This couple at Sydney’s upmarket Balmoral beach looked like almost any other lapping up the winter sun. But the woman with the black nail polish and ominous ankle bulge nurses a dark sinister secret…
Nearly 15 years after being convicted of murdering her newborn daughter, former water polo champion Keli Lane was seen enjoying a sunny day out with her devoted boyfriend.
Keli, 50, appeared to be relishing her taste of freedom as she soaked up the sun at Balmoral Beach near Mosman on Sydney’s lower north shore, accompanied by her long-time partner Patrick Cogan and a female friend.
The group relaxed on in the sun after getting food from a local fish and chip shop.
She is required to wear an ankle monitor at all times which can be seen as a bulge beneath her black active-wear leggings.
She has been residing in a halfway house in Western Sydney and has reportedly held various jobs on work release since mid-2023, including roles at a steel manufacturing company and a dairy product factory.
Each weekend, she’s been permitted to leave the facility to stay with Cogan who has remained steadfastly by her side throughout her time in prison, despite it costing him his job as a school teacher.
Mr Cogan, 50, is also now Lane’s sponsor for her weekend jaunts, signing her in and out of jail as well as taking full responsibility for her whereabouts during her time away.
He lives in a $2.6 million home in Dee Why on Sydney’s northern beaches.
Keli Lane with partner Patrick Cogan. Her ankle monitor bulge has be seen beneath her black active-wear pants
The pair were seen at Balmoral Beach near Mosman on Sydney ‘s lower north shore
In recent months, Lane has been seen wearing a chunky silver band on her ring finger—believed to be from Cogan, though she’s prohibited from wearing it while serving the remainder of her 13.5-year minimum sentence at Dillwynia Correctional Centre.
The decision to grant Lane weekend day release comes after she was denied parole last year.
Lane was found guilty of the 1996 murder of her daughter, Tegan, and was sentenced to a maximum of 18 years in jail with a non-parole period of 13 years and five months.
At the time of sentencing she was made eligible for parole in 2024 but her application was denied under New South Wales’ ‘no body, no parole’ laws, introduced in 2022 while she was incarcerated.
Lane’s full prison sentence won’t finish until December 2028, but a Corrective Services NSW spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia they have an ‘obligation’ to start the release process.
‘Corrective Services NSW (CSNSW) has a statutory obligation to prepare offenders for release from prison and reintegration into the community, through short periods of external leave,’ the spokesperson said.
‘Offenders are risk-assessed before being granted external leave and approval is determined on a case-by-case basis.
‘CSNSW cannot comment on the circumstances of individual offenders due to privacy legislation.’
The couple reconnected and began dating again while Lane was under police investigation
Mystery surrounds the shock removal of Keli Lane’s long-time partner from a Sydney school amid claims his support for the convicted child killer is to blame
Each weekend, Keli (pictured centre) is permitted to leave the facility to stay with Cogan who has remained steadfastly by her side throughout her time in prison
The group lapped-up the winter sun at Balmoral beach near Mosman in Sydney’s lower north shore
External leave including work release, education leave, day and weekend leave can be approved for offenders before or following the expiry of their non-parole period.
The couple have known each other since they were teenagers and reconnected just before Lane was arrested in 2009. The father of two has since shown unwavering public support for Lane and is a regular during visiting hours.
Earlier this year, Cogan was suddenly dismissed by the Sydney north shore school where he taught for 30 years. He was escorted off the premises from the Chatswood campus of St Pius School in May without any official explanation.
It’s believed his ongoing relationship with Lane is at the centre of the controversy, although it’s understood no formal reason was given to him.
Mr Cogan has loyally stood by Lane for years and the couple made no secret of their relationship with sources close to the couple telling Daily Mail Australia the decision to unexpectedly stand him down now ‘simply baffling’.
‘It makes no sense though because Pat’s support for Keli is not new,’ a school insider said.
It was September 12, 1996, when Lane went to Auburn Hospital in outer western Sydney and delivered baby Tegan in secret.
Two days later, having not yet been discharged, Lane snuck out of the ward with Tegan around 12pm and arrived back at her parents’ home on the Northern Beaches alone by 3pm.
Keli is relishing her taste of freedom as she soaked up the sun at Balmoral Beach with her boyfriend and mystery friend
Keli and a friend are seen at a local fish and chip shop waiting for food
The school has declined to make a statement regarding the decision which has blindsided staff and students
That night, dressed in white, she attended a friend’s wedding with her then-partner, former rugby player, Duncan Gillies.
Her parents, partner and friends have all since claimed they had no idea she was pregnant, let alone that she’d just given birth that day.
It wasn’t until a social worker noted inaccuracies in her file as to Tegan’s whereabouts and filed a missing person’s report that Lane was arrested.
Lane has always maintained her innocence and claims she handed the newborn to the biological father, a man called Andrew Morris or Norris.
During the trial Lane’s bizarre love life came under scrutiny after it was revealed that between the ages of 17 and 24 she’d accidentally fallen pregnant five times.
Many of the pregnancies were the result of affairs and kept a secret from the biological fathers.
The first two times, Lane terminated her pregnancies. The next three times she carried her babies to term without telling a soul.
Two of the babies, born either side of Tegan, were adopted out.
However, none of this deterred Cogan from attending the trial and supporting Lane.
While the pair hoped Lane would be found not guilty and had planned a future together, they instead continued their relationships via strict prison visits, phone calls and love letters.
Clearly weathering the test of time, the pair looked like any other happy couple, holding hands and stealing kisses.
It was during her incarceration at Dillwynia Correctional Centre in Sydney’s north-west that Cogan gave Lane the silver ring.
The couples most recent sighting comes after Veteran PE teacher Cogan was escorted off the premises from the Chatswood campus of St Pius School without any official explanation last month.
It’s believed his ongoing relationship with Lane is at the centre of the controversy, although it’s understood no formal reason has been given to him.
The school has declined to shed any light on the reason for the axing, and declined to comment when contacted by Daily Mail Australia.
School staff were said to be ‘blindsided’ by the decision, which was not even officially announced to students who were left in the dark over his sudden disappearance.
The school insider claims it may stem from an entirely separate case to Lane’s conviction, which can’t be discussed for legal reasons.
