Surrey woman killed in Australia, GoFundMe launched

Content warning: This story contains details about domestic violence and abuse that some readers may find disturbing. If you are experiencing gender-based violence or intimate-partner violence, VictimLinkBC is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week across B.C. by phone or text at 1-800-563-0808 or email VictimLinkBC@bc211.ca.

Late on the night of May 26, a desperate call for help was made from a high-rise in a suburb of Sydney, Australia.

A woman called saying she was being assaulted, but police reportedly didn’t respond in time and when they got there, it was too late. Officers soon discovered the body of 34-year-old Tatiana Dokhotaru, a mother of one from Surrey.

7News in Australia reports there were issues when that initial call was made. It reports no name or address was given, and the tower where she lived has more than two dozen floors and about 300 suites.

It also says the call wasn’t deemed a priority for police and when they first arrived, they couldn’t gain access to the building, so they left and returned hours later to find her dead.

Once inside, they also found her four-year-old son and her estranged partner. Twenty-eight-year-old Danny Zayat has been charged with 18 domestic violence offences but not in connection to her death, although local prosecutors have indicated charges will be upgraded.

The Australia Broadcasting Corporation says Zayat appeared in court on Friday and was denied bail.

Speaking to 7News at a vigil in Surrey’s Holland Park on Sunday, Dokhotaru’s father Denis Thievin confirms he’s flying to Australia on Monday.

“Tania was a very loved, young woman,” said Thievin. “The more time goes on, the more I realize that we have a real problem, and it doesn’t make any sense that she died when, in fact, it’s possible she would be with us today had [police] behaved differently, but here we are.

“It makes no sense at all that she would have called, and they could not find her, when, in fact, I understand the police station is only a couple of blocks away. What’s the problem? There’s something wrong.”

Danny Zayat has been charged with 18 domestic violence-related offences. (Courtesy TikTok / @dannyzayat1)

Thievin says he’s going to Australia for a number of reasons and among them is to get answers from investigators.

“If I can, I sure will. One of the things I hope to accomplish is that I’ll have a chance to speak with the police about this exact thing. I suppose now, it’s become a huge issue that it has to do with abuse of women in a domestic situation and that’s exactly what we’re talking about,” he explained.

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He tells 7News, so far, he hasn’t received much information from investigators. “I would say it’s been very sketchy. At this point, we should have had answers and we don’t have them.”

A man who describes himself as a close friend of Dokhotaru’s, tells the news outlet, she texted him images of injuries she said she got in a car accident shortly before her death.

“I don’t believe it’s from a car accident,” said Emad. “A black eye and fingernails ripped off.”

Emad adds she outlined some of her injuries including a broken foot and three broken ribs. She also told him she was on a number of painkillers.

She also shared she had blocked friends on social media, saying her mother-in-law had her phone. She went on to say she was deactivating her social media so her “ex doesn’t see,” reads another text message shared with 7News.

“She just wants peace. That’s her exact words, ‘I just want peace.'”

Part of the money raised through a GoFundMe in Dokhotaru’s honour is to help bring her body back to Canada. It’ll also be used to set aside some future savings for her son.