Murder-Suicide Case: Psychotic Episode Led To Mother Shooting 3-Year-Old Daughter Before Killing Herself

A woman in Australia shot her 3-year-old daughter before turning the gun on herself during a psychotic episode, a coroner has found.

During the summary inquest held in Melbourne on Wednesday, deputy state coroner Caitlin English said Aisha Beck suffered from significant mental health issues, including psychosis, that resulted in the murder-suicide, The Age reported.

The incident happened on Jan. 27, 2017. Aisha's husband left for work early that day after seeing his daughter, Aziza Beck, happily playing inside their house. Around 1.30 pm (11.30 p.m. ET on Jan 26), Aisha killed her daughter with a bullet to her head, before turning the gun on herself. Their bodies were found by her husband, Mohammed Beck, when he returned home from work.

The coroner found in 2015 her neighbors called the police after Aisha approached random houses, asking for former Prime Minister Tony Abbott. "Upon police attendance, Ms Beck stated that ‘she was the Mother Mary’, and she had ‘just given birth to Jesus.' She requested to speak to Tony Abbott and the Norwegian embassy," the coroner said, Perth Now reported.

The police had then taken her to hospital, but she was released soon after promising to undergo treatment. She was also put on antipsychotic medication, but felt “god was ready to take her."

Aisha also told her husband about her homicidal and suicidal thoughts. She feared no one would care for their child after she died. She was referred to a psychiatrist in February 2016, where she reiterated her homicidal and suicidal thoughts, The Age reported.

English said an investigation found Aisha was sent back to her doctor "with a basic management plan that did not address social or psychological aspects of her mental health." However, her doctor was not advised by the psychiatrist on what to do if Aisha stopped taking her medication.

"The evidence is unclear as to which doctor was responsible for Mrs Beck’s continued psychiatric management," English said.

The coroner said Aisha’s murder of her child was an "altruistic filicide," which was when a mother kills the child out of a "misguided belief that they are preventing or ending suffering," Perth Now reported.

She said Aisha had significant PTSD from her own upbringing in Myanmar. As a child, Aisha had reportedly found her own mother’s body after she killed herself. "Exposure to suicide and/or suicide bereavement has long been identified as a risk factor for suicide," English said.