Former Christchurch singer Hayley Westenra has spoken of her heartbreak following the murders of two of her closest friends in Los Angeles.
Robin Kaye, a long-time music supervisor for American Idol, and her husband, musician Thomas DeLuca, were found shot dead in their Encino home on July 14.
Authorities believe the couple were murdered four days earlier during a burglary at their property.
In a social media post, Westenra described the pair as her “surrogate aunty and uncle” and said she was devastated by the news.
“My heart is broken into a million pieces. Robin and Tom were brutally murdered in their home on the 10th of July in LA. Somehow I only found out this morn,” she wrote.
“They were the KINDEST of souls. I’d met Robin and Tom over 20 years ago through work and then we became lifelong friends. I stayed with them many times, including my last night in LA when I was escaping a very bad relationship, they likely saved my life.”
Police said a 22-year-old is accused of entering the couple’s home through an unlocked sliding door before shooting both victims when they returned.
Robin Kaye and her husband Thomas Deluca in a post shared in 2020 Credit: Facebook
The bodies of Kaye and DeLuca were discovered only after a friend requested a welfare check four days later.
The suspect was arrested the following day and later charged with two counts of murder and one count of burglary.
Westenra said she had written several songs with DeLuca, including Greener Lands, which she once performed live at Carnegie Hall with Kaye and DeLuca in attendance.
“We’d been meaning to release it properly. We’d also been meaning to FaceTime these past couple of months,” she said.
“Robin wanted me to post this video of one of our songs ‘Lovers Game’ when we were messaging a few months back. I want people to remember them this way, bright, loyal, and loving souls. I am completely heartbroken.”
