Key facts
- The bodies of a 47-year-old man and his six-year-old daughter were found in Sydney's Parramatta River.
- Police suspect the incident was a murder-suicide, with a suicide note found.
- The man may have deliberately thrown his daughter into the water from a boat.
- Officers were alerted by a friend of the man expressing welfare concerns.
Police are investigating the deaths of a father and his six-year-old daughter, whose bodies were recovered from Sydney's Parramatta River on Saturday. Authorities believe the incident was a murder-suicide, with a suicide note and other evidence pointing to the father deliberately throwing his daughter into the water from a hired boat before his own death.
Officers were alerted around 11:45 a.m. on Saturday after reports of a man's body floating in Hen and Chicken Bay, Concord. The 47-year-old man was retrieved from the water but could not be revived. Following reports that a young girl had also been present, a search was initiated, leading to the recovery of her body.
NSW police marine area commander, Supt Joe McNulty, stated that a suicide note and other evidence led investigators to believe the man intentionally caused his daughter's death as part of a domestic violence incident. He noted that lifejackets were on board the boat but unused, which raised immediate suspicion. The man was not known to police and had no prior recorded history of domestic violence, complicating the investigation.