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'They are not a punching bag for your anger': Court finds man who punched woman 40 times did not contribute to her death WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are warned that the following story contains an image of a deceased person. The family of a West Australian woman who was viciously beaten by her partner in an attack that included punching her 40 times, stomping on her head five times and choking her, felt betrayed by the justice system after he was cleared of contributing to her death. Instead, the cause of death of Jigalong woman, Nyaparu*, 24, was found to be a heart attack suffered in the moments after she was bashed. Nyaparu died from a heart attack after suffering a sustained beating from her partner in Perth's CBD in 2022. Credit: WAtoday The finding comes a month after Victorian woman Emma Bates was found dead inside her home after allegedly being bashed by her neighbour, who is not facing charges over her death due to a post-mortem being unable to determine if illness played a part. Nyaparu died in December 2022 after CCTV captured her boyfriend Aaron Wumi, 28, unleashing a sustained assault on her about 12.40am on a footpath in Perth's CBD. The mother of one tried to walk away, but was followed by Wumi into a car park where a witness claimed the beating continued. CCTV captures Nyaparu's attacker following her in Perth's CBD. Obscured from CCTV, Wumi emerged from the area alone nearly an hour later. Nyaparu was found unresponsive lying on the ground and pronounced dead by paramedics at 3.12am. Wumi told police he "didn't mean to kill her", and he was never charged over his partner's death. Instead, pathologists found the young mother died of a heart attack. Wumi was instead charged with causing bodily harm. Last week, as the national conversation around men's violence and the deaths of women ramped up, he was sentenced to four years' jail. With parole, he could be released in two years. Perth District Court Judge Wendy Hughes said she sentenced Wumi on the basis he did not cause the death of the victim, directly or indirectly. "The cause of death was determined to be coronary artery atherosclerosis with alcohol effect. Essentially, that indicates that the victim died of a heart attack as someone who suffered from heart disease where high levels of alcohol increased the risk of a heart attack," she said. Nyaparu's brother-in-law Michael Rickards said the family was stunned by the findings. "My sister died two years ago and nobody's spoken about it; there were no questions raised," he said. "If [Nyaparu] wasn't beaten that night, would she have had a heart attack later that night? "She's been hit 40 times, had her head stomped on five times, been choked, stripped, she's in distress." Rickards is calling for more to be done to stamp out domestic violence. He is also calling for repeat domestic violence offenders to be added to a national banned drinkers' register. The day before her death, Wumi and Nyaparu had travelled from Jigalong - a remote Indigenous community east of Newman where alcohol is banned - to Perth for Wumi to undergo jaw surgery. During his sentencing, Hughes told Wumi he had to stop drinking. "Mr Wumi, you must never ever hurt your partner again," she said. "You must respect the women in your community, they are not a punching bag for your anger." West Australian Greens Senator Dorinda Cox supported Nyaparu's family through the legal process. "My heart goes out to the victim's family, particularly another child who has lost their mother," she said. "We know that First Nations women and children are impacted by violence at higher rates - and their voices need to be heard. "Labor needs to get serious about preventing men's violence against women and children and then they need to listen to First Nations women with lived experience. "More funding is needed for victim-survivors, healing and preventative supports, including behaviour-change programs for men. WA needs urgent law reform including addressing the inadequate bail laws. Loading "Enough is enough, all women deserve to be safe." WA Premier Roger Cook also condemned Wumi's violent attack, but stopped short of committing to any law reform. "Whether the heart attack was caused by that attack. I'm not qualified to be able to make that call, but I understand that this case is very distressing and it's heartbreaking," he said. "And we will obviously take any advice in relation to ensuring that we do everything we can to reduce and eliminate family domestic violence in our community." *This masthead has chosen to refer to the victim as Nyaparu for cultural reasons. In some Western Desert communities, "Nyaparu" is the name given to deceased people who can no longer be named due to traditional cultural beliefs. If you or someone you know is affected by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732. Get the day's breaking news, entertainment ideas and a long read to enjoy. Sign up to receive our Evening Edition newsletter. LoadingMost Viewed in National