Supplied: Queensland Police Service

Klaus Julius Andres, aged 83, was convicted in 2013 for the murder of his wife, Li Ping Cao, and subsequently disposed of her remains in a wheelie bin filled with hydrochloric acid.

A recent application to contest his life sentence and the date of his eligibility for parole has been denied.

Andres will be eligible to seek parole in 2028.

The man from Cairns, found guilty of killing his spouse and dissolving her body, has had his request for an earlier release turned down.

In December 2013, Klaus Julius Andres was found guilty of murdering 42-year-old Li Ping Cao. He disposed of her body by placing it in a wheelie bin and filling it with 20 liters of hydrochloric acid.

Consequently, the precise details surrounding Li Ping Cao’s death, described by her sister and son as “warm” and “loving,” remain unknown.

Following his conviction, Andres sought to appeal the verdict, but this was rejected in 2015.

Last month, he made another attempt, this time to appeal his life sentence and the subsequent parole eligibility date.

In his appeal, the 83-year-old requested more time to file, explaining that he was “not a lawyer” and that it took him “many years to discover he could make an application,” with assistance from another inmate.

He contended that the 754 days he spent in custody prior to sentencing should be reconsidered, especially since several charges against him were dropped in 2016.

If accepted, this would have changed his parole eligibility to 2026 instead of the current 2028.

During his trial in 2013, Andres denied intentionally killing his wife, claiming instead that it was an accident in self-defense, although he pleaded guilty to tampering with her remains.

At that time, the 70-year-old asserted that he accidentally knocked Li Ping Cao unconscious in October 2011 after she confronted him about an affair and attempted to attack him with a fork.

In a press conference following her disappearance, Andres speculated that she might have left with another man, directly appealing to her through a TV camera to return home.

However, the jury rejected all his explanations after law enforcement presented evidence showing that Andres had provided inconsistent statements regarding his wife’s whereabouts, was recorded purchasing hydrochloric acid, and had placed her mobile phone in an urn that contained the ashes of his late wife, Monica Andres.

This urn was discovered in a room that had been transformed into a shrine, adorned with flowers and photographs of his deceased spouse.

The trial also revealed that Andres had sent a letter to Centrelink requesting that Li Ping Cao’s payments be redirected to his bank account, along with testimony from his 35-year-old mistress, whom he intended to marry.

During sentencing, Justice Jim Henry stated that the murder was premeditated, highlighting Andres’s lack of remorse, which was further evidenced by his actions afterward.

On Thursday, the Court of Appeal published its ruling online, denying Andres’ request for an extension and asserting that his proposed appeal “has no prospects of success.”

The judges—Justice Debra Mullins AO, Chief Justice Helen Bowskill, and Justice Christopher Johnstone—concluded that the sentence from December 12, 2013, was lawful.

They stated, “Since the proposed appeal could not succeed, there is no utility in granting an extension of time.”

Klaus Julius Andres will be eligible to request parole in 2028, when he will be 85 years old.