THREE men accused of murdering ice dealer David King in what prosecutors have labelled a "drug rip gone wrong" went to Salt Ash to buy methamphetamine and had no plans to commit a robbery, a jury has heard.
Mr King, 45, of Tanilba Bay, was killed when he was shot once at close range in the back of the head with a shortened shotgun while allegedly trying to flee a "drug rip" in Hideaway Drive on August 29, 2021.
Behind the wheel of a ute, and with two passengers on board, Mr King tried to speed away, swerving back and forth across the road five times before a witness heard a gunshot and the car careered into a tree.
Two men, one armed with a firearm, then got out covered in blood, the court has heard.
It is the prosecution case that Mr King was shot by either Mr Cage or Mr Lowcock, who were in the car with him at the time he was gunned down, while Mr Stamp was waiting nearby in a hired Hyundai Santa Fe.
The trio are accused of conspiring to rob Mr King, a mid-level methamphetamine dealer, and allegedly used the woman as an intermediary because she had a close friendship with Mr King and could "open the door" and get him to "let his guard down", Crown prosecutor Liam Shaw said during his opening address on Wednesday.
But Mr Shaw said the trio did not go to Salt Ash with the intention of shooting Mr King, instead intending to rob him while armed with the shortened shotgun.
Mr Shaw said it was the prosecution case that the three men were guilty of murder based on an extended joint criminal enterprise; that there was an agreement to rob Mr King with a loaded firearm and the men foresaw the possibility that Mr King would be shot and killed with at least an intention to cause grievous bodily harm.
After listening to Mr Shaw's opening address on Wednesday, the jury on Thursday heard from Public Defender Angus Webb, for Mr Cage, and Public Defender Peter Krisenthal, for Mr Stamp.
Mr Webb said there was no dispute the three men were in Salt Ash on the day Mr King was killed but said they went to Hideaway Drive to complete a drug transaction and had made no plans to rob the 45-year-old.
He said any text messages between Mr Cage and others, that the prosecution claimed showed planning to commit a robbery, could be viewed as "idiotic and idle chit-chat".
And he said the intermediary had "very deliberately" kept the identity of Mr King from Mr Cage when brokering the drug deal and in one message Mr Cage had asked if the woman would be bringing the drugs to him.
"It's not Mr Cage saying "set me up with this guy, where is he, where can I meet him"? Mr Webb said. "It does not happen."
Mr Webb said the intermediary who witnessed the lead-up to the shooting denied in a police interview that she saw Mr Cage holding a gun when he walked back to Mr King's car before the shooting.
What happened next is the central issue in the trial.
The prosecution case is that after negotiating the price of half an ounce of methamphetamine and testing the drugs, Mr Cage returned to Mr King's car and said "give me all the drugs now, hand me all the drugs".
Mr King complied, but Mr Cage allegedly said "that's not all you have, give me more and give me all your money".
The woman who had set up the deal tried to stop Mr Cage and screamed out, but was allegedly kicked in the chest by Mr Cage.
At this time, Mr King attempted to speed away with Mr Cage in his car.
Mr Lowcock was nearby and allegedly yelled out "stop the f---ing car" before diving into the back seat.
Mr King's car took off down Hideaway Drive, swerving back and forth before the woman heard a gunshot and the car veered off the road and crashed into a tree.
The woman is expected to give evidence that she ran after the car and then saw Mr Cage get out of the vehicle covered in blood and Mr Lowcock get out holding a firearm.
The men allegedly took a number of items from Mr King's car and kidnapped the woman, telling her "shut the f--- up, you're coming with us."
The group drove back to Raymond Terrace, changed cars and Mr Stamp was told to take the hired Santa Fe and torch it.
He was captured on CCTV in Heatherbrae, where the vehicle was later found burnt out.
Mr Cage and Mr Stamp have pleaded guilty to damaging property by fire in relation to the vehicle.
During his opening address, Mr Krisenthal said while Mr Stamp accepted responsibility for burning the car, he strongly denied he was party to the murder of Mr King or the abduction of the witness.
"The assertion that he was party to the armed robbery that led to the death of Mr King is very much in dispute," Mr Krisenthal said. "Mr Stamp's case is that he was there on the understanding that there was to be a purchase of drugs. A purchase of drugs and nothing more. "It is very much in dispute that he was aware of any plan to rob, aware of the existence of a firearm and that he ever saw the possibility that David King would be shot and fatally wounded."
The trial continues.
