EXCLUSIVE
A father who killed himself and his two-year-old son at his home during a planned custody visit have been photographed for the first time – as more harrowing details about their deaths emerged.
James Harrison, 38, and toddler Rowan were found dead in a unit on College Street in East Lismore on the NSW north coast on Sunday evening after police were called to conduct a welfare check.
The boy’s mother, Dr Sophie Roome, raised the alarm four hours earlierWhen her only child wasn’t dropped off as planned that afternoon.
The intensive care specialist who works as a doctor at the local hospital went to police with initial fears that Harrison may have fled the city with Rowan.
An unanswered police knock on Harrison’s front door increased the fear.
Several hours later, police returned and forced their way inside, where they found the tragic scene.
On Tuesday it emerged that Harrison had a history of domestic violence and that an AVO had been issued against him for Dr. To protect Roome.
Lismore doctor Dr Sophie Roome with her son Rowan, who tragically died in a suspected murder-suicide on Sunday evening
The bodies of James Harrison, 38 (pictured) and his son Rowan were found in the East Lismore unit
Police have since admitted they walked away when no one opened the door to the house when they first attended at 5.30pm.
After the alert was first generated, it took a further four hours for the officer to return to the address under pressure from the boy’s distraught mother and her family.
Now questions have been asked about why it took so long to return to the unit – and why they did not enter by force on the first visit.
Police initially visited the department when Dr. Roome alerted them that her ex was late returning her son after an access visit.
There was no response when they tried the door, and a source revealed that officers refused to raid the door despite the desperate family’s worst fears.
Forensic teams are pictured at the unit on College Street in East Lismore, on NSW’s Far North Coast, on Monday
The father, 38, and son were found dead in the East Lismore unit, in the Northern Rivers region of NSW, on Sunday evening.
The source claims the mother was told police were unable to intervene and kick down the door because it was “a family court matter.”
Local police admitted to Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday that officers subsequently returned to their police station to conduct ‘further investigations’.
Officers eventually returned to the address more than four hours later at 9.45pm and discovered that the father had set up an elaborate ‘poison gas’ system to kill him and his son.
The two bodies were found dead in the unit. It is not clear when they died.
The two-year-old’s mother had called police when her former partner, 38, who was the subject of an AVO disabled to protect her, failed to hand over their son.
Deputy Police Commissioner Peter Thurtell admitted on Monday that the man was known to police for previous domestic violence cases, but not for “significant problems”.
He added: “You wouldn’t encounter a more tragic event.
“The father created a system where both he and the child died as a result of the system he set up.”
The revelation has sparked outrage from members of the public who wanted to know why officers took so long to respond, and slammed the force for suggesting domestic abuse was not “significant”.
The source said the mother has described the loss of her only child as “unbearable.”
On Monday, Deputy Commissioner Thurtell said the mother called police at 5:30 p.m. after the father failed to show up for the handover at 4:30 p.m. – but the source said the timeline was incorrect.
“Actually the boy was supposed to be handed over at 4pm,” the source wrote online.
‘Police went to the house after the mother reported her concerns, but [she] was told they couldn’t force entry and that it was a custody dispute.
‘It was only when the mother’s parents and a concerned partner of the father also went to the police that they went back and forced entry.’
Deputy Emergency Management Commissioner Peter Thurtell is pictured addressing the media on Monday
Another source familiar with the situation claimed that police knew from the first knock that the father was home and did not answer the door “but did nothing.”
In a statement to Daily Mail Australia, NSW Police admitted police visited the house twice on Sunday.
“On Sunday, May 19, 2024, at approximately 5:30 p.m., welfare concerns were raised at Lismore Police Station,” a NSW Police spokesperson said:
‘A short time later, police attended an address in College Street, East Lismore, where they attempted to contact the resident.
‘After the resident was unable to be lifted, police investigated the area before returning to the police station for further investigation.
‘Following further information received, police attended the property in East Lismore again at 9.30pm where they forced entry.’
Details about the father’s history of domestic violence were aired Monday as Deputy Commissioner Thurtell and Police Commissioner Karen Webb faced the media on Monday to discuss the arrest of more than 550 perpetrators of domestic violence.
The arrests were the result of a statewide action against the alleged worst perpetrators of domestic violence in NSW, after authorities vowed to take more action in the fight against violence against women in the wake of the alleged murder of Forbes- mother Molly Ticehurst.
Forensic teams were photographed at the unit on College Street on Monday
However, the announcement sparked a backlash as angry Australians demanded answers over the police’s slow response to the Lismore mother’s welfare call and criticized Deputy Commissioner Thurtell for his choice of language.
“Why did it take more than four hours after the mother called the police for a check, especially if the man was a known DV offender?” one woman wrote online.
“This is beyond tragic.”
“I’m so glad that the people who are supposed to protect us don’t believe that domestic violence is not a major issue until an AVO,” said another.
A third added: ‘Any violence, domestic or otherwise, towards another person IS SIGNIFICANT.’
‘Great if this comes from the police. If this is their attitude, no wonder [people] don’t bother reporting domestic violence.’
Forensic officers combed the house Monday for evidence as the community, still reeling from the devastating floods of 2022, comes to terms with the tragedy.
A small red tricycle could be seen in the unit’s driveway, next to a four-wheel drive surrounded by police tape.
While investigations continue, anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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