The article contains details that some readers may find distressing.
A six-day inquest into the death of Charlotte Lukendlay, a two-month-old baby girl has found she was killed by her own father, an Indian-origin man who physically abused her on multiple occasions that led to her eventual death in 2016.
The infant was rushed to the Launceston General Hospital after she became unresponsive on February 21, 2016.
Charlotte was then flown to the Royal Hobart Hospital where doctors discovered she had multiple fractures and her brain had been starved of oxygen. She died at the hospital, four days later.
Tasmanian Coroner Olivia McTaggart delivered her findings into the death of Charlotte in Hobart last week.
The Coroner found that Charlotte’s broken bones and bruising occurred as a result of treatment of her by her father, identified as Gaurav Endlay.
"I cannot determine exactly how and when Mr Endlay caused those fractures to Charlotte, although in some manner, he exerted pressures upon her rib cage," Ms McTaggart said.
"The cause of Charlotte's death was global hypoxic brain injury caused by a prolonged period of cessation of breathing arising from an act done by her father," she added.
Gaurav Endlay wanted a second, ‘better’ baby:
During the inquest, Ms McTaggart heard evidence at length about Mr Endlay's behaviour and the way in which he handled and treated Charlotte right from the time of her birth till she breathed her last.
The Coroner found that Mr Endlay had regularly expressed a desire to hurt the baby and much of his rage was caused by the fact that he wanted a boy and not a girl.
"Upon her birth, Mr Endlay was disappointed that his child was not a boy, as he wished. It appears that his anger was then directed at Charlotte, whom he held responsible for what he described as his "stress"," the report said.
In her evidence, Charlotte’s mother, Rongrong Lu told the Coroner that Mr Endlay once said that “Charlotte was like a chicken and that he wanted to cut her into pieces to make an Indian curry.”
While on another occasion, Mr Endlay told her that he wanted to kill the baby girl and try to have a ‘better’ one, the Coroner heard.
'Ms Lu adored Charlotte and tried assiduously to be a caring mother'
During the inquest, Ms Lu said she blamed Mr Endlay for their child’s death and recounted multiple instances of violence towards her and Charlotte.
The court also heard that she had taken a domestic violence order against Mr Endlay but did not proceed with the case. They instead planned to have a baby as Ms Lu believed the ‘child may heal their relationship.’
Ms Lu told the court that Mr Endlay initially kicked her in the stomach and punched holes in the walls of the unit when he discovered that they were having a girl. He regularly put the baby to sleep face down and wrapped in an unsafe way, the inquest was told.
On one occasion, Ms Lu stated that Mr Endlay was drunk and he took Charlotte in the room and “insisted on sleeping with her.”
After hearing her evidence, Ms McTaggart said that she found the evidence provided by Ms Lu 'credible'.
“Ms Lu did not harm Charlotte in any way. She adored Charlotte and tried assiduously to be a caring mother to her," Ms McTaggart said.
If Mr Endlay’s parents had initiated action, ‘Charlotte may have lived’
Whilst the Coroner found Mr Endlay responsible for the baby’s death, Ms McTaggart also considered missed opportunities to save her – and singled out
Ms McTaggart said that they "had knowledge of the serious risk to Charlotte at the hands of their son and could have intervened in several ways to protect Ms Lu, and most importantly, Charlotte."
“If they had tried to initiate action to help remove Charlotte from the home, she may have lived,” Ms McTaggart said.
In a statement, the Tasmanian police have said they would review the case.
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