Police are investigating the tragic possibility of a murder suicide after the discovery of a man’s body in the Parramatta River on Saturday morning and police divers finding the body of his seven-year-old daughter six hours later.
Emergency services were called to Bayview Park in Concord just before 11.45am on Saturday after passers-by saw a man floating face down in the water. Witnesses told police the man had been seen in the boat with a young child shortly before his body was seen in the water.
He could not be revived.
A worried friend also contacted emergency services an hour after the man’s body was found with concerns for the welfare of both him and the girl.
At 5.30pm, police confirmed they had found the body of a child in the river at Concord. Both are yet to be formally identified.
Police sources have told The Telegraph that they are actively investigating whether the man murdered his daughter before taking his own life.
Burwood Police Superintendent Christine McDonald told the media the man was believed to be in his 40s and the seven-year-old girl lived in the Westmead area.
“This is an absolute tragedy for the family and the community on every level,” Supt McDonald said.
“A mother in this situation who knows that her husband is now deceased, who also knows that a major search operation is under way for her daughter, her only child as I understand it, it would rock any mother to her core.”
Supt McDonald said the mother was assisting police with their inquiries.
Police believe the man had hired the boat on Saturday.
Supt McDonald encouraged the public to contact Crime Stoppers or Burwood Police if they had any information which could help with the investigation.
Half of Bayview Park was taped off on Saturday afternoon, with some visitors to the park seen turning around and leaving after seeing the tape.
Surf Life Saving redirected its Westpac helicopter from Coogee beach to Abbotsford to respond to the drowning.
SLS chief executive Steven Pearce said they had received reports the drowning had occurred as a result of a boating accident.
Mr Pearce said warned people swimming in the beaches and rivers to be vigilant after a horror day on the waterways.
“It has been an unseasonably warm winter so far so people are still out on the water,” he said.
“We want people to be cognisant of water safety.”
In a horror afternoon on Sydney’s waterways, the drowning comes as a woman was fighting for life after being bitten by a shark at Coogee Beach.
“We’ve had the fourth major serious shark incident in Sydney this year, with significant shark interactions over the last 12 months … at the same time we have a boating accident,” Mr Pearce said.
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