An unusual romantic relationship with Lindt Cafe gunman Man Haron Monis cast a "spell' over Amirah Droudis which led her to kill his former wife, a murder conviction and a stint of at least 33 years in jail.
Droudis will be 68 when she is eligible for parole over the savage and frenzied stabbing and burning of her "evil" lover's 30-year-old former wife.
The 37-year-old was last year found guilty of stabbing her victim 18 times, dousing her in petrol and setting her alight at a Werrington block of flats in Sydney's west on April 21, 2013.
Droudis killed at Monis' behest after a bitter family dispute. She continued the attack after her victim pleaded for mercy and a witness begged her not to start the fire.
"It was the desire of both the offender and Monis to remove (the victim) permanently from the picture," Justice Peter Johnson said when sentencing Droudis in the NSW Supreme Court on Wednesday.
"A savage and sustained knife attack starkly reveals the intention of the offender, followed up by the use of fire, which would obliterate any possible chance of survival."
Droudis, who wore a hijab during the murder, appeared to show no emotion as the sentence was handed down.
Justice Johnson said the pair had a "highly unusual and longstanding relationship" and that Monis exercised control over his partner.
Nevertheless, he found abuse at the hands of Monis did not reduce Droudis' high moral culpability and noted she had never shown remorse.
The 10-week judge-only trial in 2016 heard Monis, who was involved with numerous women for much of the time he knew Droudis, had approached the Rebels bikie gang to conduct the murder but was not taken seriously.
Justice Johnson said the "evil man" on the day of the killing devised an "elaborate and highly contrived" alibi, which included staging a minor collision outside Penrith police station and demanding to be taken to hospital.
"Monis' personality was marked by ... a grandiose sense of self-importance, a lack of empathy and a demonstrated capacity for exploitative behaviour and deceitful conduct," he said.
"No one mourns his passing, and many have been left to grapple with the consequences of his destructive acts."
The Crown argued the murder fell close to, if not in, the worst-case category and suggested Droudis should be jailed for the term of her natural life.
Defence barrister Mark Ierace SC, on the other hand, claimed the "spell" Monis had over Droudis had been broken and she had every reason to return to a law-abiding life.
Justice Johnson said she had fair prospects of rehabilitation and sentenced her to a maximum 44 years.
Outside court, a friend of the victim smiled and said she was "overjoyed" with the result, despite expecting a life sentence.
"She (the victim) would do anything for anyone," the woman, who wished to be identified only as Sonia, said as she broke down in tears.
"If she saw someone stranded in the street she would pull up, she would stop, talk to them, take them home or even feed them."
Droudis converted to Islam after meeting Monis and had long supported his extreme actions, appearing in videos celebrating the Holocaust, September 11 and the Bali bombings.
Justice Johnson said the experience of her faith, being associated with crime and Monis, appeared to be "poisoned chalice".
With time already served in custody, Droudis will be eligible for parole in December 2047.
