ILISAPECI Naitini, wife of Epineri Naitini, only wished she had answered that phone call on early Sunday morning when her husband called her around 1.30am.
The grieving mother of two daughters — Lavenia Kaloubula Naitini, 6, and Karalaini Tabua Volaunitoga Naitini, 2 — said she had seen his missed calls on her Facebook Messenger app.
“It was hours before that tragic incident happened in Sydney, Australia and I only wish that I had spoken to him to hear his voice again,” she said.
“My husband had tried to reach me late Saturday night and again on Sunday morning but I was offline and did not see the calls.”
Mrs Naitini, originally from Yalava, Sasa, Macuata, was informed about her husband’s death after receiving a call from her sister-in-law on Sunday evening.
“I was told that he had been stabbed. I was shocked.
“Our eldest daughter cried herself to sleep on Sunday night after learning of her father’s death, as the family struggled to come to terms with his loss.
“We last spoke to him on Christmas Day. My husband was with his friends that day, including Anaseini Waqavuki who was our friend. They were not in a relationship because my husband would call us every day and we’d talk to him and his workmate, who rents with Anaseini.
“I even spoke to Anaseini on Christmas Day, and we had wished each other merry Christmas as she was good friends with my husband.”
“Epi was a devoted husband and father; he never missed a day to call us or missed a week to send us money.”
Mrs Naitini has rejected claims circulating in Australian media and online that her husband was involved in a love triangle, saying the reports did not reflect the man she knew and spoke with every day.
Mr Naitini, who was 30 years old, had travelled to Australia on a student visa shortly after the couple married in December 2022.
“He was expected to return to Fiji to visit in 2026,” she said.
Mr Naitini hailed from Nabudrau, Noco, Rewa and his body is expected to be repatriated to Fiji for burial.
