Girl, 11, found dead in Auchenflower apartment, mother's body discovered nearby

Updated

Police are investigating the violent death of an 11-year-old girl in Brisbane's inner west, and the death of her mother in a neighbouring suburb.

Officers were called to a high-rise complex on Dunmore Terrace in Auchenflower where the body of the girl was found in the bathroom about 1:40am.

The body of her 49-year-old mother was located about 1.5 kilometres away in Toowong about 5:30am.

At this time, the mother's death is not believed to be suspicious.

Detective Acting Superintendent Geoff Sheldon said the body of the child was found when friends of the family asked police to do a welfare check.

"They had some concerns and we've gone around and unfortunately those concerns have been validated to the worst possible degree," he said.

Superintendent Sheldon said the girl's death was violent.

"Every death of a child is horrendous, but this is particularly so," he said.

Superintendent Sheldon said the mother appeared to have taken her own life at a construction site and was found by a member of the public.

"Members of the public, early in the morning, have come across a body in the area and phoned police and we made the tragic correlation that it's the mother," he said.

Her car was found nearby and has been towed away for examination.

Forensic officers are also combing the apartment where the child was found for evidence.

Superintendent Sheldon said there was a surviving father, 65, who was asleep and uninjured in the unit when they arrived.

"He's been with us all day and assisting us greatly with our inquiries," he said.

"That's a hackneyed phrase, but he has been with us all day assisting us, helping us, answering queries and things like that that we've got.

"His assistance has been of great help trying to work out more about family life, the dynamic, what's going on around the house, the relationships and the history to this whole tragic scenario."

A second daughter, an eight-year-old girl, was not home at the time.

The mother and both daughters were born in Japan and police are yet to notify Japanese members of the family.

Superintendent Sheldon said the family was not known to police.

"We are trying to ascertain how the ... child died and who is responsible for that," he said.

"We have a family which has literally been decimated. We don't know who fits where as far as the puzzle goes."

Topics: murder-and-manslaughter, crime, law-crime-and-justice, auchenflower-4066, qld, australia

First posted