True Crime Conversations · Mamamia Podcasts

The Woman So Obsessed With Killers She Became One

·59 min·4 clips

Text messages had Lennon writing, “I will fear you but respect you,” while Gemma replied, “you truly understand my SOS role.”

1. True Crime Conversations covers the June 2016 murder of Aaron Page Sweetman in a Perth house where Gemma Lilly and Trudy Lennon had lived for three weeks. 2. Host Claire Murphy speaks with former legal affairs editor Tim Clark, who reported the case for The West Australian and followed the trial closely. 3. The episode asks how a 25-year-old British immigrant and a 44-year-old mum of two moved from horror fantasy into a planned killing. 4. Clark says Aaron was 18, knew Trudy Lennon through her son, and was lured by an invitation to help with computer software. 5. Gemma Lilly’s background is traced through her move from the UK at 16, her interest in horror fiction, and her writings about Freddy Krueger. 6. Clark says Lilly treated Freddy Krueger as a “father figure,” kept horror memorabilia, and built an identity around an SOS persona. 7. The episode links that persona to the book Play Zone, which used the name “SOS” from Son of Sam and described followers as “maggots.” 8. Clark describes tattoos, a motorbike plate reading “1SOS1,” and a house decorated with horror material, including a Chucky doll and a signed Freddy Krueger photograph. 9. The conversation also covers Lilly’s online presence, including a Facebook page for Play Zone and stylized images that became book art. 10. Clark says a metal mask made by Lilly’s father later appeared in her fan art and helped show how deeply the character had merged with her identity. 11. The strongest turning point, in Clark’s view, came when Lilly met Trudy Lennon, who became her “best friend,” “muse,” and “accomplice.” 12. Lennon is described as older, divorced, and a BDSM submissive who was willing to be dominated in the relationship with Lilly. 13. Clark reads text messages such as “I will fear you but respect you” and “100% perfect” to show how the pair reinforced their roles. 14. He also quotes Lilly’s message about not resting until “the blood or the flesh of a screaming, pleading victim” was “gushing out and pooling on the floor.” 15. The episode details the room in the house with blue tarpaulin, a toolbox, and a hospital gurney-like bed where police believed Aaron’s body was kept. 16. Clark says the women bought acid at Bunnings, tested it on raw meat in an old pot and oven, and later switched to burying the body under a newly laid patio. 17. The tone is investigative and interview-driven, with Murphy prompting Clark to explain motive, evidence, and the police case step by step. 18. Clark’s delivery is measured but direct, and the episode uses long factual passages rather than dramatized reconstruction. 19. Listeners interested in Australian true crime and psychological motive will get the most from this episode. 20. Listeners wanting a quick, light summary of the case may skip this episode.

As heard by us

A Perth killing, a twisted plan, and the messages that exposed it.

The story moves through a nondescript brown house in Perth in June 2016, where Gemma Lilly and Trudy Lennon had been living together for just three weeks before their talk turned to homicidal fantasies and a plan to kill.

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You want a Perth case where two housemates turn homicidal behind closed doors.

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