Source : the age
Police are investigating whether cannibalism was a factor in the “extremely confronting” death on the Central Coast on Saturday of a four-year-old boy whose mother has been charged with murder.
A 32-year-old woman arrived at Wyong Police Station of her own accord on Saturday afternoon, leading officers to quickly form grave concerns about the safety of a child.
Following the woman’s arrival at the station, police conducted a welfare check at a unit on Byron Street in Wyong. They found the body of her son with significant arm injuries.
The Herald is prohibited from identifying the boy or the mother under laws protecting the identities of child victims of crime.
“I’m prepared to say publicly at the moment, it was an extremely confronting scene,” Superintendent Chad Gillies from Tuggerah Lakes police said at a press conference on Sunday morning.
Police sources not authorised to speak publicly on Sunday said officers were investigating whether cannibalism was involved in the preschooler’s death.
The coroner will conduct a post-mortem in the coming days to determine the cause of death.
The woman, who was previously known to police, was arrested at the police station and charged on Sunday morning with murder (domestic violence).
Neighbours who didn’t want to be named told reporters on Sunday that they had never seen anything untoward between the mother and son.
“[The boy] was all happy; seen him walking the dog and walking up and down the street. He was very energetic,” said a man who had previously done work on the woman’s car.
“[The boy] goes ‘Oh you’re working on mum’s car, has she broken it again?’. He was happy. We couldn’t see any signs of anything,” the man said.
The duo had moved into the rental earlier this year, a neighbour said, allegedly following domestic violence between the woman and an ex-partner.
When a number of police arrived at the complex on Saturday afternoon, “We had a fair idea it was something to do with [the woman] because they went straight into her house, but no idea it would have anything to do with her child.”
Neighbours are in shock, he said.
“We’re all up in arms. What happened?”
Police have established a crime scene and Tuggerah Lakes detectives are investigating the incident alongside the homicide squad.
“It’s a shocking situation,” said another neighbour who did not want to be named.
On Sunday afternoon, two young constables from Wyong Station and police tape surrounding the home were the only signs that something was badly wrong on the quiet street of timber and brick homes set back on wide lawns.
“We heard the sirens in the evening. We didn’t realise it was our neighbour or that anyone could be capable of something so brutal,” said another Byron Street resident.
Investigators have seized the woman’s vehicle for forensic analysis and removed a number of items from the crime scene for analysis.
“Whenever a child is a victim of violent crime, and whenever a child is murdered, it strikes at the core of community,” Gillies said.
“That’s why it’s absolutely important to work through this methodically. We try to understand what’s happened, why it’s happened, and from my perspective, we owe that to that little boy to make sure that we get the exact circumstances and present them to the court in due course.”
The woman faced the bail division court on Sunday, where she did not apply for bail, and it was formally refused. She will next face court in September.
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Angus Dalton is the science reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X or email.
