Graeme Colin Evans, 43, appeared in the Townsville Supreme Court on Wednesday where he received a nine-year jail term for the manslaughter of the 30-year-old.

Evans was aged 36 when he beat the mum of three senseless in an Innisfail hotel room on April 19, 2010, after the pair became embroiled in an argument about a packet of bacon.

Evans then went outside to have a cigarette but when he returned about 20 minutes later he discovered she had died.

He panicked and dumped her body in dense bushland at nearby Cowley Beach.

Evans was charged with his partner's death in February 2017.

But the breakthrough in the case came in February of this year when Evans told police what happened and led them to Ms Lapham's remains.

He was motivated to do so following the introduction of Queensland's tough new 'no body, no parole' laws.

Justice David North reduced the amount of time Evans has to spend in jail before he applies for release on account of his co-operation with police.

He will be eligible for parole in 2021, after he has served four years behind bars.

Australian Associated Press