Levi Hilton said his 19-year-old son Lorenzo had split from Jessica Te Huia, was homeless and unemployed, and wanted forgiveness after their relationship caused a public family dispute. Te Huia disputed this account, telling the Mail that she and Lorenzo remained together and had only pretended to separate to secure family help for Lorenzo to seek mining work.

The dispute began after Hilton filmed himself confronting the pair in Te Huia’s bedroom in June, following which Lorenzo and Te Huia made their relationship public and moved in together. Te Huia said Lorenzo’s relatives had cut him off and offered employment introductions if he ended the relationship; she said the couple’s ruse later unravelled, prompting Hilton’s social-media claims.