Father throw his son off bridge

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TO the outside world, they were a close and loving family.

Jason Lees, a popular private school teacher and successful international rugby referee, his wife Danielle Cara Sutton, a psychologist. Their two-year-old son a normal, well-adjusted boy.

Their seemingly happy life together makes it even harder to understand what could have driven Mr Lees to take his son to Brisbane’s Story Bridge in the early hours yesterday, throw him over the edge, before jumping himself.

It was the second murder-suicide involving a parent and child at the city landmark in just five months.

The final journey of Mr Lees and his son began when he took the toddler from their home in Seven Hills, in Brisbane’s southeast, about 2.30am and drove to Kangaroo Point.

He then strapped him into the babyseat of his bicycle and rode the remaining couple of hundred metres to the outbound side of the bridge where he jumped over the safety rail.

The man’s bike was left on the footpath. The bodies were removed hours later, about 8am.

Neighbours said they were shocked and saddened by the tragedy. “He was a lovely boy,” one neighbour said.

“He would wave to you if you saw them out the front.”

Another neighbour said: “They were just a lovely family. I guess she will just have to try to put her life back together. It’s just her now.”

Mr Lees, 40, originally from Canada, worked at the prestigious Anglican Church Grammar School and his son attended kindergarten there.

Headmaster Jonathan Hensman said he started at the school in 2007 after six years at The Southport School on the Gold Coast.

“Jason was a highly regarded and much loved teacher whose kindness to his students, his gentlemanly approach and enthusiasm for teaching were acknowledged by students, parents and staff alike,” he said.

“He was an outstanding teacher and very generous contributor to the whole of our program, not just the classroom, which adds to the shock of the circumstances surrounding this.”

He also spoke fondly of Mr Lees’ son.

“He was a lovely boy and that just adds to the tragedy,” he said.

“So as much as that was only a few days a week, he was part of our community too.”

A teacher at the school said staff were upset to have lost one of their own. “He was a really good man, a good man,” a staff member said. “One of the special people.”

Mr Lees’ students will also be offered counselling, he said.

“All of the families concerned have been phoned and we’ve asked them to talk through the issues with their sons tonight so they’ve had that opportunity first,” Mr Hensman said.

“We’ll talk through more deeply with the boys tomorrow with our counselling programs.”

Police said the surviving family was distraught and investigations were continuing. “It is a terrible family tragedy and the family are very upset,” Det-Supt Michael Niland said. “The family are suffering an immense amount of grief.”

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said: “It is nothing short of a heartbreaking tragedy, and there is a family out there in a lot of pain today.”

An alleged witness told Brisbane Times he heard a blood curdling scream just before he saw Mr Lees jump from the bridge.