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Australian Family Dies in Bali as Police Investigate Suspected Murder-Suicide
Confirmed
In Short: Australian authorities are investigating the deaths of a 56-year-old man and his two young children in Bali, with police treating the case as a suspected murder-suicide.
Indonesian police are investigating the deaths of Damien John Shaw, a 56-year-old Western Australian man, and his two young children, aged six and four, who were found deceased in a bungalow in Kuta, Bali, on Sunday morning. The discovery was made after a friend of the children's mother called police, reporting that the family had not been heard from in several days.
The children's mother, who spoke to her daughter by phone before the discovery, heard her daughter say 'stop daddy' in the background, according to reports. The body of the father was found sprawled on the floor of the bungalow, alongside his two children. The family had been living in the bungalow on a long-term lease since 2022.
Police in Indonesia are conducting a thorough investigation into the deaths, with initial reports suggesting a father killed his two young children before taking his own life. A 57-year-old man is believed to have died as a result of violence, while the two children are thought to have been victims of the same incident. The case is being treated as a suspected murder-suicide, with authorities working to establish the exact circumstances of the deaths.
The Western Australian Premier, Roger Cook, described the news of the three deaths as a 'horrific situation,' while Indonesian police expressed their condolences and hope to uncover the truth behind the tragic incident. The bodies of the deceased were taken to the morgue of the Ngoerah Hospital in Denpasar for further examination.
Consular assistance is being provided by the Australian government to the family of the deceased. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed that it is offering support to the family, with police in Bali continuing to investigate the case. The incident has raised concerns among local authorities and the international community, with police in South Africa also confirming the discovery of a ninth woman's body in the past two months, amid growing concern over a string of unexplained deaths in the region.
What's confirmed
- Indonesian police are investigating the deaths of Damien John Shaw, a 56-year-old Western Australian man, and his two young children, aged six and four, who were found deceased in a bungalow in Kuta, Bali, on Sunday morning. The discovery was made after a friend of the children's mother called police, reporting that the family had not been heard from in several days.
- The children's mother, who spoke to her daughter by phone before the discovery, heard her daughter say 'stop daddy' in the background, according to reports. The body of the father was found sprawled on the floor of the bungalow, alongside his two children. The family had been living in the bungalow on a long-term lease since 2022.
- Police in Indonesia are conducting a thorough investigation into the deaths, with initial reports suggesting a father killed his two young children before taking his own life. A 57-year-old man is believed to have died as a result of violence, while the two children are thought to have been victims of the same incident. The case is being treated as a suspected murder-suicide, with authorities working to establish the exact circumstances of the deaths.
- The Western Australian Premier, Roger Cook, described the news of the three deaths as a 'horrific situation,' while Indonesian police expressed their condolences and hope to uncover the truth behind the tragic incident. The bodies of the deceased were taken to the morgue of the Ngoerah Hospital in Denpasar for further examination.
- Consular assistance is being provided by the Australian government to the family of the deceased. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed that it is offering support to the family, with police in Bali continuing to investigate the case. The incident has raised concerns among local authorities and the international community, with police in South Africa also confirming the discovery of a ninth woman's body in the past two months, amid growing concern over a string of unexplained deaths in the region.
What's still developing
- The latest victim was found half-naked and wrapped in a sheet on the side of a road in Dawn Park on Thursday morning, police said.
- The discovery follows the deaths of eight other women whose bodies have been found since July across Ekurhuleni, a major urban area of Johannesburg.
- Several of the women were found partially clothed and with injuries, but police have stressed that they have not established whether all the deaths are connected or whether a serial killer is responsible.
- A suspect was arrested two days later in connection with that case and remains in custody, but police have not linked that suspect to the other deaths.
- Attempts to restore the interrupted connection with her family were unsuccessful. The child’s mother said that during the telephone call with her daughter, she heard the girl say “stop daddy” in the background. Subsequently, the neighbor contacted others and then, along with the community head, forced open the door to the Kuta bungalow at around 8:30 am on Sunday, discovering the bodies of the children and Mr. Shaw sprawled on the bungalow’s floor. The Shaw family reportedly held a long-term lease on the bungalow dating from 2022. Badung Regency Police said Mr Shaw was born in Fremantle, in Western Australia.
- According to Denpasar police, a witness, 51-year-old Nur Khamid, received a phone call from someone claiming to be the victim’s wife at about 8.30am on Sunday.
- Khamid went to their bungalow and tried to look inside through a window, but “no activity or people were visible inside”, Denpasar police said in its statement.
- Simatupang said Kuta police had taken a statement from the man’s wife and reviewed CCTV footage.