The man accused of killing his wife in front of their children allegedly gave them presents and shared videos on social media immediately after the incident.
Prem Kumar, 45, of Cobram appeared in the Shepparton Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday where he was charged with the murder of his wife.
Kumar made no application for bail and was remanded in custody until December 10.
Reportedly, Kumar went online right after the alleged murder, which police claim took place in his estranged wife’s house on Christie Avenue, Cobram, around 5 a.m. on Tuesday.
Disturbing footage shows Kumar involving his young kids in bizarre rants about countries like India, Africa, and Australia, as well as religious references.
‘Hi everyone, I am safe,’ Kumar told his child to say at the start of his two-minute rant with one of the kids sat on his lap.
Raising his fist, he forced the children to say ‘I am Sikh warrior’, although only the eldest of the children was seen participating.
Kumar ended the video by telling viewers they would ‘see them in Dandenong’ – a suburb in Melbourne’s south-east.
Prem Kumar paraded his kids on social media after allegedly murdering their mother
Christie Avenue in Cobram where a suspected murder took place on Tuesday
The video was posted to social media at 8.04am, just a few hours after he is accused of killing his 32-year-old wife.
In another clip, Kumar is seen leading his children, one of whom is in a diaper, to a vehicle where he hands them gifts at the home’s driveway.
‘What’s my name,’ he asked one child.
‘Kumar,’ came the response.
‘Good, good,’ the alleged killer responded.
Later, the children appeared again dressed in traditional Indian clothing, with one child wrapped in an Ambulance Victoria towel, part of three unsettling videos.
A woman off camera could be heard asking one child, ‘Do you want to come sit in the car?’ and Kumar shouted: ‘Get away’.
Officers had been called to the home following reports a woman had been found dead there and arrested Kumar at the scene.
One child was seen draped in an Ambulance Victoria blanket
In an ominous rant posted to social media on Monday, Kumar stated he was on his way to collect his children in Cobram.
‘Am (leaving) now in a hour are so. To Cobram shepparton Victoria to receive my two little wild lion kings,’ he wrote.
‘Advik and aadhik a wild Saudi Arabian, wild African, a wild Indian Hindu Sikh true wild brave warriors my two little brave wild lion kings.
‘Are you ready for the holy religious war against s***-eating all coward terrorist of all the religions?’
On Tuesday, a police spokesperson confirmed the alleged killer was known to the woman, with detectives charging Kumar on Wednesday afternoon.
A neighbour of the woman told Daily Mail the alleged victim was the mother of the two children, believed to be aged two and four.
The neighbour said she would often see the children playing on the road.
‘I had to tell her to get them off the road a few times. I don’t think she was looking after them real well.’
Kumar presented the children with scooters after allegedly murdering their mother
The neighbour claimed the woman had been living in a unit on the street for at least a year.
The two children found inside the home were not physically injured.
Another neighbour told Daily Mail the woman’s husband had moved back in with her a few months ago.
Neighbours claimed they heard screams coming from the unit in the early hours of the morning.
‘The kids are really tiny,’ one neighbour said. ‘They’re not that old.’
Detectives are seeking CCTV footage from neighbouring properties.
Word of the suspected murder sent shockwaves through the country Victorian town, which is popular with campers.
‘That is devastating, condolences to the family and friends,’ one local posted to a local social media page.
Homicide Squad Detective Inspector Dean Thomas mentioned that his team had the challenging duty of interviewing the two children to hear their account of the incident.
The main street of Cobram (pictured) is just around the corner from the crime scene
‘What exactly they’ve seen, we don’t know. Obviously we’ll do our best to speak to those children,’ he said.
‘Their wellbeing is (our) number one (priority) and making sure that they’re OK and that they’re being looked after and provided support that they need.
‘We will endeavour to speak to them, to see what they can say to us.’
Inspector Thomas said it was an awful situation.
‘One woman killed in a situation like this is too many. It shouldn’t happen,’ he said.
‘People should be safe in their homes. People should be safe in their relationships.
‘Police do the very best they can when dealing with family violence incidents.
‘We will work extremely hard to hold those responsible to account for what they’ve (allegedly) done.’
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
