A former army major who allegedly joked about killing his wife has been granted bail after being accused of murdering his spouse during a kayak trip.

Graeme Davidson, 55, was charged with murder in May after a police investigation raised doubts that his wife Jacqueline, 54, had died by accident.

Davidson’s wife died while kayaking with her husband at Lake Samsonvale, north of Brisbane, in November 2020.

“This was made about three years prior to Jacqueline’s death,” Marco said.

Davidson allegedly told another individual that if his spouse ever pursued a divorce and wanted a portion of his military pension, he would end her life and relocate to Thailand, which is reportedly what transpired.

Defence barrister Craig Eberhardt said Davidson’s comment had no sinister implication in its full context.

Justice Sullivan was informed that Davidson, who served as both an Australian army major and a British army captain, had no history of domestic abuse or previous criminal offenses.

Eberhardt stated that Davidson witnessed his wife falling into the water while they were each in separate kayaks, and he was unable to locate her for several minutes due to the darkness and murkiness of the water.

Authorities have accused Davidson of committing fraud by filing a life insurance claim and attempting to secure another following his wife’s death, with a total value exceeding $1 million.

Eberhardt said the life insurance policy was set up by the couple’s financial planner and it would have been suspicious for him not to make a claim.

Marco had opposed bail, saying Davidson was a flight risk as he no longer had strong ties to Australia.

“The risks in this case can be sufficiently ameliorated by appropriate conditions,” Justice Sullivan said.

“If he were to flee, he would lose access to his (Australian and British military) pensions.”

Davidson’s strict bail conditions include reporting to police daily, wearing a tracking device and an overnight curfew starting at 8pm.

He will be prohibited from being closer than 5km from international airports and cruise ship terminals.

Justice Sullivan noted that Davidson had access to funds amounting to $850,000, but remarked that this amount would be insufficient for sustaining a living in a nation without an extradition agreement with Australia.

“The nature of this alleged murder and the alleged motive … does not raise the prospect of reoffending in a similar way,” Justice Sullivan said.

Davidson’s daughters and de facto son-in-law offered $250,000 as surety in an attempt to have him released on bail following the murder charge.