“It’s not his money. Pauline’s money is old family money that’s been earned by hard-working family membersgoing back a couple of generations. It’s just not right. It should stay in our family,” Hanna said.
Bruce Hanna, 64, is relieved to be home and walking up Te Mata Peak with his dogs. The semi-retired orchardist says the gruelling eight-week trial at Auckland’s High Court has left him emotionally exhausted and raw.
Bruce Hanna doesn't want his brother-in-law to inherit his sister Pauline Hanna's money. Photo/Duncan Brown
The last time the Hanna siblings saw each other was at their mother Fay’s funeral on February 15, 2021.
“The day before, Pauline confided that she planned to update her will to include her step-grandson, who was 2 years old at the time. Shelley and I said, ‘What a great idea, you should do that,’ we knew how much joy he brought into her life,“ Hanna said.
He said his sister’s first will was written the year before she married Polkinghorne at the family berry farm in Havelock North, on November 7, 1998.
Pauline Hanna wrote a will the year before she married Philip Polkinghorne, according to her brother. Photo / Norrie Montgomery
Two days after Pauline Hanna’s death, Hanna says Polkinghorne phoned to inquire if he had a copy of his wife’s will.
“I replied, why the f*** would I have a copy of Pauline’s will and hung up. At that point I thought he was totally guilty; that he murdered my sister. He spoke in a normal coherent voice and wasn’t upset,” Hanna said.
“Philip said, ‘it seems terrible, but I don’t even know who her lawyer was,’ I thought that was very strange.”
Philip Polkinghorne was acquitted for murdering Pauline Hanna. He didn't have a copy of his wife's will. Photo / Supplied
Hanna had the family lawyer run a notice in the Law Society gazette to find out who held Pauline’s will, but no one responded.
When the Herald approached Polkinghorne if he was still trying to find Pauline’s will, he declined to comment and hung up.
After Pauline’s death, lawyers from Brookfield’s contacted Sibuns funeral Directors in Remuera seeking Bruce Hanna’s details.
“They sent me Pauline’s will from 1997, but it was invalid. The important thing is, there is a will somewhere, Pauline talked about her will frequently.”
Hanna is now appealing to Auckland law firms to see if anyone has it.
Pauline Hanna's family says it is hard to believe she set up a family trust but didn't have a will. Photo / Supplied
“Pauline knew the importance of having a will, so it must be somewhere in an Auckland lawyer’s office, which they may not even be aware of. She will have consulted a lawyer between 1998 and 2021. It’s hard to believe she set up a family trust 20 years ago but a will wasn’t drawn at the same time.”
Trust litigation and relationship property lawyer Lady Deborah Chambers KC says the best way for a family to find a will is to approach all the lawyers the deceased had been a client of or sought legal advice from.
“Pauline’s assets are dealt with under the rules of intestacy under the Administration Act. Because she left no children and neither of her parents are alive, Polkinghorne is entitled to her entire estate.
Lady Deborah Chambers KC says everyone should talk about what arrangements they have put in place with family and friends in the event of an unexpected death. Photo/ Supplied .
“If Polkinghorne had been convicted of murder or manslaughter, any property owned by Hanna’s estate would go directly to her siblings but not the properties held in trusts,” Chambers said.
Her advice is for everyone to talk to their families and friends about what arrangements they have put in place in the event of their unexpected death. Also, tell someone who knows where to find the documents and what their intention is.
“Pauline was uninformed what her legal entitlements were and given there was a significant property pool, she should have had a current will in place not to cause distress to family members. I feel slightly cross with her – she was in such an abusive relationship, but she had the support of her family. She had money, a good job and she let him do that to her?
Lady Chambers KC believes Philip Polkinghorne possibly manipulated Pauline Hanna into group sex parties.
Photo / Supplied
“I’m like come on, stand up and punch back, he was punching you metaphorically as hard as he could – controlling the money and possibly manipulating her into group sex parties – it’s a bit frustrating she let it happen.
“I mean she loved the trappings of wealth, but she became obsessed with how she looked and about her status, that she sacrificed everything else – it was a bad choice,” Lady Chambers said.
Pauline Hanna, a Counties-Manukau DHB procurement manager, was found dead at her Remuera home on Easter Monday, 2021.
Polkinghorne was acquitted of her murder on Monday.
Philip Polkinghorne was acquitted of murder. He is pictured with his sister Ruth Hughes and lawyer Ron Mansfield KC. Photo / Michael Craig
The last time Hanna heard from his sister was when a recording of her was played in front of a courtroom of strangers at the trial.
While jurors heard Pauline Hanna unloading to her family about her toxic marriage to Polkinghorne, her brother watched.
He says they were attentive and some had tears in their eyes, when they heard: “I know he’s such a sex fiend, and he videos it, I’ve got the videos. He’s really hurt me to the extent I’ve thought why am I living with him?”
Hanna believes the recording was justice for his sister and her voice brought humanity and honesty to the trial.
Bruce Hanna says the jury got to hear what his sister Pauline went through and the way she was treated by Polkinghorne. Photo / Supplied.
“No one knew Pauline, but everyone got to hear what she was going through and how she was treated by him. I thought, ‘Whoa, they get to hear from the victim and her grieving family’.”
During Hanna’s cross-examination, defence lawyer Ron Mansfied, KC, hinted his evidence might have been influenced by money.
If Hanna’s death was deemed a homicide, Polkinghorne wouldn’t get the life insurance payout and, because his wife had no children, the money might go to her extended family, the lawyer outlined.
“That was terrible. I felt like he was almost blaming me for my sister’s death. It was a ridiculous thing to come out with, it is rubbish. Even now, with locating Pauline’s will, it’s not to get any money, it’s more about getting our family possessions, our taonga – the family photographs, things that are valueless to anybody else, but it means a lot to us. He’ll just throw them in the skip.”
Bruce Hanna says he wants Pauline's personal possessions back from Philip Polkinghorne - pictured here with pets. He was acquitted for her murder. Photo / Supplied
Hanna says he and his big sister had the same sense of humour. Although they didn’t agree on everything, they were close and kept in regular contact. They both loved and cared for their mother, Fay, who lived with dementia.
“Pauline and I worked well together and had a good relationship looking after our mother in her fading years, but in an odd way it brought us closer which was the silver lining.”
Hanna is waiting for the coroner’s report and seeking legal advice before he decides whether to challenge who will inherit his sister’s assets.
Pauline Hanna's sister-in-law Shelley, brother Bruce, and nephew Jacob. Her niece, Rose Hanna is in the white shirt. The family holds Philip Polkinghorne responsible for Pauline's death. Photo / Dean Purcell
“We are reluctant to make a fuss about this. It may look like we are interested in Pauline for her money. Nothing could be further from the truth. We just want her voice to be heard, and her wishes honoured.
He will not be involving his youngest sister, Tracey Hanna, who lives in the United Kingdom.
Hanna’s message for Polkinghorne: ”We hold you responsible for Pauline’s death and we always will.”
Carolyne Meng-Yee is an Auckland-based investigative journalist who won Best Documentary at the Voyager Media Awards in 2022. She worked for the Herald on Sunday from 2007-2011 and rejoined the Herald in 2016 after working as an award-winning current affairs producer at TVNZ’s 60 Minutes, 20/20 and Sunday.
