Man dies after neighbourhood dispute in Sydney’s west

The girlfriend of a man who died in a neighbourhood dispute at Glenmore Park claims he tried to defend her after she was called a b**** and c*** by a neighbour who survived the fight.

A harmless kids’ playdate has turned into a fatal neighbourhood dispute shocking residents and spurring a police investigation on a quiet suburban street in Sydney’s west.

Mark Beecham, 44, died after getting into a violent brawl with his neighbour, also 44, at his home on Jarra Cres on Sunday about 10.30pm.

Mr Beecham’s partner of seven years Renae Hails said it all started when she went over to her neighbour’s home where children from around the street were playing.

She said she had told one of the kids to go home before the neighbour allegedly called her names including ‘b***h’ and ‘c**t’ during an argument in which she swore back at him.

Adra Biscossi claims her partner acted in self defence.

Mark Beecham and Renae Hails.

When she returned home she rang Mr Beecham, who lives separately to her, to tell him what happened.

Mr Beecham then travelled from St Marys to her neighbour’s home to “defend” her.

“The reason he went there was the man who lives there … was abusing me out of nowhere,” Ms Hails said.

Renae Hails and Mark Beecham, who was was killed in an altercation in Glenmore Park on Sunday night. Picture: supplied by family

But the neighbour’s girlfriend Adra Biscossi said her partner acted in “self-defence” after Mr Beecham arrived and attacked him with a metal pole.

“(He) was just trying to defend himself, the back of his head’s split open … he tried to shut (the altercation) off, he was going ‘I’m not talking about it, go away, there’s kids inside and you need to go home’. We tried to get (Mr Beecham) out,” she said.

“(He) has come into the house, into the garage to pursue (my partner), and it just went on from there. I rang the police as soon as it started, when I saw him run into the garage I said ‘that’s it’ and called the police. I’ve got kids inside.”

“I ran there and tried to stop it … by the time I got there they were already fighting. Mark was on the floor and (my partner) was on top, I was trying to get him off (Mark).”

The 44-year-old man died at the scene following the deadly rift. Pics Bill Hearne

Mr Beecham and Ms Hails share a four-year-old son who is known to play with children in the street including those at Ms Biscossi and her partner’s address. The women are known to each other as their young children also attend kindergarten together at a local primary school.

Ms Hails has remembered her deceased partner as “an “interesting and different” man who had “invested everything” into their family.

“It’s what I liked about him,” she said.

A police spokesman confirmed that the neighbour had been released early on Monday morning pending further investigation. Detectives were seen visiting the address of the dispute yesterday.

No charges have yet been laid but a post-mortem examination of Mr Beecham will help to identify the cause of death which is still unknown.

Originally published as Man dies after neighbourhood dispute in Sydney’s west