Hotel bar was thieves’ kitchen —evidence

Press, 4 October 1985, Page 7

Hotel bar was thieves’ kitchen —evidence

The public bar of the United Service Hotel was being used as a thieves’ and pickpockets’ kitchen according to evidence given in the High Court yesterday. After a young woman was stabbed to death there the police made a detailed search of the bar and toilets and wallets, credit cards, handbags, price tags, clothing labels, and new sunglasses were found secreted about the premiese, said a detective constable under cross-examination. The trial of Fiona Mary Emslie, aged 22, unemployed, and her brother Michael Alexandra Emslie, aged 21, a labourer, on a charge of the murder of Debbie Paul, aged 23, on March 26, will not finish until next week. Both have pleaded not guilty. Michael Emslie has also denied an alternative charge of being an accessory after the fact of murder by arranging for the disposal of the knife. The trial began on Monday before Mr Justice Holland and a jury. The Crown alleges that Fiona Emslie inflicted 13 stab wounds on Debbie Paul and that the latter died almost instantly and that Michael Emslie was a party to murder by encouraging his sister to commit it. Fiona Emslie was president of the girls’ section of the Black Power gang and Michael Emslie was the gang’s sergeant-at-arms, according to the evidence. The receptionist at the United Service Hotel on March 26, whose name was suppressed, said that during the afternoon she saw a Maori or Islander in the public bar lift up a chair as if he was going to throw it. A short time later the barman pressed the alarm button which rang loudly at the reception desk. According to instructions she telephoned

the bar but there was no reply at first Then the barman asked her to call the police and an ambulance. On glancing through the window into the bar she saw a group by the Hereford Street door holding someone up who then fell to the floor, the witness said. Constable R. J. Lee said that on the afternoon of March 26 he was on beat duty in Hereford Street when he saw a large car containing four gang members wearing patches go into the Post Office carpark. They were joined by a number of females who appeared to be gang associates. Soon after, he was summoned to the public bar of the United Service Hotel by police control. In the bar was a group of females standing around a young woman lying on the floor. Others were milling about. Two women were kneeling by the person on the floor. After calling for an ambulance through police control he examined the women on the floor and found no pulse or sign of life. The eyes were open and staring and there was no breath. When a female rolled up the shirt of the women on the floor he saw a small, neat cut in the middle of the chest. He shut the bars and took the names of a number of persons. A police bus was use to take those in the bar to the Central Police Station. To Miss E. H. B. Thompson (for Fiona Emslie), Constable Lee said there were up to 40 people in the bar when he arrived. Constable C. S. Homes gave evidence of finding two knives when he searched the bar on March 27. One was found in a hole in the wall of the women’s toilets. It was wrapped in toilet paper. The knife was clean and had no blood on

it A knife in a similar condition was found behind the blue video machine. It had a serrated edge. Cross-examined by Mr N. E. Hampston (for Michael Emslie), Constable Homes said the two knives were the only weapons found but a number of other articles were found concealed about the bar and toilets — price and identification tags from clothing in the women’s toilet, wallets, credit cards, handbags, and new sun glasses. An empty prescription pill bottle was found in the men’s toilets. Dr L. L. Treadgold a pathologist, said that he made a post-mortem examination of the body of Debbie Paul on March 26. She was a young part-Maori with homemade tattoo marks on parts of the body. There were also areas of skin grafting and scarring. The left little finger had been amputated. There were 13 stab wounds on the front of the body including one in the chest of a depth of scm which penetrated the jugular vein. There was a substantial amount of blood in the chest cavity and the lung had been punctured four times. The cause of death was a stab wound to the right lung which could have been inflicted by the knife produced as exhibit there. A moderate degree of force would have had to be used to inflict the injuries. There was a small quanity of alcohol in Debbie Paul’s blood. To Miss Thompson, Dr Treadgold said that the amputation of the little finger had occurred some time before the stabbing incident. Detective Sergeant D. M. Quested said that at 8.25 p.m. on March 26 he went with a police party to an address in Herdman Street. A door was broken down to gain entry. There were six

to 10 people in the house. Fiona Emslie was in the lounge being held by her mother and another woman. There was a knife on the couch. He instructed a policeman to remove it. Fiona Emslie and her mother went to the Central Police Station. The accused was given the usual warning. She asked where Constable Gordon, who had been with them, was and said he knew everything. They waited for Constable Gordon to return. Detective Sergeant Quested said that he saw injuries to Fiona Emslie’s right hand. She had a cut on the. forehead and there was blood on her jeans and shoes. After Constable Gordon returned with a meal, questions were resumed at 10.14 p.m. Fiona Emslie had said that she had not slept on March 24 or 25 and had been drinking rum until 8 a.m. on March 26. No matter how much she had she could not get drunk. The radio was on. It was on the Sunday night she had a nightmare. She went

strange and was unable to move out of the room. A man came round and had the photographs of Sonya’s baby and they were burnt outside. Baldy was to come and see her and to explain about the tapu, Detective Sergeant Quested said. Fiona Emslie had said that she could not remember going to the United Service Hotel but that she knew something was happening. The man in the nightmare said that if she disobeyed him he would punish her. She did not know how the blood got on her clothes or how she hurt herself. She could not remember if she had spoken to Debbie Paul or been fighting in the bar that day. Something had control over all day. Fiona Emslie had admitted fighting with Debbie Paul “lots of times” but could not remember what the fights were about, Detective Sergeant Quested said. Messis C. A. McVeigh and B. M. Stanaway appear for the Crown.