Police have called off the search for the three-month-old baby of South Australian mother Helena Wright, who plunged from a clifftop with her two young children in her arms.
Ms Wright, a deeply religious young mother originally from Estonia, fell from Cape Northumberland near Port MacDonnell on July 27, taking 23-month-old Hazel and three-month-old Lewis with her.
She and Hazel were found floating at the base of the cape. Lewis’s remains have never been found, and police confirmed they are investigating the tragedy as a murder-suicide.
Ms Wright’s Isuzu SUV was parked with its engine still running at the top of the clifftop.
Police called off the official search for Lewis’s remains on Wednesday, two days after Ms Wright’s husband Brad broke his silence.
‘There were a group of seven water operations members that came down last Thursday,’ Superintendent Trent Cox told the ABC.
‘They conducted three dives before weather stopped that effort. Unfortunately they were not able to find Lewis.
‘The grim reality is he’s unlikely now ever to be found.’
Brad Wright’s family perished when his wife Helena leapt from a cliff with their children
Ms Wright fell from Cape Northumberland near Port MacDonnell on July 27, taking 23-month-old Hazel and three-month-old Lewis with her
South Australian Police have called off the formal search for three-month-old Lewis
Supt Cox said police would respond to reports of washed-up material in the future.
‘It doesn’t mean that from time to time we won’t get called to investigate something that may have washed up,’ he said.
‘But for now there’s no formal search effort underway.’
Supt Cox also called for people to stop ‘rubbish’ speculation circulating about the tragedy online.
‘What I’d like to see happen is a lot of the community chatter that’s going on social media to stop,’ he said.
‘I know that’s probably pie-in-the-sky thinking.
‘Where there are gaps in information where the community’s not in possession of [that information], for that to be filled with the rubbish that we’re seeing out there helps nobody and it’s incredibly distressing I’m sure for Mr Wright and the extended family.’
‘We understand the community’s need for information, but we have a duty and a moral obligation and a legislative obligation to the coroner to ensure only factual information is provided,’ he said.
How the search unfolded
Pictured are Brad and Helena Wright on their wedding day
Police (pictured during the search) believe that the body of baby Lewis may never be found
‘The compilation of that information takes time.’
SA Police previously revealed that Ms Wright went to Mount Gambier Police Station just hours before the incident.
‘I’m not saying we did anything wrong, but we’re obligated to make sure we got it right,’ Commissioner Grant Stevens said.
He added that police would not wait for the outcome of an inquest to adopt changes if their investigation identified problems.
‘With all incidents like this we review our actions to ensure that we are doing what we can to best serve the community,’ Commissioner Stevens said.
‘Coronial inquests can take years … and if that’s the case we don’t want to wait that long before we make changes within South Australia Police, if there are changes that should be made.’
On Monday, Ms Wright’s husband Brad returned to social media for the first time since his unfathomable loss when he responded to a Facebook post by his local federal MP.
Liberal Barker MP Tony Pasin, shared a link to a GoFundMe created by a friend on behalf of the Wrights, and confirmed he had personally donated $200.
Among the handful of comments on Mr Pasin’s post was one from a profile with the handle ‘Bee Dubs’, which the Mail has independently verified belongs to Mr Wright.
‘Thank you, Tony. I appreciate you sharing this,’ Mr Wright commented.
The fundraiser has so far raised almost $40,000.
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