Three individuals who took their own lives in a Sydney immigration detention center were all receiving appropriate mental health care, an inquest has determined. However, it remains unclear why detainees at the Villawood detention center frequently refused to take their medication or attend medical appointments, as stated in the inquest.

One notable case is that of Leah Jane Porter, a 50-year-old New Zealand woman who hanged herself in Villawood in May 2022. This incident was among the three detainee suicides examined by the New South Wales coroner’s court. The trio, which includes a Malaysian and a Sierra Leone national, separately hanged themselves inside Villawood over a three-year period.

Porter moved to Australia from New Zealand in 2007 with her partner and two sons. She had a history of mental health challenges, including depression and borderline personality disorder, and had attempted suicide before. Her visa was canceled in 2021 due to criminal convictions, and she was subsequently transferred to Villawood in January 2022 after completing her prison sentence.

During her time in detention, Porter consistently refused her medication for borderline personality disorder and her attendance at medical appointments was sporadic, according to the inquest. The news also mentions that she became distressed when detention staff took away a stray kitten she had adopted, reportedly for health reasons.

The inquest discovered that Porter was not an isolated case in missing appointments and failing to take her medications, as this was a common practice across the center. On average, 39% of detainees did not attend health appointments, and a higher rate of 65% did not routinely take their prescribed medication, reflecting averages seen in community health care.

The inquiry also examined the deaths of Moses Kellie, a 33-year-old Sierra Leone national who was detained for four years and took his life in January 2019, and Muhammad Hafizuddin bin Zaini, a 29-year-old Malaysian who hanged himself in 2020. Bin Zaini had been incorrectly led to believe that he would be deported to Malaysia, which caused him significant frustration and sadness, especially after learning his mother was unwell.

The investigation found that the number of individuals transferred to Villawood from prison because their visas were canceled after a conviction increased by up to 75% between 2019 and 2023. Serco operated the Villawood facility at the time of the suicides, with health services managed by the International Health and Medical Service.

The inquest recommended that the federal government commission an independent study to investigate the reasons behind detainees’ failure to take their medication or attend appointments. It also suggested the removal of ligature points where detainees could hang themselves. In the case of Kellie, the inquiry found that he did not receive the recommended daily follow-ups with a mental health nurse and had not had any psychiatric assessments for over a year leading up to his suicide.

For support, the inquest mentioned several crisis support services: Lifeline in Australia (13 11 14), the Samaritans in the UK and Ireland (freephone 116 123), and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline in the US (988). Other international helplines can be found on befrienders.org.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/mar/06/three-suicides-in-villawood-detention-centre-inquest-ntwnfb