Two days shy of the anniversary of her death the family of Blessie Gotingco found justice.
The 28-year-old man, who has been on trial for the past four weeks, was found guilty of her rape and murder yesterday and though his face can be published his name will remain under wraps for now.
After the jury returned its verdicts - within two hours of deliberation - Justice Timothy Brewer said there was no reason for the defendant's name to remain a secret.
Two days shy of the anniversary of her death the family of Blessie Gotingco found justice.
The 28-year-old man, who has been on trial for the past four weeks, was found guilty of her rape and murder yesterday and though his face can be published his name will remain underwraps for now.
After the jury returned its verdicts - within two hours of deliberation - Justice Timothy Brewer said there was no reason for the defendant's name to remain a secret.
The defendant in court last month. He sacked his legal team and represented himself for much of the trial.
The applause from the public gallery was soon quelled when defence lawyer Chris Wilkinson-Smith indicated his client wanted to appeal the ruling.
But the family saw the tragedy as "preventable" and called for an "open public enquiry" into the issue.
Antonio Gotingco, left, Blessie's husband, arrives at the High Court at Auckland on day two of the murder trial. Photo / Jason Oxenham
Earlier in the day, Justice Brewer summed up the case telling the jurors to scrutinise the credibility of the defendant, who had given evidence earlier this week.
After sitting silently with his head down for most of the address the man bolted from his seat in the dock towards the holding cells, sparking a scuffle with security staff and a flurry of profanities.
The judge ordered him to remain outside the court and the next time he was in front of the jury they delivered the guilty verdicts, prompting him to pull his hood over his head and bury his hands in his pockets.
Mrs Gotingco was walking home after volunteering to do overtime at Tower Insurance on May 24, 2014 when she was deliberately run down by the defendant driving his silver BMW.
He bundled her into the back of the car and drove swiftly to his Birkdale apartment.
While inside his garage, he raped Mrs Gotingco, strangled her and subjected her to a frenzied knife attack, which included slashing her throat.
A police poster seeking details on Blessie Gotingco's death. Members of her North Shore community were in shock in the days following the discovery of her body.
He told the jury as much from the witness box earlier this week but he said he thought the 56-year-old North Shore mother of three was already dead and explained his actions as trying to make the death look like a "random attack" while he was high on methamphetamine.
The jury rejected that version of events and believed he had the requisite murderous intent to prove the charge.
On May 26, Mrs Gotingco's body was found in Eskdale Cemetery - a location his GPS anklet showed he had visited in the hours leading up to the murder.
"This was not you looking for drugs, this was for you already looking for possible locations to dump the body of the person you were going to rape," prosecutor Kieran Raftery said.
The defendant told the jury it was pure coincidence and the only reason he had been at the cemetery before killing Mrs Gotingco was to smoke the last of his methamphetamine.
The accused stormed out of the dock and barged his way back to the holding cells during summing up.
Jurors were unconvinced, just as they were with his explanation of "police malpractice" for how his semen was found inside the victim.
Mr Raftery indicated to the court preventive detention would be sought by the Crown, which means the defendant will be assessed by two health professionals before his August sentencing.
Before then his name suppression appeal will be heard by the Court of Appeal.
Blessie Gotingco's family described her as the light of their home. Photo / Facebook
