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Rick Thorburn, who murdered his foster daughter Tiahleigh Palmer, has been found dead in his jail cell in Queensland.
The 64-year-old was imprisoned for life for killing the 12-year-old and dumping her body on the banks of Pimpama River in Gold Coast in 2015.
He was found dead at Woodford Correctional Centre, north of Brisbane, overnight.
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"The 64-year-old man was accommodated in a single cell and was found unresponsive at approximately 10pm," Queensland Corrective Services said in a statement.
"Responding officers called QAS and attempted to revive the man however their efforts were unsuccessful.
"The incident has been reported to police and QCS will assist with their investigation."
Detectives from the Corrective Services Investigation Unit are investigating his death.
A report will be prepared for the coroner.
Palmer was first placed into care at age seven in 2010. She was placed in the full-time care of the Thorburn family in January 2015.
A 2021 inquest found that on October 29, 2015, Thorburn's son Trent confessed to having sex with Palmer and feared she was pregnant after messages he sent to his cousin were relayed to his mother.
Thorburn was concerned Trent would go to jail.
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Later that same day, Thorburn murdered Palmer at their home in Chambers Flats, south of Brisbane, and disposed of her body that night.
He returned home and told his family "it is all taken care of" and crafted a lie for them to tell to try and cover up the murder.
Palmer was reported missing on October 30, 2015, after a youth worker attending her school to take her to a program found she was not there.
About six days later, her body was found by men looking for a spot to fish by the river.
In September 2016, Thorburn was arrested and charged with Palmer's murder, attempting to pervert the course of justice and interfering with a dead body.
He pleaded guilty to all charges in the Brisbane Supreme Court in May 2018 and was sentenced to life.
He was eligible to apply for parole after serving 20 years in September 2036.
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