A close-knit Australian community boycotted a funeral where a 15-year-old boy was buried beside his father – because the dad killed him before turning the gun on himself.
The bodies of Wayne Smith, 58, and his son Noah were found at their New South Wales home in Yamba on June 1 in what authorities said was a murder-suicide, news.com.au reported.
The dad reportedly shot Noah while he was in bed.
The joint funeral was held Wednesday amid anger in close-knit community.
“Tomorrow a beautiful young boy will be laid to rest with his father who killed him,” one resident wrote on social media. “Many locals are not attending the funeral as they believe it should be separated. They hate that they just can’t say goodbye to the son alone.”
The man said he respected the shattered family’s decision to bury the father and son together, but noted that others would boycott the service.
The Riverview Funeral Home and Crematorium posted a notice about a “joint celebration of life,” which featured photographs of Wayne and Noah holding large fish.
“Whilst this is a tragic time in our lives, we wish to invite the entire community to come together to celebrate the life of beautiful Noah with his wonderful zest for life, and his father Wayne, who loved his son dearly,” the funeral home wrote.
It has emerged that Wayne had his firearms license reinstated just months before the shootings, 9News reported, citing state Police Minister Yasmin Catley.
The license was suspended in August 2021 and his three guns were removed after he admitted to mental-health problems while seeking to renew the license, according to the outlet.
In December 2022, Wayne underwent a risk assessment, including an independent medical evaluation, before his license was reinstated, 9News reported.
Catley defended the licensing process as being “very robust” and “rigorous,” adding that it would now be up to an inquest to “shed some light and recommend ways to improve” it.
“It’s difficult to speculate on what affected his mental health between December and now, but clearly something happened,” she said.
Coffs-Clarence Police District Superintendent Shane Cribb said law enforcement had no reason to suspect the boy may have been unsafe at the home.
“We have been actively involved with the family right from the start,” he said Friday, news.com.au reported. It’s an absolute tragic situation that my own police have had to deal with all night.
“I’ve got my own police that know the family, I’ve got police officers’ children that went to the same school, so when you talk about the effect this has as a whole, it affects a lot more people than we think,” the top cop added.
Wayne and Noah had bonded over their love of fishing, the Daily Mail reported.
The boy, won awards for fishing, including the encouragement award in Tim the Bream competition in 2017, according to the outlet. He also was an avid rugby player and was on the under-12 team that won a 2019 event.
The Yamba Buccaneers Rugby Club told Daily Mail Australia it was “devastated” by Noah’s death and sent its “condolences are with his family, friends and former team mates at this difficult time.”
The team added: “A reserved, quiet child, Noah was well-respected by others players and his coaches, and was renowned for always ‘having a crack’ and doing what he could for the team.”
A neighbor said the community has stunned by the murder-suicide.
“My partner came home at about 3 p.m. and there were cops everywhere,” Lisa Flynn said, the Daily Mail reported. “No one had heard anything – no gunshot noises, nothing.
You just wouldn’t expect it in this area.”
