The devastated family of Mark Bombara has come to light for the first time since he massacred a mother and daughter before taking his own life, as the government launches a new crackdown on guns in the wake of the tragedy.
Bombara, 63, shot Jennifer Petelczyc, 53, and her daughter Gretl, 18, inside their home in Floreat, in Perth’s upmarket western suburbs, on Friday afternoon before turning the gun on himself .
The property developer, who was the registered owner of 13 guns, had been searching for his ex-wife and mother of his four adult children, Rowena, who had been staying on and off at her friend’s house in Berkeley Crescent since the couple separated in April. 1.
While the two families come to terms with the shocking tragedy, the Bombara clan, which includes children Candice, Ariel, Isaac and Eden, has remained out of the public eye.
However, Candice and Isaac were spotted outside their East Freemantle home on Monday as they ventured out to run errands.
Returning to the property with a Woolworths shopping bag in hand, Isaac respectfully declined to comment, saying he “didn’t care” to talk about what happened.
Candice, the daughter of gunman Mark Bombara, leaves her East Freemantle home on Monday with her husband to run errands.
Isaac Bombara leaves his sister’s house on Monday to go shopping.
The sighting comes as the Western Australian government announced on Monday that new gun laws being introduced to parliament in the coming days could be tightened further after Bombara was revealed to be in possession of more than a dozen firearms.
In October, the WA government unveiled proposed firearms law reforms that would limit the number of guns someone can own.
Under the revised Firearms Law, recreational shooters would only be allowed five guns, while farmers and competitive shooters would be limited to 10.
Gun owners would also have to undergo mental health checks and could automatically lose their firearms license if they are issued with a violence or family violence order.
If the bill passes parliament, Western Australia will have the strictest gun legislation in the country.
However, authorities are now considering taking even more drastic action against gun owners as questions arise over whether the deaths could have been prevented.
Speaking to the media on Monday, Police Minister Paul Papalia revealed that Bombara had 11 firearms with a recreational shooter license and two pistols with a collector’s license.
It is understood the weapon used on Friday was one of the pistols.
Mark James Bombara had been searching for his former partner, Rowena, who had been staying with Ms Petelczyc after their bitter divorce (Bombara and Rowena are pictured together)
Mark and Rowena are parents to (pictured left to right) Isaac, Eden, Candice and Ariel Bombara.
Prime Minister Roger Cook said the Floreat tragedy highlighted the need for stricter gun laws.
“There is no reason why a person living in Mosman Park could legally possess 13 guns,” Premier Roger Cook said.
‘Is hard to understand. One man, 13 guns, legally owned, in suburban Perth.
Papalia said Bombara had no previous convictions and police only became aware of him after his ex-wife contacted them for help on March 31 to ask for their help as she left the couple’s marital home in Mosman Park the following day.
Papalia said he asked for officers to be present at the home while he packed his belongings because of “family domestic violence (FDV) issues” that had not previously been reported to police.
Under current gun laws and proposed reforms, officers would still not have had the power to strip Bombara of his weapons when FDV matters were first raised with police eight weeks ago.
However, although Bombara was not subject to a restraining order, Papalia said the new laws would have restricted the number of guns he owned to five.
Papalia said he and the police commissioner would now look at whether further changes could be made to those reforms.
“I think so, I think we will act sooner to remove firearms from facilities where there is potential for harm to occur,” he said.
‘We need to address every part of the law to make it stricter, but particularly around this seizure of firearms, and what sense that seizure makes in relation to incidents of this nature.
Mark Bombara, 63, broke into Jennifer Petelczyc’s home in Floreat, in Perth’s western suburbs, about 4.30pm on Friday, looking for his ex-wife Rowena. Unable to find her, Bombara fatally shot her friend Jennifer Petelczyc, 53, and her daughter Gretl, 18, (pictured together) before turning the gun on himself.
Two young people place a floral tribute at the crime scene
“Currently, it is clear that people are being allowed to keep their firearms for longer than we potentially could in the future.”
The announcement comes after a friend of Petelczyc’s family told Daily Mail Australia that the mother-of-two had confessed to him that she feared for her family’s safety after learning Bombara was driving with a Glock under the seat. from his car, looking for his ex. wife of him.
The friend said Bombara had become increasingly erratic over the past six months after suffering mini strokes and diabetes, but was unable to receive treatment, causing major personality changes.
The family friend said Petelczyc, a widow, had frequently visited her parents, seeking legal advice from her father, a lawyer, on ways she could protect her daughters and Bombara.
She said that the last time her parents saw Mrs. Petelczyc, two weeks ago, shortly before leaving on vacation, her father yelled at her as she walked down the driveway: “Don’t forget to report him (Bombara drives with a gun) to police”.
Mrs Petelczyc replied “I will” before turning around and heading home.
Pictured: Mourners comfort each other after leaving floral tributes outside the crime scene.
The family friend said they are not sure if Petelczyc had reported the matter to police.
Daily Mail Australia understands WA Police have been unable to locate records indicating Ms Petelczyc made a report to police.
Bombara had been staying at Petelczyc’s home since leaving her ex-husband last month, but was not at the property when he broke into the house around 4.30pm on Friday.
Daily Mail Australia understands Bombara shot each woman in separate rooms of the house before taking his own life, and police officers heard the final shots as they ran down the road to the scene.
The tragedy leaves eldest daughter Leisl Petelczyc, 23, who was not home at the time, as the only surviving member of the family after her father Jon died of pancreatic cancer in August 2019.
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