Sydney, Sep 8: Tasmin Bahar, 35-year-old Bangladeshi woman and her ex-partner of Indian origin, were discovered dead inside a house in the western suburb of Smithfield, here, in a suspected murder-suicide.
Their three-year-old daughter was found sleeping in the house at the time and was not injured.
The bodies of Tasmin Bahar and Dave Pillay were discovered inside the bathroom of the house at Horsley Drive, just after midday on the Sunday.
Bahar had recently separated; about 6 weeks ago, from her partner of six years, Pillay, and moved out of their Smithfield home, which they shared for about 3 years, with their young daughter.
The bodies were allegedly found by Pillay’s brother, with the couple’s child sleeping in another room in the house.
It’s believed Pillay lured Bahar to the couple’s formerly shared home for Father’s Day, saying he wanted to see his young daughter, The Age reported.
Bahar had relented for her 3-year-old daughter to be able to share the special day with her father on Father’s Day, despite relationship troubles and drove her daughter to the home she had shared earlier with her partner.
“We told her not to go to the Smithfield house but she went for Father’s Day,” Sharagin Bahar, Tasmin’s sister, was quoted as saying.
Their cousin, Sifat Sharmin Ruponty, told SMH that Tasmin had also told her about being physically threatened by Pillay, with a knife, when they were together.
Bahar told The Age from New York that she was in utter shock at the sudden death of her sister, and was flying to Bangladesh and then on to Sydney, hoping to take custody of her niece, who had now lost both of her parents.
“I am so lost. I just want to take my niece into my custody, I want her with me. I’ll take care of her. I’ll do whatever is best for her,” she said.
Tasmin moved to Australia in 2009 and was a science graduate.
Neighbours said that the couple had recently separated; Bahar and her daughter had moved out earlier this year and rented her own apartment.
“She has been gone for months. She took the daughter with her, so I was surprised to see her car there today,” one neighbour told the Daily Telegraph.
Another neighbour, John Araco who shares the back fence with Pillay’s, told Fairfax that his wife had seen the little girl run out into their back yard, screaming “Mummy, Mummy”.
“My wife raced downstairs and said, ‘John, the little girl has come out screaming, yelling mummy’,” Araco said.
But when Araco looked over the back fence, he could see the back door open and TV on but no one around.
“It seemed very quiet so I didn’t think anything of it until the police came,” the 65-year-old said.
Homicide Squad is investigating the deaths, what they believe is an incident of murder-suicide. Police said no other people were wanted over the deaths and the investigation was ongoing.
“At this stage no other parties are being sought in relation to the matter,” a statement read.
Police will prepare a report on the deaths for the Coroner.
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Vir Rajendra