A man who stabbed a teenage boy and then decapitated him will remain behind bars for at least another three-and-a-half years.
James Patrick Roughan, then aged 28, was found guilty in 2008 of murdering 17-year-old Morgan Jay Shepherd on March 29, 2005 in Brisbane's northern coastal suburb of Sandgate.
Morgan's body was dumped in a shallow grave about 30km northwest of the murder scene at Roughan's home and he was found to have suffered 133 non-fatal stab wounds.
Roughan's co-offender, Christopher Jones, then 23, later told friends that Roughan used the severed head like a puppet and a bowling ball.
Jones and Roughan both blamed each other for Morgan's death but were both found guilty of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.
After being granted parole, Jones was deported to the UK in 2020.
Roughan applied for parole in June 2020 and in a decision handed down on Monday, Parole Board president Michael Byrne KC deferred the application.
Under Queensland law, Roughan is designated a restricted prisoner due to having murdered a child and Judge Byrne said it was in the public interest to declare that he will not be able to apply for parole until April 2027.
"I have made this declaration because of the nature, seriousness and circumstances of the offence for which the offender was sentenced to life imprisonment," Judge Byrne said.
He also said Roughan might pose a risk to the public if released and granting him parole would likely affect people associated with the victim.
