"Everybody was really friendly, we did not have any trouble at all

Sarah Holiday

When asked how she found out about Ms Stuttle's death she said: "She was supposed to be coming back and I realised that she hadn't come back in time and I realised that something was wrong."

Ms Holiday said she hoped Ms Stuttle's parents would find comfort in knowing her last two months "were spent feeling happy and loved".

She described how they had become "inseparable" after meeting at secondary school and added: "Throughout the trip we barely spent an hour apart, we were always together.

"We didn't argue once. It was just perfect."

Ms Holiday, who like Ms Stuttle is from Huntington, York, said they had been waiting to begin tomato picking when the attack took place.

She said she had no regrets about taking the trip, explaining: "Australia, it meant everything to us. We were having the best time there.

"Everybody was really friendly, we did not have any trouble at all."

Park search

Queensland Police believe Ms Stuttle was the victim of a violent robbery.

Officers have placed a mannequin dressed to resemble her outside a shopping mall and a post office in the town, in the hope of reminding people of anything they saw.

Ms Stuttle had backpacked for two months

They have also made another search of the park and river banks around the area where Ms Stuttle died, but nothing was found.

Her mobile phone and bag were still missing, said the spokeswoman.

The man questioned by police was arrested after he walked into a police station voluntarily, following calls from local people stating he looked like an e-fit issued of a man seen following Ms Stuttle.

Jeremy Richard Wilson, 21, appeared in court charged with possession of illegal drugs, failing to answer probation and failing to appear at the court on Friday to answer the charges.

He was remanded in custody for 24 hours pending another hearing.

Head injuries

Ms Stuttle was found dead after walking to the Bundaberg post office to phone her boyfriend in England.

She was on the 10-minute walk back over the Burnett River bridge to the Riverdale Caravan Park at about 2115 local time, when the killer struck.

A post-mortem confirmed Ms Stuttle died from massive spinal and head injuries, and had other minor injuries to suggest a struggle before her death.