Bali pool death of Australian FIFO worker Byron Haddow: Police seek interviews with last witnesses as coroner cites intoxication

Bali police are pressing to speak with three Australians who were the last people to see Byron Haddow alive before the 23-year-old Queenslander was found dead in a villa pool in North Kuta in May, a development that comes as investigators await interviews with the witnesses. Indonesian authorities have asked the Australian Federal Police for assistance in summoning the trio for questioning, though the witnesses have declined to comment on the summons.

The three Australians identified by investigators are Haddow’s friend Bailey Woods, 27, who shared the villa suite with Haddow, and two Melbourne friends, Kristy Pepperell, 27, and Jade Lucas, 25. Police had not interviewed Woods, Pepperell, or Lucas before they returned to Australia, according to the Bali Police report reviewed by media outlets. The Daily Mail report notes that police do not allege the trio is involved in Haddow’s death, but they are sought as witnesses who may illuminate events leading up to the drowning-like death.

Police spokesperson Senior Commander Ariasandy said authorities were not yet treating the case as foul play, but that the investigation remained ongoing as detectives seek to speak with the trio. “Based on the police report on May 30, 2025, police [are] yet to find any foul play from the incident,” Ariasandy said, adding that further inquiry was continuing.

Details from the investigation reveal Haddow’s death occurred on or about May 26 at The Grove Bumbak Villa, where he had been staying alongside Woods. A villa employee, Irvan Awaludin, told police he rushed to Haddow’s villa around 11:45 a.m. after learning of the death and contacted Woods to return to the scene to assist with formalities. CCTV footage captured staff from a nearby medical facility arriving shortly thereafter, according to the police report. Ariasandy confirmed there was cooperation with staff, while other witnesses, including Darren Cross, Haddow’s Bali-based friend, and Dr. Nola Margaret Gunawan, the forensic specialist who prepared the autopsy report, also provided accounts to investigators.

Forensic findings presented by Dr. Gunawan indicated bruising and abrasions consistent with blunt force trauma but concluded these injuries were not fatal. She noted Haddow had been breathing while submerged and that a high level of alcohol in the blood could have prevented his escape from the water. The autopsy concluded that the most probable cause of death was ethanol intoxication, with duloxetine present in the system, although the concentration of the antidepressant could not be determined. The report recommended consideration of CNS depression and impaired judgment as factors in the death. The coroner’s assessment aligns with a initial Bali police view that the death did not appear suspicious at the time.

The autopsy findings followed an earlier controversy: Haddow’s heart was removed during the autopsy and subsequently repatriated to Australia, a move that drew family concern and rectification commentary. The heart was later returned to Australia on August 11, after Haddow’s funeral had taken place, and is undergoing DNA testing to confirm it belongs to Haddow. Malekat Hukum, the law firm acting for Haddow’s family, described the return of the organ as a disturbing incident that raises questions about medical practices in Bali. The family has said they will continue pursuing answers and justice, stressing that they deserved transparency, dignity for their son, and a full, lawful accounting of events.

The death has become the subject of an open coronial inquiry in Australia, with the Coroners Court of Queensland yet to release findings. In Bali, investigators indicated there was no evidence of foul play, though the investigation remained active as authorities worked to interview the witnesses who last saw Haddow alive and to review the full autopsy results and related material. The case sits at the intersection of international medical-standard questions, cross-border legal processes, and the ongoing quest by Haddow’s family for clarity about both the circumstances surrounding his death and the handling of the corpse and organ.

As the Bali police continue to pursue statements from the three witnesses who were with Haddow the night before his death, the family’s legal team has warned of broader implications for medical and ethical practices in Bali. The situation remains fluid as authorities weigh new information from the ongoing coronial processes and additional documentation from hospital staff, investigators, and pathologists involved in this case.