Woman found dead in hotel room, man taken to hospital

A crime scene has been established at the hotel in Penrith after a woman was found dead and a man was taken to hospital.

A major investigation is underway into a potential domestic violence murder after the body of a woman was discovered in an exclusive hotel in Sydney’s west on Sunday afternoon.

Police were called to the Pullman Hotel on Mulgoa Rd in Penrith, in Sydney’s west, about 1.10pm after reports of an incident, to find the woman had allegedly been stabbed to death and a man inside the same hotel room covered in blood and suffering cuts to his hands and arms.

Homicide Squad detectives soon arrived at the crime scene and accompanied the man from the four-star hotel to hospital in a helicopter, where he remains in a critical condition under police guard and is yet to be interviewed by investigators.

Crime scene outside the Pullman Hotel in Penrith. Woman has been found dead in a hotel room. 81 Mulgoa Rd, Penrith NSW 2750. Credit: TNV

The woman has been identified as Shirley So, and the man as Darren John Berry.

It is understood they had been in a relationship.

In a statement, a NSW Police spokesperson said: “The man, 53, was treated by NSW Ambulance paramedics before being airlifted to Westmead Hospital.”

Detectives from the State Crime Command’s Homicide Squad, as well as the local Nepean Police Area Command, are now investigating the moments leading up to the woman’s death.

The incident occurred on a busy weekend at the popular hotel, which is part of the wider Penrith Panthers Leagues Club precinct, with locals in the area taking to Facebook to pay tribute to the woman.

Crime scene outside the Pullman Hotel in Penrith. Woman has been found dead in a hotel room. 81 Mulgoa Rd, Penrith NSW 2750. Credit: TNV

A witness told The Daily Telegraph they saw a large police presence at the scene, with up to 10 police cars surrounding the hotel, as the man was flown to hospital.

“We couldn’t see much as there were police everywhere but it was full on,” the witness said.

“The person was airlifted from outside of the hotel, but apart from that it was too busy.”

The area cleared out quickly after the incident with the only foot traffic being in and around Panthers Leagues Club and iFLY indoor skydiving centre.

More to come