The sister of a woman bashed to death by her jealous husband has tearfully told a court about the sleepless nights she has spent comforting the four sons left behind.
Carnetra Potter asked to sit in the witness box of the Brisbane Supreme Court on Tuesday so she could directly address the man who murdered Sandra Peniamina at their home in Kippa-Ring, north of Brisbane, on March 31, 2016.
She looked Arona Peniamina in the eye and told him that he stole the life of a woman with an "amazing personality".
"Since Sandy has been gone we have had endless nights dealing with the boys crying for their mother who ask if she's OK," she said.
"You have taken such a beautiful soul and left four boys without parents.
"The void you have left in each of our lives will never ever be filled."
Peniamina, 38, who was found guilty on Monday night of murder, sat downcast in the dock and later told the court he was "really sorry" for what happened.
"I miss my wife and my kids every day," he said.
During the trial the court heard Peniamina was consumed by jealousy over a belief his wife was having an affair when he attacked her with such rage he left the tip of a kitchen knife wedged in her head.
He stabbed her multiple times with two kitchen knives before chasing her onto the driveway and caving her head in with a bollard as she lay on the ground.
Their eldest child witnessed the attack and told police of seeing their father "smashing" their mother's head into the floor.
The boys are now living with Ms Peniamina's family in New Zealand.
In sentencing Peniamina to life in jail, Justice Walter Sofronoff praised the bravery of the eldest son.
"He watched as you killed their mother, he listened to their mother scream for him, a 10-year-old, to help her," he said.
"You have stolen all the good that she might have shared, all the joy that she might have enjoyed."
Peniamina will be eligible for parole in 2036.
Australian Associated Press
