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Canberra Homicide Squad Probes Belconnen Unit Fire That Killed Woman

Investigators have opened an active homicide inquiry and are seeking witnesses plus dashcam or CCTV footage to establish the victim's final movements.

Kylee McHugh, 46, inset, was found dead by firefighters after a fire broke out in her unit in Wallcliffe Flats on Osborne Place in Belconnen on May 18, 2026. Pictures by Karleen Minney, ACT Policing
Kylee McHugh, inset. ACT Policing at the scene of the unit fire where the 46-year-old's body was found. Pictures Karleen Minney and supplied
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Overview

  • Firefighters discovered the woman's body after a ground-floor unit fire on May 18, and police later identified her as 46-year-old Kylee McHugh.
  • ACT Policing's homicide squad has formally declared the death a homicide and has led the investigation from the start.
  • Officers have questioned multiple people but have not disclosed a cause of death, any suspects, or reported arrests as of the latest update.
  • Police asked anyone who spoke to Ms McHugh in the three days before May 18 to come forward and requested dashcam or CCTV footage from 9pm on May 17 to 7am on May 18 in the area bounded by College Street, Haydon Drive, Belconnen Way and Eastern Valley Way, with tips able to be given to Crime Stoppers (reference 8389127).
  • Friends and neighbours described McHugh as a kind, bubbly community member and said her death has shocked the local area while investigators continue forensic work and public appeals to build a timeline.