Breakthrough in the mysterious death of Illawarra mum Rachel Ayuso two years ago

By STEVE WILLIAMS FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA

Published: | Updated:

Police have charged a second man with manslaughter following the death of a young mum from a heroin overdose two years ago.

Kye Conlon, 27, was arrested at Stockland Shellharbour in the Illawarra region south of Sydney on Wednesday morning.

Mother-of-two Rachel Ayuso, 28, was found unresponsive at a home in the nearby suburb of Oak Flats in July 2022 and couldn’t be revived.

She died after snorting lines of heroin after a night out at a local pub with a group of friends.

Conlon was taken to Lake Illawarra Police Station, where he was charged with manslaughter and supply prohibited drug less than or equal to small quantity.

He was refused bail to appear in Wollongong Local Court on Thursday.

His arrest comes after disability support worker Braydon Hamilton, 28, was also charged with the manslaughter of Ms Ayuso. 

Mum-of-two Rachel Ayuso, 28, (pictured) was found dead at a Oak Flats home on July 13, 2022

Ms Ayuso was remembered as a ‘beautiful soul’ and an ‘adoring mum’ who ‘gained her angel wings too early’

It is alleged Ms Ayuso then went back to Hamilton’s Oak Flats home in the early hours of July 13 2022 after snorting lines of heroin during a night out.

While Hamilton slept, Ms Ayuso died between 2am and 11am that morning.

Following two years of extensive investigations, police charged Hamilton with manslaughter earlier this month.

Police alleged that Hamilton ‘omitted to assist her’, which carried a high risk that ‘death or grievous bodily harm’ could follow.

Hamilton is not accused of selling or supplying drugs to Ms Ayuso. 

During a bail application in Wollongong Local Court last week, Hamilton’s defence lawyer Matt Ward argued that his client thought Ms Ayuso was asleep.

The lawyer described the incident as a ‘tragedy’, the Illawarra Star reported

Magistrate Claire Girotto granted Hamilton bail.

Ms Ayuso (pictured) died after snorting lines of heroin after a night out at a local pub with a group of friends. Two men have been charged with her manslaughter and are before the courts

Hamilton had to forfeit $10,000 as a surety, surrender his passport, must report daily to police and is not permitted within 500m of any international point of departure as part of his strict conditions. 

Hamilton is due to reappear in court early next year

Friends wrote on on an online fundraiser that Ms Ayuso was ‘taken suddenly (and) she has left behind her much loved children,’ who were ‘Rachel’s moon and stars.’

She was also hailed as a ‘beautiful soul’ and an ‘adoring mum’ who ‘gained her angel wings too early’.

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