Two young children were found safe inside a home in Cobram, Victoria, near the body of a woman suspected to have been murdered, as police arrested a 45-year-old man known to her early Tuesday morning.
Officers were called to the Christie Avenue property around 5 a.m. after reports that a 32-year-old woman had been discovered dead. The man was taken into custody at the scene, and detectives are expected to question him later. Police have established a crime scene on Christie Avenue, though a spokesperson confirmed only that the man was known to the woman.
A neighbour told reporters that the woman was the mother of the two children, believed to be aged two and four. She said the woman had been “hiding from her husband” and speculated that he may have tracked her down. The neighbour also mentioned that the woman had lived in a unit on the street for several years and that she had occasionally seen the children playing unsupervised on the road. Thankfully, the children were not physically harmed during the incident.
The suspected murder has shocked the small Victorian town, known as a popular camping area. Social media posts expressed condolences to the family and friends. Authorities have urged anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers at 1800 333 000.
Victoria Police Homicide Squad detectives were already investigating another suspected murder in Dandenong, southeast of Melbourne, when this incident occurred. In that case, a 39-year-old man died at a BP service station on the corner of Princes Highway and Potter Street, possibly following a stabbing at a nearby residence, according to local reports.
Forensics were seen cordoning off and examining multiple properties along Christie Avenue by late morning.
