Sydney water polo coach Lilie James was a global superstar when she was just 21 years old.
Taking classes, working part-time, going out on the town, and spending time with her family were all parts of her hectic life.
However, in October 2023, while she was working at St. Andrew’s Cathedral School in Sydney’s CBD, her life was tragically ended by her ex-boyfriend Paul Thijssen.
Thijssen was a sports assistant at the school and had previously attended the institution.
Subsequently, his remains were discovered at Vaucluse’s Diamond Bay Reserve.
Even though it has been a year since Lilie passed away, her parents, Peta and Jamie, are still deeply affected by the loss of their daughter.
“If you knew what he did that night, I think you’d understand why we can’t forgive what he did,” she remarked to her mother.
“I don’t think you can wake up one day and do something that brutal,” she stated to her father.
In an upcoming interview with Tara Brown on Nine’s 60 Minutes, the couple has spoken openly about their loss in an effort to bring attention to the problem of domestic abuse.
“A girl you couldn’t stop” was how Brown described Lilie, and her parents clearly want more quality time with their offspring.
“She was so busy, she was studying at university, she had part-time jobs, she was a part-time water polo coach at St Andrews, she was dancing, she was going to netball, she was partying with her friends,” the TV host remarked.
“She had a very full life but one that you would hope for for a 21-year-old.”
It was clear that the relationship was casual as Lilie’s parents hadn’t met Thijssen, according to Brown.
“They didn’t feel that Lilie felt the need to introduce them, it wasn’t that serious,” stated Brown.
Without a doubt, Lilie’s parents brought up the subject of him with her, and they expressed zero worry.
Jamie, Lilie’s dad, received a text message claiming that his daughter was in distress and requesting that he pick her up from school.
Paul Thijssen is now thought to have sent the text message after she had already been dead.
He wanted Lilie’s dad Jamie to visit the school, but why? What he would have seen and the visions he would have had to cope with would have left him reeling.
More information on the death of the 21-year-old and Thijssen’s identity is expected to be revealed during a coroner’s inquiry that is scheduled to start in March of next year.
“We’ve spoken to a forensic psychologist who believes Paul Thijssen most likely suffered from a narcissistic personality disorder, which meant he was always potentially capable of something violent,” said Brown.
He would have been deeply hurt by rejection.
“It was only a five-week casual relationship; they both knew going in that it wasn’t going to be anything more than a little fun.
