16 Jan 2010

Northland man facing murder charge

4:59 pm on 16 January 2010

A Northland man will be charged with murder following the death of a woman in Kaikohe, police say.

Detective Inspector Karyn Malthus says officers were called to an assault at a flat in the Northland town's main street at about 8.30pm on Wednesday.

A member of the public had gone to the injured woman's aid, Ms Malthus says, and performed CPR until an ambulance arrived.

Lola Paraha, 47, was flown to Whangarei Hospital but died at 6 o'clock on Thursday morning.

Ms Malthus says a 38-year-old man, who is in custody charged with assaulting Ms Paraha, will reappear in court next week on the new charge.

Ms Paraha's body has been released to her family following a post-mortem, and a small team of officers will complete witness interviews over the weekend.

Ms Malthus says a two-year-old was in the house during the incident.