Hasel Liu: Cruel twist after toddler found alive in QLD apartment next to father’s body
Thieves stole a dead man’s car the day after his body was found next to his toddler daughter, who had survived alone next to him for four days.
Hasel Liu, 31, was found dead by police at his Coolangatta unit on the Gold Coast on Good Friday after a family member had not heard from him since Tuesday.
His two-year-old daughter was found alive in the building and rushed to hospital. She suffered from dehydration but was otherwise unharmed.
Neighbors revealed they heard someone in the empty house on Saturday evening before seeing the thieves running away in a dead man’s black Mazda 3 at around 8pm.
Queensland Police have now started searching for the car but have so far been unable to locate it.
Thieves stole the car of single father Hasel Liu (photo with daughter), the day after his body was found on Friday next to his daughter, who survived alone for four days
Neighbors said Mr Liu told them on Tuesday morning that he was feeling unwell, but they never saw him again.
Although his death is not considered suspicious, the cause remains under investigation and a report is being prepared for the coroner.
Twin brother Lucas Marcas described Mr Lui as a “loving and caring” man after he arrived at the home from Sydney on Sunday.
“He’s always going to help out and do anything for other people that he wouldn’t do for himself,” he said 7News.
Mr Liu’s family moved to Australia from Iraq for a better life, but told the ABC last year that he and his daughter were forced to leave their car due to the rental crisis.
They were able to find permanent accommodation in the Coolangatta apartment after a charity stepped in to help the struggling single father.
It is believed he was his daughter’s sole caregiver after being separated from the child’s mother, who has since been reunited with the two-year-old.
Despite multiple patrols and investigations, police were unable to locate the car
A neighbor of Mr. Liu said his daughter was “the most important thing in his world” and despite not owning much, he was proud of his home.
“They didn’t have much, but they had each other and the mother came to visit,” they said Courier mail.
‘He was very proud of the place here, he was always outside keeping the garden tidy.’
The house was reportedly littered with children’s toys and the TV was still on when police arrived on Friday.
Bouquets of flowers were left outside the apartment building next to a sign that read “fly high Hasel, you will be missed” in the days after Mr Liu’s death.