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<\/p>\nIf someone you love is killed, you expect justice.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s what Isla Bell\u2019s family believed after the 19-year-old\u2019s body was found hidden inside a refrigerator and dumped at a Melbourne waste facility.<\/p>\n
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Isla was killed and her body dumped in a fridge. Her family are heartbroken by what happened after.\u00a0A Current Affair <\/p>\n
Instead, they say they\u2019ve been monstrously failed by a justice system they believe is more concerned with protecting its own reputation than advocating for victims and their families.<\/p>\n
Isla disappeared in October 2024, just 18 days before her 20th birthday.<\/p>\n
Six weeks later, her body was discovered at the Dandenong Waste Management Facility in Melbourne\u2019s east.<\/p>\n
Her mother, Justine Spokes, struggles to talk about that day.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was just the most deeply traumatising thing for a mother to go through,\u201d she told A Current Affair through tears.<\/p>\n
Nearly two years after Isla\u2019s death, her family still struggle to speak about the young woman they lost.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was a ray of sunshine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe had such a deep reverence for all life and would never, ever harm anyone or anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Police believed they had their case<\/p>\n
Victoria Police arrested two men over Isla\u2019s death.<\/p>\n
Marat Ganiev, 53, was originally charged with murder.<\/p>\n
Eyal Yaffe, 57, was accused of helping dispose of Isla\u2019s body.<\/p>\n
Isla\u2019s grandfather, David Spokes, said the family believed investigators were building a strong case.<\/p>\n
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Nearly two years after Isla\u2019s death, her family still struggle to speak about the young woman they lost.\u00a0A Current Affair <\/p>\n
\u201cWe had a lot of confidence that they were leaving no stone unturned,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Court documents alleged Isla entered Ganiev\u2019s apartment in St Kilda and never left.<\/p>\n
Police say they had evidence alleging Ganiev spent the next two days cleaning his apartment before Yaffe arrived with a trailer carrying a refrigerator.<\/p>\n
Investigators alleged the pair later transported another refrigerator wrapped in plastic to a number of locations across Melbourne before dumping it on the side of the road at a hard rubbish collection.<\/p>\n
Isla\u2019s body was ultimately found at the waste facility.<\/p>\n
Charges dramatically changed<\/p>\n
As the case moved towards trial, it quickly snowballed.<\/p>\n
The murder charge against Ganiev was downgraded to manslaughter.<\/p>\n
Then, just one week before trial, prosecutors withdrew the manslaughter charge entirely, replacing it with attempting to pervert the course of justice.<\/p>\n
On the same day, Yaffe, who was released on bail, had all charges against him discontinued, which meant he was a free man.<\/p>\n
Ganiev is now seeking to have the remaining charge thrown out, arguing the late change to the indictment amounted to an abuse of process.<\/p>\n
For Isla\u2019s family, the unanswered questions remain impossible to reconcile.<\/p>\n
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For Isla\u2019s family, the unanswered questions remain impossible to reconcile.\u00a0Facebook<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are a lot of things about this case that I don\u2019t understand, one thing I do know is that Isla did not wrap herself in plastic and put herself inside that fridge,\u201d said David.<\/p>\n
Isla\u2019s mother believes a late change in the prosecution team derailed the case, accusing the Victorian Office of Public Prosecutions (OPP) of numerous failures and a lack of empathy towards her family.<\/p>\n
\u201cIsla has no voice,\u201d Justine said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe community actually believes that the OPP is defending us, and it\u2019s like no, they\u2019re defending the crown, and they\u2019re defending an easy win,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Victorian shadow attorney-general James Newbury believes the current system is failing families.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are questions being asked in this case as to whether decisions are being made around convenience and cost,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Why prosecutors say they withdrew the charges<\/p>\n
OPP told A Current Affair the decision followed an extensive review of the evidence and was based solely on whether prosecutors could prove the case beyond reasonable doubt.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe recognised how difficult this process has been for Isla Bell\u2019s family and that the outcome is not what they hoped for,\u201d an OPP spokesperson said in a statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause medical experts could not conclusively establish Isla\u2019s cause of death, prosecutors said they could not prove that essential element.<\/p>\n
\u201cWithout being able to prove how Isla died, it is not possible to ascribe responsibility to any person.\u201d<\/p>\n
David described it as \u201cmystifying\u201d, adding: \u201cThe community expectation is: let the jury decide.\u201d<\/p>\n
Justine agreed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were basically told reasonable doubt means a hundred per cent certainty, that\u2019s not what the community thinks,\u201d said Justine.<\/p>\n
Calls for reform<\/p>\n
The case has prompted renewed calls for changes to Victoria\u2019s justice system.<\/p>\n
Newbury says families should have a greater voice before serious charges are downgraded or withdrawn.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think most Australians are watching on asking, \u2018how could this have happened?\u2019,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow can we have lost a young 19-year-old girl and no-one is being held to account?\u201d<\/p>\n
Isla\u2019s family wants prosecutors to publicly explain decisions to withdraw or downgrade major charges.<\/p>\n
They are also calling for dedicated legal advocates whose sole role is to represent victims\u2019 families throughout criminal proceedings.<\/p>\n
\u201cVictims should have equal access to the legal system,\u201d Justine said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t have any access because the OPP is not advocating for victims.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would just love it if all these ministers could just open their hearts, give an honest opinion, have some integrity and lead us out of this.\u201d<\/p>\n
A line in the sand<\/p>\n
Newbury believes it reflects broader concerns about violence against women and whether families are given meaningful access to justice.<\/p>\n
\u201cIsla\u2019s story is a line in the sand,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has to move forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
Justine has established Isla Bell\u2019s Legacy in honour of her daughter.<\/p>\n