An Australian father who killed his two young children before taking his own life in Bali had reportedly told a friend he was suicidal after his family lost more than $300,000 in an overseas property investment.
Damien John Shaw, 56, a maritime worker from Fremantle in Western Australia, was found dead with his six-year-old son and four-year-old daughter inside a villa near Kuta at 10.14am on Sunday.
The deaths occurred four days after Shaw’s Indonesian wife left the family home and travelled to Jakarta, about 1,200 kilometres away.
A police source said she contacted authorities after calling her husband and hearing her daughter crying and saying, “Stop, Daddy,” before the line went dead.
A close friend of Shaw’s, who asked not to be named, told the Daily Mail about a final conversation with him at Bintang Supermarket in Kuta 10 days before the tragedy.
Shaw said he had suffered depression for the previous six months after losing his life savings in a failed Japanese real estate investment, according to the friend.
The father of two had also expressed frustration over the 45-minute commute from the family’s bungalow in Legian, roughly 4km from Kuta, to the children’s school, the friend said.
“I asked him how he was and he started telling me he was ready to pull the pin,” the friend said, adding that he understood Shaw to be suicidal.
Pictured: Damien John Shaw, who killed his children and himself in Bali on Sunday.
Damien John Shaw, pictured, was found dead with his two children in Bali on Sunday.
Damien John Shaw, 56, met up with a friend at Bintang Supermarket in Kuta (pictured) and said he was feeling suicidal
The friend said he was angry at Shaw for his actions, and disappointed that Shaw had failed to contact him when the father-of-two most needed help.
‘I begged him not to do anything silly. I told him I was there for him – one call away – and I would come straight to him and he could talk to me.
‘I told him I didn’t care if he cried, if he needed a hug, he could count on me.’
Shaw’s eyes welled with tears before he left, the friend said. They never spoke again.
The friend said he could not shed any further light on the circumstances surrounding the children’s deaths.
A former school friend told the Daily Mail they were struggling to understand the reasons for Shaw’s actions.
‘He seemed so happy with his children but I guess something tipped him over the edge,’ they said.
Denpasar Police spokesperson Gede Adi Saputra Jaya told the Daily Mail on Monday that Shaw’s wife was too shocked and devastated to give detectives a statement.
He said police would examine the family’s circumstances, including whether there had been marital issues in the lead-up to the deaths.
Police said Shaw’s wife (left), who was in Jakarta, was devastated over what had happened
Damien John Shaw had a son aged six and a daughter aged four
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Pictured: Police tape at the Shaw family’s bungalow on Monday
A police source told the Daily Mail that Shaw and his wife had rented the bungalow since their daughter was born in 2022.
Their lease was due to expire in 2029.
After Shaw’s wife heard her daughter say ‘Stop, Daddy’ over the phone on Sunday, she tried to call again but there was no response.
She was in tears by the time she contacted the bungalow manager asking for a welfare check.
Workers and neighbours went to the home and forced their way inside after receiving no answer when they knocked at the door.
The police source said Shaw is believed to have smothered the children and placed their bodies on top of one another before taking his own life.
Police said all three bodies were found in the same bedroom and that no weapons were located at the scene.
Officers seized six mobile phones and three iPads from the bungalow, which was sealed off as a crime scene on Monday.
Black flip-flops and white roses could be seen by the front door.
The deaths of an Australian man and his two children in Bali are being treated as a suspected murder-suicide
The bodies were transported to Prof Ngoerah Hospital in Denpasar for autopsies
The bodies were taken to Prof Ngoerah Hospital in Denpasar, but it is understood there will be no autopsies because the family denied permission and they will instead be cremated.
The children’s mother flew from Jakarta to Bali on Monday following the deaths.
According to Shaw’s two LinkedIn pages, he worked as an integrated rating crew member – a maritime job that combines deck and engine duties on a commercial ship.
He had worked in the maritime industry for 37 years.
On Monday, Bali Regional Police Senior Commander Ariasandy said: ‘The case is still being investigated.’
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has confirmed it is providing consular assistance to the family.
‘We send our deepest condolences to the family at this difficult time,’ said a spokesman.
‘Owing to our privacy obligations, we are unable to provide further comment.’
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