Dayna Issac is the second woman allegedly murdered in Australia this year. We're only two weeks in.

A fortnight into the new year, and Dayna Issac is the second woman to be allegedly murdered in Australia this year. 

The 28-year-old mother-of-two was found dead in a unit in Penrith, in Western Sydney, on Monday afternoon.

Officers rushed to the unit after a woman who knew Dayna discovered her body and informed police. 

Her burnt-out car was also found in nearby bushland. 

A 32-year-old man, who police say Dayna was in an "intimate" relationship with, was arrested the following day at a house five kilometres away in Cranebrook. He has since been charged with murder. 

"We are aware that there was a relationship between the two," Acting Superintendent Carlene Mahoney told reporters on Tuesday.

"It was a long relationship as a friendship and recently became more intimate over the last couple of months and that's as far as we're aware."

Superintendent Mahoney said the 32-year-old has been involved in incidents of domestic violence with other victims.

"We were aware of him but not in relation to domestic violence of the deceased," she said. 

"There was other incidents of domestic violence with other victims."

According to The Daily Telegraph, neighbours reportedly called police about a disturbance earlier on Monday afternoon but by the time officers arrived there appeared to be no one home.

"Neighbours said they thought they might have since gone out and when no one answered, the police left as you would expect," a source told the publication. 

Confirming the earlier police visit to the unit Superintendent Mahoney said, "Police were informed that there was a disturbance at the premises and they did attend and they later identified that the deceased was at the premise".

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Following the news of her death, Dayna's ex-husband, Mikkel Isaac, shared a tribute on Facebook, promising to take care of their two daughters.

"Love you forever and always. I promise I’ll look after our girls until we meet again my angel," he wrote, alongside photos of the pair on their wedding day. 

Friends have also paid tribute to the 28-year-old, who has been remembered as a "beautiful" and "selfless" person.

"She lit up the room and was the life of the party," a close friend of Dayna's told the Daily Mail. 

Her death comes less than two weeks after another woman, Lindy Lucena, was found dead in a laneway in Ballina in the early hours of January 4.

The 64-year-old, who was a flood victim and had been living in a motorhome in the New South Wales town, had suffered what police described as "significant head trauma", according to the ABC. 

Lindy's 66-year-old partner, Robert Karl Huber, was later charged with her murder and breaching an apprehended domestic violence order.

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Both women had their lives cut short weeks into the new year. 

Both women have been torn away from families who love them.

Both women will have their names added to a grim national tally, one that reset as we rung in 2023.

In 2022, Australia lost 55 women to violence, according to Destroy the Joint, which is dedicated to counting dead women. 

Every year we share their photos. 

We say their names. 

We tell their stories. And yet the pattern continues. 

Two weeks into a fresh year and the consequences of our nation's slow response to violence against women are once again apparent. 

This is not a story we want to keep writing in 2023.

If this has raised any issues for you, or if you just feel like you need to speak to someone, please call 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) – the national sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling service.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to support Dayna's family, which can be found here.

Feature Image: Facebook.