Keli Lane’s secret daughter breaks her silence as the convicted baby killer’s partner reveals their shared pain: ‘The biggest victim’
The surviving daughter of convicted baby killer Keli Lane has spoken publicly for the first time to plead with authorities for her mother’s release.
Lane was sentenced to a minimum of 13 years and five months in December 2010 after the court ruled she murdered her two-day-old baby, Tegan, in September 1996.
Lane was an elite water polo player in Sydney and had hidden three pregnancies, two resulting in adoptions and the third being Tegan’s disappearance.
She has long maintained her innocence, claiming she left Tegan in the care of her father – who has never been found.
While the high-profile case is widely known across Australia, many Aussies did not know until now that Lane had another daughter five years after Tegan.
The unnamed woman, now 25, was just nine years old when her mother was jailed.
Speaking for the first time publicly, she claimed that she is the ‘forgotten victim’ in the case.
‘My mum is not a risk to anyone,’ she told A Current Affair.
Keli Lane’s surviving daughter (pictured together) has spoken publicly for the first time
The now 25-year-old (pictured as a baby with her mother) was nine years old when Lane was jailed for killing her two-day-old baby, Tegan
‘She is loved, she is wanted by her friends and family, and I love her deeply.
‘I know how precious time is with your parents because it is something that can never be replaced.’
The 25-year-old slammed the NSW government’s ‘No Body, No Parole’ laws, which prevented her mother from getting parole once she served her minimum sentence in 2024.
As Lane has never revealed the location of Tegan’s body, given her claim she did not kill the baby, she will not be released until her maximum sentence is completed in December 2028.
Her 25-year-old daughter claimed the laws, strengthened in 2022, were applied to her mother’s case ‘without proper consideration of her individual circumstances’.
‘Throughout all of this, very few people have considered how these decisions have affected me. I am a forgotten victim in this situation,’ she said.
Lane’s long-term boyfriend, Patrick Cogan, is not the 25-year-old’s father but has seen their relationship grow over the years.
When asked if the pair were close, he said: ‘It does sound a little bit farfetched. However, she was on the phone to her daughter daily.
Lane’s partner, Patrick Cogan (above), described her as ‘kind’ and a ‘dedicated and caring mother’
Lane (pictured on temporary release with Cogan in 2025) is not eligible for parole as Tegan’s body has never been found
‘Assisting her in everything that she was trying to pursue – whether it was schoolwork, friendships, dramas.
‘At one stage I know she (Lane) was not happy with where her daughter’s grades were and so Keli, out on her own, went and organised a tutor.’
Lane and Cogan started dating a year before Lane was convicted, meaning that she has been imprisoned for 16 of their 17 years together.
Cogan had nothing but good things to say about Lane.
‘Keli’s very, very kind,’ he said.
‘She’s a daughter to elderly parents who, at this point, were expecting her home a couple of years ago and Keli desperately wants to spend time with them before they pass on.
‘She’s a woman who’s primarily a mother, a dedicated and caring mother, and has done a fantastic job with her daughter.
‘That’s the girl I know.’
Lane (above) was jailed in 2010 and is set to be released in December 2028
Cogan added that his partner’s daughter is ‘a ringer for Keli’.
‘She’s been hurt more than anybody else in this situation, she’s lost her mother,’ he said.
‘She’s the biggest victim. She’s missed out on so much.’
She and Cogan meet with Lane on weekends, when she is temporarily released from jail.
The 25-year-old hoped her mother would soon be released full-time so they could continue bonding.
‘My hope is simple: that my mum can come home and that I can spend meaningful time with her, continue to build our relationship and make up for some of the last sixteen years we have already lost,’ she said.
A NSW government spokesperson told ACA: ‘Individual parole decisions are made independently by the State Parole Authority, not by the government.’
The State Parole Authority cannot grant parole to convicted killers unless the offender has helped police find the victim’s body or remains, due to the ‘No Body, No Parole’ laws.
‘While we are unable to comment on the circumstances of individual offenders, the government supports the No Body No Parole law and has no plans to change it,’ the spokesperson said.
‘The laws are designed to encourage offenders to reveal the location of their victim, giving families the best chance of getting answers and some measure of closure.’
