Inquest into the deaths of Bruce ROBERTS and Shane SNELLMAN
Deceased
Shane Snellman; Bruce Roberts
Demographics
male
Date of death
2002-10-18 to 2002-10-24; 2017-05-26 to 2017-07-21
Finding date
2021-05-20
Cause of death
Shane Snellman: gunshot wound to the supraclavicular fossa; Bruce Roberts: unascertained natural cause
AI-generated summary
Two unrelated deaths investigated together at the same property: Shane Snellman died from a gunshot wound to the supraclavicular fossa inflicted by the property owner Bruce Roberts in October 2002 after Snellman gained unauthorised entry, likely intending burglary. Snellman had a history of property offences and was impoverished at the time. Roberts died of natural causes in May 2017, approximately 15 years later, with the precise cause unascertainable due to thermal injuries sustained post-mortem. The finding highlights the dangers of unsecured firearms in residential settings and the risks posed when vulnerable, isolated individuals have access to weapons without proper safekeeping.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
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