Jake Bradford (pictured) was killed by Kayle Adam Hansen and James Vos. (Supplied: Facebook)
A family from Rosebud is grappling with an unimaginable loss after the Supreme Court of Victoria sentenced Kayle Adam Hansen to more than nine years in prison for the 2023 killing of 21-year-old Rosebud man Jake Bradford.
Hansen, 27, pleaded guilty to manslaughter this year, avoiding a murder trial that was due to begin next month. He will serve at least six and a half years before being eligible for parole.
A night that ended in tragedy
Bradford vanished in late January 2023 after a turbulent night spent moving through Melbourne’s south-eastern suburbs, reportedly tied to drugs and risky company. The young man was last seen near Camp Rumbug in South Gippsland, stranded after a disagreement left him alone.
It was there Hansen, accompanied by associate James Vos, returned with the intent to rob Bradford. What followed was described by prosecutors as a brutal assault: Vos attacked Bradford with a heavy metal bar, and Hansen ran over him multiple times in a stolen four-wheel drive.
They stripped Bradford of his clothes, set fire to his belongings, and dragged his body into a remote creek bed. His skeletal remains would not be discovered for nearly two years, finally located in bushland around Dollar in October 2024.
Family anguish that no sentence can ease
During sentencing, Jake Bradford’s mother, Genevieve, told the court her son had been her “best friend” and “soulmate,” describing a deep, permanent wound left by his death. In a further heartbreak, Jake’s father died from cancer only months after learning their son had disappeared.
The judge acknowledged the profound grief of the family, noting that no term of imprisonment could possibly reflect the pain and ripple effects of the crime.
Justice delivered, but the scars remain
As Hansen begins his prison term, Bradford’s loved ones are left to rebuild their lives around an unfillable absence.
