A Sydney man has been sentenced to a maximum of 24 years in prison for the brutal murder of his former partner, following a horrific campaign of domestic violence and stalking that culminated in her death.
A Mother's Dire Warning Ignored
Weeks before her death, Tatiana 'Tanya' Dokhotaru received a chilling text message from her mother: "This is not a man and such people do not stop." The warning was a desperate plea for the 34-year-old to seek police protection from her ex-partner, Danny Zayat. Tragically, that protection never came in time.
In May 2023, Zayat, 31, flew into a rage and assaulted the much smaller Ms Dokhotaru in her Liverpool apartment in Sydney's southwest. The attack resulted in three blunt force injuries to her head, causing a fatal brain haemorrhage.
A History of Abuse and a Final, Fatal Assault
Evidence presented to the NSW Supreme Court revealed Zayat had viciously beaten Ms Dokhotaru for years prior to the murder. The abuse included dragging her by the hair, choking her, and giving her a black eye.
Justice Desmond Fagan, sentencing Zayat on Friday, painted a grim picture of the final attack. "This large muscular male is standing over a defenceless, diminutive woman having asserted dominance with his fists," he said. "It is a picture of cowardice and cruelty."
The judge found Zayat had persistently assaulted, stalked, threatened, and harassed Ms Dokhotaru, refusing to accept she wanted to end the relationship. Justice Fagan highlighted the dangerous pattern of "fixation" often seen in such cases, noting, "It is dangerous in a man whose female partner has rejected him and is trying to break free from him."
The Final Hours and a Failed Plea for Help
The court heard harrowing details of Ms Dokhotaru's final moments. Less than an hour before she was murdered, she managed to call triple zero. "My ex-boyfriend's here and he's trying to kill me," she told the operator. She disclosed her street address but the call was terminated by Zayat before she could give her unit number.
He then threw her phone off the 22-storey balcony. After killing her, Zayat stole tens of thousands of dollars in cash she had saved from her businesses. He left a four-year-old boy alone in the apartment with her lifeless body for 12 hours.
Police, who had attended the complex three hours after the emergency call but could not locate her unit, only gained access the next day to find Zayat performing CPR on his ex-partner's deceased body. He later lied to police and the jury, claiming she had been affected by drugs or alcohol and had slipped.
Justice Served with a Lengthy Sentence
Justice Fagan backdated Zayat's sentence to 18 March, when he was first taken into custody. With a maximum term of 24 years, he received a non-parole period of 18 years. This means Danny Zayat will be eligible to apply for parole on 17 March 2043.
The judge condemned the cycle of abuse Zayat engaged in, which involved threats, surveillance to ensure she was not seeing other men, violence, and then professions of enduring love. This emotional abuse continued even when Ms Dokhotaru travelled to visit family in Canada or on holiday to Thailand.
This case stands as a stark reminder of the fatal consequences of domestic violence and coercive control.
