The ex-girlfriend of a carnival worker accused of murdering his colleague at a show has told a court the alleged victim was “waving a hammer” and threatening to hurt people.
Main points:
- The court was shown CCTV footage of a police officer telling Nathaniel Wailu to ‘stay with me’ as he lay on the ground
- The accused’s ex-girlfriend tells the court Kyam Keith Broadby and another man ran after Mr. Wailu, who had threatened him with a hammer
- Court hears triple-0 appeal made by Mareeba exhibition
Tasmanian man Kyam Keith Broadby, 25, is on trial in the Supreme Court in Cairns for the murder of Nathaniel Wailu at the Mareeba show in July 2019.
Mr Wailu, who worked with the accused setting up rides on the show circuit for Tasman Pickett Amusements, was found unconscious on the grounds and died in Townsville Hospital from severe head injuries five days later.
The court heard that Wailu had been drinking with several employees of the show, including Mr. Broadby, and became aggressive, brandishing a hammer at those gathered, including the accused’s ex-girlfriend, Dekoda Bell-Pickett.
Earlier that night, the prosecution alleges Wailu assaulted show employee Elizabeth Marshall, leaving her with a black eye.
The jury was told an emergency phone call made by Ms Bell-Pickett from the exhibition.
“This guy hit the girl in the face and now he’s holding a hammer,” Ms Bell-Pickett told the triple-0 operator.
“I need you here now.
“He hit her in the face.”
Ms Bell-Pickett told the court that Mr Broadby and another man, show worker Darcy Hume, tried to “calm her down [Mr Wailu] down” and that one point, Mr. Wailu received a star pin.
“They were just telling him [Mr Wailu]”Come on man, stop it, what’s going on, this is ridiculous,” Ms Bell-Pickett told the court.
She said Wailu eventually fled into the darkness and Broadby and Hume followed.
She said the men returned to the camp separately about “five to 10 minutes later”, without Mr. Wailu and that she had not seen Mr. Broadby for several days.
The court played the police camera vision
The court was shown a shocking vision of Mr. Wailu with the body camera as he lay wounded on the threshold of a caravan inside the exhibition.
Senior Constable Justin Staples from Mareeba Police is heard telling Wailu to “stay with me”.
“Come on, keep breathing,” he is heard telling Mr Wailu.
“Come on mate, stay with me.”
The senior Staples employee told the court that Wailu was lying on his side.
“His breathing was labored, it was short and sharp … he had blood on his face and on the back of his head,” he said.
The trial, before Judge Susan Brown, is expected to continue next week.
