• A 52-year-old man has been charged with murder in Rotorua after a woman was found dead at an Old Taupo Rd flat on Monday.
• Two people are in critical condition in hospital following a connected assault in Western Heights on Monday.
• The victim, whose name is suppressed, lived alone.

A neighbour of a woman who was allegedly murdered in her Rotorua home said she had been told by police she died a “terrible violent death”.

The woman’s body was discovered by police on Monday afternoon and a 52-year-old Rotorua man has been charged with her murder.

Police are still guarding the Old Taupo Rd flat where the woman’s body was found.

Police are also investigating what they say is a linked attack early Monday morning at a Russell Cres property that left an elderly couple in critical condition in Rotorua Hospital.

Police have not revealed how the two attacks are linked.

A neighbour on Old Taupo Rd, who didn’t want to be named, said she got to know the dead woman from chats across the fence over the last two years.

She said they would chat often. One topic of conversation would be how she would have her windows and curtains wide open day and night.

”I would say to her ‘gosh don’t do that around here, you need to be careful with break-ins and what not’,” the woman said.

She said she told police she found it strange when she woke on Thursday morning last week and looked over to the woman’s house and noticed for the first time the windows were closed and curtains were pulled. She said it crossed her mind she must have had someone staying as it was out of character.

She said police had talked to all the neighbours and while they had not revealed any details of how or why the woman was killed, she said police told her she had “died a terrible violent death”.

”I said ‘she did not deserve to die that way’.”

The neighbour said the dead woman was a loner who didn’t have many visitors. She had been saddened recently after losing her mother and father a week apart 18 months ago.

Despite not having many people around, the neighbour noticed in the past month there had been at vehicle at her flat on occasions. She had passed that information to police.

52-year-old man appeared in court

A 52-year-old man appeared in the Rotorua District Court yesterday morning charged with the murder of a woman.

Judge Anna Skellern granted interim name suppression of the man as well as interim suppression of the name of the woman who died.

The bare-footed man appeared in the dock wearing shorts and a T-shirt and had a large bandage on his head.

Judge Skellern remanded him in custody to reappear in the High Court at Rotorua on October 18.

Counsel Andy Hill requested the man have interim name suppression as he had only just been charged and there were issues to be addressed.

Crown Solicitor Amanda Gordon asked the deceased’s name be suppressed as police had not yet released it and the court could not be sure all immediate family members had been notified.

Police at an Old Taupo Rd address in Rotorua on Wednesday where a woman was found dead on Monday, sparking a homicide investigation. Photo / Ben Fraser.

Retired couple critically injured in assault

A Russell Cres resident said today the retired couple assaulted in their home were in their 70s and belonged to a church.

The resident had given police his CCTV footage from his driveway.

”I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. I’ve asked the cops what’s happened but it’s all hush hush.”

He said the couple’s nephew lived “out the back” and he knew all three to say hello to but didn’t know them well.

Another neighbour, who didn’t want to be named, said it was a “horrible horrible thing”.

”Getting my mind around it is hard ... I feel so bad, they are a lovely couple and the fact they got hurt in this way is so hard to take.”

Police and forensic staff were at the Russell Cres property scouring for evidence yesterday.

A large tent was erected in the driveway and police, some in boiler suits, worked inside.

Curtains inside the home were drawn and there were two vehicles in the driveway.

Neighbours spoken to by the Rotorua Daily Post, who didn’t want to be named, were yesterday morning in shock at what had happened.

The elderly man and woman knew the husband and wife well and had been their neighbours for three years. They described them as a retired professional couple who had previously been business owners.

Police at the Russell Cres address in Rotorua on Wednesday where two people suffered critical injuries in an assault believed to be connected to a woman's death at a separate address. Photo / Ben Fraser.

The elderly man said the couple were on life support and family were travelling from Australia.

The elderly woman described them as a “beautiful, caring couple”.

They said police had kept them informed to stop them worrying and had advised them early someone was appearing in court.

They both said they had no idea what happened. They had also not heard anything overnight Monday.

Anyone with information about either incident that may be of use can contact police via the 105 phone service or online referencing the file number 240923/0552.

Information can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.