The identity of a man arrested over the alleged murder of missing Queensland man Lachlan Griffiths has been revealed.
Francescos Giorgi, 40, was on Friday arrested and charged with one count of murder at the Brisbane Magistrates Court, where he was refused bail.
The arrest followed a search of a property at Clagiraba, northwest of the Gold Coast, on Thursday afternoon.
Mr Griffiths, 34, was reported missing by his mother in late January, although police allege he was last seen alive at Slacks Creek in November 2021.
He was known to be residing in different hotels in the Brisbane area.
Mr Griffiths’ body is yet to be found.
Acting Detective Inspector Chris Knight said Mr Griffiths’ last “signs of life” were at a Coopers Plains transport depot – the same site where a man identified as Andrew Walsh, 35xjmtzyw, was found encased in concrete in February.
Inspector Knight said Mr Walsh’s body was uncovered after an intense three-week excavation at a truck business along Musgrave Rd.
“An area of the workshop was excavated and there was a large amount of concrete that was drilled and excavated, so it (Mr Walsh’s body) was encased in concrete,” he said.
The grim discovery triggered a taskforce investigation into the alleged murders of the two men, who are believed to have moved in the same circles.
“Our investigation has confirmed both of those individuals are linked to that crime scene at Coopers Plains,” Inspector Knight said.
“That is the common denominator.”
Mr Walsh was reported missing by his family in Far North Queensland in January and was found under a property in Coopers Plains, south of Brisbane in February.
The Mossman man was last seen in November at Logan.
To date, three people have been charged with accessory after the fact to murder and misconduct with a corpse in relation to Mr Walsh’s death.
“Both of these investigations are far from over and our detectives remain committed to bringing anybody involved in this to justice,” Inspector Knight said.
Mr Giorgi was the second man charged with Mr Griffiths’ murder after detectives arrested a 40-year-old Tingalpa man with murder in relation to his disappearance in February.
Mr Giorgi is set to appear in court on May 9.
