Lorraine Skiffington, partner of fraudster Sir Ngatata Love, dies after illness

Sir Ngatata Love, the partner of Lorraine Skiffington, who has died from cancer. Skiffington was a central figure in Love's fall from grace.

Lorraine Skiffington, the former partner of convicted fraudster Sir Ngatata Love, has died.

Skiffington lived with Love for several years, and was a central figure in his fall from grace as chairman of the Wellington Tenths Trust and Port Nicholson Block Settlement Trust.

Sources have now confirmed to the New Zealand Herald that she has died, aged 59.

Last October, former Treaty negotiator Love was jailed for two years and six months on fraud charges.

He and Skiffington used a $1.5 million payment from a land developer, given as a premium for access to valuable land owned by the Trust, to repay most of a mortgage on a Plimmerton house the co-owned.

At Love's trial, former trustees of the Tenths Trust gave evidence that they were never told of the payment.

Skiffington was originally charged alongside Love, but in 2012 she told the High Court at Wellington that she was suffering from terminal cancer.

In 2015, the court ruled Skiffington would not have to stand trial.

In July of this year, the High Court ruled the Plimmerton house at the centre of the fraud case must be sold, due to being tainted by the proceeds of crime.

The mortgage on the property was about $1m, with arrears at the time of $96,500.

Skiffington had argued the arrears were manufactured by Westpac Bank.

But the judge said the dispute between Skiffington and Westpac wouldn't stop the sale order.

Also in July, the Wellington Tenths Trust won a High Court decision for an interim freezing order on some of Skiffington's assets.

The order applied to assets in two trusts, where Skiffington was the sole director and shareholder; Strategic Directionz and Moanatahi.

The interim freezing order was made pending a further judgement on the Trust's case against Skiffington for unjust enrichment, relating to the Plimmerton House.