A Sunday trip went horribly wrong for a Sydney family.
4-year-old Bentley Hilton was strapped into a car seat of a ute when his grandfather reversed it down a boat ramp at a caravan park in Lower Portland on Sunday around 11am.
NSW Police Inspector Ian Woodward said the grandfather then got off the car stopped on boat ramp and was trying to unstrap a boat from the car, when it suddenly rolled into the water and was submerged.
The car was swept away, with Bentley still strapped in his car seat. Bentley’s grandfather and another man, believed to be the boy’s father, dived into the water and frantically tried to search for Bentley.
Four hours later, emergency services recovered Bentley’s dead body from the ute completely submerged in Hawkesbury river.
Devastated family members of the little boy are still struggling to comprehend how a little boy ‘full of life’ was no longer with them.
Inspector Woodward said on Sunday, "They came here for a nice family day out and unfortunately it has ended in tragedy."
The boy's grandfather has provided a statement to police and Police are still investigating the incident.
