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A Melbourne teenager who vanished almost a month and a half ago was allegedly murdered by her “sugar daddy” before her body was stashed inside a fridge, police documents have revealed as two men face court over her death.
Isla Bell, 19, was last seen leaving her Brunswick home at about 6pm on October 4 but allegedly remained in contact with a friend until shortly after midnight on October 7.
According to a summary of her alleged final moments and death released by the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court, Bell texted a mate that she had met the “best Russian sugar daddy”.
“She stated that this person had been lavishing her with gifts and had saved her from sex traffickers,” it reads.
Isla Bell was reported missing in early October. Photo / Supplied
Human remains, suspected to be the missing 19-year-old but yet to be formally identified, were discovered at a Dandenong waste management facility on Tuesday morning.
The same day, Victoria Police charged two men after raids on two properties in Bentleigh East and Mulgrave.
Marat Ganiev, 53, and Eyal Yaffe, 57, appeared separately in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday following their arrests.
Ganiev is accused of murdering Bell on October 7 in St Kilda East, while Yaffe has been charged with assisting an offender after the fact.
According to a summary of the police case released by the court, Bell was allegedly caught on CCTV entering Ganiev’s St Kilda apartment at about 9.30pm on October 5 and was not seen leaving.
Police allege that at about 12.43am on October 7, the footage captured a fight through a gap in a kitchen window, with Bell seen falling to the ground.
“Investigators observed what appears to be Bell’s head whipping around as if she has been struck,” the brief states.
It’s alleged the CCTV footage shows Ganiev cleaning thoroughly over the next few days before Yaffe arrived with a black fridge on October 9.
The fridge allegedly remained in Ganiev’s apartment for eight days before Yaffe assisted him to remove it wrapped in plastic on October 17.
It was allegedly moved to various locations around Melbourne before a man found the fridge and opened it.
The brief alleges a bag fell out and the man threw it into a rubbish bin, believing it was animal remains.
Marat Ganiev. Photo / Supplied
According to the summary, Ganiev allegedly claimed he did not kill Bell but used the fridge to transport her remains after she died at his place.
It’s alleged during his interview that he told police he did not have sex with her nor buy her gifts.
The summary alleges Yaffe told police he helped deliver a new fridge to Ganiev and assisted him to dump the old one 300m from his home on a kerbside pick-up without knowing the contents.
During his brief court appearance, Ganiev was slumped over and rubbing his face as his lawyer Adrian Lewin noted that his client was prescribed methadone and had not received a dose in two days.
Yaffe, the court was told, had intended to apply for bail but would instead seek to be freed at a hearing on Friday.
He was brought into court on Wednesday afternoon, smiling and nodding at family members as lawyer, Ian Hill KC, requested he be seen by a nurse for a bad back.
The missing persons squad formally took over the investigation into Bell’s suspicious disappearance in late October.
Human remains, suspected to be Bell but yet to be formally identified, were discovered in Dandenong on Tuesday morning, more than one month after the teenager was first reported missing.
Victoria Police confirmed to NewsWire the remains were located in a waste management facility.
Three men were arrested on Tuesday morning after detectives executed search warrants on two Bentleigh East and Mulgrave properties.
“Isla’s family have been notified and police will ensure a number of support services are in place,” a statement from police read.
Family and friends of Bell had plastered her photos across social media and Melbourne’s inner north over the past month and a half, urging community assistance to locate her.
According to her family, Bell last made contact with friends via social media on October 7 – the day she was allegedly murdered.
“Her conversation was abruptly stopped and her phone has not been on since, there have been no confirmed sightings since,” her family shared online.
Bell was reported missing on October 10, just a few weeks shy of her 20th birthday.
Shortly after her disappearance, Isla’s mother shared a heartbreaking plea for her daughter to get in contact so they could organise the celebrations for her upcoming birthday.
“We’re looking forward to our reef trip for your birthday coming up,” she said online. “We’ve been trying to call you to book flights.”
Missing persons posters were shared widely before the tragic discovery.
Days later, still without any word from the teenager, the Melbourne mum shared another post, begging for the teenager’s return.
“Haven’t heard from you for a while now and miss you like crazy,” she said.
A Facebook group was also set up in the hopes of finding the teenager. “We need answers,” a post read.
