KEY POINTS:
Janet Moses died surrounded by her family but there was nothing peaceful about her demise, apparently during a curse-lifting ceremony.
The unexplained death of the Wainuiomata woman a month ago has been upgraded to a homicide as Wellington police attempt to unravel how an apparently healthy 22-year-old mother of two seemingly drowned while in a relative's home.
Police yesterday confirmed Ms Moses died after she took part in a ceremony involving water. Inquiry head Ross Levy of Lower Hutt CIB would not comment on reports the ceremony was an attempt to lift a maketu, or curse.
However, he said the living room in the house had been water-logged when police arrived to investigate. The carpet was saturated and floorboards so sodden they posed a danger to anyone who walked on them.
Ms Moses' body was found lying on a bed with no apparent internal injuries, but with grazes on her upper arms, forearms and torso. She had symmetrical bruising down each side of her body, a possible indication she had been forcibly held down. The case has been referred to the coroner to establish the cause of death.
"From the information we have gathered there was a family ceremony," Mr Levy said. "That ceremony did involve a quantity of water. How the incident has been described in other forms of media hasn't come from any police sources and we're not buying into that. There are certainly some unusual aspects surrounding her death. We have a reasonably clear picture of what happened inside and who the people were inside the address ... "
Police have spoken to more than 100 people over the past four weeks - family members, extended family members and associates of Ms Moses. All had fully co-operated with police in what Mr Levy called a very methodical and careful investigation.
"The focus of our inquiry has been on the family members: They have been central to our inquiries and that is not likely to change. What we're trying to do at the moment is assess all the information and identify those responsible for Janet's death."
Maori church leaders spoken to yesterday said maketu - a curse - was a commonly-held belief.
Reverend Henare Tate, a lecturer at the School of Theology at the University of Auckland, said anyone called in to lift a maketu needed to establish the victim's problem was purely a spiritual one and not caused by drugs or other outside sources.
"In essence, maketu is ill-will - ill-will can be found in any culture or any community - which can diminish a person or disempower a person ... it's not just part of Maori culture, it's part of every culture."
While the idea of a curse might sound fantastic and superstitious, for those afflicted it was a genuine and dreadful affliction, Mr Tate said.
Anglican Archdeacon Hone Kaa said he had never heard of anyone dying in a maketu-lifting ceremony, but said they were potentially dangerous if not conducted properly.
"These types of ceremonies go on quite regularly but you usually don't hear anything about them publicly because they have achieved what they were meant to," he said. "But they can be very emotional and tense, the healer must be in total control."
