A police officer who first responded to a gruesome murder-suicide in Brisbane where a man was cooking the remains of his girlfriend before fleeing has told a coronial inquest he initially thought it was a "sick prank".

Brisbane chef Marcus Volke, 27, dismembered and cooked the remains of his transgender partner Mayang Prasetyo, 27, at their Teneriffe unit in inner-city Brisbane in October 2014.

Queensland coroner Terry Ryan is conducting a three-day inquest into the police response and the pair's causes of death.

Constable Liam McWhinney and his partner Senior Constable Bryan Reid were tasked with responding to the apartment for a welfare check after the complex's managers alerted them to a foul smell.

Constable McWhinney told the inquest when they arrived to speak with Volke he was initially cooperative and they were not particularly suspicious.

But when the officers asked Volke if they could search his unit, he told them he needed to secure his dogs, but locked the door and fled.

The officers gave chase, but could not locate Volke so they returned to the unit to search it.

Constable McWhinney said it was then they discovered a large cooking pot on the kitchen floor appearing to contain human feet.

"Originally I thought it was some sort of sick prank … Halloween or something — when I put two and two together, I realised it wasn't a prank," Constable McWhinney said.

Senior Constable Reid told the court there was a terrible smell inside the unit.

"It was a bad smell, it was something I hadn't smelled before — I can't really describe it," he said.

"I'm thinking it could well be a murder that's happened."

Facebook photo of murder victim Mayang Prasetyo. ( Facebook )

Volke's body was later discovered in an industrial bin where he took his own life.

The court was played video taken from police body-worn cameras showing their interactions with Volke, as well as the discovery of his body and Ms Prasetyo's remains.

The inquest heard responding officers had little information on Volke or Ms Prasetyo because nothing on the pair came up on police databases.

Senior Constable Reid said in hindsight he could have tried to stop Volke locking the door in the split second he had — but that may have placed police in danger.

"Had I done things the way I think would've been better, [it] may have worked out worse for us."

Volke had history of anxiety and depression

Volke was initially cooperative with police and officers were not particularly suspicious. ( Facebook )

Detective Sergeant Joshua Walsh was in charge of Volke's death investigation and told the inquest Volke and Ms Prasetyo met in Melbourne where Volke had worked at male escort clubs to help repay a $9,000 credit card debt.

He said Ms Prasetyo had helped Volke get work in clubs across Asia and Europe.

"They came up with an agreement between the two parties that he would assist with her getting a permanent partner visa for Australia," Detective Sergeant Walsh said.

He told the inquest Volke had been struggling with both his identity and employment, and had told a friend he wanted to became a dog breeder after settling in Brisbane.

Investigations following Volke's death revealed he had a history of anxiety, depression and sleep disorders.