Coroner questions police response time and priority status in Floreat murder-suicide inquest

A coronial inquest is examining police responses to Triple Zero calls made during a fatal shooting incident in Floreat, where a gunman killed two women before taking his own life. Mark Bombara, aged 63, shot Jennifer Petelczyc, aged 59, and her 18-year-old daughter Gretl at their home after forcing his way inside while searching for his estranged wife.

The Calls For Help

Before the killings, Gretl Petelczyc tried calling Triple Zero twice, waiting over a minute each time before the calls disconnected without speaking to an officer. The gunman's daughter, Ariel Bombara, also called emergency services while she and her mother heard the shootings happen over the phone. Ariel waited on hold for two and a half minutes and pleaded with the Telstra operator for help. When she finally reached an operator and reported a shooting during a family violence situation, police were sent to the house under priority two guidelines.

Internal Review And Timing

Detective Senior Sergeant Matt Edmunds from the WA Police Internal Affairs Unit testified that the call should have been designated as a priority one job immediately. The court heard Ariel's call connected to police at 4:30 pm and 58 seconds on a Friday afternoon, while security cameras recorded a fourth gunshot at 4:35 pm and 51 seconds, marking seven minutes after Ariel first tried to contact police. Senior Sergeant Edmunds stated it was possible police could have arrived within that timeframe if the job had been marked priority one, though he noted conducting an intervention to save the women was highly unlikely. The inquest also revealed that an officer who failed to call Gretl back after her dropped call has since resigned from the police force.

Context

Coronial inquests examine unexpected deaths to find out how they happened and whether emergency responses can be improved in the future. Police emergency dispatch systems rely on priority levels to decide how fast officers must react to different dangerous situations.