he drove her from the family’s rural Mt Jukes home to the salon, dropping her off at 9am.
‘She was quite okay,’ he said. ‘I drove her in because she doesn’t have a licence, and said, “Give me a yell when you’re ready to be picked up”.
‘Then she sent me a message saying, “Don’t worry about picking me up, I’ll get my own transport home”.’
He never heard from her again, and found out she was dead when police arrived at the family property on Tuesday morning.
The Mail previously revealed an associate of Ms Leembruggen had seen a Snapchat from her over the weekend, in which she was dancing with a female friend.
Mr Leembruggen said he had not seen the Snapchat personally, nor did he know where or when it was posted.
‘A family friend contacted us to say they had seen it, but the post, being Snapchat, has disappeared,’ he said.
It was not unusual for Ms Leembruggen to vanish for several days
Mr Leembruggen said the family did not report her missing because it was not out of character for her to vanish for days at a time.
‘She didn’t mention any plans for the weekend [when I dropped her off]. We were treated a bit like mushrooms [by her] and kept in the dark,’ he said.
‘She often didn’t come home for four or five days. You wouldn’t see her and then she’d come home.’
Mr Leembruggen said he had not been told how his granddaughter had died, and said her body had been flown to Townsville for an autopsy.
He said her mother Julia had ‘lost it’ and the family collectively ‘broke down’ when police sat them down at their kitchen table and informed them of the death.
Police are desperate to solve the mystery over her movements between September 11 and 15, and have appealed for locals to assist the investigation.
‘We’re trying to fill a four-day gap at this time and that’s why we’re seeking information from members of the public,’ Mackay Whitsunday District Detective Inspector Emma Novosel said.
‘The area where Payge’s body was located is quite dense and difficult to navigate.’
Police are treating her death as ‘suspicious until it is proved otherwise’ after she was found on a Mackay beach (pictured)
Detective Inspector Novosel said the autopsy will help determine the cause of death but it was too early to say if Ms Leembruggen died at the beach or her body was moved there.
‘The area where Payge’s body was located is quite dense and difficult to navigate.
‘We always treat an unexplained death as suspicious until proven otherwise,’ she said. ‘Our thoughts are really with the family. We’re assisting them as much as we can.
‘The beach is safe for everyone to use. We’ve got no concerns about the safety of the general public and using that area.’
Ms Leembruggen, about 178cm tall, was last seen wearing a white top, bright red trousers and a red bow in her brown hair.
Do you know more? Email karleigh.smith@dailymail.com.au
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