Cruise Ship Drug Overdose
Dianne Brimble - Drug Overdose - Death
P & O Cruise Lines - September 23, 2002
She also testified to Mark Wilhelm having three cabins during his brief stay on the cruise. She says Mr Wilhelm was moved to a better cabin shared with one or two companions after he was removed from the death cabin. But, when they began their sexual relationship, Mr Wilhelm was in another bigger, single cabin with free movie channels. P & O denies that he was moved twice ending up in a better cabin.
She also testified that she was disappointed when Wilhelm left the cruise early. Later though, she seemed bitter that Wilhelm had not returned any of her phone calls to him, made after they returned to Australia. She said that she felt like Wilhelm had engaged in their sexual relationship, to "use her for comfort".
Bobby Jo Vial's mother Donna Vial also testified. She testified that Mark Wilhelm told her he did have sex with Dianne Brimble. She also testified that Mark Wilhelm did say Dianne had an overdose, he claimed she died after falling out of bed and hitting her head.
Crew Member Melvyn Armitage Testifies
The inquest hears from Crew Member Melvyn Armitage, photo here, as to why the crime scene was disturbed. Armtage has spotty memory, his testimony called selective memory by Deputy State Coroner, Jacqueline Milledge, who says, "The things you remember firmly," she said, "are the things that go in your favor. And the things you don't remember firmly are important to this inquest." , as he continually said "I don't remember.". Armitage was the Passenger Services Director on duty the night Dianne Brimble died. He testified he rushed to the scene of the crime when he heard there was a problem in cabin #D182.
According to Armitage, the medical team was on the scene when he arrived, and they were working to revive Dianne at that time. He said Silvestri was also on the scene ranting and raving "get the bitch out of my room. That's my room". He said he will never forget Silvestri and this behavior that night. He says that It's an impression he'll never forget. He was just so arrogant.
He also testified another man was pacing the corridor, looking pale and shocked. That man told him "I slept with that lady last night." The man was identified as Mark Wilhelm.
In further testimony he says he heard the page for Dianne Brimble, placed by her 12 year old daughter, but didn't know that the woman who had just been pronounced dead on the floor before him, was Dianne Brimble. At the time he was more focused on finding new accomodations for the occupants of the cabin due to the fuss Silvestri was making. I said to the staff captain "I've got a situation. Some guy is causing noise and I've been told the cabin has to be sealed. There's three days until we get to Noumea. Can they go in and get their clothes?"
The Chief of security told him the cabin had to be sealed and nobody should be allowed inside. But the decision was uiltimately made by the second in command, Staff Captain who told him the occupants of the cabin could go in, one by one, escorted, to get their personal belongings, but were not to touch any bedsheets towels, or other property not belonging to them.
Armitage says the men only removed clothing and some pills. But his testimony was laced heavily with inability to remember of specify details. He is clear he was not intimidated by Silvestri who he labeled as an animal.
But a photo taken of the cabin, wth two men sleeping in the beds, Matthew Slade and Letterio Silvestri, shows a bottle of clear liquid on a nightstand, and Dianne Brimble lying dead or dying on the floor. The bottle of clear liquid was not there when the cabin was sealed off.
Armitage admits he was "negligent" at the crime scene,. It has taken four years for the cruise line, at any level, to admit any negligence in this case. He has also denied trying to avoid police because he knew that he had made a mistake. Armitage did not give a formal statement to police until ten months later.
P&O Damage Control
P & O Cruise line announced a new policy today that any passenger involved in a situation would be removed from the ship, without refund. The question would be in this case, would the innocent people in Dianne Brimble's cabin be removed as they were from their cabin, or would the eight person of interest be removed, or both? They did specify public nudity or sex would result in removal from the ship in the future and they said bars would be close from 4am to 8am.
Homicide Detectives Shunned
NSW Water Police shunned an offer by homicide detectives to investigate the death, after they were notified by the vessel ,and told them they were not required, "This is our trip.", they said, as they claimed jurisdiction. But, when it came out how poorly the investigation was handled by the previously described " disco dancing investigatiors", lead by Det Sen Constable Victor Rulewski, deputy state coroner Jacqueline Milledge asked homicide investigators to take over the case in March 2006.
The court has heard how no drug testing was done, witnesses were not interviewed, a door by door investigation was not done, but investigations dance in the disco with female passengers.
Stan Westwood Testifies
The testimony given by Stan Westwood today was extremely graphic, so much so we will not go into the entire testimony here. But Westwood says after the first interview with Mark Wilhelm, and having taken his full statement, Wilhelm reunited with this friends, and apparently wanted to give a second statement, and didn't want to stay in the same cabin with Silvestri any more. It would seem the new mates had a falling out after Dianne died. Wilhelm requested to be moved to a new cabin.
Earlier testimony outlined the fact that Wilhelm's friends were angry with him for talking to persons in authority so much. Earlier testimony has also painted a very dim picture of Silvestri. That testimony by Wilhelm said that Silverstri and himself had "consensual sex" with Dianne, which seems to match up with the fact that Silvestri was diagnosed with erectile disfunction and requred Viagra, which he had with him on the cruise. Having consensual sex with Dianne was later denied by Silvestri.
The second more shocking statement by Wilhelm gives an entirely different account of how Dianne Brimble died, contradicts the testimony of numerous witnesses, and paints Dianne Brimble as a willing particpant, actually initiating sexual intercourse with at least two partners, one in a restroom, and later in a cabin.
Stan Westwood, told the court he knew within 10 minutes of Ms Brimble being pronounced dead that there were suspicious circumstances. He ordered the cabin sealed with a padlock, security breached, and was alarmed to find out that his decision had not been taken seriously. He said that nursing staff found a tablet on the floor when they came to attempt to revived Dianne.
Westwood tesitified Slade told security staff he had taken a cocktail of sleeping pills and muscle relaxants before going to bed in the early hours of September 24, 2002, but awoke to have a cigarette later that morning. "There was a person on the ground but I didn't take notice who it was, being hungover and quite dazed from the tablets," he said.
Silvestri Testifies And Hangs Wilhelm Out To Dry On Drug Death
Silvestri testified today, and claims that Dianne Brimble and Mark Wilhelm "shared" some "Fantasy - aka GBH", known in the U.S, by the DEA as the date rape drug. Silvestri claimed Mr Wilhelm confided in him about their drug-taking after they returned Mrs Brimble to the cabin to try and revive her. Wilhelm denied this in his second written statement, given two days after Dianne died.
