90 SECONDS OF HORROR The mum of eight beaten to death with a paving stone
Crystal Lee Selwyn was on the phone to police when she was attacked – and they heard it all…
Beautiful, strong and kindhearted. That’s how friends always described Crystal Lee Selwyn. Crystal, 38, lived in Hamilton, New Zealand, and was a mum of eight. Having that many children was hard work, but they were her whole world, and those who met her envied her ability to be such a great mum.
Whether it was a sports event at school or helping with homework, Crystal was there giving the kids her undivided attention. She was a woman who knew her own mind and wasn’t afraid to say what she thought, and when it came to her children, she was protective and always put them first.
It was 2019 and Crystal had just become a grandmother for the first time. Crystal couldn’t have been more proud. She’d recently separated from her long-term boyfriend, her six youngest children were all under the age of 12 and their dad was Rueben Paul Peeni, 36.
DOMESTIC ABUSE
Crystal and Peeni had been together
18 years and were living together, but their relationship had been on and off and had been plagued with domestic abuse. The police had been called to the couple’s home so many times over the years and Peeni had even spent time in prison for assaulting Crystal.
Somehow, they’d always managed to give it another try. But by November 2019, Crystal had finally ended their relationship. The estranged couple were still living together while they made other arrangements but understandably, tensions were high. Crystal was doing everything she could to make the break-up easier on the children but Peeni wasn’t being very mature about it.
On November 23, Peeni had been drinking all day. It was a Saturday and five of their six children were home. There were three other kids at the house visiting as well. All of the children were under the age of 14.
When Peeni ran out of alcohol, he went out to get some more from the local shop, but when he returned, he started a loud argument with Crystal. The shouting and Peeni’s threats grew so out of control that before long, Crystal stepped out to the front of the house just after
6pm to call the police. She told the operator that Peeni had been violent in the past and she was worried he was going to hurt her.
While she was talking, Peeni followed her outside. She was still holding the phone when he punched her hard in the head, sending her crashing down onto the hard ground. Dazed, Crystal cried out and the call to the operator remained connected. Peeni grabbed her long brunette hair and used it to pin her down and punched her four more times as she desperately tried to defend herself.
HORRIFIC SCENE
The dispatcher could only listen and send out officers as quickly as they could, as Crystal screamed out for help. All the children heard the shouting and some came to see what was happening. They were horrified at the scene of Peeni pummelling his fists into a cowering Crystal.
A 14-year-old boy who was visiting the house valiantly tried to intervene and pull Peeni back, but he was violently shoved aside.
Then, Peeni’s six-year-old son tried to help his mum. He desperately pulled his dad’s shirt and even bit him in an attempt to stop the attack. But even the distress of his son didn’t stop a raging Peeni. Looking around for a weapon, he picked up a 7kg paving stone. Raising it above his head, he slammed it over Crystal’s head 13 times.
The operator, and all the terrified children, could hear Peeni taunting Crystal and yelling obscenities at her as the stone hit her head. At one point, he put the paving stone down, but then he picked it up again and continued his sickening attack, screaming at her to just ‘die’.
SOBBING CHILDREN
Soon, the operator stopped hearing Crystal’s cries as she lost consciousness. All they could hear was the petrified sobs of the children. The total attack had been caught on the recorded call and had lasted just 90 seconds, but it was catastrophic.
Peeni dropped the bloodied paving stone and fled to his sister’s house. When emergency services arrived, they rushed Crystal to Waikato Hospital and took the children to the safety of a motel. Peeni later returned to the scene and was arrested. He told police that he had ‘lost it’ but said he believed that he had only struck Crystal twice with the slab. Crystal’s broken body told a very different story.
Peeni’s six-year-old son even bit himinan attempt to stop the attack
LIFE SUPPORT
Doctors at the hospital fought hard to save Crystal’s life. It was a miracle that she was still alive with such serious head injuries.
Crystal had been so strong in life, but this was a battle she couldn’t win. After three days on life support, Crystal was declared brain dead and her family agreed that the machines should be switched off. Her heartbroken children were taken in and cared for by family.
A fundraising page was set up to support Crystal’s children. It was weeks before Christmas and some were deeply traumatised by the events of that fatal day. The horrific case raised the issue of domestic violence into the headlines and police urged anyone who was at physical or emotional risk – or knew of someone who was – to urgently seek help.
Peeni was initially charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, but the charges were raised to murder. Then, in February this year, Peeni pleaded guilty to murdering Crystal. The court heard that their relationship was plagued with domestic violence – Peeni had served time in the past for hurting her, and there had been more than 100 call-outs to their house for disputes.