Beloved 84-year-old grandfather and entrepreneur discovered deceased by tradesmen

A man killed inside a home in Victoria’s Phillip Island yesterday has been identified as a respected businessman and much-loved grandfather.

Paul Waylen, 84, a father-of-three who owned his own engineering company, was found dead at a private property in Cowes by tradesmen at around 10am, 9News understands.

Waylen’s 55-year-old son was found at a nearby address with allegedly self-inflicted injuries.

He was taken to St Vincent’s Hospital in a stable condition, where he remains under police guard.

Detective Inspector Dean Thomas said today police are keeping an “open mind” as detectives investigate what they have described as Waylen’s suspicious death.

“We’ve got to be aware of there could be a number of different circumstances but we’ve just got to wait and go one step at a time,” he said.

Locals say the investigation has sent shockwaves through the small Cowes community, which has a population of just under 7000 people.

“It’s a bit of a shock to the system, it’s a real community area, anything like this shakes the area up,” one resident told 9News.

“It’s pretty tight-knit down here away from the suburbs.”

An investigation is now under way and homicide detectives spent most of yesterday at the home

A postmortem is being conducted today.

Anyone with information is urged to contact police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

Readers seeking support can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or beyond blue on 1300 22 4636.