Young men admit to being on site the night of the tragedy but blame each other
Agroup of young Polynesian men pointed the finger at each other over the death of an Indian security guard who was killed on his first night on the job.
Charanpreet Dhaliwal, 22, is believed to have died from multiple skull fractures and other head injuries after he was attacked at an Auckland building site in 2011.
A three day inquest into his death began in the North Shore District Court yesterday.
Detective Sergeant Murray Free spent the morning giving evidence around the police investigation and the subsequent murder trial of a 28-year-old man, who was found not guilty in relation to the death.
The man, who was given name suppression at the 2013 trial, was found guilty of assaulting a nightclub bouncer on the same morning of Mr Dhaliwal’s death.
The man admitted to being at the Fulton Hogan construction depot on Selwood Rd, Henderson, in the early hours of November 18, 2011, and to throwing a piece of wood at Mr Dhaliwal “to scare him away”, but claimed it missed him and he fled.
The man, described as Tongan, and three others, described as Samoan, had been drinking earlier that night, before trying to get into a nightclub, Mr Free told the inquest.
They were refused entry by the bouncer, who claimed they were too drunk. The man punched the bouncer, and then fled the scene with his three mates.
They attempted to hide in the nearby Fulton Hogan depot, but were spotted by Mr Dhaliwal, who confronted them and said he would call police.
Three of the friends later gave evidence to say the Tongan man picked up a piece of 4x2 timber and “whacked” Mr Dhaliwal over the head with it, at least twice.
But the accused claimed he saw one of the others in the group assault Mr Dhaliwal, “punch him to the ground”, and rifle through his pockets, stealing his cellphone and wallet.
Cell towers placed all four in the vicinity of the building site, and text messages between them showed they were together, Mr Free said.
DNA found on a piece of timber believed to have been the weapon used to inflict Mr Dhaliwal’s injuries could not be attributed to any individual.
Coroner P.J. Ryan heard how no useful forensic evidence was found by investigators that could have helped them track down Mr Dhaliwal’s killer or killers. The Indian student’s car, flat and belongings were searched, and his wallet, which was found 10 months after his death, was also forensically examined. His cellphone was never found.
Instead, police relied on CCTV footage and cellphone data to identify the group of four, as well as descriptions provided by the nightclub and bouncer who was attacked, and a taxi driver who picked up two young Samoan men nearby.
Mr Dhaliwal was discovered lying face down in gravel in a pool of his own blood by a worker who was returning equipment to the construction site.
It was his first shift as a part-time security guard with CNE Security after being called in to cover for the regular guard who requested the night off for his birthday.
A post mortem examination found he had serious skull fractures, and ruled he died from multiple blunt force blows to the head.
Vaughan Henare-Vaihu told the inquest he saw the Tongan man “take a swing” at Mr Dhaliwal. “It was a swing like a baseball bat swing or a cricket bat,” Mr Henare-Vaihu said. He said he saw Mr Dhaliwal turn, try to cover himself and crouch down.
“I was just in shock and I just ran. I remember when I ran I heard a hit, or what sounded like another hit.”
Allen Ulugia was with Mr HenareVaihu and said he did not see where the Tongan man got the piece of wood from, but saw the hit. He said he saw the Tongan man hit Mr Dhaliwal while he was collapsed on the floor. Mr Ulugia said the man went through Mr Dhaliwal’s pockets and took his belongings.
Mr Dhaliwal — known as “Lucky” — had been living in New Zealand for about a year after moving from the Punjab province in India to study. Mr Dhaliwal’s family were not present at the inquest. His mother Karanjit Kaur is in hospital and is too frightened to send her other son to New Zealand, family spokesman Jasjit Singh earlier told Newstalk ZB. She was still devastated by her son’s death, Mr Singh said, and the family was bitter about their experience with the New Zealand justice system.
They hoped the inquest would bring some closure and answers over why their son was killed.
The inquest continues today.