A Man Has Been Taken Into Custody After A Woman Was Found Dead In Her Home In Victoria

A man has been arrested over the death of a woman in Bendigo, Central Victoria, who was found deceased in her home while two children were present.

Emergency services were called to the home in Kangaroo Flat shortly before midnight last night following reports that a woman had been injured.

The woman, who was 46-years-old, was found unresponsive and taken to hospital, where she was pronounced deceased.

Two children, who were primary-school aged, were also found in the home. They were not injured, and it is unclear if they witnessed the incident that lead to the woman’s death.

After an extensive ground search, a 44-year-old Junortoun man was found and arrested five hours later in a reservoir that was 20km away, per a police statement. He is assisting police with enquiries and at the time of writing, has not been charged.

“The investigation is ongoing,” a police spokeswoman said.

“The area has been cordoned off and a crime scene has been established.”

Homicide squad detectives and forensic officers are investigating the scene at the home.

According to femicide researcher Sherele Moody, the woman was the fourth woman to be allegedly killed in just 10 days, following the tragic alleged murder of 21-year-old water polo coach Lilie James.

James was found dead in a bathroom in a Sydney private school that she worked at, and is suspected by police to have been killed by ex-partner and colleague Paul Thijssen. Friends and students of James told reporters that she and Thijssen had briefly dated. On the night of her death, Thijssen made a call to triple zero, alerting police to a body at St Andrew’s.

The woman in Bendigo was the 56th woman to be allegedly killed this year. We’re only 44 weeks into the year, which means on average more than one woman has been killed every week in 2023.

Image: Nine