Brother speaks at murder trial
Witness tells court of brothers’ mission
Anthony Fane told his elder brother he and their other brother — who is now on trial for a double murder — were going to Tauranga to kill Paul Lasslett, a jury has been told.
Samuel Deane Fane, 26, whose trial began in the Tauranga High Court this week, has denied two counts of murder with a firearm.
He is accused of killing Lasslett, 43, and 32-year-old Nicholas Littlewood at Lasslett’s Ormsby Lane property in O¯ manawa on February 11 last year.
The Crown alleges Samuel, armed with a shotgun, and his 33-year-old brother Anthony (deceased), armed with a cut down .22 rifle, committed the “execution-style” murders.
Crown solicitor Anna Pollett told the jury Anthony was “on a mission” to kill Lasslett and anyone who got in their way, and Samuel helped carry out the plan.
Police found Lasslett and Littlewood’s bodies inside a converted shed on Lasslett’s rural property about 8.05pm on February 11, the jury heard.
After the alleged murders Samuel texted his partner, Sarah Lee Tarei, asking her to pick him and Anthony up at Waitakaruru near Nga¯ tea, which she did, the Crown says.
The trio then headed back to Auckland, the jury heard.
Tarei, 25, is also on trial defending a charge of being an accessory after the fact to the alleged murders by assisting him to evade arrest.
Samuel was arrested in Christchurch on February 14, 2020.
His defence lawyer, Simon Lance, argues Anthony was solely responsible for the shootings and a further death discovered days later.
During questioning by Pollett on Wednesday, Jesse Charles Fane, who lives in Papakura, said Anthony told him he planned to confront Lasslett.
Jesse initially gave evidence that Anthony told him he was going to O¯ manawa to find Lasslett to “sort him out” and “possibly kill him”.
Anthony and his partner and their oldest child lived at Lasslett’s property several years earlier, before moving to Lynwood Place in Brookfield, he said.
Jesse said the day before the shootings he drove to Samuel and Tarei’s house in Papakura. Anthony was also there. Jesse described his brothers’ demeanour as “normal” but said Anthony was having problems with his mental health. “He was telling us he wasn’t feeling right.”
On February 11, the day of the alleged murders, Jesse said he did not go to work, and Samuel turned up at the house driving a blue Ford Territory.
The Crown says Lasslett’s security camera later captured the same vehicle driven by Anthony with Samuel in the passenger seat arriving at Lasslett’s home at 7.29pm and leaving at 7.39pm.
Jesse initially told the jury he did not know at the time why Anthony wanted to confront Lasslett nor why Samuel insisted on going with him.
But Pollett challenged Jesse and reminded him several times about the sworn statement he gave to Tauranga Detective Tim Bonner on February 14, 2020.
Jesse agreed he signed the statement as being “true and correct” and told Detective Bonner his brothers left
Papakura in the Ford Territory around noon on February 11.
He also said Anthony had a backpack containing a sawn-off .22 calibre gun and thought his brother had “cut it down”.
When pressed Jesse agreed he told Bonner that Anthony told him “they” — meaning “he and Samuel” — were going to Tauranga to get Lasslett and kill him.
Anthony wanted to go alone but Samuel insisted on going too, he said.
Jesse said he found out about the Omanawa ¯ shootings from media reports then from Anthony himself after he woke him up later that night.
Samuel was at the house as well, Jesse said.
“Ants said that he got him, he finally ***** en got Lass. He was proud of what he did.”
Jesse said Samuel left in a Silver Toyota to drive down south, he believed, and Anthony left in his own car. He said Anthony later messaged him that he wanted to see his children and he and their mother Donna Fane met up with him at a park area near Miranda.
“He told me that he was happy that he had finally got Paul,” Jesse told the court.
On February 13 he and Anthony took the kids to a trampoline park in Takanini, he said.
“He was happy that he had got Lass but it was unlucky for the other guy, it was a case of wrong place, wrong time.”
Jesse said his brother told him he killed them both but he was not going to go back to jail and “it was going to be a gunfight to the end”.
Anthony, still carrying the backpack, hugged his children and drove off. That was the last time he saw him.
Jesse said he later saw on the news a person had been shot in Tauranga and recognised Anthony’s car.
At the Tauranga police station, he was told Anthony had been fatally shot by the police.
During his lengthy police interview he also learned Anthony’s partner, Jessie Lee Booth, was dead and that police believed Anthony had killed her.
Yesterday during crossexamination by Samuel’s lawyer, Simon Lance, Jesse said he was not offered the chance to get legal advice before making his written statement to the police.
He also said he did not read the 17-page statement properly and signed it after being in the interview room for several hours.
He agreed it was possible he had made some mistakes. When Anthony told him he was going to confront Lasslett and kill him Jesse said he thought he was “just talk” and claimed not to know Samuel’s intentions when he insisted on going with Anthony to O¯ manawa.