Father of Hannah McGuire’s accused killer Lachlan Young breaks his silence with foul-mouthed spray at reporter

The father of the man accused of killing Hannah McGuire has unleashed a foul-mouthed tirade at a reporter when asked about his son’s murder charge.

Lachlan Young, 21, faced court on Tuesday charged over the death of his ex-girlfriend, whose body was found in a burnt-out car on Friday morning at Scarsdale, 25kms south of Ballarat.

Nine News reporter Gillian Lantouris approached the accused’s dad in the driveway of his home as he retreated inside a garage.

Ms Lantouris asked: ‘Do you have anything to say about Lachie’s murder charge?’

The father replied: ‘F**k, get away, f**k off!’, from inside the garage as the electric roller door came down.

Earlier on Tuesday, the heartbroken mother of Ms McGuire, 22, wept openly in the Ballarat Magistrates’ Court as the man accused of her daughter’s murder hid his face.

Sporting a mullet haircut, Young slumped in court as the grief-stricken mother burst into tears in her seat at the front of the courtroom.

The court heard Young would be kept behind bars until his next court date in September. 

Outside court, Ms McGuire’s devastated parents Glenn and Debbie and her brother sobbed and consoled each other as Ballarat lawyer Brooke Tamanika spoke on their behalf.

‘As you can imagine this is a very devastating time for the family, for Hannah’s loved ones and for our community as a whole,’ she said.

‘The family have been assisting the police, however I cannot comment on the status of the matter.’

Mr McGuire could not contain his grief as Ms Tamanika spoke to reporters, turning his back and attempting to cover his own pain as he sobbed uncontrollably.

He was comforted by his family before police escorted them all away from the media pack to their car across the street.

Friends of Ms McGuire were also seen leaving the court in tears.

Inside court, little information was provided on Homicide Squad detectives’ case against the alleged killer.

The court heard multiple crime scenes were still being investigated with police combing through CCTV footage.

Young’s lawyer complained to the court that police had provided her with no information about the allegations which was limiting her ability to launch any kind of bail application in the Supreme Court of Victoria.

‘At this stage the defence have been giving nothing by police. All of the information we have has been provided by the media,’ she said.

‘It would appear as though the police have swooped very quickly and obviously there is enough evidence against Mr Young to charge him with murder.’

The court heard it will take the prosecution 16 weeks to compile their brief of evidence against Young.

Young’s lawyer revealed it was her client’s first time in custody and he needed access to anti-depressant medication.

It is understood Ms McGuire’s death had initially been dismissed as a suicide after her body was found in a burnt out car.

But a coroner’s report indicated she had allegedly sustained deadly injuries before the vehicle was engulfed in flames.

The remains of the were found near State Forest Road, close to Scarsdale, south-west of Ballarat in Victoria, just before 1am on Friday.

It can further be revealed Ms McGuire had been friends with Young’s sister Bek Young.

Images of Young on social media indicate he enjoyed a good upbringing and remained close to his parents.

His parents’ family home is situated a stone’s throw from the Sebastopol home where detectives arrested him on Sunday.

A 22-year-old was also arrested that afternoon but was released without charge.

Young and Ms McGuire had been in a relationship and were living together for the past year before they recently split, Daily Mail Australia understands.

Ms McGuire, who worked at her family’s pub – The National Hotel in Clunes – had lived with Young up until a week ago when she moved.

In a post on the pub’s Facebook page, the McGuire family said they were ‘broken’.

‘The pub will be open as normal on Wednesday, we’ll leave you in the capable hands of Johnny Hind for a few days,’ the post read.

‘Thank you everyone for your love, support and kind words. Our hearts are broken.

‘You weren’t just a star to us. You were our whole damn sky. Miss you Princess!’

If you or someone you know is experiencing family violence, phone 1800 RESPECT or the Crisis Care Helpline on 1800 199 008.