Murder accused said Elizabeth Struhs’ worsening health ‘just a little trial’ to test faith, court hears

Toowoomba religious sect leader, Brendan Luke Stevens, expressed confidence that eight-year-old would be healed by God, trial hears

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A religious leader charged with murdering an eight-year-old girl told her parents their daughter’s worsening health was “just a little trial” to prove their faith, a judge has heard.

Brendan Luke Stevens, the 62-year-old leader of a small Christian group called “The Saints”, refused to enter a plea in the Brisbane supreme court to the murder of Elizabeth Rose Struhs on 7 January 2022.

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