Maria Claudia was born in Bogota in 1973. Those who knew her described her as a good and intelligent person.

She aspired to be a lawyer, which led her to pursue a law degree. While studying in law school, she met her childhood friend, Fernando Manrique.

Due to their frequent meetings, the two developed feelings for each other and soon became boyfriend and girlfriend.

Through sheer determination, Maria graduated from law school and passed the bar exam to become a lawyer.

Fernando, meanwhile, was working for a company at the time, earning a high salary of $300,000 Australian dollars, which afforded them a comfortable lifestyle.

Out of deep love for each other, Fernando and Maria decided to marry. Following their wedding, they moved to Sydney, Australia, in 2000 to work.

Their life as a couple in Australia flourished, leading them to become citizens and settle there. They bought a house at 68 Sir Thomas Mitchell Drive, Davidson, New South Wales.

The house they purchased was valued at $80,000 Australian dollars.

The couple’s love blossomed further when Maria became pregnant with their first child. Due to this, Maria decided to stop working as a lawyer.

On May 15, 2005, Maria gave birth to their eldest child, Elisa. A year later, their second child, Martin, was born on August 24, 2006.

The couple was happy with the arrival of their two children. However, beneath the surface, they endured intense fatigue, hardship, and perseverance because both children had a special condition: non-verbal autism.

Non-verbal autism is a condition where a person has difficulty speaking or is unable to speak. The children’s condition became a major challenge for the family.

Despite everything, Maria strove to remain strong for her children. Given the difficulty of raising two children with special needs, Maria made the decision to permanently leave her law career to fully focus on her children.

Fernando was supportive of Maria’s decision. As Martin and Elisa grew older, the couple enrolled them in a mainstream school, St Lucy’s School.

Maria believed it was better for their children to attend a normal school so they could experience socializing with typical students and avoid being shy despite their condition.

According to teachers at St Lucy’s School, the siblings were passionate about the arts—Martin loved to paint, and Elisa enjoyed dancing and singing.

To keep a close watch on her children, Maria volunteered at St Lucy’s School canteen. Those who knew Maria testified that she was a loving and caring mother.

They recalled her waking up early every day to prepare her children for school. The couple believed their life would remain steady, but in 2013, Fernando was laid off from his job.

The company needed to downsize due to losses, and Fernando was among those let go. Fernando quickly found a new job at Drake Business Logistics, an IT consultant firm.

However, his salary in the new job was significantly less than his previous one, at $190,000 Australian dollars. Due to his dedication, he was eventually promoted to an Executive Director role for the company’s Asia branch.

His life changed again due to the salary increase. His new position also gave him the freedom to travel to Asia for two weeks every month.

Their life continued, and Maria grew accustomed to Fernando frequently leaving home for work. Maria simply understood, knowing he was doing it for their family.

The Welfare Check

October 17, 2016, was a normal Monday, meaning the children had school. However, Maria’s friend, Nicole, was puzzled when they hadn’t arrived at school by 10:00 AM.

Nicole decided to check with Martin and Elisa’s teacher, who confirmed they were absent. Nicole immediately tried calling Maria but received no answer. She also tried calling Fernando’s phone, which was unreachable.

Nicole began to worry and called the authorities to request a welfare check. At 10:55 AM that same day, two police officers arrived at Maria and Fernando’s house.

They tried knocking on the door, but no one answered. They also peered through the window, but the interior appeared empty.

The authorities noticed the couple’s car was parked outside, raising their suspicion. Maria’s friend, Nicole, insisted they enter the house.

The police managed to open a window and pulled back the curtain. The body of Maria was revealed, seemingly asleep.

They called out to Maria repeatedly, but she did not answer. The authorities immediately requested backup and an ambulance.

While waiting for assistance, they managed to force open the door and enter the house. Upon entry, they saw Fernando’s body lying in the hallway.

They approached him and quickly checked his vitals, confirming he was lifeless. They then searched for Maria, Martin, and Elisa.

In one bedroom, they found Martin, also appearing to be asleep, but upon inspection, he too was confirmed deceased. The family’s pet dog, a Bull Mastiff named Tequila, was also found dead.

In the other bedroom, they found Maria and Elisa, again seemingly asleep. Upon checking, they were confirmed to be lifeless.

When the paramedics and ambulance arrived, they tried everything to revive the entire family, but sadly confirmed all were beyond help.

The news spread quickly. Authorities immediately sealed off the road leading to the Manrique residence.

Police called Fernando’s family in Colombia to share the tragic news. They also interviewed the neighbors, who became emotional and cried, especially upon learning that Elisa and Martin had also perished.

Maria’s family immediately flew to Australia. Two weeks after the crime, loved ones, friends, and acquaintances remembered Maria and Fernando as good people.

They spoke of the Manriques as an inspiration to newlyweds, capable of overcoming any challenge.

However, their positive view of Fernando would drastically change after a deeper investigation into his life.

The Double Life and Crushing Debt

Fernando was a hardworking and skilled employee but was generally shy, according to his colleagues.

But after his promotion, Fernando seemed to have developed a “double life.” Reports suggested that the formerly shy Fernando had become a superstar after traveling to various places in Asia, such as Vietnam, Malaysia, and the Philippines.

Fernando frequented bars, where he felt a surge of confidence because the women there treated him differently. The attention he received led him astray.

Besides alcohol, womanizing became his vice when he was at the bar, seeking high-priced escorts.

In a bar in Vietnam, he met a woman whom he boldly introduced to his colleagues as his girlfriend. However, that relationship was short-lived as she allegedly lied to him about being pregnant.

He also had girlfriends in Japan, Bangkok, and Taiwan. He managed to hide all these relationships from his wife.

Fernando’s lack of time and attention led to turmoil in his marriage. Their simple disagreements escalated into arguments, reaching a point where they no longer shared the same bed.

This wasn’t a problem for Fernando, as he had many women during his trips to Asia. Fernando’s biggest secret was exposed when Maria found a receipt.

She searched the building name on the receipt and discovered it was from a strip club. She immediately confronted Fernando, leading to a heated argument, prompting Maria to decide on divorce.

Maria’s divorce attorney confirmed that one month before the family’s death in September 2016, Fernando went to the Philippines.

He visited his company’s main branch in Makati City. However, during his two-week stay in Manila, he was actually with a Filipina named Jaimie.

Australian authorities sent investigators to the Philippines to interview Jaimie. She was 18 years old and had met Fernando at the bar where she worked in 2015.

Jaimie said she was with Fernando for the entire two weeks he stayed in the Philippines. Before he returned to Australia, he told her to quit her job and promised to support her needs monthly.

He first sent her money in April 2015 and promised to buy her a house and lot. Their last meeting was in September 2016. She also noticed that Fernando looked stressed at the time.

All of Fernando’s promises to the young woman would go unfulfilled as he was already dead.

The Plot and The Gas

Maria’s lawyer confirmed that Maria eventually kicked Fernando out after discovering his double life. However, since he had nowhere else to go, Maria allowed him to stay temporarily while he looked for a new place.

This setup was problematic, leading to more frequent arguments. Even the children were disturbed by Fernando’s loud voice when he got angry.

Fernando had also become a neglectful father. On one occasion, their son Martin passed out at school, but Fernando did not answer the phone when Maria repeatedly called him.

Due to Maria’s emotional distress, she finally forced Fernando out of the house. He had no choice but to leave and stayed in a hotel for several days.

Maria’s family supported the separation. Maria planned to return to Colombia to start a new life, raise Martin and Elisa there, and resume her law career.

Struggling to care for her two children alone, Maria sought assistance from the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) in September 2016.

Maria was overjoyed when her assistance was approved in October 2016. The NDIS would send a social worker to help Maria for two and a half hours in the morning and two and a half hours in the afternoon every day.

She would also receive cash assistance of $25,000 Australian dollars, which she could use for the needs of herself and her children.

She shared this happy news with her family and friends, mentioning her plan to return to work once the divorce was underway.

While the divorce would benefit Maria, it was the opposite for Fernando. Authorities noted that if the divorce proceeded, Fernando would be required to pay alimony and child support.

The investigation revealed that the tragedy was a murder, and Fernando was the suspect.

One of the motives authorities considered was Fernando’s overwhelming debt, which reached $8,000 from his credit cards, used to fund his vices and affairs.

He also owed the Australian government $1,000 in unpaid taxes. He might have been spending his tax money on expensive gifts for his mistresses.

Even their house payments were reportedly irregular, their savings were in the negative, and their trust fund only contained $6.

The threat of being chased by the Australian government for unpaid taxes added to his problems, on top of the monthly support he promised his Filipina girlfriend.

Fearing financial ruin, Fernando allegedly murdered his family to erase his problems.

Authorities believed Fernando used carbon monoxide, a colorless, odorless, and tasteless but highly poisonous gas, to kill his family.

Carbon monoxide is not commercially available to a normal person in Australia, so authorities wondered how he acquired it.

They realized Fernando had used his Executive Director position at his company to purchase the poisonous gas.

On September 30, 2016, Fernando created an account with BOC, a well-known gas supplier in Australia. He used his company’s name, Drake Business Logistics, and ordered two large tanks of the gas.

He had the gas delivered to a colleague’s house. When authorities spoke to the colleague, they asked Fernando what he needed the gas for. Fernando replied that someone in the company would use it.

The delivery driver was also surprised, as in his years of delivery, he had never encountered gas being delivered to a house. He even called Fernando’s number on the order to ensure the address was correct.

Fernando confirmed the address and said someone would meet him there. On October 11, 2016, Fernando pleaded with Maria to let him stay in their house, claiming he had nowhere else to go.

Out of pity, Maria allowed Fernando to return temporarily while he looked for a new place.

The Execution

Maria’s friend noted that in the week leading up to the crime, Fernando had been an unusually good father to his children, helping with chores and tending to them.

Neighbors also frequently saw Fernando working on the roof of their house. Unbeknownst to them, Fernando was preparing his malicious plan.

While Maria and the children were at school, Fernando went to his colleague’s house to retrieve the carbon monoxide gas. He brought it home and hid it in the garden shed.

Fernando was busy installing clear plastic hoses, which he concealed behind the plants so Maria wouldn’t see them.

On Sunday, October 16, 2016, while Maria, Martin, and Elisa were sound asleep, he executed his terrible plan.

He connected the hose from the gas tank hidden in the garden shed and slid it through the bedroom window of Maria and the children. He then turned on the gas.

Authorities theorized that the poisonous gas quickly spread throughout the house, possibly aided by an electric fan that was on.

It was clear that Fernando murdered his family, but investigators could not determine if he intended to die with them.

The two police officers who first found Fernando’s lifeless body suggested he seemed to be trying to leave the house but may have collapsed in the hallway after inhaling the carbon monoxide.

Authorities concluded that he might have killed his family to eliminate his problems, after which he planned to fly to Manila to be with his mistress, Jaimie.

However, after over two years of investigation, authorities officially ruled the case a murder-suicide because they found no evidence he had purchased a plane ticket out of the country.

He also destroyed his phone and the hard drives of his computers. A psychologist suggested that destroying his devices was a sign he did not want anyone else to know what he had done.

The only transaction authorities found was Fernando’s last money transfer to Jaimie in the Philippines, amounting to $3,411, or P24,000. Authorities theorized this was Fernando’s parting gift to his mistress.

Maria’s family had the bodies of Maria and the children cremated and brought them back to Colombia. They chose to remain silent about the tragic fate of Maria and her children.