NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Rotorua money laundering trial: Facebook posts question whether Paula and Luther Toleafoa are still together

Kelly Makiha
By Kelly Makiha
Multimedia Journalist·Rotorua Daily Post·
17 Nov, 2021 06:30 AM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌

Subscriber benefit

The ability to gift paywall-free articles is a subscriber only benefit. See more offers by clicking the button below.

Already a subscriber?  Sign in here
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Paula Toleafoa says she was abused by her husband and wasn't working alongside him to launder drug money. Photo / NZME
Paula Toleafoa says she was abused by her husband and wasn't working alongside him to launder drug money. Photo / NZME

Paula Toleafoa says she was abused by her husband and wasn't working alongside him to launder drug money. Photo / NZME

Paula Toleafoa's claim she would have left her husband immediately if she knew he was drug dealing has been questioned in court with recent Facebook posts of her professing her love for him.

Paula Toleafoa, 47, is on trial in the Rotorua District Court after pleading not guilty to 69 money-laundering charges relating to spending and depositing cash made from her husband's methamphetamine dealing. Nine other charges have been dismissed since the trial began.

The Crown alleges she knew she was banking and spending hundreds of thousands of dollars of drug money over more than three years to December 2018 but it is her defence she was the victim of domestic violence and she didn't know what her husband was up to.

Luther Toleafoa has been convicted of methamphetamine dealing and money laundering. Photo / NZME
Luther Toleafoa has been convicted of methamphetamine dealing and money laundering. Photo / NZME

Luther Toleafoa is in custody after being convicted of drug dealing and money laundering.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Under questioning today from her lawyer, Steven Lack, Paula Toleafoa said if she knew the money had come from drugs, she would have left her husband and wouldn't have bothered trying to rekindle their marriage.

Start your day in the know

Get the latest headlines straight to your inbox.
Please email me competitions, offers and other updates. You can stop these at any time.
By signing up for this newsletter, you agree to NZME’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Crown prosecutor Anna McConachy produced posts from Paula Toleafoa's personal Facebook page and her business Facebook page, Ruff Diamonds NZ, showing the pair together, embracing, kissing and appearing to still be a couple.

McConachy put to Paula Toleafoa that her evidence wasn't correct as the posts showed she was still with her husband, even after he had been convicted of drug dealing on August 6 this year.

The posts included photos of the two embracing, celebrating their wedding anniversary, out for dinner and celebrating Valentine's Day. McConachy said the posts said things such as: "Love you babe", "I still choose you", "Till death do us part", "F*** the system", "F*** corruption" and "Inhale the good s*** and exhale the bulls***".

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

All of the posts were after Luther Toleafoa's arrest in December 2018.

Paula Toleafoa admitted she stood by him during his trial but was planning to leave after the convictions.

She said she would continue to post photos of her husband on Ruff Diamonds NZ as it was a marketing tool because customers who bought jewellery from the business liked the "bad boy" image.

When asked by McConachy if she personally made the posts, she said she couldn't remember, despite it being two months ago.

Paula Toleafoa said she had a social media team of five people and any of them could have posted it as if they were her. However, she conceded she had seen the posts and was happy to leave them up on her business page.

"Bad boys want a story and that's what I'm going to give them. I need to create an income and now that I have been plastered through the media as being a criminal it's very hard to try and turn that around and make some lemonade," she told McConachy.

Put to her again she was in fact still with her husband, Paula Toleafoa said "no" and that she was in the process of telling him it was over.

"My personal life with Luther and my Ruff Diamonds life with Luther don't belong hand-in-hand."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Earlier in evidence she said deposits made to their 31 bank accounts were cash her husband gave her for his half of the bills, or money he asked her to deposit for him.

She said she also made cash for herself buying and selling sunglasses and handbags, making between $800 and $2000 each time.

Lack asked her about a $10,000 cash deposit she made and she said it was given to her by Luther Toleafoa after he made a big profit selling a car.

Asked about a trip she took with her best friend to Fiji costing more than $2700, she said Luther Toleafoa paid cash for the trip from money she understood came from his business or profits selling cars.

"I had been crying to him about how he'd isolated me from my best friends and family. He kept trying to keep me away from them and he felt bad about it."

She said flights to Thailand costing more than $3000 were paid for by Luther Toleafoa in cash because their family went there to support a relative dying of cancer.

Lack took Paula Toleafoa through cash payments for things such as flights, hotel bookings, furniture, jewellery and appliances and each time she said the money came from her husband from profits from the sale of cars or his house washing business.

She said she moved out of their Auckland home and into her own place in 2016 but the couple would come to Rotorua frequently either separately or together. Sometimes they would stay at the Regal Palms Hotel or Rydges Rotorua.

Under cross-examination, McConachy said there appeared to be many hotel bookings in the couple's names at the Regal Palms in 2016, when she said they were separated.

She said there were also bank deposits of cash amounts made with Paula Toleafoa's bank card in Rotorua on the same days as the hotel bookings.

"Isn't it the case, Mrs Toleafoa, that Luther Toleafoa would deal drugs from the Regal Palms and you would bank the cash for him?"

Paula Toleafoa replied: "That is absolutely incorrect".

The trial, which is before Judge Phillip Cooper, continues.

Subscriber benefit

The ability to gift paywall-free articles is a subscriber only benefit. See more offers by clicking the button below.

Already a subscriber?  Sign in here
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

'Serious injuries': Crews work to free people after Tasman SH6 crash

19 Jun 09:24 AM
Premium
Opinion

Opinion: Jewish communities facing increased threats

19 Jun 09:00 AM
New Zealand

Thirty-one players win $12k each in Lotto's Second Division draw

19 Jun 07:57 AM

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Recommended for you
TVNZ boss on the future of the 6pm news, Shortland Street - and a move into pay TV
Media Insider

TVNZ boss on the future of the 6pm news, Shortland Street - and a move into pay TV

19 Jun 09:37 AM
'Serious injuries': Crews work to free people after Tasman SH6 crash
New Zealand

'Serious injuries': Crews work to free people after Tasman SH6 crash

19 Jun 09:24 AM
Musk's SpaceX Starship explodes in Texas test
World

Musk's SpaceX Starship explodes in Texas test

19 Jun 08:39 AM
Speeding driver led police on high-risk pursuit, caused crash then drove off
Crime

Speeding driver led police on high-risk pursuit, caused crash then drove off

19 Jun 08:00 AM
Thirty-one players win $12k each in Lotto's Second Division draw
New Zealand

Thirty-one players win $12k each in Lotto's Second Division draw

19 Jun 07:57 AM

Latest from New Zealand

'Serious injuries': Crews work to free people after Tasman SH6 crash

'Serious injuries': Crews work to free people after Tasman SH6 crash

19 Jun 09:24 AM

Emergency services were called to the scene about 8.30pm.

Premium
Opinion: Jewish communities facing increased threats

Opinion: Jewish communities facing increased threats

19 Jun 09:00 AM
Thirty-one players win $12k each in Lotto's Second Division draw

Thirty-one players win $12k each in Lotto's Second Division draw

19 Jun 07:57 AM
Probe into man who abused girl as he read her stories led to another sinister finding

Probe into man who abused girl as he read her stories led to another sinister finding

19 Jun 07:00 AM
Help for those helping hardest-hit
sponsored

Help for those helping hardest-hit

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search