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Before her body was discovered on Wednesday, Christchurch homicide victim Sarah Brown was turned away from a neighbouring flat where a party had been held, her landlord says.
The 37-year-old mother was found dead at a property on Elderwood Lane, off Purchas St, in Edgeware early on Wednesday morning.
A 52-year-old man has been charged with her murder and was granted interim name suppression.
Detective Senior Sergeant Colin Baillie said the man was taken into custody at the scene.
He appeared in the Christchurch District Court on Wednesday afternoon via audio-visual link and was remanded in custody without plea.
He was due to reappear in the Christchurch District Court on October 16.
Brown’s landlord and neighbour, who did not want to be named, was told that Brown went to a neighbouring unit about 3am asking for alcohol.
After her body was found, the landlord said she spoke to Brown’s partner and a person who was at the party about the incident.
The landlord said they told her the man who had been arrested and charged had allegedly hosted a small gathering in his unit earlier that night.
"He didn’t want to know her. He didn’t want to know anything,” Brown’s landlord said.
"She (Brown) came back at 5.30am and managed to get in again, and she ended up getting stabbed. She had punctures over her whole body.
"She would have tried to get the beer. She is a fighting machine when she is out of it.
"She would have been pushing and pushing and pushing, and he would be trying to get her out of the flat.”
The landlord said Brown’s partner had also spoken to her about the incident.
"He’s admitted that he couldn’t control her. He knew she was going down there to drink.
"He’s devastated that it’s happened.”
Brown’s friend Wendy Mercer has paid tribute to her, calling her “colourful and complex in so many ways”.
Mercer said Brown was resilient in the face of hardship throughout her life.
“Megan...you were such a beautiful and vibrant soul. Over many years of knowing you, I witnessed your journey through life and admired your strength, resilience and deep insight through much hardship. You always had a special place in my heart, like a little sister,” Mercer said.
“You were colourful and complex in so many ways. Highly intelligent and articulate, artistically gifted, adventurous, sensitive, deeply compassionate for all beings and the planet, neurodivergent, quirky, deeply spiritual and very generous.
"It wasn't an easy path for you, but it meant you really understood others way beyond the superficial and had great empathy for helping anyone who needed it. You really were one of a kind that will be missed by all who love you."