Police responding to reports of an assault in a Sydney park arrived to find a naked man standing over the body of a dead woman in the shallow bank of the Parramatta river.
Residents near Cabarita Park in the city’s inner west reported hearing screams and yelling before the discovery was made just after 11.30pm on Thursday.
Police and paramedics attempted to revive the 27-year-old woman, who is yet to be formally identified, but were unsuccessful.
The 35-year-old man allegedly fled from the scene when police arrived but was arrested a short distance away and taken to the Burwood police station, where he is assisting police.
Det Supt Mark Jones said the man and woman, who were both naked when police found them, were believed to be known to each other, though the nature of their relationship was unclear.
“What I understand is the male was actually standing over the female just at the water’s edge, in sort of about a foot (30cm) deep of water,” he said.
“We do not believe it’s a random attack. We believe this pair may well have been known to each other and it’s something we’re looking at as we speak.”
The woman had several lacerations to her face and other injuries, which, Jones said, would be examined in a postmortem.
He said homicide detectives were looking in “great detail” at whether the woman may have been killed at another site and her body dumped in the river.
Police divers are still in the water while other officers are conducting ground searches of the popular park, near Cabarita wharf.
Part of a nearby Breakfast Point street has also been blocked off. Police confirmed several crime scenes throughout the inner west and inner city were being examined.
Jones said the man was known to police but was not able to confirm reports that the man had previously served a lengthy prison sentence.
A car has been seized from the scene, while a number of items taken from other crime scenes will also be forensically examined.
