Kaine van Hemert was in the throes of a major psychotic episode when he stabbed a Christchurch woman 19 times in the face and chest. The day before 34-year-old Bella Te Pania was brutally murdered, a mental health team determined Van Hemert had to be committed to a mental health facility the following day. Te Pania, 34, was found critically injured on Orchard Rd in Christchurch about 6.50am on December 31, 2019. A summary of facts read out in court detailed how Van Hemert’s poor mental health – and a failed mental health response – led to the death of an innocent woman. John Kirk-Anderson/Stuff Police at an Air New Zealand facility on Orchard Rd, Christchurch where Bella Te Pania was found critically injured on December 31, 2020.

Source: Stuff November 05, 2020 20:36 UTC