Body found buried near cottage

Press, 9 June 1980, Page 15

Body found buried near cottage

Gisborne While a man lay dead, concealed in a hole a short distance from his Cape Runaway cottage, his wife was being led to believe he had made a sudden, unexplained journey to Auckland where he had been “busted” in possession of marijuana.

This is the prosecution case unfolding in deposition hearings in the District Court, at Gisborne which heard that the dead man’s wife made repeated telephone calls to Auckland for four days after his disappearance in an effort to find him, and even got in touch with several police stations to see if he had been arrested.

The court was hearing Crown deposition evidence on a charge of murder faced by an Auckland man, Donald Cleaver Kelsey, aged 25, a barman. He is charged with the murder of Gary Allan Goddard at Te Piki, near Cape Runaway, on March. 28.

The charge arose from the discovery of Mr Goddard’s body in a hole in the ground near a cottage occupied by him and his de facto wife at

Te Piki, a remote area on the East Cape. The Crown contends that Mr Goddard had been dead for five days when his father found him during a! search of the cottage andi surrounding property. I

The court heard that, Mr Goddard and Kelsey were acquainted and that they were together on the day of the alleged murder. Paula Kim Matthews, of Waihau Bay, told the hearing she had lived with Gary Goddard for four years as his wife and they had two children, the second born last month.

Kelsey was visiting them late in March and had helped Mr Goddard round the cottage and at his father’s motor camp at Waihau Bay. On the evening of the alleged murder the two men ta'ked of going rabbit hunting. Miss Matthews heard Kelsey start his car. He called out that he and Gary were going to Auckland on a trip and were in a hurry to get petrol.

She asked for Gary to come to see her first, but after saying he would get him Kelsey drove off. Sh<*

| called out for Gary but the ] car kept going. In four years i with him she had never known Mr Goddard to take off on such a trip without 'telling her. . I The next day she began a series of telephone calls beI tween Waihau Bay and i Auckland, speaking to Kelsey’s parents, to Kelsey, and to the police because Kelsey told her he had dropped Mr Goddard “in town.” He had said that he would see him and would get him to telephone her. On the third day after his disappearance, Kelsey said Mr Goddard had been caught with about a pound of marijuana, and was being held at “Auckland Central.”

Kelsey said he was trying to get bail and a . solicitor for Mr Goddard and promised to telephone again with further information. He did not call and the next day witness telephoned police stations at Auckland, Hamilton, Rotorua, and Te Kaha.

Her next contact with Kelsey brought the news that Mr Goddard was out on bail and was staying with friends Kelsey could not name in full.

(Proceeding)