A woman found in her home with serious head injuries was unable to speak and her lips appeared to be glued shut, an inquest into her death has been told.
Elizabeth Britton, 44, was found conscious in her Pottsville home in northern NSW on October 10, 2022, but died in hospital several weeks later.
Nobody has been charged over her death and an inquest is seeking to determine if her injuries were the result of an accident or an assault.
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NSW Ambulance paramedic Jamie Cameron, who was the first on the scene, on Thursday told the inquiry he noticed an “external sticky residue” around the lips of the badly wounded woman.
He said Britton was visibly shaking and looked “generally terrified”, consistent with someone who had recently experienced a traumatic event.
An older man at the scene — identified earlier as Christopher Kendrick, the father of Britton’s son — allegedly told paramedics: “I think he has glued her lips together. She can’t speak.”
Cameron said Britton nodded when he asked her: “Did he glue your lips together?”
But she shook her head when the paramedic asked: “Can you tell me who did this to you?”
Britton’s son and his girlfriend were also at the scene and both said words to the effect of “it was her boyfriend, he always does this and leaves”, Cameron said.
The paramedic said Britton also nodded when he asked her: “Did your boyfriend do this to you?”
Police were then called to respond to a potential domestic violence situation.
Cameron told the inquiry he was aware no glue was found on Britton’s lips when testing was done some time later.
Paramedics removed Britton from the scene and drove the ambulance around the corner before continuing to provide treatment, which the inquest heard was standard practice when danger might be present.
“I had a suspicion, based on the information that was provided to me on scene, that a potentially violent person could be returning,” Cameron said.
“So, I thought it would be prudent to move ourselves and the patient away from that.”
The inquest previously heard Britton had an abusive and violent relationship with her former partner, Anthony Siganto, who is considered a person of interest.
Britton’s mother and son have both said she nodded in agreement when asked if Siganto had assaulted her.
Counsel assisting the inquest Phil Hogan said the last time Siganto claimed to have seen Britton was roughly a week and a half before she sustained her injuries.
The inquest continues.
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au.
In an emergency, call 000.Advice and counselling for men concerned about their use of family violence: Men’s Referral Service, 1300 766 491.
