Pair beat disabled woman, dumped body in river, court told

Here Teinakirai and Joseph Proude in the the Manuaku District Court. Photo / Dean Purcell

An intellectually disabled woman was found wrapped in sheets, wearing an incontinence nappy and weighted down by an 11kg rock, in a south Auckland river, a court heard today.

Joseph Proude, 47, and Here Teinakirai, 53, have gone on trial at the High Court at Auckland charged with the manslaughter of Patricia Joseph in January 2008.

The body of Ms Joseph, 37, was found partly submerged by a father and son as they kayaked in the Wairoa River, Clevedon. It was wrapped in pieces of cloth and weighted down with the rock.

Proude and Teinakirai, who are both beneficiaries, deny they committed manslaughter by assaulting Ms Joseph, causing her death, between January 1 and January 20, 2008.

However, Proude pleaded guilty today to a second manslaughter charge, during the same time period, of causing her death by denying her medical care and the necessaries of life.

He also pleaded guilty to a charge of offering an indignity to a human body, which related to the dumping of Ms Joseph's body in the river. Teinakirai, who is jointly charged, has pleaded not guilty.

Opening the case for the Crown, prosecutor Christine Gordon SC said Ms Joseph had gone to live with the couple in October 2006 and had been subjected to verbal and physical from the start.

She said each of the accused knew the other was abusing Ms Joseph but did nothing to stop it from happening.

On January 1, 2008, the Crown believed Ms Joseph was badly beaten on the bathroom floor after she soiled herself.

"She was beaten and as a result she sustained injuries, the extent of which left her unable to walk from where she lay in the bathroom."

She said each of the accused blamed each other for the assaults in the bathroom.

"What is clear is that each knew she was unable to move from that location and stayed there for three to seven days."

Ms Joseph wouldn't have been able to move, or get up and needed medical help.

The court heard Teinakirai placed an adult nappy on her because Ms Joseph continued soiling herself and flies were being attracted to her "dying" body.

Ms Gordon said Teinakirai went to the bathroom about January 20 and realised Ms Joseph had died.

"A plan was formulated to dispose of her body wrapped in sheets that had been used for the dogs," she said.

The Crown alleges the couple drove Ms Joseph's body to the Wairoa River under the cover of darkness.

The place was familiar to them because they had eeled there. It is alleged Proude checked out the area with a flashlight, while Teinakirai acted as a lookout, before he went back and picked up Ms Joseph's body that had been left by a farm gate.

He allegedly weighted her down with a rock he found and then rolled her into the river.

Proude and Teinakirai face additional charges, six and 11 respectively, of assaulting Ms Joseph in a variety of ways, including assault, assault with intent to injure, assault and assault with a weapon.

A jury of seven men and five women has been selected to hear the trial which is expected to last three weeks.