Rau Tongia killing: Defendant recalls discovering dead body in her bed

Rau Tongia, 33, was found dead on December 20, 2023. A woman is on trial in the High Court at Wellington, where she denies being a party to murder. Photo / Supplied

A woman accused of being a party to murder says she’d never seen a dead body before, but she knew Rau Tongia was gone as soon as she saw him, because he was so pale.

The woman, whose name is suppressed, is on trial in the High Court at Wellington, where she denies being a party to Tongia’s killing in December 2020.

The woman is charged with abetting, inciting or counselling the killing by allegedly sending Facebook messages to a woman who had a gun, including ones saying “Org it” and “Come get this c***”.

The court heard police believe Shayde Carolyn Weston, who has already been convicted of Tongia’s murder, used the gun to shoot him in the back as he slept beside the woman now on trial.

The woman’s lawyer Elizabeth Hall says Weston would have shot Tongia regardless of the messages.

Others in the house also had access to the Facebook account from which the woman is alleged to have sent the messages, something she vehemently denies doing.

Defendant: Placed in a chokehold

In two written statements given to police shortly after Tongia’s death, which were read to the jury this week, the woman described the shock of discovering Tongia’s body in her bed and the tumultuous events that night.

The woman told police she’d met Tongia in Christchurch more than a decade ago. Over the years, they’d become close friends and had a casual sexual relationship.

She told police what began as drinks to celebrate Tongia’s first week in a job as a scaffolder, after recently arriving in Wellington, had soured after he’d seen her and Weston kissing.

Shayde Carolyn Weston has been convicted for the murder of Rau Tongia in December 2020. Pool Picture supplied via STUFF

Angry and upset, Tongia had attacked Weston while she’d slept.

Tongia and Weston continued to fight and argue on the balcony of the Karori house. Police were called, but left after the woman assured them everything was okay.

In her statement, the woman said Tongia then sustained a head injury after a fight on the driveway against a group that included Weston. He’d returned to the house complaining of being struck with a hammer or an axe. She’d tried to stem the bleeding with a pillowcase.

She said Tongia had hurled abuse at her, accusing her of being selfish and not caring about him.

During her interview, the woman told police Tongia was so drunk, he was impossible to reason with. She’d shut and locked her bedroom door, but Tongia had broken in and got into bed beside her.

He’d put her in a chokehold, tight enough that she’d struggled to breathe. He’d continued to abuse her while also telling her he loved her and said they needed to go to sleep, she said.

Rau Tongia, 33.

Defendant: ‘He looked all pale’

In the morning, she said she’d slid out of bed and gone downstairs, where she and her niece had laughed about the night’s events. About 20 minutes later, she’d gone back to bed.

Offering Tongia a drink of water, she’d realised he was dead.

“I looked at him and he looked dead. I’ve never seen a dead body before, but he looked all pale and his eyes were slightly open,” she told police, according to the statement.

There was a patch of blood in the bed behind him by his lower back, she’d told police.

She didn’t know how it got there, saying she’d been so “out of it” she’d heard nothing during the night.

While speaking to police, she’d noticed specks of blood on her socks, pants and T-shirt - the clothes she’d slept in. But she didn’t know how they got there.

She’d run downstairs, telling her niece and son to check on Tongia. Confirming he was dead, they’d called emergency services.

As they stood on the driveway while paramedics were inside, her neighbour approached her. The teenage girl said that while everyone was asleep, someone had come up to the house carrying a long firearm and had let off some rounds.

The woman told police Tongia had only arrived in Wellington shortly before his death. In that time, the only people he’d had a problem with were a neighbour, whom he’d knocked out during a domestic dispute with his partner, and Weston, who’d he’d only met the night she’d fatally shot him.

Facebook messages: ‘That wasn’t me.’

Three months later, in March 2021, the woman gave a video interview to police, which was played to the jury.

During that interview, the police officer showed the woman Facebook messages, which police allege she wrote shortly before Tongia was shot.

“My bro attacked Shayde while she was asleep. F***** peanut. Now he’s attacking me.”

The messages continued, “I’ll f***** kill him. Yes org.”

Asked by the person receiving the messages whose she’s talking about, the woman allegedly replied saying: “Come get this c***.”

Police say that while more than one device in the house was logged on to the Facebook account in question, it was the woman who wrote the messages - something she vehemently denied in the police interview.

“I didn’t write that. I can’t even write like that drunk. I was f***** off my face,” she told police.

Questioned further during the interview, she said “that wasn’t me. Look, it honestly wasn’t. I did not write those messages. No f***** way. Nah. If it was from my phone, well, then someone’s written those. Are you trying to implicate me?” she asks the police officer.

Police say the woman sent the messages while upset and frustrated at the way Tongia had treated her that night.

But towards the end of the interview, the woman makes it clear she’s unhappy at the suggestion she played any part in Tongia’s death.

“Oh f*** off I did. No. F*** off I did. ‘Cause this is actually bullshit. Yous [sic] are f***** stupid if that’s what you f***** think. F*** this. F***** get me down here and f***** talk shit and then tell me that I played a part in f***** shooting my f***** friend.”

The Crown has now finished its case in the jury trial, which is now in its third week before Justice Paul Radich.

Catherine Hutton is an Open Justice reporter, based in Wellington. She has worked as a journalist for 20 years, including at the Waikato Times and RNZ. Most recently she was working as a media adviser at the Ministry of Justice.