A man has thrown his 4-year-old from a bridge
- 00:00:48
- ITN
A man has thrown his 4-year-old from a bridge
An Australian man has been charged with murder after he allegedly threw his four-year-old daughter off a bridge. The alleged murder happened on the eight-lane motorway that crosses Melbourne's West Gate Bridge. In morning peak-hour traffic, the 36-year-old man dropped the girl 190 feet into the Yarra River, police said. Stunned witnesses called police, who were able pull the girl from the river within ten minutes of receiving the alert. She was barely alive and had multiple internal injuries. The girl was flown by helicopter to Melbourne's Royal Children's Hospital, but died hours later. The father was with his two surviving children when he was arrested outside a family court. Witnesses described him as being visibly distressed. He was charged with murder but did not appear in court because he was psychologically unfit to do so, police said. Court officials said the man was involved in a custody battle with his wife over their three children. He had appeared in the family court just days earlier, on Tuesday and Wednesday, police said. His two other children, young boys aged six and eight, may have been in the car when he allegedly carried out the crime. A magistrate ordered the man to be held in custody while an investigation continues. He faces a maximum life sentence if convicted.
ITN | January 29, 2009
