A woman accused of killing her four-year-old son allegedly prepared parts of his hand before surrendering to police.
The 32-year-old woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is accused of murdering a boy in Wyong on the NSW Central Coast.
She visited Wyong police station late on Saturday when officers rushed to the house she shared with her son and found his badly injured body inside.
Police said Sunday they believed the boy had been “dead for some time.”
A woman will be forced to undergo a forensic examination after she allegedly mentioned cannibalism.
According to The Australian, she allegedly told police she ate parts of her son’s body before his remains were discovered.
A magistrate issued an interim order allowing forensic experts to take swabs from the woman’s mouth, blood samples and fingernail clippings.
A vigil was held Monday afternoon at the community pool, where local residents came in small groups to pay their respects.
Parents and their children laid flowers, stuffed animals and candles as the song “Forever Young” played over the loudspeaker.
Organizer Hayley Dickinson, 24, said she didn’t know the family but wanted a place where the community could “mourn and grieve together.”
“As a mother, I have a six-year-old son, so it’s very close to home,” Ms Dickinson said.
“I’ve spent my whole life in Wyong. It was my childhood and it’s where this beautiful little boy would grow up.
“The amount of people that came out today… they brought their kids, they brought toys… it just shows what this community is all about.”
Ms Dickinson said the community pool was a deliberate choice for the vigil because it was a place where families were “always together”.
“Wyong is known for many things, but when the community needs to come together, it comes together,” she said.
The young housewife, who previously worked as a social worker, criticized the government, saying more could have been done to save the little boy.
“I’ve seen some things in my time, but nothing like this,” she said.
The Department of Communities and Justice spoke to the woman and her child on numerous occasions.
NSW Families and Communities Minister Kate Washington confirmed on Monday the department last acted on a report involving the couple 18 months ago.
She said an independent review would be carried out into the boy’s death.
“The purpose of the review is to understand exactly what happened, what decisions were made, when and whether they were appropriate,” she said.
“Almost all families who come into contact with the child welfare system are complex and interact with multiple systems.
“There are a number of elements to this that we are trying to get more information about.”
Earlier on Monday, tributes including a teddy bear, a minion stuffed toy and flowers were laid outside the boy’s home as residents spoke of their shock and grief.
Local resident Brenton Hulme, 25, said the incident had affected their local community.
“It’s broken the community a little bit. It’s left everyone a little weak. You can see people in the area are very upset,” Mr. Hulme told NewsWire.
“People are very, very upset because it was a little boy. Having a daughter, I couldn’t imagine doing something like that to my children.
“Obviously it’s a little scary.”
Mr Hulme, a fast food manager who has lived on the Central Coast for 20 years, described Wyong as a “relatively” quiet place which, like any community, has its “good and bad sides”.
“(Wyong) is an interesting place. You have your good and bad sides… of course there are places you don’t go to at certain times,” he said.
“Things like this can happen anywhere.”
“My priority at the moment is to work on the investigation with detectives to understand exactly what happened and why it happened, and importantly ensuring the welfare of all police who were present last night and during the investigation,” Supt Gillies said.
“Whenever a child is the victim of a violent crime or a child is killed, it strikes at the very heart of society. That’s why it’s absolutely important that we work through this methodically, that we try to understand what happened, why it happened.
“In my view, we owe it to this little boy to make sure that we find out the exact circumstances and present them to the court in due course, and that is what will be the focus of investigators in the coming days and weeks.”
He added that the woman is known to police.
“This is a really difficult time for the family and the local Wyong community, but that is why it is absolutely vital that our police pull together and make sure we do the best job we can in really difficult circumstances.”
The woman was charged with murder (MHO) and her case was heard briefly in the Bail Division Court on Sunday, where no further details of the alleged crime were revealed.
A local resident told 9News the boy was the “happiest child” he had ever seen at that age.
A local resident said he recently found a toy car left behind by a boy and plans to keep it as a keepsake.
“(He was) an angel growing up,” he said.
A family friend said the boy was “very energetic.”
The woman did not apply for bail, it was refused and she is next due to appear in court in September.