Australian teacher Stephanie Scott was preparing for her lessons on Easter Sunday in 2015. The 26-year-old was only days away from marrying her partner of five years. She would never make it home.
For the first time, details of her rape and murder have been revealed before the NSW Supreme Court at Leeton in the state's Riverina region.
While she was working, relief cleaner Vincent Stanford was watching her from the corridor. He then went home and collected his 'rape kit' - then returned to wait for his unsuspecting victim.
"As she walked along the corridor after exiting the administration building Stephanie encountered Vincent Stanford who had been waiting for her, she said to him, 'I'm going home now, have a Happy Easter'," court documents show.
When Ms Scott went to leave, Stanford grabbed her from behind, and dragged her into a storeroom.
"Stephanie Scott was struggling and trying to yell as Vincent Stanford was dragging her towards the store room," the summary of facts read.
He then locked the door and raped her. Stanford told police he then punched Ms Scott unconscious, before stabbing her with a knife "to make sure she was dead".
When Ms Scott failed to return home, her family launched a frantic search. However, Stanford was busy covering up the evidence of his crime.
He placed Ms Scott's body in the boot of her car, and drove it back to his house.
Court documents outline how he later drove the car to Cocoparra National Park. Stanford took out her naked body, covered it in branches and petrol, and set her on fire.
He then took photos of her burnt remains - pictures police found on Stanford's phone.
After the murder, he texted his identical twin brother Marcus Stanford, and sent him an envelope containing Ms Scott's driver's licence, and engagement and graduation rings. These were sold to a jeweller and scrapped.
On Wednesday, April 8, police brought Vincent Stanford in for questioning. He initially denied having anything to do with Ms Scott's disappearance - however a police search found Ms Scott's keys, a red bra and the boot liner of her Mazda at his property.
Standford pleaded guilty a few days later - the same date Ms Scott was supposed to be marrying her partner.
Her father says he wants Ms Scott to be remembered for who she was, not the way she was taken away.
"Stephanie was a bubbly, bright, witty, intelligent fun-loving girl who has obviously impacted on many people here to today and our wishes for the future are that that will continue in your minds, you remember her as the girl she was - that great little girl she was."
Marcus Stanford has pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact, and has been sentenced to one year three months jail for helping to cover up the murder of Ms Scott.
Vincent Stanford will face a sentencing hearing in October.
Newshub.
