A man with a history of domestic violence killed his young son in what police have described as a tragedy during a scheduled access visit.
NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Peter Thurtell confirmed the case of a man found dead in East Lismore along with his two-year-old son on Sunday was being treated as a murder-suicide.
Authorities believe the man was on an access visit with his child, with the mother contacting police when he did not hand the son back over.
The son was due to be returned at 4.30pm and the mother called police about an hour later.
Officers discovered the two bodies in a house in the northern NSW town about 9.45pm.
"A more tragic event you wouldn't come across … it's very sad and that's a matter now being investigated and a report will be prepared for the coroner," Mr Thurtell said.
He said the man was known to police for previous domestic-violence matters but there had been no "significant issues" in the past.
The deaths followed a four-day statewide blitz that led to more than 550 people being charged with 1070 offences.
Of those arrested, 226 were wanted by police for serious domestic violence offences.
But senior officers say statewide operations such as Amarok VI - which went from Wednesday to Saturday - are just one way they are tackling the state's domestic violence crisis.
They pointed to the regular execution of search and arrest warrants, the "Empower You" mobile app that lets victims record evidence with authorities and incoming legislation criminalising coercive control as part of a multi-faceted approach.
"It's really important for us that we've got a suite of tools because ... offenders change their behaviour, not only with victims, but with the law as well," Mr Thurtell said.
"The more legislation, the more ability we have to interact with domestic violence offenders, the more opportunity we've got to change their behaviour or put them in jail."
The blitz included 3735 domestic violence-order checks and another 1300 bail-compliance checks.
Mr Thurtell said domestic violence offences were rising but it showed people were increasingly willing to come forward.
"Once the coercive control legislation comes into play on July 1 and victims start to understand what it is … that may see an increase yet again," he said.
The NSW government is set to tweak bail laws to keep high-risk domestic violence locked up or electronically monitored.
The presumption that high-risk offenders can be released on bail will also be reversed, with the onus of proof placed on accused perpetrators to demonstrate why they should be out in the community.
The changes follow a series of serious attacks on women, including the death of Molly Ticehurst allegedly at the hands of a former partner who had previously been accused of raping and stalking her.
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