Coroner releases findings into Cranbourne West murder-suicide where Jasmine Thomas and daughters died

A father has spoken of his grief after his wife deliberately lit their car on fire in Cranbourne West, killing herself and the couple’s two young daughters.

The burnt car at Cranbourne West after the tragic murder-suicide. Picture: ABC News

The circumstances that drove a mother to kill herself and her two young daughters remain unsolved after a coroner was unable to determine what led to the tragedy.

Jasmine Thomas, 37, died alongside her two daughters, aged three and six, after she deliberately lit their car on fire on the side of the Western Port Highway in Cranbourne West.

State Coroner John Cain on Tuesday handed down his findings into the murder-suicide, revealing the young mother was experiencing “significant stress” in her marriage and had been diagnosed with mild depression prior to the fatal incident in March 2022.

Jasmine Thomas died alongside her two daughters, aged three and six, after she deliberately lit their car on fire on the side of the Western Port Highway in Cranbourne West.

But he was unable to determine what led her to end her and her children’s lives, noting Victoria Police were concerned about her mental health but she was not found to be acutely unwell and refused to engage with mental health services.

Judge Cain said Ms Thomas, who was born in Kuwait but of Indian descent, lacked family support in Australia and her decision not to seek help indicated a potential gap between diverse communities and their connectedness to mental health services.

“From the available evidence it’s difficult to accurately determine what was occurring for this family and lead up to the fatal incident,” he said.

Ms Thomas wed her husband in India in 2012 after they met through an arranged marriage website before they were granted permanent residency and moved to Melbourne in 2016.

Detectives at the scene of the fire. Picture: David Crosling

She worked as a nurse at Mulgrave Private Hospital but abruptly resigned in 2021.

Her husband reported Ms Thomas may have had postnatal depression and she became paranoid during the Covid-19 pandemic but it was considered a “big shame” in their community to have mental health issues.

Judge Cain’s written findings state Ms Thomas’ husband did report her to police in September 2021 for property damage and that she had become increasingly physically and verbally abusive, which he attributed to her paranoia that he was “speaking badly” about her to others.

After that incident, Ms Thomas told child protection authorities that she was subject to coercive control and financial abuse by her husband.

Judge Cain noted professional services identified Ms Thomas as an alleged perpetrator of family violence but available evidence suggested that was not an “accurate depiction” of the relationship.

On the evening of March 24, 2022, Ms Thomas left the family’s Dandenong North home with their children after telling her husband she was taking them to McDonald’s.

She drove along the Western Port Highway before she stopped on the side of the road and ignited the vehicle while her children were seated in the back.

In a moving family impact statement, the girls’ father held back tears as he told the court how he never had the chance to say goodbye to his children.

“No parent would like to outlive their children,” he said.

“Never did I think in my wildest dreams that I would one day lay down all of the most important people in my life at the same time.”