19/07/2023
Destroyers, yesterday was one of the grimmest days we have known in our heartbreaking task of ensuring that deaths due to violence against women across Australia are made known, honoured, and counted.
We are devastated to bring you news of three women killed in just one day. Three communities are mourning, three groups of family and friends torn by grief. We and all women of Australia grieve with them.
The reports we bring are necessarily lacking in detail. As always, we will update our post and register as further news comes to light.
With great sorrow we continue our task of maintaining the most credible and substantiated record of women killed by violence in Australia and sadly update our register of known deaths due to violence against women in 2023, which now stands at 25.
On Saturday, July 15 2023, three women died by violence:
At 9.45am police were called to a leisure centre at Kununurra (WA) after reports of a disturbance. On arrival, a woman in her 30s was found outside the centre with serious injuries. Despite emergency first aid by responders, she died at the scene. Maryanne Undalghumen (35) was arrested and has been charged with murder. Nothing further is known at present.
https://tinyurl.com/4anrtfbu
At 9:50am police received reports of an assault at a bush camp in Alice Springs (NT). They found a 47-year-old woman in a critical condition having suffered blunt weapon injuries. Despite all efforts she died an hour later. Her husband (51), also unnamed, was arrested at the scene and has been charged with murder No further details are reported as yet.
https://tinyurl.com/r96rt38p
At 1.30pm police were called to a house in Campbelltown (SA) after reports of gunshots. When they arrived, they found Aleksandra Vergulis (51) dead outside the home from gunshot injuries. Her daughter Daniela (21) was severely wounded and was taken to hospital. Police surrounded the house and cordoned off the area while they negotiated with Vasilis Vergulis (51), husband and father of the victims. Several hours later he surrendered to police. He was arrested and charged with murder and attempted murder. Nothing further has been reported.
https://tinyurl.com/yeyr58ja
We extend our deepest sympathy to family and friends of all three victims.
Destroyers, these posts honour the memory of women who have died in tragic circumstances. We do moderate closely and off topic comments will be hidden. Off topic includes: speculation as to motivation, actions, background, mental state and drug or alcohol use of the alleged perpetrator; calls for violent retribution; offensive remarks to other posters; and any comment which may impact on court proceedings.
We are currently monitoring several deaths, some of which date back over months and years. We try to be accurate in our record, and we will not publish without a high degree of certainty, but we can't know the full circumstances of each death until court cases or coronial hearings are finalised. We do our best to maintain a full and accurate register, based on our recording criteria. If you know of any verified facts which may add detail to our record, please send us a **personal message**.
๐ฃ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐บ๐ฒ๐๐๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ๐ ๐ผ๐ป๐น๐, ๐ฝ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ โ ๐๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐น๐ฒ๐๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐น๐น ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐น๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ต๐ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ฝ๐๐ฏ๐น๐ถ๐ฐ ๐๐ฎ๐น๐น ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐๐ต๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐.
We have no wish to prejudice the outcome of court proceedings.
Women from all backgrounds are counted but we make no assumptions about a woman's culture, lifestyle or circumstances. We often do not even know a name: this may be out of respect for cultural traditions or because of a court order. We add updated information to our annual registers as soon as it is received and verified.
You can access our updated current register and our historical registers on our dedicated page: https://tinyurl.com/y6ew3a8f
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Destroyers, you can support our researchers and our campaign for national action on violence against women in many ways:
๐๐ฅ๐ง๐๐๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฌ๐ค๐ง๐! Spread this post widely on your social networks.
๐๐ข๐๐จ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐ก๐ก! Increasingly, local and national reporting is locked behind a paywall. Every small donation helps our researchers to access the reputable, timely reports they rely on. Your dollar can help!
๐๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ (however small) are welcome and can be made via this PayPal link: https://tinyurl.com/y678ttmj
Or direct deposit to: BSB 032-249 Account number: 316752 (Destroy The Joint)
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*Please note:* In at least 75 per cent of the cases reported from 2012 to 2022, the victim knew her alleged killer. We do not record only deaths attributed as domestic or family violence, as we believe all violent deaths targeted against women are the result of societal misogyny. We include women killed by other women (lateral violence). Their small but sad number confirms that most violence against women is perpetrated by men.
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- If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit https://www.1800respect.org.au/
- You can access local services here: https://www.dss.gov.au/.../reducing.../help-and-support or download the free Daisy App https://www.1800respect.org.au/daisy/
- Accessible information and support is available via the free Sunny App, developed for and by women with disability https://www.1800respect.org.au/sunny/
- For legal information, Family Violence Law Help: https://familyviolencelaw.gov.au or
Womenโs Legal Services Australia https://www.wlsa.org.au
** In an emergency, call 000.
