On Tuesday, Herrmann’s lawyer Tim Marsh asked the question that most of us will never understand: how could a 20-year-old man, with no prior convictions for violence, commit such a “sudden, unprovoked and ferocious attack” on a young woman he did not know? Loading “There is not an explanation I can give you,” Mr Marsh told Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Hollingworth at Herrmann's plea hearing. “Really, there is no explanation that is sufficient.” Mr Marsh said Ms Maasarwe - like all women - had every right to feel, and to be safe, walking home at night.

Herrmann’s actions not only destroyed Ms Maasarwe's life, but had also struck at the right of every woman in society to feel safe walking the streets. Why had he done it? After his arrest, police asked Herrmann what he had been thinking during the brutal rape and murder. "I don’t really know,” he told them. “I wasn’t really thinking at all.” Had he been angry?

“I think I was,” Herrmann said. “[Angry at] life in general. How everyone looked at me, and treated me.” He told his lawyer: “I had nothing. I could achieve nothing. Even my friends made fun of me.” “There is a core of anger in Mr Herrmann,” Mr Marsh said. “Anger at the world, and especially females.” Codey Herrmann was arrested nearly three days after Aiia Maasarwe was killed. Credit:Facebook Herrmann told his lawyer he could not remember what he was doing in the two hours leading up to the attack. Mr Marsh said it remained unclear how Herrmann came to have the 60 centimetre metal pipe he used to bash Ms Maasarwe, and the WD-40 he doused her with before he set her body alight.

No family or friends turned up to court to support Herrmann, who spent most of his time looking down at his hands or staring blankly ahead. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Herrmann, who is Aboriginal, was adrift from his culture and socially isolated, and his early years were marked by poverty, chaos and dysfunction. Child protection authorities were notified of concerns for Herrmann’s welfare when he was just six months' old, after a drunken adult dropped a bottle of wine in the family home and the baby drank from it. By the time he was 12 months old, Herrmann had been effectively abandoned by his mother, who suffered from substance abuse problems.

He was hospitalised with scabies at 17 months old, and by the time he was three authorities had received multiple notifications of drug and alcohol abuse, family violence and neglect in the family home. He suffered rotten teeth and skin problems. By the time he started school, in the care of a foster mother, Herrmann’s severe behavioural problems had started to emerge. He hurt other children and had difficulty forming friendships. Mr Marsh said Herrmann had seemed “perplexed and disconnected” after his arrest, and showed a “curious detachment”. “There is some evidence of remorse, but I have to concede it’s very muted … Mr Herrmann’s overall emotional range, similarly, is very muted.”

Herrmann, who has been in custody since January, told investigators he could “only think about the things [he’d] gained” since his arrest. In jail he has a safe place to sleep, a shower and the prospect of accessing prison programs. Earlier, prosecutor Patrick Bourke had to stop and gather his composure as he read Ms Maasarwe’s mother’s heart-rending victim impact. Describing her daughter as “a girl who was like a butterfly flying high in the sky”, Kittam Maasarwe told how her heart had been torn apart by Herrmann’s actions. Aiia Maasarwe. Credit:ninevms She could not stop thinking about her daughter screaming for help, on the other side of the world, and not being able to hear her.

“I am a mother whose heart has been squeezed in pain, every day.” Prosecutors are seeking a life sentence for Herrmann. It is an application opposed by his defence team. Mr Marsh urged Justice Hollingworth to offer Herrmann some hope for the future. “Young people can change,” he said. “Young people have the capacity to change. “The extinguishment of hope in that sense … to have a life sentence hanging over your head, for a 21-year-old, is no small matter.”

Ms Maasarwe was 21 when she died. If you or anyone you know needs support, you can contact the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service on 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732), Lifeline 13 11 14 or beyondblue 1300 22 4636.