The Courts 'Not pretty with holes in him’

Press, 21 November 1979, Page 4

The Courts 'Not pretty with holes in him’

"The Maori bloke didn’t look too pretty with holes in him.” the youth who was alleged to have fired three shots at close range into 6ft (1.829 m and 26-stone 165.11 kg Peter Haimona, said after returning from a visit to a house in Spreydon in the early hours of Friday, July 13, a" girl witness told Mr Justice Casey and a jury in the Supreme Court yesterdav.

The trial of five young men on a joint charge of murdering Peter Waaka Rongotai Haimona, aged 25, in a State house at 7 Bayley Street, ended its second day yesterday. The trial is expected to take up to three weeks.

Messrs B. McClelland,' Q. and B. M. Stanaway: appear for the Crown. The accused are: Matthew Morgan King, aged 20, : a labourer (Mr L. M. O’Reilly); Wayne Edward Gush, aged 23. a fitter-weld-er (Mr K. N,. Hampton); Anthony Joseph Johnston, aged 22, a laminator (Messrs P. G. S. Penlington. Q.C., and R. A. Osborne); Russell James Pirie, aged 24, unemployed (Mr R. L. Kerr); and Raymond Barry Bradley, aged 19, a moulder (Mr M. J. Glue). The Crown alleges that Mr Haimona was fatally shot as a result of a feud

between two groups of young men, which had been going on for some time. The dispute arose after a married, woman, separated from her husband, changed her allegience from a member of one group to a member of, the other. The woman, who: was well off, was generous, with gifts ranging from cars to clothing. A girl, aged 16, .said that she had met Gush three years ago. She had been at a house in Linwood, when a bottle was hurled through a’window and upset the occupants.

Later she saw a rifle with a telescopic sight, a sawnoff shotgun, a baseball bat and a machete. She had warned on of the accused to be careful because she did not want him to get hurt. The group took the weapons with them when they left in a van and they returned about half an hour later.

After the witness repeatedly claimed that she could not remember events about which she had given evidence previously his Honour declared her a hostile witness and gave Mr McClelland permission to crossexamine. her.

The girl said in response to questioning that when the group returning to the house in Linwood, where Johnston lived. King had said: “The Maori bloke didn’t' look too pretty with holes in him.” Some of the weapons were thrown over the back fence.

The deposition of Christine Lee, aged 38, a married woman, separated from her husband, was read to the Court as she is now in Australia.

Mrs Lee said that she had met Gush and King earlier this year and Gush went out with her daughter for a few weeks. In April she was introduced to Rocky Hill and went out with him for a period. She purchased a $7OOO Ford Capri car for him but there were problems with it and King offered to fix it. He put it on blocks in her garage. Two wheels were stolen. About the end of May Rocky Hill got in. touch with her and she went out with him. By that time the car was fixed and she signed the ownership papers over to him. Once Rocky Hill got the car he did not continue seeing her. He was supposed to keep the payments up on the car but did not. After a telephone call from the car sales firm in May she went to Hill’s address at 7 Bayley Place with King and others. Two friends followed on a motor-cycle. The door was answered by

a girl and they were tolc Hill was not in. At midnight that night she was at home ‘with her daughter wher : Rocky Hill arrived with four other men, including Petei ■ Haimona, and told her not {to go to his house again with any of her friends. After she had sold her {house Gush saw her about [buying some of her furniture. {He told her that Hill had thrown a Molotov cocktail at the house at 19 Cuba Street on July 8 and he was [going to get even with him. He showed her a rifle with a telescopic sight and he sa ; d that he was not going to kill Hill but he would never Walk again. When she heard a report of the shoooting on the ! radio on July 13 she telephoned the police, Mrs Lee said. Colin James O’Leary, an {assistant greenkeeper, said that just after 11 p.m. on May 9 he was in bed at his home in Madras Street when he was awakened by nis {young brother. He looked out the window and saw someone standing by a drainpipe. As he was about to use the telephone a chair came through the window. Then he saw three men, one of whom was Gush, in the hallway. Gush grabbed him and said: “Where’s Rocky Hill?” When he told him he did not know Gush pulled out a knife and held it at his throat and kept demanding to know where Hill was. After putting the knife down Gush kicked him three times in the face with his steel-capped boots. O’Leary was pushed into the living room and Gush flashed the knife at him and told him to stay put. Gush then started on O’Leary’s younger brother demanding to know where Rocky Hill was. He kicked the boy and said he wanted Hill because he had raped two of his girls. - When his sister came out crying the three men left through a window. He suffered a graze to his throat and a bruised lip. He telephoned the police. About 2 p.m. on May 16 he was standing in front of his home when .a white Chevette car driven by King came across the road and stopped. There were a number of males in the vehicle and a girl in the front passenger’s seat. King had said: "I see you’ve had a visit from my mates. Where’s Rocky Hill?” When witness said he did not know, King replied: "I’ll have to get me mates to visit you again.” A few davs later he told

Rocky Hill about the incident. They' were at the Bush Inn until, closing time. Then they drove around for a time and Hill asked him to take him to Cuba Street. The car pulled up and Hill grabbed some empty beer bottles from the back seat, walked down the footpath and then hurled • them at a house which was in darkness. They drove off. On July 12. about 7 p.m. Mr O’Leary said that he anjswered a knock at the front door to find King and another man there. King was {wearing a dirty red fulli faced crash helmet which he {took off. { The other man said: “Are {you the guy who’s supposed to be looking for us?" Mr O'Leary said that he did not know what he was talking about. King said: "Do you know that big black bastard at Bayley Place?” When witness said that he did, King replied: “Wei! {we’re going to get him and Ido him in. The black bastard : is going to die.” King had {added that “Black Pete” had ( backed his truck over his {mate’s motor bike. I King warned him not to say anything otherwise he {would come around and get {him. The other fellow said I something about Rocky Hill 'raping' a girl whom he [named. Both men looked at {each other and then walked | away'. The next day' on the news he heard that Mr Haimona was dead. To Mr Hampton Mr! O’Leary said that he had been a friend of Rocky Hill for six years and had known Mr Haimona, who was called ■ “Black Pete,” for about a year. He had driven Rocky Hill to Cuba Street in{ his PAX Vauxhall because! he had asked him io. He hadj no idea of who lived there They went to Cuba Street] the same night he told! Rocky Hill about the attack on him by Gush and the visit by King. He was not aware that King and Gush lived in Cuba Street. Hill never said why he wanted to go there. At the time Hill was half drunk but he (witness) was not because he did not drink. Hili got half a dozen bottles of beer before leaving the hotel and he drank them as they drove about { the city. It was after midnight when they went to Cuba Street and by that time Hill! had drunk all the beer. By that time Hill was pretty talkative but said nothing about the reason for the visit, to Cuba Street. Mr O’Leary denied throwing any bottles himself at the house. After hurling the bottles Hill ran down the footpath, leapt into the car

and said: “Bugger off.” Hill was delivered to his home in Bayley Place. He did not see the bottles going through the windows or smashing on the cars at the side of the house. Asked if he had gone back swith Rocky Hill on July 9 when bottles were thrown (through the front door of (the house and a fire bomb ’was flung, Mr O'Leary said J that he would not be that (stupid. Questioned about a time when he was driving along (Lincoln Road with Hill when (they saw two men named Arnst and Veitch Mr O’Leary said Hill had told him to turn around because ih-j wanted to talk to them. I Hill assaulted the two men’ ’but witness took no part in it. | Mr O’Leary denied hearing Hill warn the two men not (to hang around with Gush (and if they did their ears would be cut off and put on (a silver plate. There was no talk of dragging the two men back to the Hill house ’and killing them. ' To Mr O’Reilly. Mr (O’Leary said that no-one told him what to do, especially Rocky Hill. When he ’ had beer in him Hill was inclined to get “stroppy" and liked to push people around. I “You only have to say the wrong word and he’ll take aj swing at you,” witness said, i Susan Jane Garner said: that between March and August she was manageress! of a record shop in High! Street and she got to know) the accused, Pirie, who used to come into the shop I frequently. Pirie came into the shop on July 12 and it was obvious that he had been drinking. He mentioned something about managing to get some guns and when she asked him what they were for Pirie replied: “It’s war, baby,” and walked out the door.