Toakase Finau was murdered by her estranged partner Viliami Latu in 2021. He then took his own life. Photo/Facebook
Toakase Finau was murdered by her estranged partner Viliami Latu in 2021. He then took his own life. Photo/Facebook
Warning: This story refers to suicide and domestic violence
A Coroner has ruled a South Auckland woman murdered by her estranged partner — while he was on bail for a previous assault — was let down by agencies that were meant to keep her safe.
And she is calling on the “whole of Government” to come together to address New Zealand’s domestic violence issue and prevent further deaths.
In March 2021, Viliami Latu murdered 29-year-old Toakase Finau — his estranged partner and the mother of his four young children.
Latu then took his own life, leaving a note in his pocket directing his family to Latu’s body, which he had hidden in the boot of her own car.
Today, Coroner Alison Mill’s formal findings into the murder-suicide can be reported.
“Police, the justice system, the Department of Corrections, Oranga Tamariki, housing and health providers all interacted with this whānau and had concerns about family harm yet failed to prevent these tragic deaths,” she said.
“Aotearoa New Zealand has an unacceptably high level of intimate partner violence. We have among the highest reported rates of family and sexual violence in the developed world.
“There is no easy fix to this problem.
“Toakase’s and Viliami’s deaths are an example of why a whole of government approach to family violence is needed. Their deaths are also an example of the consequences of the ‘gaps’ in services.”
Coroner Alison Mills of Whangarei.
Photo / Supplied
Coroner Mills based her findings on a substantial amount of information about the couple and their involvement with Government and external agencies.
She reviewed records and reports from police, Oranga Tamariki and Women’s Refuge as well as medical records and Latu’s court file.
She said police had attended 15 calls for help from Finau or concerned neighbours.
Officers issued six Police Safety Orders against Latu — aimed to keep him away from Finau temporarily — ranging from 24 hours to 10 days.
He repeatedly breached those orders, as well as bail granted by District Court judges.
Finau told Oranga Tamariki Latu was “verbally, emotionally and mentally abusive”.
She was first referred to Women’s Refuge by police in 2016 and then in 2019 she self-referred and spent three nights in a safe house.
“During which time, a comprehensive risk assessment showed that Viliami had perpetrated physical, sexual and psychological abuse against her,” the Coroner said.
“The case notes indicate that Toakase disclosed that... he controlled all financial decisions during the relationship, prohibited her access to her own money and controlled how she spent her money... Viliami had made her feel like a servant.
“He isolated her from family and friends and monitored where she was, and who she saw. Toakase was rated as being at ‘high risk’.”
Viliami Latu. Photo / Supplied
Finau also told refuge staff she “cannot stop” Latu coming to her home — no matter what orders or conditions were in place.
She had “suffered retribution” for calling the police and “did not feel sufficiently safe or confident in the justice system to provide a statement”.
Coroner Mills said Latu and Finau married in 2011 and their relationship was “unstable” and “turbulent”.
Social agencies were involved with the family on and off from 2011 and in the year before the couple died their marriage “deteriorated significantly” and Latu’s “use of violence escalated”.
Finau tried to leave Latu a number of times, moving to Christchurch at one stage.
He followed. She tried to hide the violence and abuse from her family.
In 2020 they moved back to Auckland and in November he was arrested after he gave her “a hiding”.
A Tongan funeral service was held at Kingwater Funeral Home in Ōtāhuhu for Toakase Finau and Viliami Latu. Photo / Kalofiama Media
He was initially remanded in custody but just before Christmas he was granted electronically monitored bail with a 24-hour curfew — despite opposition from police and Probation.
Reports submitted to the court when Latu applied for bail stated his violence towards Finau was “escalating” and he had an “abysmal” record of complying with any orders to stay away from her.
“Probation and police had great concerns about the safety and wellbeing of the alleged victims. Viliami had reoffended whilst on bail, had continuously returned to Toakase’s address, and continued to place the blame for his offending on Toakase,” the Coroner said.
While he was locked up Finau’s social worker found her a new place to live.
On November 24 a temporary protection order was put in place against Latu banning him from any contact with Finau and the four children.
This order was made permanent on February 25, 2021.
Latu was facing charges in the Manukau District Court when he killed his estranged partner. Photo / NZherald
In January, Latu was back behind bars after a bail breach not connected to Finau.
He sought release on EM bail again and the judge granted his wish — despite hearing that he was “unsuitable” for it, that his compliance was “abysmal” and that he was considered a “high risk of reoffending and a high risk of harm”.
The judge sent Latu back into the community with a “final warning” — any further breaches would see him remanded in custody until the end of his trial.
When Finau learned Latu had been granted bail she called her sister, saying she was “scared” and wanted “to hide from him”.
But after his release, she took her children to see him a number of times.
At 9am on March 10, police went to Latu’s address for a routine bail check.
A family member answered the door and located Latu outside with serious self-inflicted injuries and was unresponsive.
Paramedics arrived at Latu's property quickly and resuscitated him - but he did not survive his injuries. Photo / File
Police found a set of car keys and a handwritten note in his pocket.
The note said: ‘Kase, it’s in the boot of the car, love you heaps’.
“Police pushed the remote button on the keys... which unlocked Toakase’s blue car ... They opened the boot of the vehicle and found Toakase’s body tucked under clothing and other items inside the boot.”
Finau’s cause of death was ligature strangulation and she also had numerous scrapes, bruises and injuries to her head, arms and tongue.
Coroner Mills established that Finau had travelled to Latu’s bail address on the night of March 8 and he had killed her soon after.
Latu was rushed to hospital, but died days later. Photo / 123rf
“Viliami’s violence had been escalating, and his actions were likely to have been triggered by jealousy, revenge and by Toakase’s attempts to end the relationship,” the Coroner said.
“There is little doubt that Viliami intended to end his life. His actions largely speak for themselves and while he did not have a significant history of self-harm or suicidal thoughts, he was undoubtedly acutely aware that his killing of Toakase was going to be discovered.
Coroner Mills said Finau’s murder was “a tragic example of the epidemic of intimate partner violence in New Zealand to which there are no ‘quick fixes’”.
“It is difficult to point to a single action or inaction that may have prevented her death,” she said.
Coroner Mills said the final decision to release Latu on bail was “not unreasonable”.
“Comparatively to many before the courts, Viliami did not have significant criminal history, and the reported violence was not extensive,” she said.
“EM with a 24-hour curfew should have been sufficiently robust to prevent Viliami from re-offending against Toakase. Again, this shows the complex nature of intimate partner violence.
“A number of Government agencies and non-governmental agencies had interacted with the family over the years. In the year immediately preceding Toakase’s death there was an attempt to bring the agencies together.”
Police were called repeatedly by Finau when Latu was assaulting and abusing her. Photo / File
Coroner Mills said there was a clear “need for a whole of Government approach and an integrated system to address the levels of family violence in this country”.
She said the circumstances that led to murder and suicide were “complex and multifactorial” — as were the strategies and resources that are needed to prevent further such deaths.
Therefore, it was difficult to make any specific or single recommendation that may prevent further deaths in similar circumstances.
However, she made several formal comments about the issue.
“Family violence is predominately perpetrated by men. Toakase, like so many victims of intimate violence, endured years of psychological, financial, and physical abuse which occurred predominantly in private and went unreported,” she said.
“The underreporting and concealing of intimate partner violence is a recognised fact... There are also many complex reasons why women living in abusive relationships stay or return to their abuser.
“Toakase should not be criticised or blamed for her continued contact with Viliami. Toakase was the victim in this case and had been living under his coercive control for many years. The responsibility for her death rests solely with Viliami.”
Coroner Mills also provided extensive advice about supporting victims of domestic violence.
“Listen to what they have to say. Believe what they tell you. It will have taken a lot for them to talk to you,” she said.
“Tell her you think she has been brave in being able to talk about the abuse... and help her to understand that the abuse is not her fault and that no one deserves to be abused, no matter what they do.”
Anna Leask is a Christchurch-based reporter who covers national crime and justice. She joined the Herald in 2008 and has worked as a journalist for 18 years with a particular focus on family and gender-based violence, child abuse, sexual violence, homicides, mental health and youth crime. She writes, hosts and produces the award-winning podcast A Moment In Crime, released monthly on nzherald.co.nz
FAMILY VIOLENCE - DO YOU NEED HELP?
If you are being abused, remember it’s not your fault - violence is never okay.
Where to go for help or more information:
Women’s Refuge: Crisis line - 0800 REFUGE or 0800 733 843 (available 24/7).
White Ribbon: Aiming to eliminate men’s violence towards women.
Coroner Mills also listed the following organisations in her report:
Fale Pasifika Women’s Refuge: The only Pasifika-focused Refuge in New Zealand. It provides a 24/7 crisis line, safe residential services and a range of other supports.
Fonua Ola: A Pasifika community support service that provides support, counselling services and stopping violence programmes.
Vaka Tautua: A national Pacific health and social service provider with a strong presence in Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury and Otago.
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