By Rachael Dexter, Simone Fox Koob and David Estcourt
A woman accused of murdering a young couple and their newborn baby in a house fire at Point Cook has been remanded in custody after facing Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday night.
Jenny Hayes, 46, was arrested in Airport West on Thursday morning and has been charged with three counts each of murder and arson causing death after the blaze in Melbourne's south-west early on Wednesday morning.
Abbey Forrest, her boyfriend, Indi, and baby Ivy.
Her lawyer Erin Byrt told Magistrate Luisa Bazzani that her client’s connection to the slain family was still unclear. Police say she was not previously known to any of the deceased.
Ms Hayes didn’t appear during the brief hearing in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday evening, instead remaining at Richmond police station. It is Ms Hayes' first time in police custody.
Ms Bazzani heard that Ms Hayes is on two types of medication and ordered she be assessed in prison to manage a pain condition.
“I’ve been told that her state in prison is poor,” Ms Bazzani told Ms Byrt.
"Yes, Your Honour, that about sums it up at the moment," Ms Byrt replied.
Ms Hayes will be served a brief of evidence in January and will next appear in court on March 1 next year. Police say they are not looking for anyone else in relation to the blaze.
The Point Cook fire claimed the lives of Abbey Forrest, 19; her boyfriend, Inderpal Singh, 28; and their three-week-old daughter, Ivy.
The family had moved to the house in Totem Way less than a month ago, after the birth of Ivy, who would have been three weeks old on Friday.
Ms Forrest’s devastated sister, Emily, went to the scene of the fire on Thursday and reflected on the tragedy.
Abbey Forrest (left), her sister, Emily, and their parents.
"It should be the perfect time of their life, and now this awful tragedy has happened," she said.
Ms Forrest had loved being a first-time mother. "She did a fantastic job; she really showed me up, that's for sure," Emily said, smiling through tears.
"She was absolutely smitten; she was so over the moon to become a mum and she did so well."
Emily said she and her sister were inseparable as children, with just four years between them.
"She had the biggest, boldest personality. She was great. I’ll always cherish the memories that I had growing up with her. She was my only sibling," she said.
Emily had the chance to meet her niece, Ivy, who was born on November 13, only twice, but she said she would treasure the memories.
"I came home from a camping trip early and snuck into the hospital and got in a quick little visit despite COVID, and then we had a beautiful family dinner a week or so ago, so we got to meet everybody and our son got to meet his cousin, so that was really beautiful."
Abbey Forrest's sister, Emily, and her partner lay flowers and a small toy outside the remains of the house on Thursday, "just to symbolise our niece, her daughter, who didn't get to live her full life".Credit: Rachael Dexter
She said her sister's 28-year-old partner, who was known to the family as Indi, loved her dearly.
"He loves their daughter just as much, so to see this is just heartbreaking," she said.
Emily said she was now trying to support her devastated parents. "Burying your own child is something no one wishes upon anyone.
"I was in a lot of denial yesterday and only hearing some things on the news … I just needed to come and see that something had actually really happened."
She wanted to thank all the neighbours who had tried to save her sister's family.
"It just makes me feel at ease that there were decent people around who were trying to help her. To risk your own life to try and help save someone in that horrible situation."
Neighbours have spoken of how they frantically tried to hurl an axe and throw rocks through the jammed upstairs window of the burning house after they heard screams for help.
Investigators at the scene on Wednesday.Credit: Paul Jeffers
Jade Bartolo was awake waiting for her partner to arrive home from nightshift when she heard someone screaming "fire" near her back shed about 3am.
She raced to the house, but could not get inside from the front or back entrances. "I tried to open the shed, and obviously realised they couldn't get down anyway because of the heat from the shed," she said.
The scene of the fatal fire on Wednesday.Credit: Nine News
Ms Bartolo heard screams from the top-storey window. "They were trying to wind the window out, [but] because there's the chain on the window they could obviously only open the window [so] much," she said.
"They were trying to half hang out the window".
Ms Bartolo's partner, who had since arrived home, began hurling an axe at the window from the street.
"It all happened within about four minutes. There was no smoke and then it was just black," she said.
"They were saying 'help, help'. [They were] trying to get out the window but they couldn't."
Part of the second storey of the townhouse was completely destroyed in the blaze.Credit: Paul Jeffers
A group of neighbours tried to hurl the axe at least five times before one picked up a rock which shattered the window.
Another neighbour, Kirra Haeata, said she had seen someone who was staying at the home collecting a fast-food delivery outside about 2.30am, believed to be minutes before the blaze started.
"I'd just finished work and the neighbour [from the townhouse] was outside waiting for his food," she said.
Ms Haeata helped go door to door to wake up neighbours to warn them about the fire. "It could have just wiped out that whole block," she said.
It took an hour for fire crews to gain control of the blaze.
Emily Forrest has set up a GoFundMe page to help her family with the funeral costs.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or make a report at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.
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