The woman who tragically fell to her death alongside her husband in Sydney’s CBD had a childhood filled with sorrow after the loss of her mother in heart-wrenching circumstances.
Angela Nesbitt and Steven Dash were escorted out of The Star casino in Pyrmont around 8:55 am on Saturday. They were later found to have fallen from an overpass near Sydney Harbour Bridge, descending onto Harbour Street at about 9:45 am.
Now Daily Mail can reveal Ms Nesbitt’s mother, Kathleen, died in September 1996 in eerily similar circumstances.
Kathleen took her own life when she fell from a moving car while her husband Chris was behind the wheel.
The shocking incident happened close to the family’s home in Eagle Vale, in Sydney’s south-west, and rocked the close-knit community.
‘It was so sad for Angela and her younger brother and sister,’ a family friend told Daily Mail.
‘None of them ever really recovered from it, not just the horrific accident but the years before that were turbulent for them all.’
Around the same time, Ms Nesbitt, then 18, moved to London for a period to live before returning to Australia.
Angela Nesbitt and Steven Dash were asked to leave The Star casino in Pyrmont about 8.55am on Saturday
Angela Nesbitt and Steven Dash fell to their deaths from a walk bridge near the Western Distributor, onto Harbour Street (pictured)
Ms Nesbitt’s mother, Cathy, died in 1997 in eerily similar circumstances
‘She was in the UK working for a couple of years – maybe it was a way to try and move on.
‘The whole story is very sad, and I guess you never really know how people are dealing with things privately.’
Ms Nesbitt’s father Chris, who emigrated to Australia from the UK in 1982, delivered the news of his daughter’s death to friends and family.
On Sunday, he phoned and messaged loved ones to let them know his daughter had tragically died.
An acquaintance mentioned, ‘He didn’t know the exact details of what took place at that time, but he was informing others that it seemed Angela had ended her own life.’
Security guards at The Star had earlier asked Ms Nesbitt and Mr Dash to leave the casino, raising concerns about their erratic behaviour.
Police were alerted after a comment was reportedly made to security about self-harming, sparking fears for the couple’s welfare.
Police began a search in the Pyrmont and Darling Harbour vicinity, but within an hour, they received alerts that two individuals had plummeted from the overpass onto Harbour Street.
The couple, who wed in October 2022, had a well-documented history of mental health issues
It fell to Ms Nesbitt’s father Chris to deliver the tragic news of his daughter’s death
Emergency services rushed to the scene but both Ms Nesbitt and Mr Dash were pronounced dead.
The couple, who wed in October 2022, had a well-documented history of mental health issues and had previously threatened self-harm.
Daily Mail previously revealed how the pair were facing fertility struggles that weighed heavily on them in the months leading up to their deaths.
At 48, Ms. Nesbitt was actively involved in several online communities centered around surrogacy and egg donation, yearning for the opportunity to become a mother herself.
On Christmas Day 2023, just over a year after her wedding, she signed up to one such community, taking her first tentative steps towards her dream.
Around the same time the couple also posted an online ad on an ‘egg donor angel’ website, alongside a smiling photo of themselves.
In Australia, egg donation is based on altruism, with donors compensated only for their expenses rather than the eggs themselves, yet a single IVF cycle can require up to $15,000 in costs.
The average patient usually requires a minimum of three rounds of IVF treatment, with a total cost approaching $50,000.
Police have confirmed the couple’s visit to the casino, and whether they had been gambling, is under investigation.
Ms Nesbitt and Mr Dash’s history of mental health issues will be examined.
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