Police launch murder probe after woman’s body found
Source: Sunrise
Homicide squad detectives are investigating after the discovery of a woman’s body in the Murray River town of Cobram.
Victoria Police said emergency services were called to an address on Campbell Road about 2.15pm on Monday, 23 April.
The body of a 49-year-old Cobram woman was found inside the house.
A 39-year-old Cobram man was subsequently arrested and remains in custody.
Victoria Police said the man and woman were believed to be known to each other. Their names are yet to be released.
“Detectives are working to establish the exact circumstances around the death and the investigation remains ongoing,” police said.
The woman is the 26th to be killed in Australia this year.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
The discovery in Cobram comes days after the death of Molly Ticehurst in the central-west NSW town of Forbes.
Her former boyfriend, Daniel Billings, has been charged with her murder. He was on bail facing a string of violent charges, including raping and stalking Ticehurst at the time, a court was told on Tuesday.
NSW Premier Chris Minns has ordered an urgent review of the case, including into how Billings was released from prison while facing other serious charges.
“Of course the community and the public have questions they want answered, I completely understand that,” he told Seven’s Sunrise on Wednesday.
Forbes mayor Phyllis Miller said women living in rural and regional NSW were not as safe as their urban counterparts.
“We cannot hide like you can in the metropolitan areas … everyone knows everyone and they know where everyone is,” she told ABC TV.
“How can you allow someone bail without doing some assessment of the harm they could cause?”
Federal Women’s Minister Katy Gallagher said the problem was deeper than finding more resources and funding for support services, and men needed to play a greater role in working to keep women safe.
“This is a crisis in this country and women don’t feel safe,” she told ABC radio.
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