Police have confirmed that Cunxiu Tian, whose body was found by family at her Te Atatu home on Friday, died a violent death after being viciously assaulted in her own home.
"She was struck multiple times around the face and head area while she was in what she believed was the security of her own home," Detective Senior Sergeant Roger Small said at a press conference outside the crime scene.
"This is an utterly appalling assault on an elderly lady in her own home in the Te Atatu Peninsula community."
A post-mortem examination carried out on Saturday afternoon concluded that Mrs Tian had been struck several times around the head and face.
"While we will not be drawn further on the specifics of the attack, I can say that Madam Tian has been the victim of a prolonged assault," Mr Small said.