Affair sparked murder: Crown
Tensions rise after verbal shot at man accused of liaison
Ajealous father is accused of killing his partner in a violent rage after learning she was having an affair with their neighbour. Tensions in the High Court at Hamilton peaked yesterday after a member of the public took a verbal shot at the man accused of having the affair.
Kim Richmond went missing early on July 31, 2016 after attending a function at Arohena Hall. Her body was found in Lake Arapuni, inside her Ford Ranger, 11 months later and her partner of 26 years, Cory Jefferies, was charged with her murder.
Her fitbit recorded her last heartbeat at 3.43am on July 31, 2016.
Jefferies admits killing her, but says it was unintentional, or manslaughter and not murder. His weeklong trial began in the High Court at Hamilton yesterday before a jury of five men and seven women.
The Crown alleges that her death was carried out by her jealous partner after he learned she was having an affair with their neighbour.
Jefferies discovered the affair seven months prior to her death and repeatedly approached the married man, Alfons Te Brake, and each time Te Brake attempted to calm an angry Jefferies, the court heard.
During yesterday’s hearing, an angry member of the public nearly came to blows with Te Brake in the public gallery, standing up to give him his seat before interrupting his wife’s testimony to shout, “If Cory did whack anybody it should have been you”, before eyeballing Te Brake and storming out.
In his opening statement, Crown prosecutor Ross Douch said Jefferies told Te Brake “I just want to f ****** kill the bitch” and that he “wanted her gone”.
In the weeks before his partner’s death, Jefferies obtained photos of the pair kissing and again confronted Te Brake.
Te Brake gave evidence confirming there was kissing and cuddling between himself and Richmond. He’d first noticed a change in feelings between him and Richmond when both couples were drinking at her home, and she’d put her arms around him.
He recalled a couple of incidents in the following months when he was approached by Jefferies about an affair.
On one occasion, Te Brake told Jefferies he was “trying really hard not to have an affair”.
The most recent incident before her death was on July 9, 2016 when Jefferies drove around looking for Te Brake on his farm before getting out of his car and slamming the door and announcing they had broken up.
“He mentioned along the lines that he was going to f*** up my life and Kim’s. I said, ‘You go and help yourself.’ I didn’t ask him how he was going to do it.”
In questioning, Te Brake confirmed there had been “loose talk” about the couple getting together if their current relationships ever broke down.
He was also asked why he was now stating Jefferies had previously threatened to kill Richmond when his original statement said he “wanted her gone”.
Te Brake said he was “pretty sure” Jefferies had used those words.
Richmond’s friend Deborah Cottingham also gave evidence about how they spent a night in Kinloch together the weekend before she died. She took a screenshot of a letter which Jefferies had written to Richmond apologising for his actions in July, saying he hoped they could give their marriage another shot.
Earlier, Douch said the couple had enjoyed a good night before she disappeared, staying at the hall until the event finished about 3am, then helping to clean up.
It was on that journey home that the Crown alleged her death occurred after GPS from their cellphones stopped about 120m short of their home. It is then the Crown alleges that a violent attack took place in their vehicle.
The trial, before Justice Sally Fitzgerald, continues.