A Melbourne man who murdered his male partner of 16 years was so deceitful he never told his family he was gay and people who knew him called him "the Talented Mr Ripley" a court has heard.
Michael Anthony O'Neill, 48, who murdered prominent interior designer Stuart Rattle in December last year lived a lie for five days after the murder, going about his usual routine, the court heard.
Crown prosecutor Gavin Silbert said O'Neill attended dinners, business appointments and even a party - telling friends and clients Mr Rattle, his partner, wasn't feeling well.
O'Neill later admitted to police he killed Mr Rattle by bashing him over the head with a frying pan then strangling him with a nylon dog leash on December 4, 2013.
Mr Silbert told the court O'Neill was a pathological liar.
He said one witness had said O'Neill would frequently say he had done something when he hadn't.
"We used to call him the talented Mr Ripley because he would lie and then get caught up," Mr Silbert quoted the witnesses as saying.
Mr Silbert said O'Neill was not qualified for the job he had of handling the money side of the business he shared with Mr Rattle and killed Mr Rattle in an act of financial preservation.
O'Neill admitted to the murder after police discovered inconsistencies with his story.
A blaze at the couple's apartment on December 9 was originally thought to be the cause of death.
O'Neill placed death notices in The Age and The Herald Sun stating Mr Rattle had died on December 9.
"My dearly loved partner. We are one," the notice read.
Mr Silbert said this was another attempt to cover up his actions.
O'Neill later admitted he had set the couple's home on fire to try to hide what he had done, Mr Silbert said.
Defence lawyer Ruth Shann O'Neill suffered from a dependent and narcissistic disorder.
"My client was and is a sad, inadequate, deeply dysfunctional person," Ms Shann told the court.
O'Neill's brother Colin O'Neill told the court his brother had never introduced him to Mr Rattle and never told the family he was gay.
"Michael would tell lies to avoid trouble," Mr O'Neill told the court.
Relatives of Mr Rattle told the court they felt particularly betrayed O'Neill had allowed them to comfort him.
The plea hearing continues on Tuesday.
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