Prison officers who guarded one of Australia's most dangerous female inmates are issuing a chilling warning as she prepares for release: Rebecca Jane Butterfield will kill again. Classified as more of a threat than notorious serial killer Ivan Milat, Butterfield has spent a quarter-century behind bars marked by extreme violence, cold-blooded murder, and relentless self-harm.
A Lifetime of Violence Behind Bars
Rebecca Butterfield, now 50, was first jailed in her early twenties. The daughter of a country police officer, Senior Constable Ray 'Dudley' Butterfield, her descent into violence began in 1996 with minor offences in Orange, New South Wales. However, her incarceration sparked a horrific cycle of attacks on staff, fellow inmates, and herself. Her prison file was ominously marked 'Extreme caution at all times' and she was designated an 'Extreme High Security' prisoner by the Commissioner.
Prison guards were warned she could remove her handcuffs and would assault without warning. She attacked seemingly at random, leaving several officers scarred for life. Her fury was not reserved for others; she is considered as great a danger to herself. In a series of gruesome incidents, she cut her own throat four years consecutively, set her cell ablaze in 2008, and in 2009 headbutted a wall 105 times, fracturing her skull so severely officers reported seeing her brain pulse through the crack.
The Cold-Blooded Prison Yard Killing
The event that sealed her notoriety occurred on 7 May 2003 at Emu Plains Correctional Centre. Butterfield murdered her only friend in jail, Bluce Lim-Ward, who was just a month from release on a fraud sentence. According to a confidential prison report, Butterfield lured Lim-Ward under the pretext of making coffee, then stabbed her 33 times with a large meat knife.
A fellow inmate recounted that after Lim-Ward lay bleeding on the ground, Butterfield looked another prisoner in the eye, bent down, and delivered a final, slow stab, stating, "Now someone might listen to me." Butterfield was later sentenced to 12 years for this manslaughter, but her violence towards staff continued unabated, resulting in additional sentences.
Imminent Release Amidst Grave Fears
Despite a history that kept her imprisoned long past her original sentence via extended supervision orders, the NSW Supreme Court has now ordered her release. In March 2024, Justice Michael Walton revoked the orders, ruling Butterfield should be freed under a strict five-year supervision plan. She is currently a forensic patient at Long Bay Prison's mental health hospital but has already been granted day release into the community.
The plan is for her to live in an NDIS-funded home, allowed out to shop and mix with the public. This prospect terrifies those who knew her best. On a private Facebook discussion, officers who dealt with her were unanimous in their fear. "She will without a doubt kill again," said one female guard. Another stated, "Having had a lot of involvement with Rebecca, it's not even a doubt that it would happen, it's a certainty."
Officers warn her threat extends to anyone: NDIS carers, housemates, or innocent bystanders. "All she needs is a knife," one remarked, noting her ability to fashion weapons from small pieces of plastic. A male correctional officer summed up the dread: "I feel sick in the stomach for the unsuspecting people who are going to be living near her." As Butterfield prepares for a freedom she has not known for decades, a community waits, forewarned by the very people who contained her rage for 25 years.
