Police in Bali are investigating after the bodies of an Australian man and his two children were found dead in their bungalow in a popular tourist area.

Damien John Shaw, 56, and his two children, a boy aged six and a girl aged four, were found dead in their home in Kuta on Sunday.

Police said neighbours had checked in on the family after a call from the man’s wife, who had become concerned after a phone call with her husband. She was not in Bali at the time.

Australian media reported that police were treating the case as a suspected murder-suicide. Police told the BBC they had not yet determined the cause or manner of death and that further examinations would be carried out.

Police said the man’s wife had called a neighbour after hearing one of her children crying while on the phone to her husband. She was subsequently unable to contact him again.

His wife had reportedly travelled to the capital Jakarta in the previous days.

Police said that the neighbour, accompanied by other local residents, had then forced their way into the property after there was no response to their knocks. The three victims were discovered inside.

Police said Shaw was originally from Fremantle in Western Australia. Roger Cook, the state’s premier, described the news as a “very confronting situation”.

“This is a very sad situation; our hearts go out to everyone involved. We hope we can get to the bottom of what’s gone on as soon as possible,” he added.