Aussie grandma deported for helping son cover up fiance's murder
Margaret Archer, the South Australian grandmother who was jailed for covering up the murder of her son’s fiancé, has finally been handed over to border force and will be deported.
For the family of Jody Meyers, it is a moment to celebrate. Meyers' brother-in-law, Michael Bates, said the family is "happy" Archer is being sent to the United Kingdom.
"We just don't want her around us," he said. "We don't want her in the community. We don't to have to be looking over our shoulder.
We don't want to have to see that face."
As police searched for Meyers in 2015, Archer was helping her son Neil to concoct a lie, claiming that Meyers had decided to leave her fiancé and their toddler and vanish from their Mannum home.
Margaret sent a text message from Meyers' phone to support the story, however Neil Archer had strangled his partner to death and his mum helped him hide her body.
The then 55-year-old used Meyers' own bank card to buy bags of cement, which were used to bury the victim's remains beneath the back shed of Archer's Mannum property.
"You can support your child in many ways, but supporting someone to cover up a murder of the mother of your grandson is a whole new level," Bates said.
Neil Archer was sentenced to at least 22 years in jail for the murder of Jody Meyers. His mother faced a six-and-a-half-year sentence, which she served in full. While Archer is free to continue living her life in the UK, Bates said their family is left grappling with her actions.
The SA Corrections Department has confirmed Margaret Archer was released into the custody of border force, but did not specify when she will leave the country.
Images: Nine Network / ABC