A drug addict jailed in 2011 for the hit-run death of a Melbourne cyclist was regularly visited in prison by a desperate, grieving woman.
But it wasn't the wife of the cyclist, it was the partner of another man he killed.
Kristy Coyne would go to see Daniel Veerman, 37, and plead with him to tell her what happened to the father of her five children.
Kyal Scanlon, 29, disappeared on March 7, 2011, after leaving his home in Melbourne's eastern suburbs one morning for food vouchers.
Twelve days later his body was found by a bushwalker in a forested area of the Dandenong Ranges National Park, partially hidden by branches and bark.
Mr Scanlon's corpse was so badly decomposed that the forensic pathologist could not determine what killed him.
Stubby bottles found near Mr Scanlon's body contained DNA samples that were a strong match to Veerman, who was charged with Mr Scanlon's murder.
At the time, he was already in jail for killing another man the day after Mr Scanlon disappeared.
Veerman was driving along Mount Dandenong Road on March 8, 2011, when he struck cyclist Keiran Bailey.
He drove off without helping Mr Bailey or calling emergency services, then went to a nearby hotel car park and torched his car.
Mr Bailey died a few days later and, in December that year, Veerman was jailed for culpable driving causing death, failing to render assistance and arson.
After Veerman was charged over Mr Scanlon's death, Ms Coyne visited him.
She begged him to tell her what happened and the whereabouts of Mr Scanlon's possessions that had been taken from his body.
Veerman denied killing Mr Scanlon, saying people connected to Mr Scanlon's drug-dealing activities had killed him.
The day after a jury had been empanelled for his trial, prosecutors changed the charge to manslaughter and Veerman pleaded guilty.
At his sentencing on Thursday, Victorian Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Hollingworth accepted that Veerman's perception and judgment around the time he killed Mr Scanlon were compromised due to his mental illness and drug use.
However, she said there was no evidence of remorse for what he had done and his action had left Mr Scanlon's family devastated and angry.
"Mr Scanlon was very active in the lives of his children, and his nieces and nephews," Justice Hollingworth said.
"The children miss all the games and other fun activities they would do with him."
Veerman was jailed for nine years with a minimum of six.
Outside court, Ms Coyne said she would continue to visit Veerman in prison to ask him what happened and why.
"I just hope he suffers in there forever and doesn't make it out alive," she said.
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