Court is told of victim’s injuries

HE GRABBED HER BY THE BACK OF THE HEAD AND SLAMMED HER HEAD REPEATEDLY ON THE DASHBOARD OF THE CAR.

A YOUNG woman killed by her partner in a small Cape York community suffered 38 injuries to her body during a protracted attack.

The body of Bonita Claudie, 22, was found in the bathroom of the Old Mapoon house she shared with her de facto partner Soan Koko, 40, on October 12, 2018.

Mr Koko is on trial in the Cairns Supreme Court and has pleaded guilty to manslaughter, but not guilty to murder, denying he intended to kill her.

The court heard the couple had been drinking at various residences around the community that night with other people.

Crown prosecutor Nathan Crane told the court they had been in a relationship for some time and due to the large age gap Mr Koko had known Ms Claudie since she was a child.

He told the court the trial would hear from several witnesses who would describe seeing him assaulting Ms Claudie throughout the night.

“He did it with his fists, he kicked her with his feet,” he said.

“He grabbed her by the back of the head and slammed her head repeatedly on the dashboard of the car.”

Mr Crane told the court a medical examination of Ms Claudie’s body following her death found a total of 38 separate injuries on her head, neck, back, torso, arms and legs.

He said she also suffered fractured ribs which a medical expert would say was due to “blunt force trauma”.

“This is a trial about intent,”

PROSECUTOR NATHAN CRANE

he said. “This is a trial about what was in Mr Koko’s mind when he was assaulting Bonita.”

The court heard the nurse who first arrived at the couple’s Ndruili St home arrived to find several people including Mr Koko performing CPR on Ms Claudie in the bathroom.

Mr Crane said after she was declared dead some “unrest” began between the other men towards Mr Koko and the nurse locked them outside the house and stayed inside with him until police arrived.

The court heard the couple had travelled to Weipa with three other people earlier that day to buy food and alcohol and the group were drinking throughout the afternoon and evening when they returned to Old Mapoon.

Toxicology found Ms Claudie likely had a blood alcohol between 0.21 and 0.24 per cent when she died.

The trial

Tuesday. continues on

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