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Australia Today

Five Bodies Have Been Discovered in a Perth Home

Police raided the suburban house following a tip-off from a man in his 20s. Inside they discovered the bodies of three toddlers, their mother, and grandmother.
Gavin Butler
Melbourne, AU

Three young girls and two women have been found dead at a home in Perth’s north-east.

Police raided the property on Coode Street, Bedford, at around midday yesterday after a man in his 20s attended a regional police station and provided information relating to the incident. Upon arrival officers discovered the bodies of twin two-year-old girls, their three-year-old sister, their mother, and their grandmother. It is not known how long they'd been inside the house.

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Police haven’t revealed what the man said that led them to the crime scene, nor his relation to the victims or the incident itself. Fairfax reported that he drove to his father’s house before visiting the police station hundreds of kilometers north from Perth. He has since been taken into custody, though as of this morning no charges have been laid. Assistant Police Commissioner Paul Steel confirmed that the man is assisting officers with their inquiries, and asserted that there are “no ongoing safety concerns.

“This is a tragic event, and it will no doubt have an impact not only on the family and friends of the deceased but on the whole of the community, and those first responders who are faced with attending a scene with multiple deceased people” Assistant Commissioner Steel told reporters yesterday.

“I can assure people that the Western Australian Police Force are conducting a thorough and proper investigation to determine what events led to this tragic matter.”

Neighbour Richard Fairbrother, who lives next door to the house, told the ABC that he hadn't seen the family for more than a week leading up to the incident, as he'd been away on holiday and returned home Saturday.

"We noticed that the house next door was pretty quiet, which was unusual, being that they had the young kids,” he said. "We had mentioned to our friends that were staying that there was likely to be some noise from the kids next door, and they were a little surprised that there wasn't noise from the kids next door."

Another resident in the area, Maria Manfredini, described the incident as "tragic on every level".

"It's horrid to think that in such a beautiful area, that's calm and so quiet, that something so tragic has taken place," she said. "We're all in complete shock."