A 70-year-old man has been charged with the murder of his neighbour, more than two years after a well-loved greyhound trainer in the Central West was killed in a deliberate explosion.
John Burrows, 58, was going about his daily routine at 6.30am on July 24, 2015, when he came upon a white backpack outside the garage behind his mother Phyllis' home in Portland.
The backpack was in fact a sophisticated improvised explosive device that detonated in his face and catapulted him several metres to the other side of the laneway.
The blast was so strong it blew out windows in surrounding homes, and could even be heard in the town of Wallerawang, five kilometres away.
Now, more than two years later, investigators have arrested and charged his neighbour Paul John Fitzpatrick with his murder, an act they have previously described as "specifically targeted."
Mr Fitzpatrick was arrested at his Portland home on Wednesday by strike force detectives, assisted by the State Crime Command's Homicide Squad.
The arrest comes after police first questioned the 70-year-old in 2015, soon after the blast, when they were examining an ongoing conflict between Misters Burrows and Fitzpatrick, over the barking of Mr Burrows' champion greyhounds.
At that time, Mr Fitzpatrick spoke with them at length, and the ramshackle Portland property he shares with his sister was searched over two days.
On Wednesday Mr Fitzpatrick was taken to Lithgow police station, where he was charged with murder, before briefly appearing at Lithgow Local Court.
He did not apply for bail and bail was formally refused. He will appear again at Lithgow Local Court on Thursday.
Mr Burrows' mother Phyllis described the past two years as "hell," and spoke of the relief the family felt seeing charges laid.
"We're jumping over the moon, we're so thrilled," she told Fairfax Media."We knew who it was all along, but there was no evidence, and so the detectives worked very hard...they all deserve a medal."
Mrs Burrows said Mr Fitzpatrick's arrest meant the family could now "rest in peace."
"[Mr Fitzpatrick] will be 71 on Saturday. I hope he has a very happy birthday in jail," she said.
The conflict between the two men came to a head in 2011, when they engaged in a physical altercation that left Mr Fitzpatrick with a fractured eye socket.
It followed a report that was made to police, after Mr Fitzpatrick was found standing in the Burrows' backyard "yelling and screaming."
One year earlier, two of Mr Burrows' champion greyhounds were mysteriously bashed several times over many months and eventually had to be put down. No one was ever charged.
In July this year, investigators announced a breakthrough that revealed the device that killed Mr Burrows was detonated remotely with a radio-controlled receiver, most likely sourced by someone in the Portland community.
At the time, they said it was believed "steel tubing used around the outside of the device was sourced as scrap metal and modified to make the device".
The receiver was described as a Spektrum brand AR610. It is owned and distributed by Horizon Hobby USA and sold for use in planes, helicopters and other aircraft.
Police will allege that the radio controlled receiver remotely detonated an improvised explosive device that was placed outside the Portland garage.
On Wednesday Chifley Local Area Commander Acting Superintendent Luke Rankin said the arrest was "a result of the tireless efforts of detectives."
"Community assistance has also been paramount and they were able to provide information for detectives that contributed to the investigation," he said.
