Couple planned to ‘go bush’ after killing
A jury has been shown graphic photos of where Brent Bacon was killed with a cricket bat.
John Kenneth Collins denies murdering Bacon, 45, claiming it was an act of self-defence. The 39-year-old claims he struck his friend with a cricket bat after he came at him with raised fists on the night of February 4, 2019.
A large bloodstain covered the lounge floor of the Lock St home, in the Dunedin suburb of St Clair. A blood-stained sleeping bag and a single jandal were found.
The police crime scene investigation was sparked after Bacon’s brother-in-law broke into the Ka¯ inga Ora home to look for the missing man, where he found a large pool of blood but no body.
That body was later found dumped in a rural area north of Dunedin, with Collins and his wife Aleisha Dawson later arrested after they fled in Bacon’s vehicle.
Collins pleaded not guilty Bacon’s murder, prompting a jury trial before Judge JanMarie Doogue in the High Court of Dunedin.
Yesterday, the court heard from the police scene examination of the Lock St property.
The police investigation also found a yellow-gripped cricket bat handle, which was separated from the bat. The bat’s opposite face was heavily stained with a reddish brown colour and found in a black rubbish bag at the property.
Blood was also found outside the property, while a cricket set – minus the bat – was found in the bedroom.
ESR forensic scientist Rosalyn Rough told the court she took part in the scene examination at the Lock St home in late February.
At the property she found a significant amount of blood on the carpet, with blood detected on a range of items including the wall and ceiling.
At Steep Hill Rd she examined his badly decomposed body, which was inside a zipped-up sleeping bag with only the feet exposed.
Earlier, Crown prosecutor Pip Norman agreed facts for the case. That included on the night of Bacon’s death, Collins took his friend’s Toyota Emina, backing it near the front door, before putting his body in the back.
The court was also shown a photo of the sleeping bag containing the body, dumped under a tree along Steep Hill Rd, near Waitati.
Collins and Dawson then headed north in the vehicle, with the couple planning to ‘‘go bush’’, the court heard.
After Bacon was reported missing, police visited the Lock St address several times, the court heard.
On Monday, Collins admitted charges of interfering with Bacon’s body, and taking his car.
Dawson, an accessory in the killing, remains behind bars. The trial is expected to take up to two weeks.