Port MacDonnell cliff fall: Police investigating death of Helena Wright and children as murder-suicide

Police are investigating the death of a mother and her two children as a murder-suicide, saying they don’t believe anyone else is involved. Read the full statement.

The death of a mother and her two children is being investigated as a murder-suicide, police have said.

Helena Wright and her 23-month-old daughter were found in the water off Port MacDonnell on Monday in SA’s South-East, but police, SES and CFS volunteers are still searching for her missing three-month-old son.

Police said there was no information to suggest anyone else was involved, other than Ms Wright and her two children, and it was being investigated as a murder-suicide.

A coronial investigation will examine the deaths, with police saying there was “zero” likelihood the baby would be found.

“It’s important we get that information out because we understand the strong community and media interest in this investigation and in this matter,” SA Police Superintendent Trent Cox said.

“We have needed to conduct preliminary aspects of the investigation in order to reach a stage where we can make that statement.

“The coronial investigation continues. We will be providing a report to the coroner.”

Helena Wright has been identified as the woman who was found dead in the water around Port MacDonnell. Picture: Instagram

The body of the missing three-month-old is yet to be found.

Superintendent Cox said “decisions will be made later today as to continuing with the formal search operations”.

“Whatever decision is made, we will still continue to scour the foreshore in the coming days and possibly weeks,” he said.

“It is a situation where we need to be cognisant of the welfare of our officers and all those assisting us with that.

“The privacy of the family is paramount, we ask that you respect their privacy.”

Superintendent Cox couldn’t “confirm or deny” whether Ms Wright had made contact with police prior to the incident.

“The investigation of any death is very delicate but when it involves children as young as 23-months and three months it adds another layer of complexity but also trauma for those that are involved,” he said.

After three days of searching, he said the boy would likely not be found alive.

”The reality is after three days, the chances of finding the baby are zero sadly,” he said. “It’s a retrieval effort but we don’t know where he is.”

A report will be prepared for the Coroner.

Brad and Helena Wright on their wedding day. Picture: Facebook

Port MacDonnell search called off because of poor conditions

The search for the baby was called off because of poor weather conditions on Tuesday afternoon and was set to resume this morning.

“Sadly, today we have not been able to locate the boy but we will resume the search tomorrow in the morning,” SA Police Superintendent Trent Cox said on Tuesday.

“The conditions out there were extremely challenging today with very high winds, and did not enable us to get all assets on the water, so today’s search has been confined to land searches.

Superintendent Cox said police had not yet determined how or why the trio ended up in the water and police were considering all possibilities.

“We are keeping a very open mind as to the circumstances that led to the mother and daughter being in the in the water and the other child being missing,” he said.

Police Commissioner Grant Stevens said on Tuesday investigators had spoken to Mr Wright, the children’s father.

“This is a tragic set of circumstances and, as you can appreciate, there’s an active search underway and we have investigators examining the full circumstances,” Mr Stevens said.

Mr Stevens said police could not confirm if the incident was a murder-suicide, as officers were still gathering evidence, including conducting a comprehensive investigation into the family’s prior interactions with police and support services.

Emergency crews scour the Port MacDonnell coast searching for the baby boy. Picture: Eleni Tzanos

The tragedy unfolded before emergency services were called to Cape Northumberland Rd when a vehicle was located with its engine running around 11:15am on Monday.

After arriving on scene, police found the bodies of Ms Wright and her daughter in the ocean.

“The officer attended there, made some inquiries around the vehicle but subsequently sighted what he believed to be the body of an adult floating in the water,” Superintendent Trent Cox, officer in charge of Limestone Coast Region, said.

“Shortly afterwards he noticed a second body which looked like that of a small child.”

“We do hold grave concerns, the [baby boy] is less than one year old, in any conditions that would cause great concerns about the child’s ability to survive … so we’re keeping an open mind about everything but I don’t hold out great hope.”

Two local fishermen helped emergency crews retrieve the bodies of Ms Wright and her daughter from the water on Monday.

Port MacDonnell cliff fall: Police investigating d...