A woman has been charged with attempted murder for allegedly trying to drown her son, a court has heard.
The 27-year-old woman, who remains unidentified due to legal reasons, was seen to tell onlookers “I had to drown my babies” after holding her two children under the water in the Murray River on the Victoria-New South Wales border.
The woman will appear in Deniliquin Bail Court on Saturday after being extradited from Victoria to New South Wales.
She previously appeared in Bendigo Magistrates Court where she reportedly sobbed uncontrollably, rocked back and forth and held her face in her hands as details of her alleged offences were read out.
Police allege the woman took her children to the river and told her eldest son, nine, to get into water and tried to drown him while her younger son, five, screamed from the water’s edge.
The elder of the two boys was able to free himself only to be “savagely mauled” by a pitbull, who also went on to attack the mother.
The mother then focused her attention on the five-year-old boy, taking him into the water and holding his head below the surface, the court heard.
The boy, who was last seen floating downriver, face-down, is still missing, feared drowned.
Police divers spent Friday combing the Murray River in Moama for the missing boy but were forced to call off the search due to failing light. They are expected to resume their efforts first thing in the morning.
The nine-year-old boy involved in the incident is in a serious condition in a Melbourne hospital after undergoing surgery following the dog attack.
Speaking with The Herald Sun the dog’s owner has suggested that the animal reacted in an attempt to save the mother from allegedly drowning her son.
“The dog is four years old and it’s never attacked one person, has grown up with kids, and it’s always been around kids playing,” she said.
Deniliquin commander Superintendent Paul Condon was unable to confirm what role the dog played in the night’s events.
“It is very unclear at this stage as to what happened at the riverbank. The dog has been involved. The dog has bitten the 27-year-old mother and the nine-year-old. The actual circumstances are unknown,” Supt Condon said.
He told reporters that the case was “just terrible,” before going on to say that “it will rock the community of Australia”.
“It is a terrible story. It is a sad story. It’s a tragic story. Not only for the community, the police but especially the family. It’s just terrible,” he said.
Lawyer Dale Brooks, who is representing the grandmother of the boys, told News.com.au that the mother was a long-time ice addict and is well-known to local authorities.
