Russell Manser’s girlfriend breaks her silence about notorious bank robber-turned-TikTok star’s sudden death – as new details emerge

The girlfriend of reformed criminal-turned-TikTok star Russell Manser has paid a heartfelt tribute to her lover after he died unexpectedly at 56 over the weekend.

Manser was a serial bank robber who spent 23 years in prisons around Australia, until turning his life around and starting the charity ‘Voice of a Survivor’ to help victims of abuse.

His cause of death is yet to be made public, but sources told Daily Mail Australia he was found ‘unresponsive’ by a loved one at a residential address in Sydney.

Manser had a following of about 134,000 on TikTok and had only recently shared a video discussing Asian gangs in prisons and, days earlier, the disappearance of missing Ballarat mum Samantha Murphy. 

Fans and loved ones flooded social media to pay tribute to Manser, praising his work as an advocate for those who suffered physical, psychological and sexual abuse.

On Sunday night, his partner Liliana Gagic posted a series of photos of them together on Instagram.

In the caption, she wrote: ‘Goodbye my lover, until we meet again.’

Former inmate Max Beer posted a video with Manser on TikTok with the caption: ‘RIP my brother, my best friend.’

In the video, the pair were talking about the importance of staying motivated and not comparing yourself to others. ‘Just be happy with you,’ Manser said.

Women’s rights campaign group, Equality Light Gratitude, thanked him for speaking out against domestic violence.

‘He stood up for women and DV matters generally, saying it’s never OK to use control, restraint or violence,’ the TikTok post read.

‘Such a great example of reformation – why did we have to lose one of the good men so early? Prayers are with his loved ones.’

Another friend wrote a lengthy Facebook tribute to Manser the early hours of Monday morning.

In the post, she said Manser encouraged her with calls and texts, which ‘saved’ her from relapsing and going back to prison.

‘Russ saved me so many times it’s not funny he saved me from relapsing he saved me from going back to prison with his words of encouragement and his phone calls and messages,’ she wrote.

‘Most of all, he gave not only myself but many others hope and strength when the system tried to break us.’

‘He taught me that it doesn’t matter what your past looks like your future can still be as bright as you want it to you just have to work for it and always believe in yourself.’

Adam Washbourne, from an organisation called Fighters Against Child Abuse, posted a video tribute on Facebook.

‘Russell’s much more than the ultimate redemption arc, he’s much more than the child abuse survivor who went from boys homes to prison to having a media empire and book deal,’ he said.

‘He’s also probably the greatest mate you could have – he’s the absolute definition of cheer when your mates are winning, even if it doesn’t involve you.

‘Absolutely love you Russell and you’re going to be sorely missed.’

Manser was the youngest of six children and grew up in Mount Druitt, in Sydney’s west.

His parents were British migrants who supported their large family by working in factories.

He previously said there was no domestic violence or alcoholism in his family, but he noticed convicted criminals who returned to Mount Druitt from jail were almost rewarded by the community.

They had new cars, nice clothes and attractive girlfriends, whereas everyone else appeared exhausted and miserable – waking up at 5am in the middle of winter to do a 10-hour shift in a factory.

The year he turned 17, he stole a Porsche from the wealthy suburb of Whale Beach on Sydney’s northern beaches and was given an adult sentence of 12 months in Long Bay Correctional Centre.

He recalled a prison guard throwing his mattress onto the floor of a cell he shared with two men in a protection wing of the jail which was used to house convicted paedophiles.

‘Have fun, boys,’ the guard had said.

He was abused that night, and again a few nights later by a third inmate who offered him his first shot of heroin in return for his silence. 

At the time, Manser had spent time in juvenile detention at Daruk Boys Home at Windsor, northwest of Sydney.

Within days of his six-month sentence, he was sexually abused by wardens.

‘The first night I seen staff grabbing kids out of beds and taking them to the ablutions block,’ he told ABC’s Australian Story.

‘The second or third night I could smell one of the staff members breathing on me, and he had breath like a sewer.

‘He marched me into the ablutions block and sexually abused me.’

Authorities have since urged any male who attended the school between 1965 and 1985 to come forward. In 2018, it was reported at least 80 alleged victims had opened up about instances of sexual and physical abuse at the home.

Manser left prison a shell of his former self and nursing an addiction to heroin.

He went on to rob five banks in the early 1990s, on one occasion stealing $90,000 from the Commonwealth Bank in Lane Cove in Sydney’s north.

Manser committed five robberies within a few months and had been sentenced to 15 years behind bars at the age of 23, with a non-parole period of seven-and-a-half years.

He started a charity, but it folded last July because victims were hesitant to come forward due to the NSW Supreme Court’s decision not to pursue cases where the alleged perpetrator had died.

‘It’s been really tough going of late,’ Manser told Daily Mail Australia, at the time.

Manser had a podcast called The Stick Up, which featured guests including businessman Mark Bouris, Australian rapper Ay Huncho, NRL star Liam Knight and ex-criminal-turned-porn-star Dale Egan.

He also became known for lifting the lid on what life was like inside some of Australia’s toughest jails and what their most infamous inhabitants were really like.

Manser is survived by his two sons. 

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