'Your light will end': Killer's chilling threat before murdering estranged wife

Jessie James Tumaliuan had terrorised his estranged wife, Czarina, for at least eight years. The final act of his prolonged vendetta occurred on March 27, 2025, when he used a kitchen knife to murder her in her own backyard in Melbourne's west.

As a Victorian Supreme Court judge noted on Wednesday, Czarina Gatbonton Tumaliuan had done everything by the book to keep herself safe. She had reported her husband to police and intervention orders had been put in place to protect her and their four children.

Those guardrails did little to stop Tumaliuan.

Between 2017 and 2025, Tumaliuan repeatedly assaulted his wife and breached the court orders.

On the day of the murder, he waited outside his wife's Werribee home until she returned from a school drop-off. Then he forced his way inside and ended her life.

Horrific crime partly captured on CCTV

Justice Amanda Fox outlined the horror of the crime as she sentenced Tumaliuan to 26 years' jail.

"She was unarmed, defenceless and terrified," Justice Fox said of the victim.

The judge said Tumaliuan was a man who was seemingly motivated by money, anger with police and the court system, and jealousy that his estranged wife was living successfully without him.

Justice Fox said part of the attack was captured on CCTV, as well as an argument before the stabbing.

"You complain too much," Tumaliuan was heard saying.

"Your light will end. Do you want that? Is that what you want?"

Tumaliuan demanded money, and when Czarina tried to ring emergency services, the call was disconnected.

"I cannot forgive you," he said.

"Why can't you forgive me, huh? You might kill me now," she replied.

Soon after, Tumaliuan armed himself with two kitchen knives and chased Czarina into the backyard. The pair were out of view of the security cameras when the fatal stabbing occurred.

"She can be heard screaming for around seven seconds before she falls silent," Justice Fox said.

Seconds later, Tumaliuan reappeared in view of the camera, covered in blood.

An autopsy later determined Czarina was stabbed eight times, with a wound to the neck found to be the fatal injury.

Tumaliuan called Triple Zero (000) and surrendered to police, but blamed both the victim and the legal system for his actions.

Justice Fox said it was another example of brutal, deadly violence committed by a man against a current or former partner.

A killer with a history of reoffending

The judge outlined a history of intervention order breaches, after family violence occurred in 2017, 2018 and 2022. Tumaliuan spent time in jail for ignoring the orders but kept reoffending, she said.

He was not suffering from any mental health conditions or addictions, the court heard.

A five-year intervention order was in place and Tumaliuan was on bail when he committed the murder.

"You had no right to be anywhere near Czarina on this morning," Justice Fox said.

"Driven by grievances and anger, you murdered her in her own home, only a short distance from where your children were at school. They have been left heartbroken by the death of their mother, and all Czarina's family and friends are devastated by the violence and cruelty of your crime."

Czarina was employed by Medibank and ran an online clothing business. On social media accounts, she described her children as her "treasure, pride, joy and inspiration". In a victim impact statement, one of her sons described her as a "super mum".

"They loved her so much and now he and his brothers and sisters are left with a big empty hole which they cannot fix," Justice Fox told the killer.

"The whole family has been shattered and traumatised by what you did."

Tumaliuan, dressed in a grey prison tracksuit, showed no emotion during Wednesday's sentencing hearing.

The killer will be deported to his home country of the Philippines when he is released.

According to Victoria's Crime Statistics Agency, there were 106,430 incidents of domestic violence reported in the 2024-2025 financial year.

Of those reports, about 10 per cent were alleged breaches of existing intervention orders.