Australian Parents Charged After Baby Found Dead in Motel Room Amid Disturbing Online Activity

Yue Ning Lieu, 42, also known as Linda Lieu, and her partner Benjamin Houghton, 40, have been arrested and charged with criminal neglect and concealing human remains following the discovery of their infant son's decomposing body in an Adelaide motel room. Police found the baby's body at the Tollgate Motel in Glen Osmond on Saturday. Houghton also faces a charge of hindering police.

The couple had been residing at the budget motel since relocating to South Australia from interstate earlier this year. Authorities confirmed they had no contact with state agencies during this period. The infant's body was reportedly found hidden beneath blankets, with incense allegedly burning in the room to mask the smell.

In the weeks leading up to the discovery, Lieu had been active online, posting frequently about aliens, mind control, and perceived threats targeting her. Meanwhile, Houghton, under the username Benjamin.Houghton666, had a history of publishing disturbing content referencing Satan and the devil. He shared posts alleging secret agents were abducting children and referred to himself as the 'Dark Lord,' proclaiming 'Hail Satan.'

One of Houghton's posts included a quote from the Book of Revelation concerning Satan, juxtaposed with images of celebrities and politicians, posing the question: 'Figured out who Satan’s people are yet?' This post also featured graphic imagery of animal cruelty with a disturbing audio track.

Among Houghton's final online activities was a video claiming that 11 children had been reported missing in North Dakota, USA, within a 17-day span. The video included photographs of three alleged missing children, set to a children's song with lyrics about hunger. Houghton also frequently posted about feeling watched, claiming his electronic devices were hacked and that he was being spied upon.

While Houghton referred to Lieu as his wife, neither parent had shared photographs of their relationship, pregnancy, or the birth of their son on social media. Houghton also alluded to familial estrangement in a post stating he had been 'born in the wrong family.' Lieu, who describes herself as a registered traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, maintained a blog called 'Health in Lieu,' where she detailed conspiracy theories about government surveillance and mind control. Her last post in April 2025, titled 'Help Me in My Fight Against Tyranny,' accused governments of using 'mind control' to 'enslave us.'

This is not the first time Lieu has been involved in a child welfare investigation. Five years prior, when she was 36, she disappeared with her two-year-old daughter. Police launched an investigation after worried relatives reported them missing. Lieu and her daughter were last seen in Sydney before reappearing nearly 300km away in Canberra, where Lieu walked into a police station alone. Her daughter was eventually located at a relative's home in Victoria. The circumstances surrounding this previous disappearance and the reason for the family's alarm remain unclear. The daughter, now seven, was not with Lieu at the time of the motel discovery and had not traveled to South Australia with her mother.

Lieu and Houghton appeared before the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Monday via a bedside hearing while undergoing medical treatment. They did not apply for bail and have been remanded in custody until May 3, 2027.