Darryl Valroy Young found guilty of triple murder in north Queensland

Darryl Valroy Young, 63, has been found guilty of a triple murder and an attempted murder at the gate of his north Queensland cattle station.

Married couple Mervyn and Maree Schwarz and her son Graham Tighe were found shot dead at the gate to Young's Shannonvale Station at Bogie on August 4, 2022.

Prosecutors told the trial that Ross Tighe – Graham Tighe's brother – was also shot in the incident but fled in a vehicle and raised the alarm.

The trial heard that Young believed the family, who were his neighbours, were stealing his cattle and he demanded a meeting at the time and place of the shooting.

Young had pleaded not guilty to three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.

The jury returned a unanimous guilty verdict on three counts of murder this afternoon after deliberating for 15 hours over three days.

Jurors were unable to reach a unanimous verdict on one count of attempted murder and later returned a majority guilty verdict with 11 jurors having reached a consensus.

Families speak

As the guilty verdicts were read, Young looked forward towards Justice Johnstone and did not show any signs of emotion.

Justice Christopher Johnstone asked Young if he had any reason that a sentence should not be imposed against him, to which Young replied: "No."

Dozens of family and friends of the Schwarz and Tighe families were in the upper gallery of the Supreme Court.

As the verdict was handed down they breathed sighs of relief and embraced tearfully.

The gallery applauded jurors as they left the courtroom after delivering the majority guilty verdict for the attempted murder charge.

A statement on behalf of both the Schwarz and Tighe families was read by Mervyn Schwarz's eldest son Guy Schwarz.

"We are grateful to the jury for their guilty verdict, but no verdict or sentence can give us back Merv, Maree and Graham, or what Ross had to survive that day," he said.

"Darryl Young took three people we loved and very nearly took a fourth.

Dozens of family and friends attended the entirety of the nearly four-week Supreme Court trial in Townsville.

Young's son, Derek Young, told reporters as he left the courthouse that he believed his father was innocent and that the murderer was "still out there".

The trial

The trial heard from more than 30 witnesses including Ross Tighe and Darryl Young.

Crown prosecutors said that rifle cartridges found in Young’s bedroom matched those at the scene of the shooting.

During the trial the crown called two witnesses who said they overheard Graham Tighe on the phone to Young the evening before the shooting.

They said Young demanded a meeting with the family on August 4, 2022, in the same location they were found dead.

Young told the trial the rifle cartridges were not his and that he never requested such a meeting with the family.