An Australian father was charged with triple murder on Thursday after allegedly setting fire to his home and closing the door while his seven children and mother were inside.
Police confirmed three children perished in the weekend incident in western Sydney’s Lalor Park: two boys aged two and six, and a five-month-old baby girl.
The four other small children are in stable condition in the hospital, and their 29-year-old mother has been released following treatment, authorities said.
The 28-year-old father, who remains in hospital under police guard after waking up from an induced coma, was denied bail in a Sydney court on three counts of murder and five counts of attempted murder, court documents show.
“Police will allege this man is solely responsible for setting fires inside the premises,” New South Wales detective superintendent Daniel Doherty said at a press conference following the court hearing.
An accelerant had caused “a large amount of fire and smoke” in the residence, and the doors “had been locked” to prevent the family from fleeing, he said.
A neighbour “very courageously” made his way inside, rescued two boys aged four and seven, a nine-year-old girl, and the mother, according to Doherty.
However, the father allegedly blocked the neighbour from helping an 11-year-old son.
Police eventually arrived and “had to wrestle with this man and wrestle the boy from his grasp because he was holding on to him, allegedly, and the boy was then rescued,” the investigator stated.
Doherty speculated that the “horrendous murderous act” could have been motivated by a marital conflict.
The majority of the youngsters were the accused man’s biological offspring, but he insisted that “they are his family, they are his kids”.
“It’s not something that I will forget about very quickly.”