KEY POINTS:
Reipae Dobson rang 111 desperately pleading for help but before she could get assistance her former partner, Eldorado Waerehu, killed her in a frenzied knife attack.
Mr Waerehu had then taken his own life, leaving their 10-month-old son Konway an orphan.
Coroner Max Atkins yesterday held inquests into the deaths of Ms Dobson, 19, and 20-year- old Mr Waerehu, who both died in a house in Fourth Ave, Whangarei, on December 10 last year.
The two were estranged at the time and Ms Dobson had taken out a protection order against her ex- partner.
The coroner found Mr Waerehu's death had been self-inflicted, but reserved his decision in relation to Ms Dobson after indicating he was likely to be critical of Mr Waerehu. Under the Coroners Act, families of those a coroner criticises are given seven days notice and a chance to respond.
Members of both families were in court and heard Whangarei police Detective Shane Pilmer give evidence Ms Dobson had phoned 111 after Mr Waerehu had gone to the Fourth Ave house and threatened to kill her with a butcher's knife.
It was revealed Mr Waerehu had been arrested about 12.50am that day for fighting in Vine St, Whangarei, and had been released from police custody about 6.55am.
Meanwhile, Ms Dobson and three friends had been to Heaven Nightclub in Vine St, where Ms Dobson met a man she knew and took him home with her.
Mr Waerehu had gone to the house about 7am and woken Nasara Tanehohaia, a friend of Dobson's who was staying there.
He had been panicking, holding a knife and demanding to know who the man was with Ms Dobson, Ms Tanehohaia told the inquest yesterday. She said she had tried to calm Mr Waerehu when he said he was going to kill Ms Dobson and himself. Mr Waerehu had later gone to the kitchen and grabbed a bigger knife, only putting it down to drink from a wine cask bladder.
About 9.40am, Ms Dobson had come out of her bedroom and became embroiled in a row with Mr Waerehu. The male visitor had slipped out as the pair argued.
Ms Dobson had rung 111 and had been talking to police when Mr Waerehu had pushed her against the wall and began repeatedly stabbing her in the head and neck.
Ms Tanehohaia said she had woken Amber Waerehu, who managed to pull her half- brother off Ms Dobson.
When police arrived at the house less than five minutes later they had found Ms Dobson dead in a pool of blood. Mr Waerehu was found dead in the basement.
A post-mortem on Ms Dobson had found she had multiple stab wounds in her head, neck, limbs and trunk.
Mr Pilmer said the estranged couple had been together for six years in what had been a turbulent and often- violent relationship.
In August 2005, Ms Dobson had sought a protection order against her former partner. Mr Pilmer said a short time later, Mr Waerehu had hidden in Dobson's car, attacked her and threatened to kill her. Two members of the public had helped Ms Dobson, who was 17 weeks pregnant at the time, escape the beating.
Only six days before the deaths, Ms Dobson had found Mr Waerehu under the Fourth Ave house threatening to kill himself with an electrical cord.
Yesterday, Ms Dobson's family raised concerns about Mr Waerehu being released on police bail to the Fourth Ave house after being caught fighting when there was a protection order in place.
Mr Pilmer said the street fight had not involved Ms Dobson and, if it had, police would not have bailed Mr Waerehu to that house.
Before ending the inquests, Mr Atkins expressed his condolences to the relatives and his concerns about family violence.
"We all know about anger and we can all be angry.
"But we have a responsibility to act properly and this ended in a very sad double tragedy," he said.
"You will in your hearts want to honour the memory of these young people.
"The only way for all of us is to be determined not to respond with violence or anger."
- NORTHERN ADVOCATE
